Report: Local PSU Campus Would Survive Cuts

Leaked document reveals plans to close Penn State Fayette, New Kensington

By Jason Togyer
The Tube City Almanac
May 15, 2025
Posted in: McKeesport and Region News

The Student Community Center at Penn State Greater Allegheny opened in 2003. (File photo taken by Ryan Kegel, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Generic license.)

A leaked report this week revealed that Penn State University’s nearly 78-year-old campus in McKeesport would survive a round of cuts that would lead to the closure of seven other regional sites.

The report, revealed by the Philadelphia Inquirer and Spotlight PA ahead of a planned Penn State board of trustees meeting, recommends the closure of regional campuses in Uniontown and New Kensington, as well as DuBois, Mont Alto, Shenango, Wilkes-Barre and York.

Two campuses in southwestern Pennsylvania would be spared — Penn State Beaver and Penn State Greater Allegheny in McKeesport.

Local officials reacted with relief at the unofficial, though widely reported, news.

McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko said that he and many other elected representatives had lobbied the state and university to preserve the Greater Allegheny Campus, which currently has 353 students enrolled and pursuing two-year and four-year degrees.

“We wanted to make sure we left no stone unturned when it came to doing what we could to preserve our local Penn State campus,” Cherepko said. “I know firsthand the value of having a regional campus that’s accessible to students in the Mon Valley.”

White Oak Mayor Ina Jean Marton said she likewise was relieved. Part of the 59-acre campus is located in the borough.

“As of now, I (am) very happy to hear that Penn State Greater Allegheny may be spared from closure,” Marton said. “We will keep our fingers crossed as to the future of our campus here in White Oak.”

State Sen. Nick Pisciottano, West Mifflin Democrat, said Wednesday night that like others, he was happy that Penn State Greater Allegheny may be spared closure. But he cautioned that local officials would need to continue to advocate to keep the campus open.

“I’m relieved by press reports that Penn State Greater Allegheny will remain open, but recognize that these are only recommendations that still need to be approved by Penn State leadership,” Pisciottano said. “My office remains in constant contact with Penn State to ensure that Greater Allegheny continues to be a regional asset for years to come.”

The report, entitled “Future State Recommendation: Commonwealth Campus Ecosystem,” was prepared by Penn State administrators Margo DelliCarpini, Tracy Langkilde and Michael Wade Smith.

According to Spotlight PA, a non-profit news service, the report was reviewed by the university’s board of trustees on May 9 and was to have been voted on today (May 15).

But the report was leaked to the Philadelphia Inquirer and other outlets, and the vote has now been rescheduled.

Several watchdog organizations, as well as members of the Penn State University faculty, have questioned why the board of trustees received and reviewed the report in private, instead of deliberating in public, and said it raises concerns of whether the university was in violation of the state’s Open Meetings Law.

Penn State officials, however, criticized the person or persons who distributed the report ahead of this week’s scheduled meeting.

“It’s disappointing that a trustee or trustees have prioritized their own self-interests above both the best interests of the University we serve and the people these decisions will affect,” said David Kleppinger, a retired attorney with a Harrisburg-based law firm who chairs the university’s board of trustees. “This has only heightened emotions and created anxiety and uncertainty among the students, faculty, staff, alumni and local communities we serve.”

In response to criticism, Penn State said it will provide notice to the public before the meeting is held.

The news has at least temporarily relieved anxiety in the Mon-Yough area, where residents and Penn State alumni had feared the worst for the Greater Allegheny campus.

Cherepko, a Penn State University alumnus, said he knows “firsthand the value of having a regional campus that’s accessible to students in the Mon Valley.”

“I received a first-class education from Penn State University, and that began here at the McKeesport campus,” the mayor said. “Today’s students will continue to have access to a wealth of Penn State programs from right here in their backyard, whether they stay home to pursue their degree or use this campus as the first step in their journey to University Park.”

Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi had called for shrinking the university’s network of regional sites, known as Commonwealth Campuses, due to declining enrollments, financial pressures and demographic shifts across Pennsylvania that has seen population drop in many counties in the western half of the state.

Allegheny County — where population increased a slight amount between the 2010 and 2020 censuses — has been an exception.

The leaked report says that the seven campuses recommended for closure face “overlapping challenges, including enrollment and financial decline, low housing occupancy, and significant maintenance backlog.”

The campuses enroll 3.6 percent of all Penn State students. Keeping them open, the report’s authors conclude, would require $19 million in annual financial support, $21 million in annual overhead expenses and more than $200 million in capital improvements.

The report reveals that in academic year 2023-24, Penn State Greater Allegheny collected $5 million in revenue but had $9.1 million in expenses, for a loss of $4 million.

Of the campuses that were considered for possible closure, only Penn State DuBois had a larger loss than Greater Allegheny, according to the report.

Despite the financial loss, the authors said, Greater Allegheny is strategically important for several reasons. It offers the university’s only undergraduate clinical research program and Penn State’s only four-year social work degree.

In addition, programs offered by Penn State Greater Allegheny focus on fields such as health care, criminal justice, human services and education, all of which match Pittsburgh-area workforce demands, according to the authors.

“Moreover, demographic projections for Allegheny County show relative stability compared to other regions in Pennsylvania, suggesting that the campus is well-positioned to maintain or grow its enrollment base over time,” the report concludes.

Significantly, of the 12 campuses considered for closure, Greater Allegheny is one of only five with on-campus housing. The others are strictly commuter campuses.

Greater Allegheny also serves a high percentage of students who are the first members of their families to go to college, the report said.

“Its ability to attract and support these students highlights its importance as a gateway to opportunity for many who might otherwise be excluded from higher education,” the report states.

Jason Togyer is volunteer executive director of Tube City Community Media Inc. and editor of Tube City Almanac.

Originally published May 15, 2025.

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