A former state senator who served Carbon County as part of the 14th Senatorial District last week was given a five-year contract to be the new president of the Luzerne County Community College.

Former Sen. John Yudichak, who was selected in October by the LCCC board of trustees to succeed Thomas P. Leary as the college president, will be paid an annual salary of $195,000 when he assumes the position in July.

Leary has been the president since 2007. He announced in December 2022, that he would retire when his contract expires on June 30 of this year.

The trustees voted to give Yudichak a five-year pact, with directors Pail DeFabo and Holly Evanoski voting against the move. They also opposed Yudichak’s selection late last year.

The board members who approved the pact included Robert Schnee, William Lewis, Megan Kennedy, Chairwoman Catherine O’Donnell, Vice Chairman Robert Bertoni, Erin Keating, Daniel Rodgers, August Piazza, Joseph Esposito, Joseph Long, Anthony Seiwell and Susan Unvarsky.

Yudichak served as a state legislator from 1998 to 2022, including 12 years in the state House and 12 years in the state Senate.

The Swoyersville resident decided against running for another term in 2022 after the redistricting process moved his Senate seat to the Lehigh Valley, and he landed a job in December 2022 with the government consulting firm GSL Public Strategies Group as a senior adviser.