On April 7, 2022, Governor Tom Wolf joined the Millersville University community in highlighting his plan for a new scholarship program to make college education more attainable for thousands of students each year.

Through his $200 million Nellie Bly proposal, Gov. Wolf hopes to provide scholarships to students who attend either a community college or PA State System of Higher Education institution.

“When it comes to pursuing a higher education, skyrocketing costs over the last decade have put that dream out of reach for too many families. Pennsylvanians are being priced out of a brighter future,” Governor Wolf said. “When our brightest and best Pennsylvanians can’t pursue a higher education because it’s unaffordable, that means we’re doing something wrong.”

The Nellie Bly Scholarship Program – proposed to be funded by both the federal American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act and the Race Horse Development Trust Fund – would support student tuition and relevant costs of attendance with a focus on those pursuing programs with high-workforce needs following the pandemic such as healthcare, education, and public service. Students who take advantage of the program must stay in Pennsylvania to live and work for the same amount of time that they received the scholarship benefit.

Proponents of the program stress that when students leave college in a strong financial situation they can start a family, buy a home, and save for retirement. The Nellie Bly Scholarship Program will strengthen Pennsylvania’s students, its workforce, and its economy. It will also further the State Systems commitment to providing a pipeline of graduates to close the state’s talent gap, so employers have the well-educated people they need to succeed in the commonwealth.

It is further felt that as Pennsylvania works to move forward following the COVID-19 pandemic, the Nellie Bly proposal would remove barriers to an affordable education while simultaneously stabilizing Pennsylvania’s future workforce, as graduates would be required to maintain their Pennsylvania roots for work and life or repay the tuition through an interest-free loan.

The $200 million program is looked at as prioritizing a legacy of funding education to ensure that students have every opportunity to be college, career, and community ready.