Last year, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) made headlines with his “Adjunct Faculty Loan Fairness Act,” a bill that would have made it much easier for part-time faculty to benefit from the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, designed to encourage graduates to pursue a career in public service by offering loan forgiveness for those working full-time in government or the non-profit sector.

This program, established as part of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, offers loan forgiveness after 120 monthly on-time payments toward federal student loan debt over at least 10 years of “full-time” work — defined as a minimum of 30 hours per week on average per year.

While no part-time faculty member could reach this 30-hour threshold within a single college district, due to the state’s restriction of part-time faculty to an annualized average of 0.67 percent of a full-time teaching load within any district, combined assignments across districts and non-profit institutions (including private universities) may make you eligible now.

> For more information about how to determine your eligibility, email the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.