Pennsylvania

==Education==
{{Main|Education in Pennsylvania}}
Pennsylvania has 500 public school districts, thousands of private schools, publicly funded colleges and universities, and over 100 private institutions of higher education.

===Primary and secondary education===
{{See also|List of high schools in Pennsylvania|List of school districts in Pennsylvania}}
[[File:South Philly HS.JPG|thumb|[[South Philadelphia High School]] on [[Broad Street (Philadelphia)|Broad Street]] in [[South Philadelphia]] in February 2010]]
Under state law, school attendance in Pennsylvania is mandatory for children between ages eight and 17, or until graduation from an accredited high school, whichever is earlier, unless students are [[Homeschooling in the United States|homeschooled]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pde.state.pa.us/|title=Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE)|access-date=December 4, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091202153904/http://www.pde.state.pa.us/|archive-date=December 2, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> As of 2005, 83.8% of Pennsylvania residents age 18 to 24 are high school graduates; Among residents age 25 and over, 86.7% have graduated from high school.

The following are the four-year graduation rates for students completing high school in 2016:<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Pennsylvania Department of Education|title=Cohort Graduation Rate|url=http://www.education.pa.gov/Data-and-Statistics/Pages/Cohort-Graduation-Rate-.aspx#tab-1|access-date=October 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201083645/http://www.education.pa.gov/Data-and-Statistics/Pages/Cohort-Graduation-Rate-.aspx#tab-1|archive-date=February 1, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Cohort !! All Students !! Male!! Female !! White !! Hispanic !! Black !! Asian !! Special Education
|-
| % graduating || 86.09 || 84.14 || 88.13 || 90.48 || 72.83 || 73.22 || 91.21 || 74.06
|}

Among Pennsylvania high school graduates as of 2009, 27.5% of them went on to obtain a bachelor's degree or higher degree.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nces.ed.gov/|title=National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)|access-date=December 4, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110116125625/http://nces.ed.gov/|archive-date=January 16, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> State students consistently do well in standardized testing. In 2007, Pennsylvania ranked 14th in the nation in mathematics, 12th in reading, and 10th in writing for eighth grade students.<ref>'NCES'.</ref> In 1988, the [[Pennsylvania General Assembly]] passed Act 169, which allows parents or guardians to homeschool their children as an alternative to compulsory school attendance. The law specifies varying geographic requirements and responsibilities on the part of parents and school districts.<ref>[http://www.pde.state.pa.us/home_education/site/default.asp Pennsylvania Department of Education: Home Education and Private Tutoring, Retrieved December 4, 2009.] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091105050517/http://www.pde.state.pa.us/home_education/site/default.asp |date=November 5, 2009 }}</ref>

===Higher education===
{{See also|List of colleges and universities in Pennsylvania}}
[[File:Benjamin Franklin statue in front of College Hall.JPG|thumb|The [[Statue of Benjamin Franklin (University of Pennsylvania)|statue]] of [[Benjamin Franklin]] on the campus of the [[University of Pennsylvania]], an [[Ivy League]] institution in [[Philadelphia]] ranked one of world's top universities<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 1, 2022 |title=Best National University Rankings |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities |access-date=April 27, 2022 |website=U.S. News & World Report}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=January 1, 2022 |title=2022 Best Global Universities Rankings |url=https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/rankings |access-date=January 1, 2022 |website=U.S. News & World Report}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=January 1, 2022 |title=QS World University Rankings 2022 |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2022 |access-date=April 27, 2022 |website=Top Universities}}</ref>]]
The [[Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education]] (PASSHE), which includes 14 state-owned universities and colleges, is Pennsylvania's [[public university]] system. [[West Chester University]] is by far the largest of the 14 with nearly 15,000 students. The [[Commonwealth System of Higher Education]] is the organizing body of Pennsylvania's four state-related schools, which include [[Pennsylvania State University]], [[Lincoln University (Pennsylvania)|Lincoln University]], the [[University of Pittsburgh]], and [[Temple University]]. There are 15 publicly funded two-year [[Community colleges in the United States|community colleges]] and technical schools in Pennsylvania that are separate from the PASSHE system, and many private two- and four-year technical schools, colleges, and universities.

[[Carnegie Mellon University]], Pennsylvania State University, the [[University of Pennsylvania]], and the University of Pittsburgh are members of the [[Association of American Universities]], an invitation-only organization of leading research universities. [[Lehigh University]] is a private research university located in Bethlehem. The Pennsylvania State University is Pennsylvania's [[land-grant university]], [[National Sea Grant College Program|Sea Grant College]] and, [[National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program|Space Grant College]]. The University of Pennsylvania, located in Philadelphia, is considered the [[first university in the United States]] and established the country's [[First university in the United States#Establishment of quarterly-education schools, issuance of any kind of "doctoral" degree|first]] [[medical school in the United States|medical school]].

The University of Pennsylvania, founded in [[Philadelphia]] in 1740 by [[Benjamin Franklin]], is Pennsylvania's only [[Ivy League]] university, and is the geographically most southern of the nation's eight Ivy League universities. The [[Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine]] (LECOM) is a private graduate school of medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy with a main campus in Erie, a branch campus located in [[Greensburg, Pennsylvania|Greensburg]], and two additional campuses outside Pennsylvania. With over 2,200 enrolled medical students, the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine is the largest medical school in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://lecom.edu/about-lecom/quick-facts/|title=Quick Facts|access-date=August 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>"Enrollment booming with new, returning students". Bradenton Herald. April 8, 2011. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved October 9, 2012.</ref><ref>"Nation's largest medical school to open new $4M location at Seton Hill University". Popcitymedia.com. June 25, 2008. Archived from the original on April 22, 2012. Retrieved May 26, 2012.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.popcitymedia.com/devnews/lecom0625.aspx/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120422130030/http://www.popcitymedia.com/devnews/lecom0625.aspx/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 22, 2012|title=Nation's largest medical school to open new $4M location at Seton Hill University|date=April 22, 2012|access-date=August 13, 2020}}</ref> The [[Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts]] is the first and oldest [[art school]] in the United States.<ref name="pafa.org">{{cite web|title=History of the School|url=http://www.pafa.org/School/Overview/History-of-the-School/350/|website=pafa.org|access-date=April 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615012302/http://www.pafa.org/School/Overview/History-of-the-School/350/|archive-date=June 15, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Philadelphia College of Pharmacy]], now a part of [[University of the Sciences|University of the Sciences in Philadelphia]], was the first [[pharmacy school]] in the United States.<ref name="usciences.edu">{{cite web|title=About—University of the Sciences|url=http://www.usciences.edu/about/|website=usciences.edu|access-date=April 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524050754/http://www.usciences.edu/about/|archive-date=May 24, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref>