State Board of Education approves resolution to expand ages for mandatory school attendance

Back in February 2019, Governor Tom Wolf proposed changes to the state’s required ages for enrollment in school. This week, the State Board of Education approved the resolutions to lower the required age to start school from 8 to 6 and to raise the legal drop-out age from 17 to 18.

Both changes are key components of the governor’s Statewide Workforce, Education, and Accountability Program (SWEAP)—included in his 2019-20 budget proposal—which Wolf says will “create the strongest and most qualified workforce in the nation.” Other proposed action items include raising the minimum salary for elementary and secondary public school teachers from the current $18,500 to $45,000. Under Wolf’s SWEAP proposal, which needs approval from the legislature, 180 out of the state’s 500 school districts would receive money to raise the minimum salaries to $45,000, affecting approximately 3,100 educators.

Pennsylvania is one of only two states that allow children to wait until age 8 to begin school. The requirement was established in 1895. There are approximately 3,300 students ages 6-7 not yet enrolled in an approved educational program who would be affected by this new law.

The state’s current legal age for dropping out of school is 17, and was set in 1949. Each year, more than 13,800 Pennsylvania students leave school without graduating.