Tioga, Pennsylvania

Tioga is located at 41°54′23″N 77°8′8″W (41.906467, -77.135532).[3]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²), of which, 0.4 square miles (1.0 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) of it (17.31%) is water.

Tioga is surrounded by Tioga Township.

The name "Tioga" is borrowed from Native American tribes who lived in the area at the time of the arrival of European colonists; it means "at the forks". The various Iroquois tribes all had similar words for the concept: the Oneida called it Te-ah-o-ge, the Mohawk called it Te-yo-ge-ga, the Cayuga called it Da-o-ga and the Seneca called it Da-yo-o-geh.[4]

As of the census[6] of 2000, there were 622 people, 239 households, and 148 families residing in the borough. The population density was 1,440.0 people per square mile (558.5/km²). There were 261 housing units at an average density of 604.2 per square mile (234.4/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 99.04% White, 0.32% African American, 0.16% Native American, and 0.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.32% of the population.

There were 239 households, out of which 37.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.5% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.7% were non-families. 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.23.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 31.0% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 16.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $27,404, and the median income for a family was $34,500. Males had a median income of $29,519 versus $19,479 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $16,905. About 8.8% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.6% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.

Map of Tioga County, Pennsylvania School Districts

Residents of Tioga may attend the local, public schools operated by Northern Tioga School District which provides full day kindergarten through 12th grade. In 2013, the District's enrollment declined to 2,085 students kindergarten through 12th grade. Each elementary school provides a taxpayer funded preschool. Northern Tioga School District ranked 389th out of 500 public schools for academic achievement of its pupils in 2013.

Tioga residents may also apply to attend any of the Commonwealth's 14 public cyber charter schools (in 2013) at no additional cost to the parents. The resident's public school district is required to pay the charter school and cyber charter school tuition for residents who attend these public schools.[8][9] By Commonwealth law, if the District provides transportation for its own students, then the District must provide transportation to any school that lies within 10 miles of its borders including public charter schools and private schools. Residents may also seek admission for their school aged child to any other public school district. When accepted for admission, the student's parents are responsible for paying an annual tuition fee set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In 2012, the tuition fees for Northern Tioga School District were: Elementary School - $8,463.08, High School - $9,853.49.[10]

BLaST Intermediate Unit #17 provides a wide variety of services to children living in its region which includes Tioga. Early screening, special educations services, speech and hearing therapy and many other services like driver education are available. Services for children during the preschool years are provided without cost to their families when the child is determined to meet eligibility requirements.

Community members have access to the Westfield Public Library which is located on Maple Street, in Westfield; the Elkland Area Community Library 110 E Parkway Avenue, in Elkland and to the statewide PA Power Library[11] which is an online library funded with tax dollars from the state's education budget.

Mansfield University of Pennsylvania is a state university located in Mansfield, Tioga County, Pennsylvania. Residents may take courses at a discounted tuition rate for state residents.