Nonprofit Careers and College Loans
Loan forgiveness, fellowships, employee reimbursement, loan cancellation, whatever you may want to call it; the reduction of loan costs is the key to encouraging individuals to follow their dreams and work in the nonprofit or government sector.
Any program that has the individual working for a number of years to forgive the balance of the loan does not provide the correct incentive. It is the entry-level stage of an individual’s career that requires the individual to be able to afford their expenses first in selecting a job.College loans require the individual to have to obtain a salary above a living wage.
An individual will have monthly college loan payments in the range of $150-$450 a month, which is $1,800-$5,400 a year.
Training is an ongoing need regardless of whether it’s in the nonprofit and government field.Therefore, your organization should have linkages and affiliations with your local colleges. Provide the colleges with a list of the specific skill set needs of your organization. As part of your retention and recruitment initiative set aside funds to provide hiring bonuses and employee reimbursement to cover the college expense or loan cost.
College expenses have exceeded inflation every year for many years for a while causing their nonprofit status to begin to be questioned. How does a college expect anyone to afford college loan. What is the living wage in your local area? The sample below is an outline to consider when calculating a living wage for your local area.
|
40 hour job at ‘$11 an hour wage vs $16 an hour wage |
||||||
|
|
|
Individual |
|
Family of 4 |
||
|
- |
|
$22,880.00 |
|
|
$33,280 |
|
|
- |
|
Mthly $11hrly |
Yearly Costs |
|
Mthly $16hrly |
Yearly Costs |
|
Monthly Income |
|
$1,906.67 |
$22,880.00 |
|
$2,773.33 |
$33,280.00 |
|
Expenses |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Housing |
45% |
$850.00 |
$10,200.00 |
45% |
$1,236.36 |
$14,836.36 |
|
Health Ins $480 ind $780 fam (80%/20% split) |
5% |
$96.00 |
$1,152.00 |
6% |
156 |
$1,872.00 |
|
Food $11 day ind $77 wk (fam x 2) |
16% |
$308.00 |
$3,696.00 |
22% |
$616.00 |
$7,392.00 |
|
Transportation ($35 wk gas & maint) |
7% |
$140.00 |
$1,680.00 |
5% |
$140.00 |
$1,680.00 |
|
Clothing |
5% |
$100.00 |
$1,200.00 |
7% |
$200.00 |
$2,400.00 |
|
Utilities (phone,heat,electric) |
13% |
$240.00 |
$2,880.00 |
9% |
$240.00 |
$2,880.00 |
|
Taxes state/city/federal/sales |
6% |
$111.54 |
$1,338.48 |
6% |
$162.24 |
$1,946.88 |
|
Subtotal |
97% |
$1,845.54 |
$22,146.48 |
99% |
$2,750.60 |
$33,007.24 |
|
Net for savings/flex spending |
3% |
$61.13 |
$733.52 |
1% |
$22.73 |
$272.76 |
