The Elizabethtown College School of Graduate and Professional Studies (SGPS) is rolling out a new discount program in cooperation with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Many secondary education organizations in Pennsylvania– including Etown– will offer a hefty discount on certain programs.

Who is eligible for this discount? Pennsylvania state employees, their spouses, and their children can expect to save fifteen percent on SGPS programs. Over twenty-five different government agencies are eligible for the tuition discount. These include those that provide services such as healthcare, security, education and many more.

This discount also applies to the Etown Edge, a micro-credentialing program. Etown Edge courses certify their students in many different areas, such as cyber security, nonprofit management, leadership and management, foreign languages and more. There are even courses that help students build an excellent resume and apply for jobs.

Students can move through the course at their own pace and will receive a certification once they have completed it. The purchase of certain courses comes with ninety days of access to the module, giving students three months to earn their certification. Other courses take more time to complete, so a whole year is allotted for them.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is interested in providing necessary skills for government employees and their families, and to give back to the workers who support the state of Pennsylvania. Governor Joshua Shapiro first began to roll out this plan in March. The Office of Administration initially collaborated with York College of Pennsylvania to offer a tuition discount for state employees that is similar to the one that is now offered at Etown.

The Shapiro administration claimed that, considering the ever-growing demand for state employees, the program should be a win for everyone. There will be more government jobs to be filled by educated employees, and Even those who do not qualify for the discount can benefit from their state bureaucracy being filled with more educated people.

“The Shapiro Administration is proud to offer this first-ever tuition discount for both Commonwealth employees and their children, representing an investment in Pennsylvania’s present and future.” said Neil Weaver, Pennsylvania’s Secretary of Administration, in Pennsylvania Pressroom.

Sophomore biotechnology major Elise McCann has a family member who is a government employee. In her opinion, this discount program is a good idea because it can save money for and support the education of families similar to her own.

“I think that [the discount program] was a good idea. Discounts are always helpful for everyone, especially for graduate students. Graduate programs are specialized for specific jobs, so it helps to have access to them when you want to go into certain careers, especially specialized government jobs. In the end, it’s less money that these people will have to pay, which is always a good thing.”

Approximately twelve percent of Pennsylvania workers were employed by their local, state, or federal government in some capacity in 2021. This is the lowest percentage out of any state in the country, and suggests that more employees will be needed in the future to take care of Pennsylvania’s needs.

Etown’s tuition discount will hopefully be beneficial for members of the community with connections to the state government to get a level of education that they could not have afforded in the past.