Commission on Loan Repayment and Forgiveness State LRAP Toolkit: A Resource Guide for Creating State Loan Repayment Assistance Programs for Public Service Lawyers

American Bar Association - 030013

Abstract Number: 030013

March 2003

The American Bar Association's (ABA) Commission on Loan Repayment and Forgiveness (CLRF) created the State Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) Toolkit to provide support to parties interested in implementing a statewide loan repayment program. The ABA's CLRF created this toolkit due to the increasing financial debt faced by many recent law school graduates, many owing as much as $80,000 upon graduation. The goal behind this effort is to alleviate this burdensome debt and, in doing so, allow recent law graduates the opportunity to pursue a career in public interest law without facing extreme financial hardship themselves.

The ABA designed this toolkit to provide users both with a background on currently existing statewide LRAPs as well as practical strategies and tools to help interested parties implement LRAPs in new states. In addition to details about the eight existing statewide LRAPs, the toolkit includes a detailed checklist which raises important questions such as eligibility requirements, program structure, oversight responsibilities, and more. Sample legislation is also included in this toolkit accompanied by an in depth analysis of the legislation with suggestions on ways to craft it to meet the goals and requirements of a particular program. The toolkit includes a section which suggests ways to develop support for the program as well as appendixes containing additional useful information. The toolkit is organized into the following chapters:

1. Introduction
2. History of State Loan Repayment Assistance Programs
3. LRAP Checklist: Creating a State Loan Repayment Assistance Program
4. Loan Repayment Assistance Program Sample State Legislation
5. Analysis of Loan Repayment Assistance Program Sample State Legislation
6. Tips on Developing a Statewide Campaign for a Loan Repayment Assistance Program
7. Other Resources
8. Appendices

Access the full toolkit below as a PDF document from the ABA's website.

Contact Information:

Dina Merrell
Director, ABA Center for Pro Bono
ABA Commission on Loan Repayment and Forgiveness
541 N. Fairbanks Ct., 15th FL
Chicago, IL 60611
Phone: (312) 988-5773
Fax: (312) 988-5483
Email

Additional Information:

• State LRAP Toolkit: A Resource Guide for Creating State Loan Repayment Assistance Programs for Public Service Lawyers, American Bar Association's Commission on Loan Repayment and Forgiveness, 2003.

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