Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Sen. Scott Martin (R-Lancaster) reviewed the first year of the Grow PA Scholarship Grant Program, a state initiative designed to keep young people in Pennsylvania by supporting their education and encouraging them to work in high-demand fields within the state.
The Grow PA program, established through Act 89 of 2024, provides up to $5,000 per year for students who attend college in Pennsylvania, pursue degrees in occupations that are in demand, and commit to working in those fields after graduation. The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) is responsible for administering the program and reporting annually on its progress.
According to PHEAA’s report released this week, more than 11,000 applications were submitted during the program’s first year as of November 6. Over 4,000 grants have been awarded so far, with another 2,300 applications approved by early December. The average award was $4,650 per student.
Sen. Martin stated: “Because of Grow PA, we’re now going to have thousands of young people graduating with less debt and ready to take on family-sustaining, high-demand jobs right here in Pennsylvania. Getting a commitment from these young people to live and work in the careers our community needs most gives them a chance to buy a home here, get married here and plant their roots here so we stop the flow of talented young people leaving PA for opportunities in other states.”
PHEAA also reported that over 3,000 applications were incomplete and about 1,600 applicants did not meet eligibility requirements.
The main areas of study among grant recipients included registered nursing, early childhood education, business administration and management, biological sciences and accounting. Other fields such as computer science, engineering, trades, agriculture and criminal justice also saw significant numbers of awards.
Martin acknowledged PHEAA’s efforts: “The bottom line is this: the first year of this program proves that the student-centered Grow PA model works. This innovative approach forces our state to be better investors of taxpayer dollars and focuses on the careers our economy desperately needs to reverse Pennsylvania’s decades of economic and demographic decline,” he said. “I deeply appreciate the amazing work that PHEAA has done to get this new program up and running, and I look forward to working with them in the months ahead to build on the success of the program in Year Two.”
The application period for next year’s scholarships will begin in early February. The state budget for fiscal year 2025-26 includes an additional $7.5 million for Grow PA funding—an increase expected to support about 1,500 more students during the 2026-27 academic year.
Further information about Grow PA can be found at pheaa.org/funding-opportunities/grow-pa-scholarship-grant-program.
