NANTICOKE, Pa. — For some students at Luzerne County Community College (LCCC) in Nanticoke, life's challenges kept them from finishing their degrees.
"We watched helplessly as many of our students selflessly gave up their dreams and their education to take care of themselves, their families, and to simply survive," said Laura Kapalka, LCCC's director of financial aid.
So, the college has set up a new initiative to get those students back in the classroom. It's called the RESTART Program. It's for any former student from August of 2012 through August of 2022 with unpaid tuition fees of $200 or more.
"This innovative program will help in breaking down one of the largest barriers to higher education that people have, which is the cost," said Christie Jensen from PA CareerLink in Luzerne County.
"We learned from meeting people firsthand from conversations that people described what they needed and how we can help them, so the RESTART Program is about those results," said LCCC President Thomas Leary.
Campus leaders say through the RESTART Program, nearly 6,000 students may be eligible to return to campus.
One of those students is Gerlin Vasquez, who aspires to become a dentist. She put her education on hold a couple years ago when medical issues kept her from attending classes. Now, because of the RESTART Program, she will be back to campus this summer.
"I'm very excited," Vasquez said. 'I'm looking forward to it. I might be a little rusty since I haven't been in school for a while, but I am looking forward to finally getting to where I need to be."
Luzerne County Community College will have an open house for former students. Find more information on the RESTART Program here.
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