Tax Credits Available to Businesses Helping D&L Education Project

Businesses interested in securing tax credits while lending financial support to local education have a new candidate to consider.

"Tales of the Towpath," an elementary history curriculum developed by the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, has been approved as an "innovative educational program" by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and is eligible for business contributions under the state's Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program.

Businesses contributing to "Tales of the Towpath" are eligible for a tax credit equal to 75 percent of the contribution, up to a maximum of $200,000 per taxable year. The tax credit can be increased to 90 percent of the contribution if the business agrees to provide the same amount for two consecutive years.

"Tales of the Towpath" is an intermediate level (fourth and fifth grades) multi-discipline curriculum based on the mid-19th century Lehigh and Delaware canals and their role in the growth of eastern Pennsylvania and the American Industrial Revolution. Curriculum lessons are based on a new children’s book that follows the adventures of a young boy whose life is intertwined with the canals and other youngsters he meets.

The curriculum was developed by a team of volunteer educators, historians and D&L staff and follows academic standards established by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Teachers implementing the curriculum will receive Act 48-accredited training.

Elementary schools can utilize "Tales of the Towpath" as a stand-alone local history curriculum or to augment existing local history lessons. The curriculum will be available on a short-term loan basis (free of charge) to public, parochial, private and home schools in the five counties that comprise the D&L National Heritage Corridor: Bucks, Northampton, Lehigh, Carbon and Luzerne.

The D&L will pilot "Tales of the Towpath" in six elementary schools in the Heritage Corridor this fall, with the final curriculum expected to be ready at the beginning of the 2008-2009 school year.

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