Teacher Recruitment and Retention Act of 2001

The Teacher Recruitment and Retention Act of 2001 (H.R. 687) was designed to make it easier for educators to qualify for federal student loan forgiveness. If enacted, the bill would have doubled the maximum amount of loan forgiveness from $5,000 to $10,000 and removed the requirement that teachers complete five consecutive years of service before receiving benefits.

The legislation also aimed to expand the program to more teachers by eliminating restrictions on which borrowers could participate and increasing the types of subjects and school locations that qualify. For citizens, these changes were intended to provide more immediate financial relief to teachers and help schools across the country attract and keep qualified staff in various high-need areas. The bill was referred to a House subcommittee in April 2001 but did not advance further during that session of Congress.