Treasurer Stacy Garrity Announces Winners of PA 529 Day Promotion
More than $30,000 awarded to help Pennsylvania families save for education with PA 529
Harrisburg, PA - Treasurer Stacy Garrity today announced that this year’s PA 529 Day Promotion was the most successful ever, with more than 1,200 PA 529 GSP accounts opened during the month of May and $17 million in contributions made.
Treasurer Garrity also announced the top award winners: Margaret Retz of Philadelphia and Jacob Anderson of Erie County both won top awards, and $5,529 was deposited into the new PA 529 College and Career Savings Program Guaranteed Savings Plan (GSP) accounts they each established in May. An existing account owner, Alexandra Riehl of Lancaster County, also won one statewide award of $5,529 in the promotion.
The awards, which are enough to cover a year’s tuition at a Pennsylvania community college, can be used for their children’s future education regardless of the career path they choose – or where they attend school.
“I’m thrilled to help the Retz, Anderson and Riehl families save more for education with our 529 Day promotion – and to encourage other families to start saving today with PA 529. PA 529 plans are incredibly flexible tools – they can help pay for technical or career training, four-year degrees, apprenticeships and more. Saving early means there’s less to borrow later, and that can make a huge difference for our next generation.”
Pennsylvania State Treasurer Stacy Garrity
“My daughter made her first communion on May 19, and I opened her 529 savings plan with a gift from her godmother. We were absolutely delighted when we learned that we had won the “529 Day” promotion. My kindergartner is jealous that his big sister already has money saved for college and now he’s personally encouraging me to set up his college savings account!”
Margaret Retz
“I started a 529 account for each of my kids, when they were in elementary school,” said Alexandra Riehl. “I don't think I understood then the impact that it would have down the road. Imagine my surprise when I got an email saying that I had won $5,529 as a grand prize winner! We were so surprised and grateful! I had won for doing the things that I was already doing – automatic deposits and having a balance in the accounts!”
Alexandra Riehl
This year’s promotion also included six regional awards of $2,529 in PA 529 GSP deposits. Regional winners represent Allegheny, Chester, Clinton, Cumberland, Lehigh and Mercer counties.
Regional winner Giuliana Ulloa of Cumberland County said after seeing the 529 Day promotion advertised, “I’ve been meaning to do this for probably many years, and I just never got to do it. I was like ‘why not?’ Chances are I probably won’t win because you never think you really will, but I was like, let’s give it a chance.” Her daughter Sophia added she was “shocked” when she found out they had won, “Because like my mom said, you never really think you’re going to win these types of things.”
PA 529 GSP account owners who opened a new account and contributed at least $10 during May were eligible to win promotional awards. Altogether, more than $30,000 was deposited to help boost education savings for Pennsylvania families.
There are more than 301,000 PA 529 accounts program wide with nearly $7.9 billion saved.
The PA 529 College and Career Savings Program helps families steadily and strategically save for future educational expenses like tuition, fees, books, equipment, room and board and more at qualifying technical, collegiate and apprenticeship programs. PA 529 plans also offer significant state and federal tax advantages. Also, saving with PA 529 does not impact Pennsylvania state financial aid eligibility.
There are two PA 529 plans, the PA 529 GSP, which allows families to save at today’s tuition rates to meet tomorrow’s tuition costs, and the Morningstar Gold-Rated PA 529 Investment Plan, which allows families to choose from a variety of investment options.
Families with children born in 2019 and after automatically receive a $100 Keystone Scholars account to jumpstart their savings. Keystone Scholars accounts can be claimed by visiting pa529.com/keystone. This program uses no taxpayer money. Keystone Scholars accounts can be linked to PA 529 accounts to help families see all their savings together.
Visit pa529.com to learn more about the PA 529 College and Career Savings Program.
