When Maine was required to reform its welfare program by the 1996 federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, policy-makers decided that Maine’s low-income families must continue to have access to higher education.

Consequently, in 1997 the Maine Legislature created the Parents as Scholars program (PaS), which provides funds to support TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) recipients who want to pursue a college education. The program is particularly noteworthy because passage of the federal welfare reform act resulted in most states ending college support for welfare recipients. Maine became one of a few states that set up a special program to support college-level education for parents who qualify for TANF. In fact, the program is a national model.

Since 1997, PaS has helped hundreds of Maine families lead more successful and fulfilling lives. It can help many more.

While post-secondary education is not the answer for all parents on welfare, it is clearly an important tool in our efforts to help families become permanently independent. Low-income, single parents, particularly those without significant family support, face insurmountable barriers to higher education, safe child care and reliable transportation to name but two.

Like other low-income students, those in the PaS program obtain federal financial aid for tuition and fees to pay for their education-related costs. But PaS provides critical assistance with health benefits and other support services that allow higher education to become a reality.

Maine chose to develop this program because we know that education makes a difference. Study after study has shown that higher education leads to better-paying jobs, more productive careers and, ultimately, a more vibrant economy. And studies continue to show that Maine lags behind the region and nation in educational attainment and personal income.

A March 2002 study of PaS graduates titled, “Parents as Scholars: Education Works,” showed that PaS participants who obtained a degree increased their average wage by nearly 50 percent. These graduates were also much more likely to be provided with employer-sponsored benefits, such as health insurance and paid leave, which are critical to ensuring success in the work force.

And there are less tangible, but no less important, benefits of the PaS program. When asked about the impact that getting a college degree has had on their lives, many PaS participants speak first of the extraordinarily positive force it has been in building the aspirations of their children. As children in PaS families witness the transformation that occurs when their parents pursue a degree, they see first hand the benefits of education. As one parent put it, “My two sons respect me for working so hard to go to college. They’ve gained renewed interest in their own schoolwork as education has become a higher priority in our household. And I know that they are more likely to pursue their own college education now.”

Clearly PaS is good for all of us. In 1999, only 19.2 percent of Maine adults held bachelor’s degrees, compared to the national average of 24.4 percent. The percentage of adults with college degrees is a leading indicator of a state’s per capita income. Maine’s per capita income was approximately $4,000 below the national average in 1999. PaS has the potential to stimulate the Maine economy by helping to increase the number of Maine citizens with college degrees.

In a few months, Congress will consider renewal of the federal welfare reform act of 1996. Some federal proposals under consideration could impose new mandates on states without providing additional funding, thereby jeopardizing PaS as well as other education programs.

PaS has moved many Mainers from welfare dependency to economic independence. It is one of the best and most effective investments we can make and needs to be preserved. People should not be denied the opportunity to better themselves, their families and their communities because they are parents and welfare recipients.

This commentary was written by Kevin Concannon, commissioner of the Maine Department of Human Services; John Fitzsimmons, president of the Maine Technical College System; and Joseph Westphal, chancellor of the University of Maine System.