Petrina Francis, Education Reporter
SMITH
Ocho Rios, St. Ann
THE JAMAICA Teachers Association (JTA) says it will be seeking a meeting with the Students' Loan Bureau (SLB) following increasing complaints from teachers that they are being denied loans from the agency.
According to the Patrick Smith, Senior Secretary for Member Services at the JTA, many teachers have been refused loans from the SLB because of their income threshold.
According to Mr. Smith, many teachers who have been refused loans are pursuing tertiary training along with one or more children.
Mr. Smith was speaking with The Gleaner on Tuesday at the 41st annual Jamaica Teachers' Association conference. The three day conference ended yesterday.
The senior secretary noted that the JTA's credit union lends up to $150,000 to teachers but because the duration of their programmes may exceed one year, the union is not able to extend the loan to them for the entire period, adding that it might put a strain on the teachers in terms of repayment.
DISCOUNTED LOANS
Ruel Reid, newly installed president of the organisation is urging financial institutions to provide access to discounted education loans for Jamaican teachers. Mr. Reid noted that many offshore universities operating in Jamaica provide access to funding through schemes like the Teri loan programme where individuals can borrow up to US$15,000 per year for 25 years at 6.5 per cent per annum.
He noted that the task force report on education recommends that all teachers have a first degree. According to the president, if a similar plan were to be established for teachers locally, it would assist in the upgrading process.
