Pennsylvania State Treasurer Joe Torsella said the Pennsylvania 529 College and Career Savings Program (PA 529) recorded the best year in its 25-year history for contributions during calendar year 2018.
“Now, more than ever, it is encouraging to see such growth in the PA 529 College and Career Savings Program. For two consecutive years, Pennsylvania’s graduates have started their careers with the highest student debt load in the nation,” said Torsella. “By saving today, families are taking proactive steps in their own homes to alleviate the costs of higher education for Pennsylvania’s future workforce.”
Pennsylvania Treasurer, Joe Torsella
In 2018, Pennsylvania families saved more than $585 million to use toward future education expenses—the highest amount of annual contributions in the history of the program.
The PA 529 College and Career Savings Program sponsors two plans – the PA 529 Guaranteed Savings Plan (GSP), which lets families save for tomorrow’s post-secondary education expenses at today’s plan rates, and the PA 529 Investment Plan (IP), which allows account holders to choose how contributions are invested from a list of 16 options. PA 529 IP returns are based on financial market performance, whereas PA 529 GSP returns are based on post-secondary tuition increases.
Since its inception, the PA 529 College and Career Savings Program has paid over $3.5 billion in education-related expenses to 2,567 technical and career schools, colleges, and universities on behalf of more than 115,773 students.
To learn more about the PA 529 College and Career Savings Program, or to open an account, please visit pa529.com or call 1-800-440-4000.
