The Third Degree

For Kenneth Hart ’09, ’22, ’24, starting college as an adult learner was a simple decision – and an urgent one.  

“I didn’t have a choice; I was a single dad,” he says. “I had to put a roof over our heads and food on the table. I tell young people today, ‘Learn like your hair is on fire, like your life depends on it.’ My life depended on it.” 

When Hart started his first NCC journey at the original Monroe Center, that preceded the Pocono Campus, an injury had ended his 24-year career as a heavy equipment mechanic. He had depleted his savings and his youngest son, Thomas Jack, had passed away at the age of 7 after battling an aggressive brain cancer. His oldest son, Kenny, then in his early teens, was thrust into the role of caregiver for Hart, who could walk only with the aid of a walker or crutches.

The family had to choose between electricity or running water but could not afford both. They relied on a wood stove or the occasional gift of coal from a neighbor to heat their home, and television service was a thing of the past. While Kenny was at school, Hart hunted for deer or small game on his ATV. Father and son collected spent brass casings from a local shooting range to sell for gas money so Hart could drive to NCC and to buy propane to heat water. 

Hart’s first career was as a U.S. Marine, so, it’s no surprise that his response to hardship was one of action. With the help of Chapter 31, an assistance program that helps veterans with service-connected disabilities prepare for employment, Hart managed to restore electricity and running water. 

Once Hart got started with education, he never looked back. Planning to segue his skills as a heavy equipment mechanic into teaching in the trades, Hart enrolled in NCC’s education program, graduating with honors in 2009. He landed a job as a teacher at Monroe Career & Technical Institute, where he built the outdoor power equipment technology program from the ground up. What started out in an old storage garage ended up in a full-service facility by the time Hart retired. 

Hart returned to NCC, earning a second associate degree in secondary education in 2022 – graduating again with honors. He also earned teacher certification in career and technical education at Temple University. 

“On my first day of class, my professor Nancy Moreau said that if you don’t get a B, you’re not teaching,” he says of that first NCC experience. “I thought, ‘Oh great, what am I going to do?’ So, I worked hard. I did far better than I thought I’d do.” 

Thanks to completing courses as continuing education credits for teaching, Hart was only 15 credits shy of an associate degree in psychology. This past May, he graduated with that degree (with honors), walking across the stage at the inaugural Pocono campus commencement ceremony. 

A recipient of the Band of Brothers Endowed Scholarship, Hart also received the Military Student Award and the Honors Program Award this year. Hart was president of NCC’s Band of Brothers Club and an instrumental figure in growing its membership and its visibility on campus. 

Hart laughs at the thought of getting another degree at NCC. Now, he has his sights set on serving his community through his appointment as vice chair of the Mount Pocono Borough Planning Commission and relishing the role of “Pop-Pop” to his 11-year-old granddaughter. 

“There was so much opportunity for self-improvement [at NCC], and all you had to do was put in the work,” Hart says. “I have an overwhelming sense of satisfaction.”