| Durham Tech was
selected as one of 11 community colleges in the nation for a three-year
pilot project to provide emergency aid for students facing unexpected
expenses. The college is receiving $100,000 over the next three years
to help students who otherwise may drop out of college because of unexpected
minor expenses, such as paying for a car repair bill or temporary childcare.
The Lumina Foundation for Education awarded a $1.5 million grant to
Scholarship America to help design and test the program with a group
of community colleges. All of the colleges selected for the Scholarship
America pilot are part of the "Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges
Count" initiative, which is funded by the Lumina Foundation.
“Community colleges have told us that one way to help keep these
students in school is to establish a fund that would help colleges address
their emergency needs,” said Martha D. Lamkin, CEO and president
of the Lumina Foundation. “This program is designed to support
the success of these students by cultivating a mechanism for institutions
and communities to respond to their particular needs.”
In late 2004 and throughout 2005, Durham Tech leadership emphasized
educating faculty, staff, trustees, and Foundation directors about the
DreamKeepers Emergency Financial Aid Fund. Presentations were made during
each quarterly Board of Trustees and Foundation Board of Directors meeting.
The DreamKeepers Emergency Financial Aid Fund was the focal point of
the 2005 Campus Fund Drive during October, November, and December. In
fact, many on-campus donors designated their annual gifts to the DreamKeepers
fund. The Durham Technical Community College Foundation raised $35,000
in required matching funds for the program.
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It takes determination and
hard work to achieve dreams. But sometimes the unexpected sabotages even
the best made plans. Students’ dreams of a college education can
fade away fast when a personal financial emergency threatens.
 Single
mother Katie Haney’s schedule makes your head spin. She is the
mother of a young daughter, a full-time student taking core classes
in Durham Tech’s Associate Degree Nursing program, and she works
as a server at a busy Durham restaurant. Recently Haney faced a conflict.
“I realized there wasn’t enough money for extra childcare,”
Haney said. She would need to stay home with her child, missing crucial
first days of the semester. Some emergency funds from DreamKeepers allowed
her to start the semester on time — with her daughter safely in
childcare.
 Tracey
Aviles enrolled in Durham Tech after realizing that not having a college
degree was affecting her career path. She is in the University Transfer
program in Business Administration and has a part-time job. When her
husband was laid off from his job, Tracey thought she would have to
quit her studies.
“DreamKeepers was a lifesaver,” she said. The emergency
assistance helped with some pressing bills, enabling Tracey to remain
at Durham Tech.
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