Legislators, advocates make case to keep Penn State Scranton open
DUNMORE — Closing Penn State Scranton would limit local educational opportunities for students, hamstring workforce and economic development efforts and tear a hole in the fabric of the community of which the institution is a pillar, lawmakers, business leaders and other advocates said Thursday.
They gathered at Penn State Scranton to make that case to keep the campus, located in Dunmore, open.
The session followed Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi's late February announcement that 12 of the university's 19 satellite campuses — including Scranton and three others in Northeast Pennsylvania named Penn State Wilkes-Barre, Hazleton and Schuylkill, respectively — are under review for possible closure at the end of the 2026-27 academic year. A group co-led by university administrators will make a final recommendation on campus closures to Bendapudi by the end of the spring semester, and Bendapudi will make the final decision.
Against that backdrop, a panel of officials that included Democratic state Sen. Marty Flynn, Democratic state Reps. Jim Haddock, Kyle Donahue and Kyle Mullins, Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce President Bob Durkin, Scranton School District Superintendent Erin Keating, Ed.D., and Dunmore Superintendent John Marichak spoke Thursday to the myriad ways the Scranton campus benefits the region and its students. For many of those students, including nontraditional students and those without access to transportation or a wealth of financial resources, a closure 'would mean the end of their education,' Flynn said.
'They also spoke about how much they value being part of a campus that reflects their own community, going to class with people they know, people from their hometowns, that sense of belonging,' he continued. 'A connection is something that can't be replaced or replicated miles away.'
State Rep. Jim Haddock speaks with a panel of legislators, including state Rep. Kyle Donahue, Sen. Marty Flynn, and state Rep. Kyle Mullins during a public forum concerning the possible closure of Penn State Scranton in Dunmore Thursday, May 1, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Many who spoke echoed those or similar sentiments, touting Penn State Scranton as an indispensable resource.
Durkin and other chamber officials described the school as a vital partner providing educations that prepare students to fill high-priority jobs in the region, bolstering a talent pipeline critical to economic growth and development. Penn State Scranton leaders, faculty and staff also actively participate in regional economic development efforts, support the chamber's entrepreneurship program, open doors for internships at member businesses and expand professional development opportunities, the chamber stressed in a recent letter to Bendepudi.
Keating and Marichak said losing the institution would negatively impact students in both districts directly, including by reducing dual enrollment opportunities allowing high school students to earn college credits and educational opportunities more broadly.
'I represent a low-income school district,' Keating said, noting nearly 80% of the Scranton School District's roughly 9,300 students are economically disadvantaged. 'They don't have the means or the opportunity to leave the area to receive a post-secondary degree that's recognized for global excellence, and Penn State is. It gives my kids an opportunity to be able to have that access.'
'Those low-income children, those children who come from economically disadvantaged homes, deserve that opportunity,' she continued. 'Closing this campus takes an opportunity like that away.'
Penn State's Regional Chancellor Elizabeth J. Wright speaks during a community meeting held at Penn State Scranton in Dunmore Thursday. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Elizabeth Wright, Ph.D., regional chancellor for Penn State's Scranton, Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton campuses, said 41% of students at the Scranton branch are 'Pell eligible,' meaning they're among those the federal government classifies as having the highest financial needs, and about 45% are the firsts in their families to attend college.
'And within that context we think daily about how we support students and their families as they seek to attain their educational goal,' she said. 'And indeed our goal is to help families that may be thinking that college is out of reach to transition to a moment when they say to themselves that college is within reach.'
Several students and alumni who attended Thursday's event also shared personal anecdotes about how Penn State Scranton helped them academically, professionally and personally.
President of the student government at Penn State Scranton Gavan Quimby voices concerns during a community meeting held at the campus Study Learning Center in Dunmore Thursday, May 1, 2025. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
But their testimonies come as Penn State and other colleges and universities face a number of headwinds, including declining enrollment.
Bendepudi has attributed the 'difficult choices' the university now faces regarding the future of its satellite campuses to declining enrollments, demographic shifts and financial pressures. At the 12 campuses unprotected from closing, enrollment has dropped 39% in a decade, officials said earlier this year.
