State Rep. Jennifer Mazzocco heard the call to service early in her career. An English teacher at Allderdice High School, she was active in the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers union, and also served three terms on Dormont Borough Council.

“In all those things, I really got an appreciation for trying to help other people,” said the Dormont resident, who was elected in February to fill the seat in Harrisburg that was vacated by Dan Miller, following his election as Common Pleas Court judge.

“It shaped my values around wanting to make sure that we’re taking care of everyone, and the people that need someone to fight for them have a voice,” she said. “Given that experience, I wanted to be able to do that on a higher level.”

Mazzocco was sworn in in March and is still navigating the legislative landscape, but plans to continue Miller’s tradition of having occasional pop-up offices throughout the district.

“I expect to be out in the community a lot,” she said. An avid biker, Mazzocco is planning to hold some bike-and-talks, and some walk-and-talks heading into warmer weather.

Not surprisingly, the former teacher lists education as one of her priorities in office.

“Obviously, the big question is how to go about fully funding public schools, based on the court case.”

In 2023, Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court ruled that the state’s system for funding schools, with its heavy reliance on property tax revenues, was unconstitutional and needed reforming. Since then, the state has been struggling to come up with an alternate plan.

Also on the education front is Senate Bill 1014, requiring all school districts to adopt and implement a policy that prohibits the use of phones during the school day, with exceptions for students with medical conditions or individualized education plans that require the use of a personal phone.

“I think it’s important that students don’t have their phones during school,” Mazzocco said. “I think it’s a little tricky to navigate exactly how you do that, but [without phones] kids are more likely to pay attention and to talk to each other.”

Along with education, Mazzocco wants to work on improving affordability for working families, and one of those items includes passing the Family Care Act, a proposal her predecessor circulated.

“Representative Miller worked really hard to pass the Family Care Act, which would provide a statewide paid family and medical leave insurance program. The bill is up for consideration in the house, and I want to make sure that we continue to have a lot of support for it.”

She sees a need to do something about health care on the state level, “because we’re seeing changes at the federal level that are going to impact the state budget quite a bit.”

According to the Pennsylvania Health Exchange Authority, more than 85,000 Pennsylvanians dropped health care in 2026, following the expiration of federal tax credits and an almost doubling of premium costs. The drop represents about 20 percent of state residents who use the system.

Mazzocco is also interested in maintaining and improving infrastructure in the district, and in public transportation.

“Our district relies very heavily on public transit, and without sustainable long-term funding, both PRT and SEPTA in Philadelphia will have a lot of trouble just maintaining the routes and the level of service they have now.”

Although still brand-new in the job, Mazzocco is already seeing a big difference in the nature of working as a legislator versus working as a teacher.

“I did a video with Nick Pisciottano, the state senator whose district overlaps with mine,” she said, “and we were talking about how this job is just never the same from day to day. I’m used to literally having a bell schedule down to the minute and you know exactly where you’re going. Whether it’s going to an event, holding a press conference, doing a video, or just someone coming into the office with a question, it’s just a lot of different things, and I like that.”