Letters from Institutions of Higher Learning began arriving this month to inform graduates and students in veterinary medicine, education, and nursing that their student loans cannot be forgiven for this year. After budget cuts, the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid was left with the same funding level last year but with more eligible applicants for the 2016-2017 fiscal year. This decision to end loan forgiveness eligibility is being made in response to the financial crisis. Officials believe that demand will exceed available funds by $11million. One of those emails was sent to Sheila Gaudet in Hattiesburg by a teacher of special education. Sheila Gaudet, a Hattiesburg special education teacher, received one of those emails June 7. Teachers who teach in critical shortage areas or in critical subject areas can benefit from the Teacher Loan Repayment program. This includes special education and math. Gaudet, a single parent with two children, stated that while it is disappointing, the program makes a significant impact. She said that her loan was forgiven for $330 last semester, and that it made a difference because she was a single parent earning a salary as a teacher. IHL states that no loan forgiveness funding will ever be granted to school counselors or administrators, graduate teachers and health care professionals, minorities and veterinarian medicine, and stipends to nursing teachers. Brad Pressley, a North Mississippi science teacher, had $6,000 of undergraduate debt forgiven by the program. He was to have $3,000 forgiven in 2016-2017, his third year. It won’t really affect how I spend my money, but it will have some mental impact on my spending habits. Pressley stated that he knows several teachers who live in North Mississippi about an hour from the Tennessee-Alabama state line. He also said that he hears how much better they are treated. Pressley said, “It really got my thinking, “Well, my state’s really not on my side here.” The state board overseeing financial aid made other adjustments to the loan forgiveness programs. These included changing the definition for “full-time student” from one who is taking 12 hours per semester to one that is taking 15 hours. This reduces the number eligible students to the program. Jim Turcotte is the chair of Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board. He stated that defining a full-time student as having 15 credits hours instead of 12 allows more students to “Finish In Four” and encourages them to take four years of university or four semesters at community colleges. Also, the board made changes to the Higher Education Legislative Plan for needy students (HELP), which is the only state-based merit and need-based aid program. It covers full tuition for qualified students up to five years. Officials at IHL claim that the IHL has seen the largest increase in eligible students as more low-income students demonstrate college readiness. They also approved freezing the income threshold at $39500, as mandated by the state Legislature. This clarified that all HELP recipients must complete high school core curriculum. It also reduced the eligibility period from 10 to 8 semesters.