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GRADUATION GUIDE / THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2011 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
Wide range of options available for new graduates
BY CLAIRE MCINERNY editor@kansan.com
As some seniors are preparing for jobs and planning their lives after school, some students are experiencing a different scenario: the end of college panic.
Four vea degre knc
er. One opportunity that enables students to make that happen is through Teach for America. Teach For America is a program that allows recent college graduates to teach in public schools in low-income communities. The assignment lasts for two years.
a way to prolong having to find a job,but rather look at it as a way to find new opportunities and new ways for students to use their passions.She said a lot of politicians who now work in Congress were in the program and are now fighting for education rights.
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Wiechman spent his two years in Saint Lucia doing community development. He helped a farmers' cooperative develop a grant proposal to get funding for a composting project from the United Nations and also taught reading and music at a school.
The Peace Corps was an attract-
tion for Wiench because
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
PAGE 20
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County is also participating in student loan program. Photo contributed by the Kansas Department of Commerce
Photo contributed by the Kansas Department of Commerce due to a $15,000 in student loan
Got loans? Consider moving to rural Kansas
BY MATT GALLOWAY
mgalloway@kansan.com
RURAL OPPORTUNITY ZONES
Chicago. New York. Los Angeles These are the major metropolitan areas many Kansas students eagerly anticipate relocating to after graduation.
But moving to rural Greeley County, Kan, population 1,247, may offer a more immediate reward.
offer a more limited Greeley County lies on the western Kansas border and is one of 27 counties in the state participating in the Rural Opportunity Zones student loan repayment program. Under the provisions of the program, the county and the state will repay 20 percent of outstanding student loans, up to $3,000 per year, for graduates of any accredited post-secondary university. There is a $15,000 maximum benefit.
Twenty-three Kansas counties are now "rural opportunity zones," areas in which grauduates can get up to $15,000 in student loan repayment for moving into the area.
The program was signed into law by Gov. Sam Brownback on July 1. Online applications became accessible the same day through the Kansas Department of Commerce website. Public information officer Dan Lara said the department has received 24 applications for the student loan portion of the program.
Lara said he expects most of the other 23 counties in the program to join the 27 in offering the student loan repayment by the Dec. 31 deadline. All 50 are now offering an income tax exemption for people who move from out-of-state.
"We've been very encouraged by the response that we've received from the program and also the applications that we've gotten in." Lara said.
brink, a senior from Mission Hills, said he has only seen rural Kansas while driving through I-70 to Colorado. He said he would consider applying for the program if a county could show it had potential to grow.
native Kawaii Students with loan debt can participate in the program regardless of the year they graduated. Jay Kom-
move from out of state.
The number of KU students who have applied will not be released until transcripts are verified. But of the 24 people who have applied, 21 are native Kansans, Lara said.
"If there is a job opportunity somewhere, that's kind of more important than the money," Krombrink said.
Community development director Christy Hopkins said Greeley County is not a typical rural community.
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"We are a progressive, forwardlooking county," Hopkins said. "Those are the things we really pride ourselves on. We have a unified government, which offers some great advantages as we work on things across the county."
job market. "I know our one dentist in the county came on a program sort of similar to this one," Ludwig said. "He came and started a new business. So hopefully this will attract people who want to come, live in a small town and start their own business."
city, Yates Center, has a population of 1,417 and is about a 100 mile drive southwest from Lawrence.
Woodson County is the farthest east of any county participating in the repayment program. Its largest
Katy Ludwig, the economic development representative for Woodson County, promotes the county to potential residents. She said many of the community's youth do not return after graduation due to a grim job market.
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Ludwig said part of the benefit of living in a small community is that everyone looks out for one another-
"I hope they start a new life here, not just get on their feet and move on." Ludwig said. "I want them to stay here."
2040 W.31st St #B
Lawrence, KS 66046
OPPORTUNITY ZONES BY THE NUMBERS
WOODSON COUNTY
Population: 3,309
Closest to Lawrence
KINGMAN COUNTY
Population: 7,858
Closest to Wichita
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PRATT COUNTY Population: 9,656 Most populated
SHERMAN COUNTY Population: 6,010 Closest to Denver
GREELEY COUNTY Population: 1,247 Least populated