In 2016, city officials in Memphis were in a quandary. They needed to do something to attract and retain city employees, particularly those in the police and fire departments.
A taskforce set up to look at low retention among city employees found that low pay and benefits played a major role in why people weren’t attracted to city jobs.
The findings led the city to look at innovative ways to attract and retain employees. One possible solution was to offer assistance in paying off student loans. Memphis, city officials reasoned, would be an early adopter of tuition assistance in the public sector, which would give them a competitive advantage over other municipalities.
Memphis officials explained the program during a Congressional Staff Network site visit in February. More than 15 congressional staffers, along with JFF’s federal policy team, visited the city to learn about Memphis’ education, workforce development, and poverty alleviation efforts. Student loan debt came up as one of the many issues facing Memphis residents.