College students need financial help
Education is the foundation on which our commonwealth’s future is built. Skyrocketing costs jeopardize that.
Nellie Bly was one of the most influential American journalists. As an intrepid young reporter who wanted to make a difference in the world, Bly inspired changes to the nation’s mental health care system.
In 1887, Bly went undercover to investigate the conditions at Blackwell’s Island Asylum in New York. Bly had herself committed to the institution, spent 10 days speaking to patients and documented the horrific treatment they endured. Her exposé grabbed the world’s attention and pioneered a new style of reporting.
Born in Armstrong County in 1864 as Elizabeth Jane Cochran, Bly is one of Pennsylvania’s brightest stars — and one of our greatest losses.
Bly grew up under the strain of financial insecurity after losing her father at a young age. She tried to pursue an education at the Indiana Normal School, now Indiana University of Pennsylvania, but left before she finished her education because she couldn’t afford the tuition.
Bly went on to achieve great success — but after being forced to leave school, she found that success outside of Pennsylvania.
She died nearly 100 years ago, and much has changed in the past century. But one unwavering truth remains the same — education is the foundation on which our commonwealth’s future is built.
Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians dream of pursuing college and the brighter future a good education can provide. It is the duty of the commonwealth to help those students follow their dreams and build successful lives here in our communities.
Today’s PASSHE students share a lot in common with Nellie Bly. A majority come from low-income and middleincome families, and all share the same dream of a higher education that brought Bly to the Indiana Normal School.
PASSHE schools provide a world-class education that puts students on the path to success. Unfortunately, the skyrocketing cost of higher education around the country has affected PASSHE schools.
Today, just like in Bly’s lifetime, higher education is unaffordable for many of Pennsylvania’s most economically disadvantaged students. That leaves students with impossible decisions like whether they should leave college without graduating or take on unsustainable student loan debt that will take decades to pay off.
Talented and driven young students want to get a good education, but parents and grandparents know just how much the debt they take on will hold them back in life. Parents who have scrimped and saved for a lifetime to put their kids through college, only to see costs skyrocket beyond their reach, know exactly how crushing that debt will be.
Today, instead of saving up for a mortgage payment, starting a family or spending their hard-earned money supporting local businesses, young Pennsylvanians are paying down debt. That’s bad for families, bad for businesses and bad for our economy.
We need to make higher education more affordable for the Pennsylvanians who are just starting to build their lives. It’s the right thing to do — but it’s also good for our communities and our economy.
That’s why Governor Tom Wolf introduced the Nellie Bly Scholarship Program — to help talented and ambitious young Pennsylvanians build successful, stable lives in our communities and alleviate the burden and hardship of skyhigh student loan debt.
Students who receive the scholarship will agree to stay in Pennsylvania for the same number of years for which they received the scholarship — and if they leave Pennsylvania, the scholarship converts to a low-interest loan.
The Nellie Bly Scholarship Program will help nearly 44,000 students graduate with less debt and start to build lives in our communities rather than struggling to pay hundreds of dollars in student loan bills every month.
For the most economically disadvantaged students, this need-based scholarship program will cover the tuition and fees gap not covered by federal and state grants. These students will graduate with less debt and in a better financial position.
When we invest in our students, we are also investing in the future of our commonwealth. The Nellie Bly Scholarship Program will help students, families and communities build a brighter future and help the commonwealth meet our workforce needs.