Susan K. Patrick

@susankpatrick.bsky.social

1095 Followers 305 Following

Senior researcher at Learning Policy Institute. DC-based. Studying inequities in learning for students and teachers. Working to strengthen the educator workforce. Opinions are my own. Mom, feminist, avid reader.

Session information for AERA 2026: Mitigating Financial Barriers for Teaching Candidates: Federal, State, and Local Approaches to Service Scholarships Sat, April 11, 7:45 to 9:15am PDT (10:45am to 12:15pm EDT), JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. LIVE, Floor: 4th Floor, Diamond 2 Session Type: Symposium Abstract Financial challenges are often cited as key barriers to expanding and diversifying the teacher pipeline. Service scholarships offer one pathway to reduce upfront preparation costs and debt for teaching candidates and incentivize more people into teaching. This symposium delves into the implementation, analysis, and potential impact of these scholarships through policy, research, and practice perspectives. Two presentations describe the national policy landscape and implementation of federal programs supporting teacher preparation, including the TEACH grant. The remaining presentations share research on previously unstudied service scholarships, a statewide program in California and a local one in Wisconsin. Two discussants—teacher preparation leaders from each state—offer a critical practitioner lens and discuss program implementation and impact at their campuses.
This figure shows the amount of loan-related stress reported by teachers who still had loan debt. Among these teachers, 3.9% reported very low stress, 10.0% reported low stress, 26.1% reported moderate stress, 22.5% reported high stress, and 37.6% reported very high stress. This analysis uses the 2020-21 National Teacher and Principal Survey.
This figure shows the percent of all teachers and Black teachers who reported still owing money on their student loan debt by years of experience. Among all teachers with 21-25 years of experience, 20.7% reported still owing money on their debt. Among Black teachers with 21-25 years of experience, 48.3% reported still owing money on their debt. This analysis uses the 2020-21 National Teacher and Principal Survey.
This figure shows the distribution of loan borrowing among public school teachers by years of experience. Among teachers with 1-3 years of experience, 35.3% never borrowed, 7.1% borrowed but have repaid all of their debt, 32.6% borrowed and still owe some of their debt, and 25.0% borrowed and still owe all of their debt. This analysis uses the 2020-21 National Teacher and Principal Survey.
This figure shows the distribution of loan borrowing among public school teachers. 39.7% of teachers never borrowed, 23.1% borrowed but have repaid all of their debt, 25.7% borrowed and still owe some of their debt, and 11.5% borrowed and still owe all of their debt. This analysis uses the 2020-21 National Teacher and Principal Survey.