W-b's Computer Dark Age Will See Light 
Old System Of Managing Information Hurts Taxpayers, Officials Say

Anna Mattey 
January 20, 1997 
Anna Mattey, Of Mountain Street, Swoyersville, Died Monday At Her Home.

Wednesday, January 22, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 





Public schools languish while state lavishes money on Penn State &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It appears that Pennsylvania Education Secretary Eugene Hickok, in his
surrender to Penn State University's expansionist dreams, has also surrendered
his responsibilities for all the rest of the state's education needs and
programsLong rumored, the Penn State empire-building plan unfolded quickly
during the last 45 days. In December, it managed the acquisition of the
Dickinson School of Law. In mid-January it acquired the Geisinger Hospital
system with its scattering of branch hospitals, physicians and other personnel
throughout northeastern and central Pennsylvania, adding these to its Hershey
Medical Center school. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; And in between, it won the permission of Secretary Hickok to substantially
expand the mission of Penn State University itself. Among other things, this
involves a remarkable reorganization of the institution and its branches.
Perhaps most important of all, it allows integration of 11 of the existing
Penn State branch campuses into what is called the Penn State Commonwealth
College, each one of which will become a four-year institution conferring
baccalaureate degrees. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I say "most important of all" in terms of its impact on potential college
students, on existing private colleges and universities, on all other elements
of the education systems of the state and on the taxpayers. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Since the Penn State system is financed in part by more than a quarter of a
billion dollars per year subsidy from the state government, it has a gross
advantage in its ability to compete with the private colleges and universities
-- which do not have that support. Secretary Hickok acknowledged this when he
noted that Penn State withdrew plans for the expansion in the Pittsburgh area
because of the number of competing institutions there. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Some observers say Pittsburgh was exempted from the competition because of
the strength of the opposition from legislators and other political forces of
that area. If so, the insult to Northeastern Pennsylvania is only deepened --
for Hickok claimed the Penn State expansion was authorized only in regions
"with limited resources in higher education, public and private." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Secretary seems blithely unaware of the presence of King's College,
College Misericordia and Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre and the University
of Scranton and Marywood College in Scranton in just two counties where three
of the expanded Penn State campuses exist. Add to them the range of adjacent
private institutions such as Bucknell and Susquehanna universities and
Lafayette and Lycoming colleges, to say nothing of those in the Lehigh Valley
region, all of which are certain to be adversely affected by the Penn State
expansion. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The new emerging empire will also compete with Pennsylvania's existing
state-owned and operated university system which boasts 14 institutions
including East Stroudsburg, Bloomsburg, Mansfield and Lock Haven in this
region, and a total of more than 100,000 students. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 When did Pennsylvania become so wealthy that it could afford to support
what will in effect be two parallel competing state university systems? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 While Secretary Hickok has no evident difficulty approving a grandiose
expansion of the state-owned and state-aided higher education systems, he has
done nothing to salvage the state's fading commitment to the elementary and
secondary public school systems for which it bears a constitutionally mandated
responsibility. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In fact, their rescue hangs on the admirable decision of 217 rural and poor
school districts in Pennsylvania to take the Commonwealth to court in an
effort to compel it to meet that obligation. These districts lack the
population and the wealth to support even basic education standards, but the
state's pledge to create equality has shrunk sharply. Hickok's office protests
that "equality" is not mandated, yet equality in every sense is the very
essence of the whole history and function of all the governments of the United
States. Did Secretary Hickok choose to forget that, too? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It is confusing. Yet it seems to be typical of the Ridge administration to
advocate actions in the field of education that would destroy the elementary
and secondary public school system, while it also allows actions that are
certain to be destructive to the private institutions of higher education. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 What obviously is lacking in the department of Education is a coherent,
comprehensive, top-to-bottom plan for developing and improving the quality of
education for every student, young and old, in Pennsylvania. That, after all,
is its first mission. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Tom Bigler is professor of communications and a Times Leader columnist. His
column appears Wednesday and Sunday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Public Schools Languish While State Lavishes Money On Penn State 
It Appears That Pennsylvania Education Secretary Eugene Hickok, In His 
Surrender To Penn State University's Expansionist Dreams, Has Also Surrendered 
His Responsibilities For All The Rest Of The State's Education Needs And 
Programs.

Public Schools Languish While State Lavishes Money On Penn State It Appears That Pennsylvania Education Secretary Eugene Hickok, In His Surrender To Penn State University's Expansionist Dreams, Has Also Surrendered His Responsibilities For All The Rest Of The State's Education Needs And Programs.