Mar. 28, 2025
HARRISBURG – Rep. Joe Kerwin (R-Dauphin) has been reappointed to the advisory council overseeing the Keystone State ChalleNGe Academy, a 22-week, tuition-free program for at-risk youth.
Kerwin served on the council prior to his 11-month deployment with Pennsylvania Army National Guard in late 2023. House Speaker Joanna McClinton (D-Philadelphia/Delaware) named him to the council this week.
“The academy is a fantastic program in which young people are learning about responsibility, leadership, discipline and goal setting,” Kerwin said. “I’ve seen it make a difference in the lives of young people when they are at their most vulnerable.”
Kerwin, who enlisted at age 19, is a former criminal prosecutor who represents northern Dauphin County as well as West Hanover and Lower Paxton townships south of Peters Mountain.
“My time in the National Guard has taught me so much, and I hope to use my role on the council to pass those teachings onto the next generation,” he said.
Keystone State ChalleNGe Academy provides Pennsylvania teenagers struggling in their school studies with an opportunity to work toward credits or GED completion in a residential program with military-style training.