Maryland Higher Education Commission STUDENT SUCCESS WITH LESS DEBT

Maryland John R. Justice Grant Student Loan Repayment Program

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The Maryland John R. Justice Grant Student Loan Repayment Program is a federal funded program that provides loan repayment assistance for state and federal Maryland public defenders and prosecutors. To receive assistance, the state and federal public defenders and prosecutors agree to remain employed as public defenders and prosecutors for a minimum of three-years. Recipients must sign a three-year service obligation agreement to receive a Maryland John R. Justice Grant. If the grant recipient fails to fulfill the three-year service obligation, the recipient must repay the full grant award. 
 
Purpose: The purpose of the Maryland John R. Justice Grant Student Loan Repayment Program is to encourage qualified individuals to enter and continue employment as prosecutors and public defenders. 

Eligibility: Eligible applicants are Maryland state and federal public defenders and prosecutors who meet the following criteria:
  1. Must be a U.S. Citizen or eligible non-citizen;
  2. ​Must have an outstanding balance due on a qualified education loan(s), which includes Federal Stafford loans, Graduate PLUS loans, consolidation loans, and Perkins loans;
  3. ​Must be an attorney continually licensed to practice law in Maryland, and
  • ​​a full-time employee of the state of Maryland or unit of local government, including tribal government, who prosecutes criminal or juvenile delinquency cases at the state or unit of local government level, including supervision, education, or training of other persons prosecuting such cases;
  • a full-time employee of the state of Maryland or unit of local government, including tribal government, who provides legal representation to indigent persons in criminal or juvenile delinquency cases including supervision, education or training of other persons providing such representation; 
  • a full-time employee of a nonprofit organization operating under a contract with the state of Maryland or unit of local government who devotes substantially all of the employee’s full-time employment to providing legal representation to indigent persons in criminal or juvenile cases including supervision, education, or training of other persons providing such representation; or
  • ​​employed in the state of Maryland as a full-time federal defender attorney in a defender organization pursuant to Section 9 (g) of section 3006A of Title 18, United States Code that provides legal representation to indigent persons in criminal or juvenile delinquency cases; and

     4. Must not be ​in default on a federal guaranteed educational loan or owe a refund on any ​​ scholarship or grant program administered by MHEC’s Office of Student Financial Assistance.

​​        ​Application Closed


For additional information, please contact Priscilla Moore at priscilla.moore@maryland.gov​

The John R. Justice Program is fully funded through the Bureau of Justice Association, United States Department of Justice.