With less than two weeks until the start of the fall semester, staff, students and faculty at Ivy Tech Community College Lake County were in high gear registering new and returning students for the fall start on Aug. 24 when a historic, catastrophic storm created a crisis that halted everything.
Staff and students were thrown into managing damage to homes and personal property and finding solutions hour by hour to survive the coming weeks. A large portion of the students already juggle pursuing higher education with working full-time and supporting a family.
Ivy Tech’s Student Government Association (SGA) president Tiffany Harrison was one of these students. Harrison was at work when the storm struck and immediately was focused on her children and their safety. They were having their first day of school for the 2026-27 school year.
The storm affected her deeply on a personal level. For the two weeks following the storm, she was unable to work, and her children couldn’t return to school. They lost all the food in their refrigerator and freezer, and Harrison struggled with sleeping due to the loss of her home security system during the power outage. They spent those days looking for charging stations, searching for ice and eating canned food.
Tiffany Harrison, SGA president
When asked how the storm impacted her as a student, Harrison said, “Starting the fall semester felt almost impossible at first. I wasn’t in a school mindset at all; I was in full survival mode.”
When asked what kept her motivated to stay focused on her goals, she responded, “As a human services student, once I got through the shock of the storm, I felt a responsibility to step up. I was struggling, but I was still able to keep my head above water. Many others in my community couldn’t. When everyone was denied the replacement SNAP benefits we were told we would receive, even after losing all the food in our refrigerators and freezers, it lit a fire in me. Elderly residents, disabled individuals and single moms couldn’t stand in hours‑long lines for basic supplies. Seeing that pushed me to stay focused on my goals and use my voice. I created a petition, contacted community leaders and spoke with two newspapers to make sure the community’s struggles were brought into the public eye.”
Ivy Tech is grateful to see this type of community leadership and strength modeled in the school’s Student Government Association president.
Harrison shared how she felt supported by Ivy Tech during this crisis. “When my power came back on the 21st, I finally had the chance to check my student email. The first message I opened was from the chancellor, and his concern for our safety felt genuine, not just formal. He made it clear that support was available, even virtually, for anyone who needed help navigating the storm’s impact. As I read through more messages from faculty and staff, I felt a warmth in knowing they weren’t just maintaining communication. They truly cared. That moment showed me how committed Ivy Tech was to making sure students stayed on track despite everything happening around us,” she said.
She was deeply inspired by the resilience of her fellow students and their determination to survive, persist and thrive. She said that it reminded her that strength and resourcefulness have always existed in the community. The skills she developed at Ivy Tech through the Leadership Academy and SGA have motivated her to advocate for a second look at policies that should protect those experiencing hardship.
“When people look back on this storm, I hope they remember that the faculty and staff of Ivy Tech Lake County helped shape resilient community leaders, students who could pivot instantly, adapt without hesitation and continue moving forward despite every challenge,” said Harrison.
A great example of staff resilience and support comes from Ivy Tech’s Dean of Arts, Sciences and Education, and Professor of English, Jared Riddle. Riddle’s home was severely damaged when a century-old oak came through his roof during the Aug. 11 storm, causing his family to be displaced while also waiting to lay his mother to rest after the storm delayed her funeral.
Jared Riddle, Dean of Arts, Sciences and Education, and Professor of English
When asked what kept him motivated and engaged while dealing with a personal crisis because of the storm, Riddle responded, “Honestly, the students were the reason. When your life is upended, there’s a pull to turn inward. But I kept thinking about the student who had worked all summer to get to that first day and for whom Ivy Tech is the door to a different future. A first day of class is a first sentence in their new chapter, and I wasn’t going to let the storm edit it out. After 30 years here, this work also isn’t separate from who I am. At a time when so much felt uncertain, being there for students was one of the few things that still felt steady.”
Riddle shared a particularly heartwarming exchange he witnessed between two students. He observed a student who was wavering about the semester when another stopped her in the hallway and said, “Hey, I thought we were going to sit next to each other.” This is a beautiful example of students and staff showing up for each other.
“The semester started strong because people chose each other, and that says more about this place than any plan or policy could. Every community has a story it tells about its hardest moments. The storm wrote a difficult chapter. The students, staff and faculty at Ivy Tech Lake County wrote what came next,” said Riddle.
Ivy Tech Lake County is proud to offer many wraparound services in addition to their academic and financial aid guidance to support their students. They have a dedicated on-site mental health professional, along with disability support services and Ivy Cares. Ivy Cares helps students overcome barriers with emergency funds, transportation support, childcare resources, laptop and hotspot loans, counseling referrals and community resource connections. The Student Life Department and student clubs organize activities and events to keep students engaged, help them make lifelong connections and give students the opportunity to learn leadership skills and grow as they pursue higher education.
Visit ivytech.edu/locations/lake-county for more information or click here to apply today.
