ISAC Student PortalIllinois Teachers Loan Repayment Program
The number of awards made through this program, as well as the individual dollar amount awarded, are subject to sufficient annual appropriations by the Illinois General Assembly and the Governor.
You may either scroll through this page, or click on any of the following links to go directly to a specific topic:
Program Description
Eligibility
How to Apply (and Obtaining the Application)
How Funds Are Awarded and Disbursed
Changes to Application Data
Processing Updates
The Illinois Teachers Loan Repayment Program provides awards to encourage academically talented Illinois students to teach in Illinois schools in low-income areas. A listing of Illinois schools in low-income areas is provided at the U.S. Department of Education’s Teacher Cancellation Low Income Directory. If these obligations are met by a Federal Stafford loan borrower who has qualified for the federal government’s loan forgiveness programs, Illinois may provide an additional matching award of up to $5000 to the qualifying teacher to repay their student loan debt.
Although the Illinois program was initially available also to child care providers, the federal Child Care Provider Loan Forgiveness Program received no funding beyond the demonstration program, and does not accept applications. Consequently, there is no application for the Illinois Child Care Providers Program.
Eligibility
To be eligible, you must:
- Be a U.S. citizen or an eligible non-citizen
- Be an Illinois resident
- Be a borrower who has had an amount of your educational loans forgiven under the federal government’s loan forgiveness programs
- Have a balance remaining on your eligible student loan(s)
- Have fulfilled your five-year teaching obligation in an Illinois elementary or secondary school designated as a low-income school.
How to Apply
May 31, 2026 was the last day on which the Illinois Teachers Loan Repayment Program application for the 2026 Award Year was accepted.
When available each year, access the Illinois Teachers Loan Repayment Program application via the Applications page of this website. Submit the application, along with any required documentation, to ISAC’s Deerfield office. Required documentation includes, but is not limited to, a copy of your completed federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness application and a copy of the letter indicating you have been approved for the federal program. See the application for a description of all required documentation. The completed application (including all required corresponding documentation) must be submitted to ISAC within six (6) months of the date on the Notice of Federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness eligibility from the federal government.
Allow at least 12 weeks for processing of the application. Qualified applicants are sent a Notice of Eligibility from ISAC.
Changes to Application Data
If, after submission, you need to change your response(s) to any item(s) and/or update any information after the application has been submitted, you will need to provide the information to ISAC. Examples of items that may need to be updated include demographic information (i.e., name, address, telephone number, etc.), and/or information about your outstanding loans and the loan holder/servicer. These changes can be submitted to ISAC using one of the below methods, but cannot be done over the telephone.
- via email to [email protected]
- via FAX to 847.831.8549
- via letter to ISAC, Program Operations, 1755 Lake Cook Road, Deerfield, IL 60015-5209
The request must include the last four digits of your Social Security number (for identification purposes) and clearly state what change(s) need to be made. These changes will not affect the application "received date."
How Funds Are Awarded and Disbursed
The total amount of awards each year is contingent upon available funding. If funding in any given year is insufficient to pay all eligible applicants, awarding will be based on the date the complete application (with all required documentation) is received at ISAC’s Deerfield office.
There is a minimum 4-5 week turnaround from the date approved recipients are notified by ISAC to when funds are disbursed. Depending on the volume of payment vouchers being processed by the State of Illinois Comptroller’s Office, this timeframe may increase. Proceeds will be remitted directly to the holder/servicer/lender of the loan(s) to be repaid.
Processing Updates
Note that ISAC routinely updates this section as new information becomes available. Be sure to check back periodically for the current processing status.
For the 2026 Award Year
(last updated on June 1, 2026):
The Illinois Teachers Loan Repayment Program applications for the 2026 Award Year is no longer available. May 31, 2026 was the last day on which this application was accepted.
If you have been notified that you have an incomplete application, please respond to the letter you received with the necessary documentation by Friday, June 12, 2026.
Allow at least 12 weeks for application processing. Applicants are notified by ISAC regarding their eligibility status. There is a minimum 4-5 week turnaround from the date approved recipients are notified by ISAC to when funds are disbursed. Depending on the volume of payment vouchers being processed by the State of Illinois Comptroller’s Office, this timeframe may increase.
