If you are a Spencerian College graduate struggling to make your student loan payments, you may be wondering if there is any way to get relief. Luckily, a few loan forgiveness and repayment options are available to you.
The Department of Education offers a few different loan forgiveness programs available to Spencerian College graduates.
This article will outline the different loan forgiveness and repayment options available to you, as well as the eligibility requirements for each program.
About Spencerian College
Spencerian College was a private, for-profit college located in Louisville, Kentucky.
The school was founded in 1892 by Enos Spencer as the Spencerian Commercial School.
However, in 2018 Spencerian College and Sullivan College of Technology and Design were instructed by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to merge their programs and students into one institution.
As a result, Spencerian College became part of Sullivan University and changed its name to Sullivan College of Technology and Design.
The college offers a variety of programs in the fields of business, healthcare, and technology.
Loan Forgiveness Programs
There are a few different loan forgiveness programs available to Spencerian College graduates.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness
The first is the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. This program forgives the remaining balance on your Direct Loans after you have made 120 qualifying monthly payments while working full-time for a qualifying public service organization.
However, thanks to a recent change in the program, some requirements have been eased out. A waiver from the Department of Education allows borrowers to qualify for forgiveness based on their qualifying public service employment regardless of their loan type or repayment plan.
This new waiver is set to expire on October 31, 2022.
To know more about this, please click here.
Borrower Defense to Repayment
The Borrower Defense to Repayment (BDR) program is for borrowers defrauded or misled by their school. To qualify, you must submit a claim to the Department of Education proving that the school you attended violated state law.
The Department of Education will then review the claim and determine if the school violated any laws or regulations. If your claim is approved and the school is found guilty of violating laws or regulations, the borrower will be eligible for total loan forgiveness.
Income-Based Repayment
The Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan is a repayment plan that caps your monthly student loan payments at a percentage of your income.
After making 25 qualifying monthly payments, you may be eligible for loan forgiveness. There are four different Income-Driven Repayment Plans: the Income-Based Repayment Plan, the Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan, the Revised Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan, and the Income-Contingent Repayment Plan.
The IBR plan is available to all federal student loan borrowers, including direct loans, Stafford Loans, and PLUS Loans.
Student Loan Consolidation
If you are struggling to make your monthly student loan payments, you may also want to consider consolidating your loans.
When you consolidate your loans, you are essentially taking out a new loan that pays off your existing loans.
You will then have one monthly payment to make instead of multiple payments.
You can consolidate your loans through the Department of Education or a private lender.
Closed School Loan Discharge
If Spencerian College closed while you were enrolled or unable to complete your program of study due to the school’s closure, you might be eligible for a closed school loan discharge.
To be eligible for a closed school loan discharge, you must meet the following criteria:
- You must have Direct Loans, FFEL Program Loans, or Perkins Loans.
- you were enrolled when your school closed
- You must have been unable to complete your program of study because the school closed.
- You were on an approved leave of absence when your school closed;
Total and Permanent Disability Discharge
If you are totally and permanently disabled, you may be eligible for a total and permanent disability (TPD) discharge.
This type of discharge is available to a Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program, a Federal Perkins Loan, or to complete a TEACH Grant service obligation.
To be eligible, you must submit proof of your disability to Nelnet, the servicer that assists ED with the TPD discharge process.
The proof can be in the form of a certification from a physician or other medical professional that you cannot work and earn money because of an injury or illness.
Spencerian College Lawsuit.
In 2013, Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway filed a consumer-protection lawsuit against Spencerian College for alleged misrepresentation of job placement data.
According to Conway, the school violated the Kentucky Consumer Protection Act by making unfair, untrue, or deceptive statements about the student hiring rates.
The lawsuit claimed that Spencerian College used false and misleading data to recruit students and give them the impression that they would find a job after graduation.
This includes statements made on the school’s website, recruitment materials, and presentations to prospective students. The disparities between the placement rates and the actual employment outcomes significantly differed by 30- 40%.
More about this case can be found here.
Need Help with student loans?
If you’re having difficulty keeping up with your student loan payments, or want to learn more about your alternatives, do not hesitate to contact us. You can call or fill out a form and speak to one of our student loan advisors.
We have a number of resources that can help you make the best decision for your financial future.
