Segal AmeriCorps Education Award

The Segal AmeriCorps Education Award is a post-service benefit received by individuals who complete terms of national service in approved AmeriCorps programs.

Upon successful completion of your term, you will access your education award through the AmeriCorps Portal. 

How to Request Your Award

  1. Log into the My AmeriCorps Portal at https://my.americorps.gov/mp/login.do.

  2. Under “My Education Award” (on the left) select “Create Education Award Payment Request.”

  3. Fill out the form, paying particular attention to the “Payment Type” and “Amount Authorized” fields.

  4. Select the institution to be paid by using the “Search for Institutions” link. If your school or loan company has not registered in My AmeriCorps, they will not be on the list of institutions in the system. In this case:

    • After you complete a search and your institution does not appear, click the “Not Found” link.

    • Enter as much information as you can about your institution or loan company into the fields.

  5. Submit the form. These requests may be processed manually and may take several weeks.

  6. Once you click “Submit” a notice will be sent electronically to your institution or loan company. A record of your request will appear in your account home page. The institution or loan company will complete their portion of the form and return it electronically to the Corporation for National and Community Service.

If you encounter any problems, call the national service hotline at 1-800-942-2677.

 

Loan Forbearance

What is Loan Forbearance?

If you have federal student loans, you might be eligible to get part of the interest that accumulates during your service term paid for you. Forbearance means that you neither make payments nor pay interest on your loan(s) over a specified period of time. In other words, you will not have to make payments on your loan(s) while you serve. Then after you successfully complete service, the National Service Trust will pay the interest that gathered while you were a member.

How do I apply for forbearance?

Loans do not go into forbearance automatically. There is a forbearance process to follow, the earlier in your term, the better.

  1. Submit a “forbearance request”found on the left side of the screen in your AmeriCorps Portal (americorps.gov). You’ll need to know the name of the lending school or institution, including the city, state and zip code.

  2. After you have finished your term and OUSF has finished processing your exit paperwork you’ll receive an email notifying you of your successful completion. You may then go back to your AmeriCorps Portal and complete the “interest accrual request”, also found on the left side of your screen.

Do my loans qualify for forbearance?

Forbearance applies to most federal loans with two exceptions; Parent-Plus loans and Perkins Loans. Private loans do not qualify for forbearance.

How much of my interest will be paid?

The portion of your interest that the National Service trust will pay depends on the term hours you serve. To find out how to calculate the amount of interest the Trust will pay click here.

A note for those planning on working in the non-profit or government sector in the future:

If you put your loans into forbearance and want to count your service term toward the 10-year Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, there are specific steps to follow. Click on the link for more information. Visit the CNCS website for even more information about loan forbearance.