John R. Justice Student Loan Repayment Program

This federally-funded program provides loan repayment awards to public prosecutors and defenders employed in the state of Iowa who agree to remain in their positions for 3 years. Renewal of this award is contingent upon future funding, employment, and each recipient completing renewal applications for funding by the priority deadline.

Eligibility Criteria

An applicant must:

  • Meet the definition of an eligible prosecutor or public defender in the State of Iowa (see definitions in Appendix A and Appendix B of the new recipient application);
  • Must have been employed in an eligible position on or before January 1, 2016;
  • Complete and file annual applications by the deadline established by the Iowa College Aid. If funds remain available after the application deadline, the Iowa College Aid will continue to accept applications;
  • Have outstanding eligible educational loan debt, described as one of the following:
    • Federal Subsidized Stafford loans;
    • Federal Unsubsidized Stafford loans;
    • Federal Perkins loans;
    • Federal Graduate PLUS loans;
    • Federal Consolidation loans (excluding those used to repay Federal Parent PLUS Loans).
  • Be employed in an eligible prosecutor or public defender position for each year of the three-year contract period;
  • Must be continually licensed to practice law in the State of Iowa;
  • Must be employed full-time, which is not less than 75 percent of the forty hour work week; and
  • Must not be in default on any federal student loans

Required Application and Documents

  • Currently not accepting applications.

This project was supported by Grant No. 2017-RJ-BX-0010 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the SMART Office, and the Office for Victims of Crime. Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not represent the official position or policies of the United States Department of Justice.