Several students enrolled at the McCann School of Business and Technology's Pottsville campus will be sleeping outside on Oct. 13 in an effort to raise awareness for the plight of the homeless.

The sleep out will be held in the parking lot of McCann's Main Campus, located at 2650 Woodglen Rd, Pottsville.The event will begin at 5 p.m. Thursday and conclude at 8 a.m. Friday.The students are enrolled in the Human Services Assistant Program, training to work as direct care staff to individuals facing a variety of socio-economic factors, including homelessness.Shannon Brennan, director of McCann's Pottsville campus, explains "this project is an excellent opportunity to shine a spotlight on a problem that many in our community feel is limited to only urban areas.""While researching the subject, students came to realize there are very few resources for homeless individuals in Schuylkill County," remarked Human Program Services Program Director Amanda Hartz. "Currently, there aren't any homeless shelters in the county, although Schuylkill Community Action, which has limited resources, is one of the few county agencies allocating funds for the homeless.Any funds collected during the sleep out will be donated to Schuylkill Community Action.For more information, call (570) 622-7622 or log onto

www.mccann.edu.