The federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF) was established over 15 years ago to provide student loan borrowers who commit to a decade of service to the country, state, or community, relief from federal student loan debt. This promise of relief is often the difference maker in a graduate’s decision to enter a public service industry. With wages remaining stagnant and the cost of an education continuously increasing, student loan relief is more badly needed than ever.
 
The Biden administration has gone to great lengths to fix and fulfill the promise of PSLF, most recently by addressing a key group of public servants that had been left out of the program since its inception. Adjunct and part-time faculty represent nearly half of all educators in higher education. That means roughly one in every two professors on a college campus are not full-time employees. Previously, in order to qualify for PSLF, a faculty member had to be hired on a full-time basis and be credited with at least 30 hours of work per week. This requirement had left part-time and adjunct faculty, who spend limited hours in a classroom, ineligible for PSLF.
 
As anyone who has worked in higher education or has attended a post-secondary institution understands, the work of an educator is not limited to the hours spent in the classroom. Many more hours are spent outside preparing coursework and lectures, grading exams and papers, and advising students. My legislation would codify recently announced federal guidelines by requiring public institutions of higher education to credit adjunct and part-time faculty 3.35 hours of work for every hour of classroom or lecture time.
 
This adjustment will more accurately reflect the time commitment these educators make and ensure continuing eligibility for PSLF. Please join me sponsoring this crucial legislation.