Scott Hutchinson

HARRISBURG — On a day when everyone will celebrate a new year, Scott Hutchinson of Oil City will kick off 2013 by starting a new job as the state senator for the 21st District.

He and his family will be in the State Capitol on Tuesday for a ceremony set for noon in the Senate chamber. The event will be streamed live on the Web at www.pasenategop.com, according to a news release from Hutchinson.

Hutchinson replaces Mary Jo White of Cranberry Township, Venango County, who retired at the end of November. She had been in office since 1997.

He previously represented the 64th District in the state House of Representatives from 1992 to this year. Before election to the House, he served as the chief deputy county treasurer for Venango County from 1984 to 1992.

He said that his experience as representative provides an excellent foundation for his new job, saying his focus and goals remain unchanged by his new position.

“I believe the counties of northwestern Pennsylvania are all very similar. We have a lot of the same goals and aspirations and a lot of hardworking, good people,” Hutchinson said.

Born in Oil City in 1961, Hutchinson graduated from Oil City High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania in 1983. He has taken additional courses at the University of Pittsburgh at Titusville and Thiel College, according to the release.

Hutchinson is active in St. Joseph Church and was a member of the Oil City Lions Club, the Venango Video Inc. board of directors, and the Oil Heritage Region Board. He is a former board member of the Venango County Association for the Blind.

He was a member of the Oil City School Board from 1985 to 1992.

He is married to the former Mary Beth Radkowski. They have three children, Sophie, Anne Marie and Lucy.

The 21st District covers Allegheny, Brady, Butler, Center, Cherry, Clay, Marion, Mercer, Muddy Creek and Slippery Rock townships as well as Butler, Harrisville, Portersville, Prospect, Slippery Rock, West Liberty and West Sunbury in Butler County.

It also covers all of Clarion, Forest and Venango counties and parts of Erie and Warren counties.