The Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program helps families of students in Early Learning Centers with a financial tax break.
By Aubrey Hoffert and Sydney Kerelo
Throughout February, hundreds of ‘Little Learners’ prepare for their 100th day of school, including KenCrest's Early Learning Centers. Whether its dressing up as an old person or having a class party, PA's Little Learners celebrate their milestone. However, some students aren’t celebrating their 100th-day milestone because they were removed from school due to challenging behavior or lack of funds.
Many students nationwide cannot remain in school because their parents cannot afford it. But there is a solution.
Since 2012, funding received through the Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program has supported over 400 working families at KenCrest’s Early Learning Centers. Quality Pre‐K programs in the Philadelphia community cost nearly $15,000 per year. Through EITC donors like PNC, WSFS, AmerisourceBergen, Ray’s Appliances, and Primex Garden Center, KenCrest—as a Pre-K Scholarship Organization—can offset family tuition expenses for those who need assistance. In the fiscal year 2021, $290,000 in EITC donations funded scholarships for 61 students.
“It made life simple. And it kept my son in school; if we didn’t get the scholarship, he probably wouldn’t be able to attend KenCrest, let alone any school,” shares a Lehigh Center parent. “Life is just too expensive, especially for a single mom.”
Students at KenCrest's Early Learning Centers. // Photo by Aubrey Hoffert
The EITC program isn’t just limited to businesses; as an individual taxpayer, you can participate through a Special Purpose Entity (SPE) if you have a minimum Pennsylvania tax liability of $3,500. Unlike the traditional business model, there are no strict deadlines to follow and a simple one-page application.
The tax credit programs also support before-and-after care expenses, summer programming, and free-and-reduced lunches for students.
“The scholarships helped cover before and after care, and I could work full-time without worrying about the added costs. Education is important, and having a KenCrest Early Learning Center right in our neighborhood made a difference for my children and me, too,” says an Adams Center parent.
Businesses authorized to do business in Pennsylvania are subject to one or more of the following taxes:
- Personal Income Tax
- Capital Stock/Foreign Franchise Tax
- Corporate Net Income Tax
- Bank Shares Tax
- Title Insurance & Trust Company Shares Tax
- Insurance Premium Tax (excluding unauthorized, domestic/foreign Marine)
- Mutual Thrift Tax
- Malt Beverage Tax
- Surplus Lines Tax