To m Leary, presid entof LCCC, said the deal is an example of вЂњtwo institutions joining togeth - er to rai se thatpercen tag e to cre - ate a bette r-educate d workf orce.вЂќ More residents with college degre es could help attract em- ployers, particularly those with higher pay scales. In neighboring states the rates are even higher : 32 per cent in New York and 35 percent in New Jersey. He said it alsoвЂњwillhelpus tomeet a sig nif- ican t gapin theeducat ionlevelof our population.вЂќ вЂњThe future of Northeas tern Pen nsy lva niadepend s on an edu - cated citizenry,вЂќ Gilmour said, noting that recent data shows 20 per cen t of adu lts in Luz er ne County hold bachelorвЂ™s degrees, below the stateвЂ™s 25.9 percent av- era geand thenationa l ave rag e of 27.6 percent. Wilk es Presid ent Tim Gilmour said the agreement reflects the universityвЂ™s commitment to both community college students and the region as a whole. Under the arrang ement, for- mer LCCC students meeting a minimum grade threshold also will be guarant eed $10 ,000 in scho lar ship seach yea r the y areat Wilk es.

WILKES-BAR RE вЂ“ Officials fro m Luze rneCountењњommuni - ty College and Wilkes University entered into a dual admissions agreem ent W ednesda y that gives LCCC students a better chance to earn a bachelorвЂ™s degree from Wilk es.

The Flood Protection Authority re- cently filed approx imately1,500 It was not clear W ednesd ay ho w ma ny pr op er ty ow ne rs were affected by the error. Medico Olenginski said a pa- ralegal in the firmвЂ™s legal depart- ment told her pre-lien notices were sent out for 2009 delin- quent bills, but they were not sen t out for 20 10 del inq uen t bills. Medico Olengins ki called the Wilk inson agencyвЂ™ s home office in Pittsb urgh Wednes day after receiving complaints about the lackof not ice.The lie ns wer e fil- ed with the prothonotar yвЂ™s of- fic e,but itplay edno ro lein is su - ing the liens. вЂњIcan affo rdthis,but thepoint is I should have gotten notice,вЂќ Regner said. Had she got- ten a de li nq ue nt no tic e sh e wouldhave paid the fee and pen- alty right away and not been hit with the lien fees. Regner said she was upset be- cause failure to pay the 2010 fee was an over sight. She did not learn the 2010 bill hadnotbee n pai d un tilshegota let ter advis ing her a lie n had been filed against her property. Regner said she paid the fee for 20, and believed she had also paid the 2010 fee. Sh ann on Re gne r of Sou th Thomas Stree t, Kingsto n, said she had to pay $115.50 in lien costs on top of her $93.70 levee bill and a $9.37 penalty that was assessed for failing to pay the 2010 fee. That failurecost homeow ners the opportu nit y to set tle the cla impriorto thefil ingof a lie n, which wo uld have re duced thei r costs by at least $100. Prothonotary Carolee Medico Olenginski on Wednesday said an official with the Don Wilkin- son Agency acknowl edged the company failed to send pre-lien notices вЂ“ as required by its con- tract вЂ“ to property owners who did not pay the 2010 levee main- tenance fee. The private comp any hired to collect levee protection mainte- nance fees failed to send out no- tices advising property owners the y wer e del inq uen t prio r tofil- ing lie ns, caus ing pote ntia lly hundre ds of people to incur sig- nificantly higher penalties and fee s,a coun ty offi cialconfir med.

Phoenix point festering skies