Lawmakers, Leaders Discuss Ways To Prevent Brain Drain In PA

By Kim Jarrett | Watchdog.org

Pennsylvania is losing some 25- to 34-year-olds and the number of college-age students is declining, according to data presented at a Senate Majority Policy Committee workshop on student flight.

The workshop, titled “Student Flight (Brain Drain) from Pennsylvania,” was led by panel chairman Sen. David Argall, R-Mahanoy City, and included officials from the education, labor and data departments, along with representatives from the Commonwealth Foundation and the Harrisburg Young Professionals.

This possible “brain drain” presents a challenge because lawmakers do not want Pennsylvania to lose highly-skilled workers to Sunbelt states like Texas, which has seen an increase in high-tech jobs.

But the statistics didn’t specify the education levels of those leaving the state, which is key to determining if Pennsylvania is experiencing a “brain drain,” said Gordon De Jong, distinguished emeritus professor of sociology and demography at Penn State University.

Pennsylvania has also received international immigration, but it is unclear if that offsets domestic losses because the education level of immigrants wasn’t known.

The issue is not just young adults leaving the state. Pennsylvania, like the rest of the nation, has fewer 18 to 24-year-olds due to declining birthrates. The population of K-12 students is also falling, said Aditya Voleti, special adviser to the Secretary of Education.

Argall repeated a quote from Bill Connelly, vice president for enrollment at Bucknell University, illustrating the birthrate problem.

“’I can’t recruit students who haven’t been born,’” Argall quoted Connelly as saying.

The panel focused on solutions that will keep young adults in Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth needs to offer what they want in a community, including jobs that match their skill sets, De Jong said.

“It’s benefits versus costs and jobs are clearly one of those key motivators,” he said.

Lifestyle amenities, housing and health care will also attract young adults, but the problem is a lack of information, De Jong said. Some Pennsylvania cities may have a better job market than Atlanta, but there’s a perception that the southern city offers better opportunities. De Jong suggested a real-time app with information about good jobs in the Commonwealth.

De Jong also suggested incentives such as a loan forgiveness program to keep students in the state, tax breaks and an incentive that would entice those who have left the state to come back.

“We think about enticing industry to come to the state,” De Jong said. “What about enticing former high-skilled residents, because the whole thing about the economy is having the workforce that you need for the kind of industry you want to attract.”

Philadelphia created Campus Philly to introduce college students to the city but to also provide them with internships, said Eileen Cipriani, deputy secretary for workforce development at the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.

“Philadelphia is second to Washington D.C. in the number of graduates it has retained,” Cipriani said.

High-paying jobs were once tied to a four-year degree, but that has changed. The state’s technical colleges have high enrollment rates, which the panel agreed was a positive change.

“We’ve over encouraged and over incentivized the four-year degree and underdeveloped some of our career and technical education programs,” said Nathan Benefield, vice president and COO of the Commonwealth Foundation.

Benefield suggested incentives such a tax changes that would encourage job creation and less regulatory burden on businesses.