Gov. Josh Shapiro's proposed budget includes $242.1 million in general support funding for Penn State, the same allocation the university received for the past several years and $30 million less than it requested. But while that general support funding remains flat, Shapiro also proposes $60 million in new performance-based funding for Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh and Temple University, money that would be distributed to those institutions based on the recommendations of a Performance-based Funding Council established last year.
Haddock referenced the performance-based funding proposed for those state-related universities, noting Penn State officials he spoke with were 'thrilled' by the proposal. But he also took aim at Republican state lawmakers who've opposed and blocked past efforts to increase funding for Penn State, increases Haddock said local Democratic lawmakers reliably supported.
'We have all voted, this Lackawanna County delegation, we have voted for the funding of Penn State and we all voted for increased funding of Penn State, but unfortunately the votes didn't come from the other side of the aisle,' Haddock said in calling for the Scranton campus to remain open. 'So my message to Penn State is this: support the politicians that supported you. … It's ironic when I see my cohorts in the House of Representatives having roundtables like this, public forums, say 'don't cut Penn State in my district. It's jobs, it's this, it's that.' But they won't vote to fund Penn State and they forget about our students and they forget about the jobs until they're at risk. Sometimes the truth has to be spoken.'
Haddock, Flynn, Mullins and Donahue all said either during or after Thursday's session that they'd reconsider their support for future state funding increases should Penn State close the Scranton campus.
Their collective focus now is on making a strong case to keep it open.
'We're not here today to attack anyone,' Flynn said. 'We're here to advocate, to unite, to make it clear Penn State Scranton matters. It matters to that student who's trying to balance a part-time job and classes. It matters to the parent hoping that their child can get a degree without going into extreme, massive debt. It matters to the families who can't afford out-of-town tuition or the burden of a long-distance travel. It matters to the local businesses who rely on campuses to train their workforce.'
'So let me say this clearly,' he continued. 'Closing this campus would be devastating, not just in Dunmore or Lackawanna County, but to all of Northeastern Pennsylvania.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
25 minutes ago
- New York Post
New Yorker dresses as ‘washed up scum' Andrew Cuomo in Mermaid Parade
A man dressed as a bizzare depiction of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo showed up to march in the Coney Island Mermaid Parade Saturday — with a special plea for his fellow New Yorkers. 'I'm trying to get reelected on Tuesday and I thought I'd bring my message to the voters,' the man who only called himself 'washed up scum,' sarcastically told The Post. 3 The man dressed as Andrew Cuomo in the Mermaid Parade insisted people call him 'washed up scum.' Samantha Olander The costume was complete with messy green strings to represent algae the former Governor would have encountered as he washed up on the shore, a torn-up dress shirt — and Cuomo's oversized head. On his backside, the man had a sign that read 'don't rank me,' a reference to the Big Apple's ranked choice voting, where electors place up to five mayoral candidates in order of preference. 3 Voters in NYC can rank up to five candidates in order of preference for the mayoral election. Samantha Olander 'I made the state fill up with as much scum as I could when I was governor and I'd like to do that to the city,' the mystery man said, adding it was his first mermaid parade. Cuomo is the frontrunner heading into Tuesday's Democratic mayoral primary, though surging socialist Zohran Mamdani has been making up ground — cutting the ex-lawmaker's lead in half from just a month ago. The Ex-Governor is ahead 55% to 45% against Mamdani in the latest poll released Wednesday. The heated NYC Democratic mayoral primary has lit a fire under Big Apple voters — twice the number of New Yorkers are turning out for early voting compared to four years ago, data from the city Board of Elections shows. 3 Cuomo resigned as New York Governor in disgrace in 2021. Stephen Yang
CNBC
2 hours ago
- CNBC
Republican Party has nearly five times more cash on hand than the Democrats
