CHEYENNE - Though some senators said boosting pay would do more to encourage teachers to stay in Wyoming, the Senate favored a proposal to forgive their student loans.

The legislation, which was approved 22-7 on Thursday, will head back to the House for a vote on Senate changes.

The goal is to address Wyoming's shortage of teachers, a problem that's only expected to get worse as many of Wyoming's educators approach retirement age.

Some lawmakers said that forgiving loans for people who teach in Wyoming for at least two years after college would not be as effective as giving them a raise.

"An incentive at the front is just sort of a Band-Aid toward what's probably a pretty big problem in this state," Sen. Jayne Mockler, D-Cheyenne, said.

Majority Floor Leader John Schiffer, R-Kaycee, said the program would be awkward for the state to administer. "We're going to have to look at salaries," he said. "Let's make them attractive, let's make them competitive."

But the chairman of the Senate Education Committee, Sen. Hank Coe, R-Cody, said Wyoming isn't as desperate for teachers as states like Nevada and thus can't compete with how much those states are willing to pay.

He pointed out that the Legislature has increased education funding 61 percent over the past few years, leaving it up to school districts whether to increase salaries.

"I think we've got a good bill here. We've spent a lot of time on it over the interim," he said.

The loan program would be paid for with $400,000 from the General Fund.

To have loans repaid, a recipient would have to work in a Wyoming school district for at least two years of the first four years after graduation. A teacher deployed by the military would have five years to fulfill the requirement.

To qualify, a student would have to be at least a junior at the University of Wyoming, be in good standing academically and be enrolled in a teacher education program.

Also, the student previously would have had to apply for federal assistance.