web1_PA-Lottery-logo.jpg

Lottery Numbers for Monday, Oct. 17

web1_FIELD-HOCKEY.jpg

WVC Field Hockey: Lynea Gregory sparks late rally to keep Lake-Lehman unbeaten

<p>NANTICOKE &#8212; Not only will Luzerne County Community College President Tom Leary see an increase in his paycheck in the upcoming year, the increase will be retroactive for the last two years.</p><p>Susan Unvarsky, chairwoman of the college&#8217;s Board of Trustees, said at a board meeting Monday night that although the increase will bring Leary&#8217;s salary to nearly $167,000 annually, of the 14 college presidents across Pennsylvania, he is still the second-lowest paid.</p><p>Leary was previously receiving $155,000 annually.</p><p>&#8220;It is important to note that Mr. Leary has not received a pay increase since 2011,&#8221; she said. &#8220;That&#8217;s five years.&#8221;</p><p>The salary bump took place after an extensive evaluation, according to Unvarsky.</p><p>&#8220;We did an evaluation of the president over the summer and, based on that evaluation and other factors such as the market reference range of Pennsylvania State Community College Presidents,&#8221; she said, &#8220;he was awarded the increase.&#8221;</p><p>Unvarsky said the increase correlated with the most recent faculty contract and its increases for teaching staff at the college.</p><p>Leary will be receiving the difference between his new salary and his current salary retroactive for the last two years which will amount to about $12,000 per year, or $24,000.</p><p>A 2013 hit-and-run crash involving Leary had initially cost him his school-provided car, a week&#8217;s pay and a raise, keeping his annual salary at $155,000. The chair of the school&#8217;s Board of Trustees in March 2013 had amended Leary &#8217;s contract in response to the Nov. 2, 2013, crash in the parking lot of a Kingston restaurant.</p><p>The changes required Leary to immediately return his car to the school. He was allowed to use his own vehicle and submit for mileage reimbursement.</p><p>In addition, Leary was not to be entitled to a &#8220;discretionary increase&#8221; that had been in the contract he signed on Dec. 6, 2011, and renewed on Dec. 11, 2013, for two more years. The amendment froze his salary at $155,000 a year and docked him a week&#8217;s pay, effective the next pay period.</p><p>In another matter, the board also established a Legislative Affairs and Community Outreach committee.</p><p>&#8220;It is now a standing committee because we anticipate a continuing need for it,&#8221; Unvarsky said.</p><p>During Leary&#8217;s report to the board, he credited the institution&#8217;s PATH program for providing opportunity for training unemployed and underemployed students for in-demand careers. The program offers degrees in diesel, welding, engineering design and manufacturing.</p><p>Brandon Hynes, a student of the PATH program, said it helped him overcome adversity he had experienced in his life.</p><p>Hynes, said he originally attended the college in 2009, but during his recent enrollment in the PATH program had allowed him to be more focused.</p><p>&#8220;I made the Dean&#8217;s List,&#8221; he said. &#8220;That is something that I didn&#8217;t do before.&#8221;</p><p>The board also voted to accept several grants, including the ALTA Family Literacy grant to be funded at $304,000 and the ALTA Adult Basic Education grant to be funded at $698,000.</p><p>The college is partnering with East Stroudsburg University, which received a $3.9 million National Science Foundation S-STEM grant aware. LCCC will receive about $30,000 over a five year period, with funding going to supports and scholarships for students in science related fields of study.</p><p>The next Luzerne County Community College Board of Trustees meeting is scheduled for Dec. 20.</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_Leary-tom.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Leary </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/web1_Leary-tom.jpg</photo0><caption0>Leary </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Geri Gibbons</p><p>ggibbons@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Geri Gibbons at 570-991-6117 or on Twitter @TLGGibbons.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Luzerne County Community College president receives retroactive pay raise