James S: Carrying on the Legacy of a Family of Educators

James comes from a family of educators where his mothers worked as a teacher and administrator for over 40+ years. He is now a science teacher in Salisbury, Maryland. He studied environmental and marine science in college with the goal to become a marine biologist, but during his breaks back at home he would substitute teach and stay connected with his old teachers. After graduation he worked as an environmental consultant.

“It led me to one of those many times in life when you start reflecting about what direction you are going in and determining what matters. I was reflecting on what kind of impact I was making on our society. My current job was about policy and saving companies money and I thought, ‘this is not what I want to do.’”

James always had immense respect for teachers and had always wanted to give it a try.

“I was thinking about becoming a college professor as I have my Masters, but then one of the high schools needed an environmental science teacher. The department head was my old principal as a kid and he called me up and I gave it a shot.”

“My first year of teaching was hard. It was one of those ‘make you or break you’ kind of years. I remember the summer after I woke up, head hanging down, thinking ‘wow what a year’ but then thought ‘how can I improve my teaching?’ 18 years later here we are.”

James’ Masters degree was paid for but in 2008 he started working on a doctoral program and that’s when he got involved with loans. He explains how he wishes he knew more about the loan process and how it would impact him afterwards.

“I am still working on my thesis, having to pause through life’s ups and downs, and am still determined to complete it. Whether I do or not, the debt is still there, though. My loans came from pursuing even more education.”

He knew he needed to get control of the situation.

“I had to get in contact with Navient to make deferments and knew that forgiveness was a mess and politically a big game they’re playing with. I needed something to gain control and get on top of things no matter what is going to happen policy wise.”

James was looking at his NEAMB insurance and came across information about student loans and joined one of Savi’s webinars.

“I thought ‘let me hear what they have to say and what this is about.’ I tuned in and took notes and said ‘okay this can work’ and I started the process. I was a little worried at first with understanding all of the different acronyms but Savi actually worked well and determined I was eligible for forgiveness. I signed all of my documents and am waiting for my county HR so the process can continue.”

His advice to other educators is to make sure you know all the details of the loan program you take.

“Have a plan and keep all the paperwork. If there was a plan or coaching available to me, I’d be better off. Having coaches is important and where Savi is providing that service is wonderful. Savi has a better understanding of what’s expected and each agent I spoke with helped out a lot.”

James has shared his story with Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and NEA leadership.

Educators that are members of the National Education Association (NEA) can also take advantage of Savi as a member benefit available to them by visiting www.neamb.com/savi.