Capital Day offers all Penn Staters the chance to advocate for fair state funding

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A total of 150 students from across the commonwealth are preparing to head to Harrisburg to convey Penn State's positive impact to elected officials during Advocate Penn State’s annual Capital Day on April 9.  

Capital Day offers students from University Park and the Commonwealth Campuses the chance to meet with lawmakers to talk about their Penn State experiences and advocate for increased University funding. 

In tandem with the in-person event, all Penn Staters also are encouraged to show their Penn State pride by contacting their elected officials through Advocate Penn State’s digital advocacy campaign, which will open early on April 9.  

Click here to become an advocate to join the campaign on Capital Day!  

Sponsored by Advocate Penn State, Penn State’s Office of Government and Community Relations, and the Penn State Alumni Association, Capital Day is the University’s single-largest day of advocacy.  

“Advocacy during Capital Day plays a vital role in making our case for fairer funding to the Pennsylvania legislature,” said Mike Stefan, Penn State vice president for government and community relations. “It’s essential for elected officials to hear directly from Penn State students in meetings but also from the larger Penn State community of families, faculty and staff, alumni and supporters, so they understand the impact support from the commonwealth has on communities across Pennsylvania.” 

Capital Day supports the advocacy efforts for the University’s annual state appropriation. As Pennsylvania's flagship public university, this funding helps to keep tuition affordable for all Pennsylvania resident undergraduate students and supports Penn State’s mission of world-class accessible education, groundbreaking research, and service to the commonwealth. 

In its 2025-26 appropriation request to the commonwealth, Penn State asked for a $30 million incremental increase to its general support funding, dollars that fund the University’s in-state tuition rate and enable Penn State to invest in the quality of its academic programs. The basis for this request was to begin to bridge the per-student funding gap that exists between Penn State and Pennsylvania's other public universities. Penn State's funding per Pennsylvania resident student ranks last in the state, trailing Temple University, the University of Pittsburgh and the institutions in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education by between $3,700 and $4,700 per student. 

Last year’s Capital Day and Capital Day On Campus events and digital advocacy saw more than 4,300 advocates send nearly 9,000 messages to every single member of the Pennsylvania General Assembly and Gov. Josh Shapiro.  

“Penn State impacts its students like no other university in the world,” said Mike Fowler, Penn State student and Lion Caucus president. “It’s crucial for legislators to hear the firsthand accounts of not only how a Penn State education can change someone's life, but how a higher funding level can increase this impact across the commonwealth, the United States and the world. The student voice is instrumental in Penn State's advocacy and will lead to a stronger generation of ambition and talent at this University.” 

In his 2025-26 budget proposal, Gov. Shapiro proposed flat funding of $242.1 million for Penn State’s general support funding, with an additional $60 million in performance-based funding to be allocated between Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh and Temple University, per the Performance-Based Funding Council established by Act 90 of 2024. Metrics and other recommendations for Pennsylvania's performance-based funding model are to be submitted to the General Assembly by April 30 to be included in this year’s state budget.  

Supporters who join Advocate Penn State will receive an email the morning of Capital Day with easy-to-follow instructions on how to take action to support Penn State and our students. Advocate Penn State encourages all Penn Staters to share their own stories of Penn State's positive impact on their lives — just like the current students who will be traveling to Harrisburg on April 9 — by using the hashtags #PSUCapitalDay and #PennStateStory. 

Stay up to date on Capital Day and Advocate Penn State on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and X.