Pa. Promise can expand higher education and save a shrinking workforce

By 2035, Pennsylvania is projected to have a skilled worker shortfall of 770,000. We expect that nearly 1.2 million members of today’s workforce who are older than 55 will retire, and 130,000 will migrate out from our Commonwealth.

New technologies have the potential of creating another 400,000 new jobs. The majority of these will require a post-secondary credential beyond high school, including short-term certificates, diplomas, two-year, fouryear, and graduate degrees.

Today, we have 960,000 young Pennsylvanians positioned to join the workforce during that same period, thus leaving a gap of 770,000. Of course, this does not mean that we will have that many vacant jobs. Instead, we will have that many fewer jobs because employers will leave the Commonwealth.

A crushing double whammy

Contributing to this worker shortfall is the fact that Pennsylvania’s public university system is among the most expensive in the country, and Pennsylvania’s investment in that system is second from the bottom in the country. This has resulted in rapid declines in enrollment in our post-secondary institutions and an increasing interest in out-of-state options.

This can be a crushing economic double whammy for Pennsylvania.

Last month, Governor Shapiro revealed his blueprint for higher education. Among other things, he proposed raising state grants by $1,000 for Pennsylvania students attending college in the state and cutting tuition and fees at state-owned universities to no more than $1,000 per semester for in-state students with household income below the state median.

This will have a significant positive impact on students and their families, as well as on employers. It’s the kind of public policy that has the potential to improve not only the life and economic prospects of our children but also that of our employers. It is good for families and for businesses.

I know this firsthand, as the director of the Pittsburgh Promise since its inception in 2008. Our goal was to fuel economic mobility for urban youth and a more diverse workforce for our region.

In that time, we awarded $173 million in privately funded scholarships to nearly 12,000 Pittsburgh high school graduates to attend a post-secondary institution in Pennsylvania. More than 4,200 students have already received their degrees and are part of the workforce of more than 700 companies in the Pittsburgh region.

State level promise

What if we could do that at a state level? What if this could serve not only one city and one school system, but every municipality and all 500 school districts in Pennsylvania?

Senator Vincent Hughes and Representative Jordan Harris have introduced legislation in their respective bodies to create the Pennsylvania Promise. Senate Bill 315 (SB 315) and House Bill 1886 (HB 1886) envision a pilot program providing financial support to full-time students who have total household incomes of $200,000 or less and who attend state-owned or state-related institutions.

The last dollar assistance would cover tuition costs remaining after all federal, state, and institutional assistance isapplied. For students whose family income is $60,000 or less, the program would provide room and board assistance as well.

And recognizing the need for education beyond the traditional student, the pilot would also provide dedicated grants to adult learners seeking additional credentials including certification and college credit.

Hughes and Harris have proposed a $250 million appropriation to pilot this effort and measure its impact. We estimate that the social return on this type of investment could be as high as $2.25 for every $1 spent.

Students and state faring well

While the Governor’s proposal aptly addresses the needs of low-income college goers, the Pennsylvania Promise also meets the needs of middle-income families who work hard, pay their bills, but are not in a position to save for a crucial post-secondary education for their children.

Both proposals remind us again that when the least among us fare well, we all do.