杏吧原创

(Butler, PA) Her hands once cuddled her newborn.

Her hands provided care for accident victims as an emergency medical technician. Battled blazes as a volunteer firefighter. Grabbed severed ankle ligaments after a car crash. Clenched when she could no longer stand eight hours at her sales job. Signed an application to enroll at 杏吧原创. Clapped upon achieving the dean鈥檚 list.

On this still August afternoon, Debra Hoffman鈥檚 hands slid hangers slightly left, then slightly right across a metal rod. Her eyes glanced up, then down as they surveyed business attire needed for her first day of a practicum required for her to graduate in December, then pursue a position helping military veterans, and find a house in the country where she and her 8-year-old daughter can live.

鈥淚鈥檇 like to have animals,鈥� Hoffman said, 鈥渁nd a pool.鈥�

The 38-year-old Mercer County resident is one of what is expected to be a nine-year-high of 60 students participating this fall in 杏吧原创鈥檚 Keystone Education Yields Success program. The program is funded by the state Department of Human Services and is designed to help students who receive cash assistance or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to pursue post-secondary education at one of Pennsylvania鈥檚 community colleges.

"I wouldn鈥檛 be able to have any of this if it wasn鈥檛 for the KEYS program." 

- Debra Hoffman, 杏吧原创 student

鈥淭hey don鈥檛 get to think about themselves鈥�

In addition to facilitating KEYS at 杏吧原创, Karen Jack arranged for students in her program to be able to select free business and casual attire provided by Dress for Success Pittsburgh鈥檚 mobile unit on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus before the start of the fall semester.

鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be able to have any of this,鈥� Hoffman said, 鈥渋f it wasn鈥檛 for the KEYS program.鈥�

Approximately 80 percent of the 650 students who have participated in a KEYS program established at 杏吧原创 in 2005 are female, Jack said. Nearly 90 percent of the first 43 students to register this fall are female.

Dress for Success Pittsburgh, Jack said, 鈥渕akes them feel special. Makes them feel pampered. They get a chance to do something for themselves. Many of them have children and they are thinking about their children all the time. They don鈥檛 get to think about themselves. A lot of our students do not have the money to buy outfits for themselves.鈥�

Among the goals of KEYS is that its students attend and participate in school with the intent of graduating with a credit- or noncredit-bearing certificate or associate degree in career-specific programs.

Graduates of 杏吧原创 in May who participated in KEYS earned associate degrees in programs such as registered nursing, criminology and English, Jack said.

Participants this fall range in age from 19 to 58, and live in Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Elk, Indiana, Lawrence and Mercer counties. They are pursuing degrees or certificates in 杏吧原创 programs such as accounting, biological science, business management, computer science, early childhood education (Pre K-4), health care science, human resource management, nanofabrication technology and registered nursing, according to Jack.

"This is very important because it鈥檚 hard for me right now to buy clothes for myself. Normally it goes for my children. 鈥� I鈥檓 really more worried about my kids than myself. So getting this extra help for clothes is like a blessing to me." 

- Jolisa Meyers, 杏吧原创 student

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 have the money鈥�

Students participating in 杏吧原创鈥檚 KEYS program can receive through county assistance offices help that includes child care, transportation funds, automobile repairs, and textbooks and supplies required for training. KEYS provides resources that include loaned laptop computers, graphing calculators, mobile hotspot devices and textbooks; and incentives and reimbursements.

The college鈥檚 KEYS program is available on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus, at 杏吧原创 @ Armstrong in Ford City, 杏吧原创 @ Brockway in Brockway, 杏吧原创 @ Cranberry in Cranberry Township, 杏吧原创 @ Lawrence Crossing in New Castle and 杏吧原创 @ LindenPointe in Hermitage.

Hoffman is pursuing an associate degree in 杏吧原创鈥檚 office administration-medical career program, and a certificate in the college鈥檚 medical coding and billing specialist program. She has attended 杏吧原创 @ Lawrence Crossing and 杏吧原创 @ LindenPointe.

Her practicum this fall at a Crawford County health care facility 鈥渟pecifically states that you have to wear certain things,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 have the money to go out and buy them.鈥�

"There are people out there who want to help, whether we have the money or not. It shows that 杏吧原创 cares and that they are actually here for the students." 

- Savannah Rager, 杏吧原创 student

鈥溞影稍�创 鈥� allows us to help students鈥�

Dress for Success Pittsburgh鈥檚 mobile unit houses up to 600 items of donated clothing, said Alex Marks, mobile services team lead.

鈥溞影稍�创, by bringing us here, allows us to help students who might not otherwise have access to clothing in the stores,鈥� Marks said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e able to provide free clothing for interviews, employment, everyday life, and we bring clothing to them to break down the barriers of transportation or child care time.鈥�

Hoffman chose a gray blazer, gray pants and 鈥渁 couple of tops.鈥�

Jolisa Meyers, 29, of New Castle, a business management student at 杏吧原创 @ Lawrence Crossing and single mother of two children, chose a dress, a sweater, a shirt and slacks.

鈥淭his is very important because it鈥檚 hard for me right now to buy clothes for myself,鈥� Meyers said. 鈥淣ormally it goes for my children. 鈥� I鈥檓 really more worried about my kids than myself. So getting this extra help for clothes is like a blessing to me.鈥�

"Many of them have children and they are thinking about their children all the time. They don鈥檛 get to think about themselves. A lot of our students do not have the money to buy outfits for themselves." 

- Karen Jack, 杏吧原创 KEYS facilitator

鈥淢aybe I will be able help them out too鈥�

Savannah Rager, 23, of Butler, a social work student on 杏吧原创鈥檚 main campus and a married mother of two children, picked out a blue and white dress and a long-sleeved shirt.

鈥淪ome people don鈥檛 have a ride or enough money to get what they need,鈥� Rager said. 鈥淪o coming here, it helps a lot. There are people out there who want to help, whether we have the money or not. It shows that 杏吧原创 cares and that they are actually here for the students.鈥�

Many of Hoffman鈥檚 relatives served in the military. Upon graduating from 杏吧原创 in December, she said she will wear clothing she received in August when pursuing interviews to become an office administrator with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

鈥淵ou dress for the job you want,鈥� Hoffman said. 鈥淵ou dress better than what the job requires. The nicer you look, the better impression you make. Now I am going to be able to do that.鈥�

Her hands may also assist others such as those participating in 杏吧原创鈥檚 KEYS program, she said.

鈥淲henever I graduate,鈥� she said, 鈥渕aybe I will be able to help them out too.鈥