Corbett Administration Approves More Than $21.6 Million in Reimbursement for Construction Projects in 41 Pennsylvania Schools

HARRISBURG, Pa., Sept. 26, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Acting Secretary of Education Carolyn Dumaresq today announced that more than $21.6 million has been approved for reimbursement of construction projects in 41 schools in 27 school districts and one career and technology center across the commonwealth.

"This much-needed funding will help to free up dollars that can be directed into the classroom to support student achievement," Dumaresq said. "I am hopeful that as we progress through the current fiscal year, the department will be able to approve additional projects as more funding becomes available."

The Planning and Construction Workbook, or PlanCon, is an 11-step process that schools use to seek partial reimbursement from the state for school construction and renovation projects.

PlanCon is designed to document a local school district's planning process; provide justification for a project to the public; ascertain compliance with state laws and regulations; and establish the level of state participation in the cost of the project.

When the Corbett administration took office in 2011, the PlanCon program was overcommitted by $30 million by the previous administration, which forced the department to halt further approvals until the deficit was eliminated.

Through tight fiscal control, the department eliminated the deficit in March 2014 and approved six projects for reimbursement during the 2013-14 school year.

In July, Governor Corbett signed into law the 2014-15 state budget that allocated $306.2 million for PlanCon – an increase of $10 million.

In addition to this increase, more funding has become available due to prior projects being paid off or being refinanced by schools to secure lower interest rates, which results in cost savings to school districts and the state.

For additional information about the construction reimbursement program, visit www.education.state.pa.us and enter "PlanCon" in the "PDE Search" feature.

Media contact: Tim Eller, 717-783-9802

Editor's note: Below is the list of school districts by county, projects funded and dollar amount.

Adams County

Conewago Valley School District, New Oxford Elementary School and Conewago Township Elementary School, $821,826

Allegheny County

Bethel Park School District, Bethel Park High School, $2,546,929
Montour School District, Montour High School/District Administration Office, $802,860
Penn Hills School District, Penn Hills High School, $1,823,450
Pittsburgh School District, University Preparatory School, Science and Technology Academy at Frick and Concord Elementary School, $1,112,138

Berks County

Fleetwood Area School District, Willow Creek Elementary School, $333,990
Reading School District, Millmont Elementary School, $549,813

Bucks County

Pennsbury School District, Makefield Elementary School, $106,890

Cambria County

Portage Area School District, Portage Area Elementary School/District Administration Office, $582,812

Centre County

State College Area School District, Ferguson Township Elementary School and Mount Nittany Elementary School, $1,383,794

Chester County

Chester County, Chester County Technical College High School-Brandywine Campus, $425,653
Unionville-Chadds Ford School District, Unionville High School/District Office, $582,411

Lackawanna County

Scranton School District, Issac Tripp Elementary School, John F. Kennedy Elementary School and John G. Whittier Elementary School, $3,274,302

Lancaster County

Elizabethtown Area School District, East High Elementary School, $248,104
Lancaster School District, George Washington Elementary School, Lafayette Elementary School, Thomas Wharton Elementary School and Ross Elementary School, $1,205,549

Lebanon County

Eastern Lebanon County School District, ELCO Intermediate School, $202,999
Palmyra School District, Lingle Avenue Elementary School, $3,417

Lehigh County

Catasauqua Area School District, Sheckler Elementary School/District Administration Building, $273,606
East Penn School District, Willow Lane Elementary School, $27,156

Luzerne County

Dallas School District, Dallas High School, $315,000

Lycoming County

East Lycoming School District, Ferrell Elementary School, $142,708

Montgomery County

Cheltenham Township School District, Cheltenham Elementary School and Wyncote Elementary School, $306,675
Pottsgrove School District, Ringing Rocks Elementary School, $382,911

Schuylkill County

Shenandoah Valley School District, K-12/District Administration Office, $862,412

Venango County

Titusville Area School District, Pleasantville Elementary School, $691,935

Washington County

Chartiers-Houston School District, Chartiers-Houston High School, $671,663

York County

York City School District, McKinley K-8, Phineas Davis K-8 and Jackson K-8, $1,786,838
York Suburban School District, Yorkshire Elementary School and Valley View Elementary School, $219,275

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Education