LYNN — North Shore Community College (NSCC) has received an $185,000 grant to fund the Educational Opportunities Center (EOC), which is located on the Lynn campus and helps students with financial hardship access post-secondary education.
The center, which was established in 1973, is aimed at supporting unemployed workers, low-wage workers, and returning high school and college students who are entering or continuing a program of postsecondary education.
EOCs began in 1972 and are part of a set of federal educational opportunity outreach programs known as “TRIO,” which is authorized by the Higher Education Act to help low-income, first-generation students and students with disabilities succeed in higher education.
In fiscal year 2020, there were 139 educational opportunities centers in America, serving more than 192,000 adult learners nationwide. In Lynn, the EOC program works with 925 students per year, 40 percent of whom enroll that same year, according to North Shore Community College.
“As systemic inequality and financial hardship discourages students from succeeding in college, TRIO programs like EOC take on new importance because they continue to help guide un- and underemployed workers and returning high school and college students towards earning a degree,” said NSCC President Dr. William Heineman. “This is truly great news for NSCC and North Shore residents.”
The EOC program provides a number of different services for students, including academic and personal counseling, college-admissions information, and financial and economic literacy.
In addition, students can access tutoring and mentoring, career workshops, financial aid opportunities, and information on postsecondary education opportunities through the center.
The EOC program at NSCC is open to students from a variety of backgrounds, particularly those from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in postsecondary education, such as students with limited English proficiency, individuals with disabilities, homeless students, youth aging out of the foster care system, and other disconnected students.
NSCC is a subcontractor on the grant, which was awarded to applicant MassEdCO, the commonwealth’s largest community-based provider of education and career prepping services to those who are low-income and underrepresented in postsecondary education.
Hannah Chadwick can be reached at [email protected].