Secretary-Treasurer Loretta Johnson announced this week that there are two new programs from AFT+ Member Benefits. Check it out!
- Free College through Eastern Gateway Community College in Ohio, a fully accredited, nonprofit public institution that is part of the University System of Ohio. Students can enroll in the online distance-learning program with no costs for tuition, fees, or e-texts. Credits earned can be transferred to a four-year college; to date, credits have transferred to 320 educational institutions in 39 states. The program offers seven associate degrees, including business administration, early childhood education, accounting, paralegal, criminal justice and two certificate programs. This is open to all AFT members, including retirees, as well as their spouses/domestic partners, children, grandchildren, step-children, step-grandchildren, and legal dependents. How does it work? Under an academic partnership with Eastern Gateway Community College, the Union Plus Free College Benefit offers grants—known as “last dollar scholarships”—that fill the gap between any federal, state and employer education grants for tuition, fees, and e-books for certain online programs at Eastern Gateway.
- Mortgage Program through Amalgamated Bank
New York’s first “union bank” to offer a new home financing program. The program offers competitive interest rates and discounts on mortgages and refinancing solutions. The mission of Amalgamated Bank is one we can all ascribe to as union members and public servants, “to be the financial institution for progressive people and organizations: those who are working and living to make the world more just, more compassionate, and more sustainable.”
Program highlights:
- Flexible adjustable-rate mortgages and stable fixed-rate mortgages;
- Refinance lending options;
- Competitive rates and timely approvals;
- An easy prequalification and online application process;
- $700 in discounts on origination fees for AFT members; and
- Strike protection eligibility, where Amalgamated Bank will waive up to three late-payment fees if a member’s local is on strike.
Share this link to the Amalgamated Mortgage Program: https://www.amalgamatedbank.com/aft-home-financing-program. Or request a flier to copy and distribute to members, contact AFTplus@aft.org.