A record number of applicants were designated as recipients of the Iowa Registered Nurse and Nurse Educator Loan Forgiveness Program, according to numbers released today (Monday), by Iowa College Student Aid Commission. The program, started in 2007 to offer loan repayment assistance to registered nurses employed in Iowa and nurse educators teaching at eligible colleges and universities in Iowa, received 309 applicants in the 2014-15 school year, an increase of 18.8 percent from the 260 applications received for the 2013-14 award. The designated recipients could qualify for an average loan repayment award of $1,850 (based on full-time employment).

The number of nurse educators, who are given priority to the program’s fund, almost doubled in 2014-15, attracting 56 applicants to the program. To be eligible for the Iowa Registered Nurse and Nurse Educator Loan Forgiveness Program, applicants must be a licensed nurse educator employed in Iowa by eligible Iowa colleges or universities; or a licensed registered nurse employed as a nurse in Iowa.

Cumulatively, the 56 recipients of the Iowa Registered Nurse and Nurse Educator Loan Forgiveness Program have $2,275,261 in outstanding federal student loans with an average debt of $40,630 per person

For more information on the Iowa Registered Nurse and Nurse Educator Loan Forgiveness Program, visit https://www.iowacollegeaid.gov/content/iowa-registered-nurse-nurse-educator-loan-forgiveness-program.