Education category, Page 14
Interest in online learning, cyber charters increase in wake of covid pandemic
As the covid-19 pandemic eased and Canon-McMillan School District reopened its doors in August 2021, elementary student Camille Postlewaite told her parents she did not want to return to in-person classes. “That was what she wanted to do, and we’re not big on, ‘Well, you’re going to do it this...
From technology to learning loss to mental health, covid’s impact on education still felt today
Wayne Walters can still recall the enormous logistical challenge of handing out thousands of paper packets of classwork to Pittsburgh Public Schools students in 2020. The covid-19 pandemic had taken hold in the region. Schools closed buildings, students were left to learn online, and educators scrambled over how best to...
Trump administration investigates Maine for claims of withholding gender transitions from parents
PORTLAND, Maine — The administration of President Donald Trump is investigating Maine with a claim that dozens of school districts in the state violate federal law by withholding information about students’ gender transitioning from parents. The U.S. Department of Education said it launched the investigation on Friday, the day after...
Utah becomes first state to ban LGBTQ+ pride flags in government buildings and schools
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah became the first state to prohibit flying LGBTQ+ pride flags at schools and all government buildings after the Republican governor announced he was allowing a ban on unsanctioned flag displays to become law without his signature. Gov. Spencer Cox, who made the announcement late Thursday...
Shady Side Academy computer science students prepare for multi-district competition
Two Shady Side Academy students, bonded by a common love of zeros and ones, are preparing to expand their multi-school district technology-based competition. Zeros and ones are the two digits used in binary code, often described as the fundamental language of computers. Juniors Thomas Wang of Fox Chapel and Vivan...
Colleges rely on federal research funding. Under Trump, its future is in doubt
After decades of partnership with the U.S. government, colleges are facing new doubts about the future of their federal funding. President Donald Trump’s administration has been using the funding spigot to seek compliance with his agenda, cutting off money to schools including Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania. All...
Pittsburgh college students fear ICE could hit campuses after string of national arrests
After several high-profile arrests of foreign nationals attending college in New York, Alabama and, now, Massachusetts, students at Pittsburgh universities wonder if it’s only a matter of time before federal immigration agents target their campuses. Spokespeople for the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University said Thursday they weren’t aware...
Carnegie Mellon president addresses China-based ties
The federal government has requested information about Carnegie Mellon University’s international students and possible collaborations it has with China-based universities and research institutions. CMU President Farnam Jahanian said it was one of six American universities to receive a letter from the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party regarding...
Penn Hills teachers reach contract agreement, avoid strike
Penn Hills teachers were able to avoid a strike after a contract agreement was reached with district administration. According to a news release from the Penn Hills Education Association, an unspecified majority of the membership voted to ratify their collective bargaining agreement with the district Wednesday night. The school board...
Trump asks Supreme Court for OK to cut teacher-training money as part of anti-DEI push
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is at the Supreme Court with a new emergency appeal Wednesday, this time seeking approval to go ahead with cuts of hundreds of millions of dollars for teacher training. A federal judge in Boston temporarily blocked the cuts, finding they were already affecting training programs...
Penn State commonwealth campus leader leaves for College of New Jersey
Penn State’s vice president for commonwealth campuses and executive chancellor Margo DelliCarpini is set to depart the university to accept a position at a different school. She will leave Penn State effective June 30 to take on a new position as the provost and vice president for academic affairs at...
Researchers in limbo as Columbia bows to Trump’s demands in bid to restore $400M federal funding
NEW YORK — When President Donald Trump canceled $400 million in funding to Columbia University over its handling of student protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, much of the financial pain fell on researchers a train ride away from the school’s campus, working on things like curing cancer and studying...
Norwin School Board candidates face hearing on petition challenges
Three Norwin School Board candidates should be removed from the May 20 primary ballot, according to legal challenges filed by two opponents. Westmoreland County Judge Harry Smail is scheduled to hear challenges Wednesday to the nominating petitions of Alex Detschelt, a current school board member seeking a nomination on the...
State police release IUPatty’s weekend arrest, investigation activity
State police conducted 77 investigations and arrests over the three-day IUPatty’s weekend centered around the Indiana University of Pennsylvania campus. The three-day annual celebration is popular with university students. Spanning from March 21 to 23, the event drew the following activity from state police:187 traffic stops50 traffic citations issued47 written...
Laurel Technical Institute predicts ‘tremendous growth’ with new Penn Township location
Westmoreland County high school students interested in pursuing a health care or trade school education upon graduation will have another option available to them this summer. Fayette County-based Laurel Technical Institute will launch its first semester of classes at its new Penn Township location in May, with the fall semester...
2 veteran Hempfield Area school board members decide not to seek reelection
Hempfield Area school board will see at least two new faces next year, as veteran members Paul Ward and Diane Ciabattoni are opting not to run for reelection. Board President Jerry Radebaugh and Vice President Scott Learn will seek another term, according to Westmoreland County records. The former Westmoreland County...
‘She really cares’: Westmoreland County Community College professor honored with award
Westmoreland County Community College professor Stephanie Turin’s job entails more than teaching social work to the next generation of practitioners. Turin came to the Hempfield college after 27 years of working medical social work jobs throughout Westmoreland County. She has worked at the college for 11 years, teaching the bulk...
Under threat from Trump, Columbia University agrees to policy changes
NEW YORK — Under threat from the Trump administration, Columbia University agreed to implement a host of policy changes Friday, including overhauling its rules for protests and conducting an immediate review of its Middle Eastern studies department. The changes, detailed in a letter sent by the university’s interim president, Katrina...
ACLU demands University of Pittsburgh lift suspension of student group supporting Palestine
A letter from the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania on behalf of the University of Pittsburgh’s Students for Justice in Palestine called for the immediate revocation of the chapter’s interim suspension. The letter, addressed to Pitt Chancellor Joan Gabel, stated that the university violated SJP’s First Amendment rights by...
Nonprofit targeted by the Trump administration over DEI has ties to Carnegie Mellon
Until recently, it was a little-known program to help Black and Latino students pursue business degrees. But in January, conservative strategist Christopher Rufo flagged the program known as The PhD Project in social media posts that caught the attention of Republican politicians. The program is now at the center of...
Trump sketches the start of a roadmap for winding down the Education Department
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday began sketching a roadmap for dismantling the Education Department, with other agencies taking over responsibility for federal student loans and programs serving students with disabilities. The executive order Trump signed Thursday to do away with the department did not offer a timeline or...
Trump has ordered the dismantling of the Education Department. Here’s what it does
WASHINGTON (AP) — Moving to fulfill a campaign promise, President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday calling for the dismantling of the Education Department, an agency Republicans have talked about closing for decades. The order says Education Secretary Linda McMahon will, “to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by...
Trump orders a plan to dismantle the Education Department while keeping some core functions
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday calling for the dismantling of the U.S. Education Department, advancing a campaign promise to take apart an agency that’s been a longtime target of conservatives. Trump has derided the Education Department as wasteful and polluted by liberal ideology. However, completing...
Hempfield Area High School students show off winning Chain Reaction machine
Standing around a machine made of wood, plastic tubes, a spatula and an imitation frying pan, a team of Hempfield Area High School students showed the school board the work that won them first place in a February engineering competition. For nearly two decades, science teacher Tom Harden has sent...
Podcast: Pine-Richland school board approves library policy in contentious vote
Pine-Richland School Board has become the latest local school system to join the conversation of library censorship and book bans, thanks to a new policy that was narrowly passed, and has engaged board and community members alike. As the board nears primary election season, TribLive reporter James Engel and host...
