Local Student Wins Full Year of Free Tuition at NMCC

Aroostook County — On Friday, August 24^th Tyler Lajoie, 20, scrambled to get his parents out of his Andrew’s Hall dorm room to attend New Student Orientation on NMCC campus. “We were running late,” his mother, Lynn Lajoie of Fort Kent, explained.

Meanwhile, in the Edmunds Conference Center on the other side of campus, orientation had already begun. To kick things off, NMCC President Timothy Crowley and Dean of Development Dr. Dottie Martin announced the winner of the 2018 Free Tuition Raffle: Tyler Lajoie. The room was silent, as the recipient was not in attendance.

Running down the hallway towards the conference center, Lajoie and his family encountered the resident advisor (RA) from Andrew’s Hall: “You won free tuition for the whole year!” the RA shouted.

“It caught me by surprise,” said Lajoie after the event, especially because he hadn’t actually purchased any raffle tickets.

During the admissions process at NMCC, Lajoie made a strong connection with Wendy Bradstreet, Director of Admissions and Outreach at the college. “His family came into my office trying to make this work,” Bradstreet explains, herself an NMCC alumni. “Some students qualify for grants and financial aid, and some students don’t,” said Bradstreet.

When it came time for the free tuition raffle, Bradstreet decided to purchase two tickets at $10 apiece—not for herself, and not for her son (he already graduated last year), but for Tyler Lajoie, the son of a hard-working family in Fort Kent.

Having never won anything significant in his life, Lajoie still sat in shock hours later, “Did that just happen?” he asks, only half-kidding. Lajoie’s mother is a barber in Fort Kent and his father, Luke Lajoie, owns a computer and electronics store called GEIPC.

“We’re still in awe,” his parents added.

The free tuition will go towards a degree in Computer & Network Technology for Lajoie. His first class is Monday, August 27^th. When asked about future career aspirations, Lajoie would like to work at his father’s store in Fort Kent, hoping eventually to follow in his father’s footsteps and own the store.

Regarding Bradstreet, who purchased the winning raffle tickets in his name, Lajoie simply said, “She’s a God-send.”