Dr. Noemi Custodia-Lora, vice president of NECC’s Lawrence campus & community relations, has made helping Latino immigrants attain higher education the focus of her job. She’s helped kick off college initiatives like PIÉS Latinos de NECC and the credit evaluation program.

If you — or someone you know — has a high school diploma or college credits from another country, and you’re interested in continuing your education here in the U.S., be sure to mark Northern Essex Community College’s International Credential Evaluation Information Session down on your calendar. The event will take place on Thursday, April 27, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Family Resource Center, 60 Island Street, Lawrence. Light refreshments will be available, and the FRC and Lawrence Working Family Initiative will be providing free child care.

At the event, presenters will go over the steps required to validate a high school diploma or college education from another nation. Those interested in evaluations are asked to bring their non-U.S. high school diploma, college degrees and or transcripts to the event to begin the process. If the documents are in Spanish, Portuguese or French, they do not need to be notarized or translated to English. The information will be presented in both English and Spanish, and staff will be on hand to answer questions. General evaluations are $80 and a course-by-course evaluation is $130.

Additionally, information will be offered on the various, convenient programs offered at NECC such as English as a Second Language, Competency-Based Education and Communiversity. Potential students can also learn about one of the college’s newest initiatives, PIÉS Latinos de NECC, specifically created to increase higher education attainment among Latino immigrants living in Greater Lawrence through various supports — including foreign credit validation and job training.

Northern Essex is holding this event in partnership with the Center for Education Documentation (CED) of Boston, initially established as part of Northeastern University before becoming an independent agency in 1986. The organization’s goal is to provide professional assistance in interpreting the educational background of persons educated abroad, thus allowing them to continue their education or career in the U.S.

For more information on this event, please contact Adam Cutler at (978) 738-7546 or acutler@necc.mass.edu. To find out more about PIÉS Latinos de NECC, visit the Facebook page, call (978) 738-7423 or email pieslatinosdenecc@necc.mass.edu.

With campuses in Haverhill and Lawrence, Northern Essex Community College offers over 70 associate degree and certificate programs as well as hundreds of noncredit courses designed for personal enrichment and career growth. Each year, 8,500 students are enrolled in credit associate degree and certificate programs on the Haverhill and Lawrence campuses; and another 2,600 take noncredit workforce development and community education classes on campus, and at businesses and community sites across the Merrimack Valley. Northern Essex is the only state college located in the lower Merrimack Valley Region of Massachusetts. For more information, visit the website at www.necc.mass.edu.