SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – For many people, their aspirations of going to college are just that – aspirations. Whether you’re nurturing dreams of a career doing what you love, or you want to learn more about a subject that has always piqued your interest, turning your hopes into a reality can be hard if what you’re lacking are the finances to make it happen.
Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) is opting for a bold way to break those financial restraints for first-time, full-time college students, and they’re doing so through the Lake Tahoe College Promise program.
First piloted in 2018, the program was launched through a replication grant out of the City University of New York (CUNY). In 2019, it became institutionalized with LTCC deciding to allocate funds toward it through public-private partnerships and state funds. Through local donors, those on the Nevada side of the basin are also eligible to enroll in the program.
“We started with 11 students, and now we have about 400 students,” said Antonio Benitez, Director of Lake Tahoe College Promise. “Ever since the Fall of 2019, our goal has been 100 new students and we just doubled that this year.”
Benefits of the program include up to three years of free tuition, $100 in book credit every term for the first two years, priority registration for classes, priority access to LTCC’s lending library which provides books, laptops, and calculators. In addition, students are given free tours to four-year universities, with the program even covering transportation, hotel and meal costs.
“We do as much as we can to remove the financial barriers so that students can focus on their education,” said Benitez.
As an LTCC alumni, Benitez credits much of his success to LTCC and the opportunities made available to him during his time at school. After graduating in 2016, he felt a sense of responsibility in returning to the same college and community that helped shape him so he can find ways to give back.
“Because of LTCC, I was able to transfer to UC Berkeley. I eventually got my masters in 2025, and with 100% confidence, I can say that without LTCC and them giving me the opportunity, I would not have been able to do that.”
Benitez enjoys a number of highlights as director of Lake Tahoe College Promise, but what takes precedence are the students he works with as he continues to do for others what was done for him.
“Listening to [students’] stories, their motivations, listening to their ‘why’ as to why they’re here, and just seeing students go off and then come back, that is extremely powerful. I just had a student today come from UCLA and say ‘thank you’,” Benitez said. “I wasn’t even expecting that visit, and it’s things like that that keep me going.”
Currently benefitting from Lake Tahoe College Promise is Gabriel Altunsu, a dual citizen to Türkiye and the United States. After determining his student aid index (SAI) number through FAFSA, his score was extremely low, meaning the lower the score, the more aid you need. During his first quarter at LTCC, he began searching for programs assisting low-income students.
He isn’t the only one hindered by the burden of not being able to afford a higher education. According to an analysis conducted by the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) and reported in the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrations, low-income students can’t afford 95% of colleges. Federal student loans aside, the analysis found that 70% of colleges were deemed unaffordable to lower-income students.
“As someone who has always tried to scrounge up nickels and dimes while also sending money back home, being able to have my textbooks paid for has saved me, really,” Altunsu said. “Because there was no way I was going to be able to afford them in the first place.”
Along with his praise for the program, Altunsu could not speak more highly of Benitez, noting how much he genuinely cares for everyone around him.
“Antonio has gone beyond his responsibilities as a director, an employee, as a citizen, to actually get to know who I am, the challenges I face as a student, my financial problems, and he has done everything possible to help me solve every problem that has come up,” said Altunsu.
With plans to earn an associate degree in political science at LTCC, Altunsu has his sights set on UC Berkeley for a bachelor’s degree followed by an international law degree as a double major in international relations.
“With those degrees, I want to be able to work in the United Nations and focus on advocacy for impoverished communities worldwide,” Altunsu said.
For students like Atlunsu, Lake Tahoe College Promise is the cornerstone, a vital step in achieving what once seemed impossible.
Since their institutional goal was doubled, Benitez now wants to focus inward. “Even though our three-year graduation rates are way above the national average, I want to continue to grow those numbers. I want to continue to grow our transfer numbers, our retention numbers and opportunities to partner with local businesses to help secure jobs for our students after graduation.”
To learn more about the Lake Tahoe College Promise program or to see if you’re eligible, visit https://www.ltcc.edu/admissions/financial-aid/laketahoe_collegepromise/index.php.
If you are interested in supporting the Promise program, please visit https://ltccfoundation.org/lake-tahoe-college-promise/.
