Anticipated closing date announced for Rockview state prison, Quehanna Boot Camp
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- DOC plans March closure of Rockview and Quehanna after phased wind-down.
- Approximately 647 union workers received placement offers, most at top choices.
- Inmates reassigned across 22 state prisons; system occupancy sits near 80%.
The agency that manages Pennsylvania’s prison system said Friday that Rockview state prison and Quehanna Boot Camp are expected to close around the beginning of March.
The state Department of Corrections told the Centre Daily Times that operations at both facilities will continue to gradually draw down throughout February, with an anticipated closure around March 1.
The move would put an end to Rockview’s more than 110-year run as a prison. The second-oldest in the state prison system, it opened in 1915 during the second year of World War I and five years before women gained the right to vote.
Quehanna Boot Camp, in neighboring Clearfield County, opened in 1992.
The upcoming closures forced hundreds of central Pennsylvania families to make changes to their daily lives, everything from their commutes and child care to schooling and more.
The DOC said nearly 93% of the 647 affected union-represented employees were offered a position at their first choice of facilities. About 6% received an offer at their second choice.
Only five employees from that group received an offer at either their third or fourth choice. Three did not return their placement surveys.
It’s not yet known how many employees are going to which facilities. The DOC said the data available as of Friday reflected the offers that were made, not what was accepted.
Every affected staff member — more than 900 people were employed at Rockview and Quehanna this spring — was guaranteed an offer at their existing pay and classification, though many expressed concerns about longer driving distances or shift changes.
Inmates, meanwhile, have been transferred to each of the DOC’s remaining facilities for men. The agency has said inmates would be moved to locations that best meet their “individualized programming/treatment, security, healthcare, and other needs.”
There were 509 men incarcerated as of the end of December at Rockview, leaving the facility at 20% of its capacity. There were only 89 people at the boot camp at the same time, amounting to 14.5% of its capacity.
None of the other 22 state prisons are below 62% capacity, according to the latest population report released Friday. The entire state prison system is at about 80% capacity.
Boot camp services for men will be established at Houtzdale state prison in Clearfield County, while services for women will be established at Cambridge Springs state prison in northwestern Pennsylvania.
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration has framed the closures as a cost-cutting measure to save tens of millions in taxpayer money. The decision to close the facilities was finalized in September despite bipartisan pushback in Centre County.
No decision about the future of either the facilities or the land they sit on has been made, prompting state legislators to push for transparency in the process.
This story was originally published January 23, 2026 at 3:57 PM.