College Opens Arms to Puerto Rico’s Displaced Students

Polk State College is offering support to students displaced from their homes in Puerto Rico by Hurricane Maria.

Gov. Rick Scott asked Florida state colleges and universities this week to provide support by offering in-state tuition to those students and understanding that they may have limited access to transcripts and other documentation.

“Polk State College welcomes students from Puerto Rico with open arms, a safe and secure environment, and the resources they need to achieve higher education while they continue to recover from the storm,” Polk State College President Angela Garcia Falconetti said.

Falconetti has appointed Director of Student Enrollment Services and Registrar Kathy Bucklew as the point of contact for those students.

Bucklew will work with students closely and confidentially to identify which exemptions and waivers they may be eligible for to assist them financially. Florida Statutes allow use of certain exemptions and waivers to offer in-state tuition to out-of-state students.

Students should contact Kathy Bucklew by email at kbucklew@polk.edu, phone at 863.298.6820, or in her office, WAD 116, in the Administration Building on the Winter Haven Campus.

“I ask that they not be afraid of what they don’t have,” Bucklew said. “I will help them with transcripts and signing up for classes, and I will serve as a personal advocate for them as they transition to Polk State College.”

Students should contact Bucklew by email at kbucklew@polk.edu, phone at 863.298.6820, or in her office, WAD 116, in the Administration Building on the Winter Haven Campus at 999 Ave. H N.E.

“We are understanding of the situations students from Puerto Rico may find themselves in after Hurricane Maria, and we are committed to working with them,” Falconetti said. “We want to ensure that they have just as much access to affordable higher education as anyone else in our community.”