STUDENT LOAN RELIEF FOR HURRICANE VICTIMS AND FIRST RESPONDERS

 HARRISBURG, SEPT. 27 – State Sen. Connie Williams announced that a three-month payment suspension is being offered by PHEAA to student borrowers affected by Hurricane Katrina and to those borrowers who are first responders who were called to active duty to assist in hurricane relief efforts.

 “This has been a difficult time for many people – those who lived in the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina and subsequently Hurricane Rita, and those who may have been attending school in those areas,” Williams said. “I applaud PHEAA’s decision to suspend loan payments for the people who were either affected or are deployed to provide aid to the Gulf Coast states.”

 PHEAA announced that it is identifying customer accounts of borrowers who were affected and automatically applying a three-month disaster forebearance to those Federal Family Education Loan Program loans starting on the date of Hurricane Katrina. Borrowers with private loans can contact PHEAA for guidelines and eligibility requirements at 1-800-233-0557. Borrowers called to active duty may qualify for a three-month Administrative Military Mobilization Forbearance and should call 1-800-233-0557.

 Additionally, PHEAA has established a Hurricane Katrina Emergency Grant Assistance Fund for students and families affected by Hurricane Katrina. This fund will be used to provide free grant assistance to students through postsecondary schools in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Delaware. Assistance grants of up to $2,500 will be awarded to students who lived in or attended a postsecondary school in the flood-ravaged region and have subsequently transferred to a school in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Delaware.

 For more information visit PHEAA’s Web site at www.pheaa.org or call one of the toll-free telephone numbers.