LCCC Receives Two-Year Grant to Provide Free CDL Training to Military and Families

Lehigh Carbon Community College is one of 19 colleges or training centers in the country and one of only two in Pennsylvania to receive a federal grant that provides funding to former and current military service members and their families to pursue careers as commercial truck drivers.

The college’s portion of the total $3.1 million grant was announced on Tuesday during a news conference led by U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and U.S. Congresswoman Susan Wild. The college will receive $193,677 for this two-year grant, which will go to provide scholarships for the training program, valued at $5,530 each.

The funds come from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration through the Commercial Motor Vehicle Operator Safety Training (CMVOST) Grant Program.

Funds will address the growing need for drivers in the rapidly expanding trucking industry. The grant will assist current or former members of the United States Armed Forces (including National Guard members and Reservists) and their spouses or children to receive CDL training and job search support in order to gain employment in the commercial motor vehicle operation industry.

Commercial truck driving is considered a high priority occupation in the region and offers strong employment possibilities and family sustaining wages.

The CDL program at LCCC teaches the knowledge and skills drivers need using a combination of classroom, driving range and on-road training. The four-week program is offered in partnership with CC Training, LLC. Experienced instructors help prepare students to take and pass their state’s Commercial Driver’s License test.