Richland township is located in southwestern Cambria County and is bordered to the south by Somerset County. The borough of Geistown is along the northwestern edge of the township, and the borough of Scalp Level is on the township's southern border. The boroughs are separate from the township. U.S. Route 219, a four-lane expressway, runs through the township, leading northeast to Ebensburg, the county seat, and southwest to Somerset. Pennsylvania Route 56, the Johnstown Expressway, leads from U.S. 219 northwest to the center of Johnstown. According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of, of which is land and, or 0.15%, is water. The Stonycreek River forms the southwest border of the township and flows northwest to form the Conemaugh River in the center of Johnstown. Richland Township serves as the central retail area for Johnstown and its two-county metropolitan area. It is the location of The Johnstown Galleria, the largest mall in the area.
Education
The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown is located in Richland Township. UPJ is a four-year, degree-granting constituent college of the University of Pittsburgh and has an enrollment of approximately 2,500 full-time undergraduates. UPJ was founded in 1927, as the first regional campus of a major university in the United States. It relocated to its Richland Township campus in 1970. Pennsylvania Highlands Community College is located at 101 Community College Way in Richland Township, adjacent to UPJ. Pennsylvania Highlands offers 30-plus academic degree programs in numerous fields including business, education, human services, liberal arts, science and technology. Pennsylvania Highlands also offers a wide variety of community and workforce education courses. Richland Township has one school district, Richland School District which operates Richland Senior High School and Richland Elementary School. In 2007 a new high school was built to house grades 7-12. Richland Township residents may also apply to attend any of the Commonwealth's 14 public, cyber charter schools 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. The tuition rate that Richland School District must pay was $7,874.09 in 2014. 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. 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. High school students may choose to attend Greater Johnstown Career and Technology Center for training in the construction and mechanical trades. Appalachia Intermediate Unit #8 provides a wide variety of services to children living in its region which includes Richland Township. Early screening, special education services, speech and hearing therapy, autistic support, preschool classes 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. Intermediate units receive taxpayer funding: through subsidies paid by member school districts; through direct charges to users for some services; through the successful application for state and federal competitive grants and through private grants.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,598 people, 4,741 households, and 3,133 families residing in the township. The population density was 631.2 people per square mile. There were 4,994 housing units at an average density of 250.2/sq mi. The racial makeup of the township was 97.13% White, 0.78% African American, 0.10% Native American, 1.43% Asian, 0.13% from other races, and 0.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.52% of the population. There were 4,741 households, out of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.84. In the township the population was spread out, with 17.3% under the age of 18, 17.6% from 18 to 24, 20.5% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 22.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 85.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.8 males. The median income for a household in the township was $36,280, and the median income for a family was $45,395. Males had a median income of $35,420 versus $25,039 for females. The per capita income for the township was $18,383. About 4.7% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.
