Dr. Miguel Cardona leaned forward in his chair, listening intently to Mira del Toro.

A woman from Reading was telling U.S. Secretary of Education Cardona about her journey to Reading Area Community College. It was a tragic story.

The mother of seven children fled an abusive relationship in Puerto Rico. When she arrived in Reading she had no money, no job and spoke no English.

The prospects for her and her children were grim.

But that changed when she found her way into the RACC.

With the help of the Keystone Education Yields Success program (a national workforce development, employment and training program designed to help qualified students attend college and succeed), she was able to enroll in a vocational study program. I was.

Thanks to that, she was able to afford to attend school and provide for her children. Currently, she has a part-time job at her Centro Hispano and will be a full-time gig when she graduates with an associate degree in Social Her Work.

It was exactly the kind of story Cardona wanted to hear.

“What an experience. It was food for the soul,” he said shortly after del Toro and his seven classmates finished talking.

road trip

Cardona stopped by the RACC on Thursday morning as part of the Road to Success Back to School Bus Tour.

The stories he heard at the RACC fit that bill. Time and time again, he was informed that community colleges have supported and nurtured students and helped them achieve things they thought were impossible.

“These students are seeing potential in themselves that they didn’t see before,” he said.

That was certainly the case with Melissa Martinez Uribe.

A single mother thought there was no way she could get a college education. The hurdles were too high and the challenges were too big.

RACC officials have helped remove those hurdles and ease those challenges, she said. Today, Martinez Uribe is well on her way to fulfilling her dream of becoming an art teacher.

“I had no idea this was possible,” she said. “Now I go to class and go to school. A dream come true.”

Cardona says that listening to RACC students like del Toro and Martinez Uribe shows the transformative power of higher education. It makes their lives, the lives of their children, and ultimately the communities in which they live better.

“What you’re doing is changing the trajectory of your children,” he said. “You’re helping not only yourself, but the next generation.”

Cardona said the transformative power of higher education is why she wants to make sure every American has the chance to pursue it. And that’s why he was chosen for his job.

Cardona said that when President Joe Biden named him secretary of education, the president told him his priority was access.

“He said we have to open access to higher education to more people, and he needs my help,” he said.

As a first-generation college student, Cardona said he has a deep understanding of that mission. After all, it was his access to education that got him to where he is today.

“If I can do it, so can others,” he said.

In a brief press conference following his discussion with students, Cardona spoke about the ways the Biden administration is working to improve access to higher education.

He said the administration supports making community colleges free to all students, and that doing so would have a positive economic impact on the community.

“We recognized that community colleges are the backbone of our country,” he said. “We have fought for community college. We will continue to fight for community college.”

Cardona also pointed to government efforts to forgive student loan debt.His experience at RACC is a prime example of why it’s important to make sure students can afford to go to college. Yes, he said.

When asked about his opposition to the plan, he pointed to a story he had just heard from his students.

“Let them bring those stories up here and say it’s not worth it,” he said.

Cardona said Biden has also committed to doubling the amount of funding available for federal Pell grants by 2029.

In addition to meeting with students and meeting with the press, Cardona took a short tour of the RACC campus led by Chancellor Dr. Susan Rooney. He visited Weizhalle’s introduction to the Spanish language and nursing classes and chatted with professors and students.

In the Spanish class, he offered some advice on learning the language.

“If you don’t practice, it’s hard to keep what you learn,” he said.

Cardona also visited the student union’s Ravens Food Pantry. This pantry is where students in need can get free food and professional clothing. The secretary was impressed with the pantry, taking pictures with her cell phone and saying that helping students meet their basic needs is an important part of education.

“It’s hard to know if you’re really hungry,” he said. “When I was the principal of an elementary school, if a child had a toothache, forget it.”

To cap off her visit at the RACC, Cardona stopped by the Hispanic Heritage Month kickoff event to mingle with the students and get back on the bus before snapping photos for her next stop, Allentown.