For students heading to college, getting accepted is only part of the journey. Leaving home also means preparing for a new living space, gathering school supplies and making sure they have the everyday essentials they will need once they arrive on campus. Those smaller expenses can add up quickly at a time when students and their families are already managing the larger costs of college.
McCaskey High School helped make that transition a little easier during its annual College Send-Off, welcoming recent graduates back to campus before they begin their next chapter.
Throughout the summer, McCaskey staff collected donations of luggage, blankets, school supplies, dorm essentials and other items students could choose from based on what they needed.
The effort also reached beyond McCaskey. Community members stepped in to help make sure graduates had more of what they needed before leaving Lancaster, including residents of Willow Valley Communities, who collected more than 75 suitcases for graduating seniors.
For College and Career Project Specialist Alejandra Zavala, the send-off is about more than what students take with them when they leave. “This is really important for us to make sure that our students feel supported,” Zavala told WGAL. “We want them to know that the community is here to support them, and especially that they can always come back to McCaskey for support. And it’s one less barrier that they have to overcome.”
That support matters as students prepare for a transition that can be exciting while carrying very real expenses. A suitcase or a set of dorm supplies might seem small compared with tuition and other college costs, but having those items ready means one fewer expense for students and their families to manage.
It also sends McCaskey graduates off with something that cannot be packed into a suitcase. They leave knowing people back home are invested in where they are going. That idea is at the heart of the College Send-Off. Preparing students for what comes after high school doesn’t end when they receive their diplomas. It also means helping remove barriers, connecting them with resources and making sure they know support is still available after graduation.
The graduates who stopped by McCaskey had another chance to walk through familiar doors before heading toward new ones. This time, they left carrying a few things they’ll need for college and a reminder that McCaskey will still be here when they come home.
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