As we continue with our post-Hurricane Michael recovery efforts, I wanted to provide you with an update on everything that’s happening here at TCC.

First and foremost, I will again reiterate that if any of our students, faculty or staff have any issues they still need assistance with, please don’t hesitate to contact my office at tccpres@tcc.fl.edu and we will make every effort to connect you with the resources you need. Students can also contact the Dean of Student Services directly at DOS@tcc.fl.edu for anything from counseling services to discounted bus passes to access to our food pantry. Our campus community and the district we serve is our first priority and I want to make sure we are doing everything we can to help you.

In addition, our relief efforts for those communities most affected by the storm are continuing. Eagle Relief, a service learning effort led by faculty members Teresa Paliwoda and Tricia Rizza in partnership with Vice President Heather Mitchell with the TCC Foundation, has been collecting supplies and have already delivered a full shipment of those supplies to Chipola College. If you are in a position to do so, please consider donating to their drive. A full list of items needed and drop-off locations are located here.

TCC has also been working with our vendors to provide shipments of nonperishable food items to both Chipola College and Gulf Coast State College, and have been coordinating with the Chancellor of the Florida College System on any additional assistance they may need.

As many of you are probably aware, Chipola suffered significant damage due to the storm. GCSC suffered even worse. Every one of their buildings is in need of some sort of repair, and almost one-third of their employees’ homes were damaged. However, both colleges have worked hard to restore their campuses and reopen in order to provide some semblance of normalcy for their students and employees, and to better serve their communities. In a recent message to students and employees, GCSC president John Holdnak declared that together they would, “restore their opportunity to dream about a better future.”

The strength and resiliency of our sister institutions is an example to us all.

But we are not without a few examples of our own. Over the past few weeks, we’ve had many of our employees and students step up to help out. Whether it’s been assisting a homeless student find housing, transporting relief supplies, or volunteering to help clean up a colleague’s yard, I just want to take this opportunity to again express my gratitude for all those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty these past few weeks. You are what makes TCC a great place to work.

We will continue to help our TCC community, our service district and our neighboring communities over the coming weeks and months. Stay tuned and learn how you can help at www.tcc.fl.edu/recovery.