The Republican National Committee has almost five times the cash on hand as its Democratic counterpart, as Democrats seek to regain their footing following a disappointing 2024 cycle. The RNC reported having $72 million on hand at the end of May, compared to just $15 million for the DNC, according to campaign filings out Friday. While the RNC has for months held a cash advantage over the Democratic National Committee, the $57 million gap is the widest disparity between the two parties since at least July 2020, according to California Target Book's Rob Pyers. It's still early, but the GOP's cash edge could give the party an early boost as it looks to build out campaign infrastructure ahead of next year's midterms. "The single most important thing the DNC can and should be doing right now is raising money," Democratic strategist Adrienne Elrod told CNBC. The filings come as the DNC has faced internal tension since President Donald Trump's return to the White House. Earlier this month, leaders of two large labor unions each declined their nominations to continue serving on the committee, dealing a blow to Chair Ken Martin. Martin has also overseen internal divisions over ex-DNC Vice Chair David Hogg's bid to challenge sitting Democratic incumbents. Hogg stepped down from his role earlier this month amid backlash. Some Democrats say that the fundraising gap underscores deeper concerns within the party. "The base of the party and donors alike do not have confidence in the direction of the party," said Cooper Teboe, a Democratic strategist in Silicon Valley. Teboe said that the party has not presented "a positive, inspiring vision." The DNC, however, points to a surge in grassroots support. The party says it raised roughly $40 million in individual donations since Martin became chair in February, a record for that four-month period. The contributions go to a range of areas, according to the DNC, including "building up critical infrastructure from tech to organizing to in-state investments for critical, target races." "This is only the start, but it's a record-setting start that allows Democrats to meaningfully invest in every part of the country," Martin said in a statement. The DNC's war chest is roughly double what it held during the same period in 2017, suggesting there is time for them to catch up. "The goals Chair Martin has set out — investing in all 50 states and building the state of-the-art infrastructure necessary to win back the White House in 2028 — are ambitious and necessary, but they can only be achieved by raising money," Elrod said. Looking ahead, Teboe said that Democrats may be successful in next year's midterms "as a reaction to Trump's overreach but it will take a new generation of voices to get the party out of this mess." "Those voices will emerge in the 2028 primary and we will have the chance to rebuild a stronger Democratic Party outside of the influence of the old guard that seems incapable of understanding what motivates normal Americans," he said. The Republicans' money advantage comes after a 2024 election cycle during which Tesla founder Elon Musk poured nearly $300 million into helping elect Republicans. Musk's surge of donations to help elect Trump certainly took some pressure off the rest of the party's fundraising apparatus. It's unclear what the RNC might have decided to pay for last year's elections, were it not for Musk's millions. Musk last month said that he was going to do "a lot less" political spending in the future. It's also unclear how Trump will use the millions he has raised in a group of PACs since he won the November election. Should Trump choose to donate to Republican candidates and get out the vote efforts next year, the RNC could again find itself under less pressure to shell out cash than the DNC. But Trump's financial support has traditionally not been geared towards helping the party at large. Rather, Trump has contributed relatively small amounts to help elect his closest allies. He has also played a significant role in Republican primary races, endorsing MAGA candidates who, in some cases, have struggled to win the backing of moderate Republicans and independent voters.
2 hours ago
Ex-Texas US Rep. Blake Farenthold, who left office amid harassment allegations, dies at 63
Former Texas Republican U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold, who left Congress amid sexual harassment allegations, has died. He was 63. He died in a Corpus Christi hospital and suffered heart and liver problems in recent years, Steve Ray, his former longtime political consultant, said. Farenthold's wife, Debbie Farenthold, confirmed that he died Friday. Blake Farenthold was elected in 2010, upsetting long-serving Democratic U.S. Rep. Solomon Ortiz. Seven years later, Farenthold announced that he wouldn't seek reelection. In a video he posted on his campaign's Facebook page at the time, he denied a former aide's three-year-old accusations, which included that he'd subjected her to sexually suggestive comments and behavior and then fired her after she complained. He apologized for an office atmosphere he said included 'destructive gossip, offhand comments, off-color jokes and behavior that in general was less than professional.' He said in the video that if he stayed in Congress, he would have spent months trying to vindicate himself. 'We all make mistakes,' Ray said Saturday. 'He made some mistakes.' Ray described him as a 'techie' who was interested in the internet and technology before getting involved in politics. 'He did a tremendous job as congressman for this area,' Ray said, noting that Farenthold cared about fighting crime and promoting transparency. 'His heart was really always in the right place.' Before becoming a congressman, Farenthold was a sidekick for a conservative radio talk show host, Ray said. 'When he decided to run, nobody in the world thought he was going to win,' Ray said. When he left office, Farenthold started his own radio show, which he continued until he died. In addition to his wife, Farenthold is survived by two adult daughters, Morgan Baucum and Amanda Lawrence, Ray said.
