Pennsylvania Statutes Title 24 P.S. Education § 5009. Construction

(a) The provisions of this act shall be construed liberally for the accomplishment of the purposes thereof and any law inconsistent with any provisions hereof shall not apply. Nothing contained in this act shall be deemed to repeal any of the provisions of any law of this Commonwealth relating to discrimination because of race, religion, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, handicap or disability. This act shall not be construed to prohibit any educational institution which is neither State-owned nor State-related, nor State-aided, from drawing its enrollment entirely from members of one sex or from the sexes in any proportion, nor shall anything herein contained prevent any educational institution which is State-owned, State-related or State-aided from requiring each applicant for admission to state in the application for admission such applicant's sex to supplement and implement the institution's facts for planning purposes but only for such planning purposes and not for any discriminatory purposes. For the purpose of this section the term “State-owned” institution means the institutions comprising the State System of Higher Education; the term “State-related” institutions means the University of Pittsburgh, Temple University, Lincoln University and the Pennsylvania State University; the term “State-aided” institution means the Delaware Valley College of Science and Agriculture, Drexel University, Hahnemann University, Thomas Jefferson University, the Medical College of Pennsylvania, University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania College of Podiatric Medicine, Pennsylvania College of Optometry, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science, and University of the Arts.

(b) When considering any matter brought before it with respect to any alleged unfair educational practice based on sex, the commission shall take into consideration the educational programs offered by the institution and the number of admissions necessary to maintain programs and departments at educationally and economically feasible levels.

(c) Except as provided in section 7.1,  1 nothing contained in this act shall be deemed to repeal or supersede any of the provisions of any existing or hereafter adopted municipal ordinance, municipal charter or of any law of this Commonwealth relating to discrimination because of race, color, ancestry, age, sex, religion, national origin or handicap or disability. As to acts declared unlawful by section 4,  2 the procedure provided in section 7.1 shall, when invoked, be exclusive. Any final determination under section 7.1 shall exclude any other action, civil or criminal, based on the same grievance without resorting to the procedure provided in this act, and such complainant may not subsequently resort to the procedure in this act. In the event of a conflict between the interpretation of a provision of this act and the interpretation of a similar provision contained in any municipal ordinance, the interpretation of the provision in this act shall apply to the municipal ordinance.