Education category, Page 21
Private school vouchers opposed by more than half of Pa. voters, poll shows
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Most Pennsylvania voters don’t support using taxpayer dollars to create a private school voucher program, a new Spotlight PA poll shows, an idea...
Financier’s $4M gift helps Duquesne University create new nursing simulation lab
A nearly $4 million gift will enable Duquesne University to open a second nursing simulation lab on its campus, which also enrolled its inaugural class in osteopathic medicine this fall. The Joanne Barkett Conway Simulation Center is scheduled to open in 2026 on the sixth floor of Fisher Hall, university...
‘This isn’t the worst thing’: Western Pa. students, teachers adapt to cellphone restrictions
When Plum Senior High School announced in August it would require students to turn in their cellphones at the start of each class, Dhruv Thakkar could not have been more opposed to the change. “Me and my friends immediately jumped to the fact that our senior year was going to...
A year into the Israel-Hamas war, students say a chill on free speech has reached college classrooms
WASHINGTON — As a junior at George Washington University, Ty Lindia meets new students every day. But with the shadow of the Israel-Hamas war hanging over the Washington, D.C., campus, where everyone has a political opinion, each new encounter is fraught. “This idea that I might say the wrong thing...
2 Westmoreland schools recognized by Special Olympics for inclusive programming
Two Westmoreland County schools were recognized by the Special Olympics for offering inclusive programming for students of all abilities. Mt. Pleasant and Hempfield Area high schools are two of 11 schools in the state to receive national recognition for their Unified Champion Schools programs — where students in special and...
Exiting chancellor of Pa.’s state-owned universities encouraged by enrollment numbers
Enrollment across Pennsylvania’s 10 state-owned universities appears essentially flat this fall versus last — an elusive milestone for a system now 30% smaller after 13 consecutive yearly declines since 2010, Chancellor Daniel Greenstein said. The State System of Higher Education expects to release official numbers early next week. Greenstein told...
Hempfield to reevaluate high school library following resignation of librarian
Hempfield Area High School is reevaluating how to use its library space, district officials said. The high school’s librarian submitted a letter of resignation a few weeks ago, working her last shift Friday. But the district is holding off on hiring a new full-time employee for the position. With sights...
Health department cites violations at Point Park dining hall after student newspaper report
Images appearing in Point Park University’s student newspaper this week show unsanitary conditions that the publication says it found in the Downtown campus’s dining facility inside Lawrence Hall. One of the photos published Wednesday in The Globe depicts a red pepper “appearing to be moldy in the salad bar.” Another...
Enrollment dropped by 600 students at state-owned universities in Western Pennsylvania this fall
Enrollment at state-owned universities in Western Pennsylvania dropped by more than 600 students this fall compared to last year, even though one of the region’s three institutions saw growth for a third straight year. That school, Slippery Rock University, registered a headcount increase of 32 students to 8,394, up from...
McDonald’s fundraiser to benefit 131 schools in tri-state area
Local schools across Western Pennsylvania will benefit from a McDonald’s restaurant fundraiser next week. From open to close on Wednesday, Oct. 9, dubbed Arch Support Digital Fundraiser Day, schools will earn 20% of all sales purchased through the McDonald’s app at their partner restaurant. Across the tri-state area, 131 schools...
Experts say focus on mental, behavioral health paramount in combating school threats
Eli Majocha knows firsthand the strain a school threat can have on students’ mental health. The 2023 Highlands High School graduate remembers how news of threats against his school or a nearby school made him feel. “It’s unpredictable in nature,” he said. “When (it happens), you sit back and put...
CERN still fascinates, discovers on its 70th anniversaryVideo
GENEVA — The research center that is home to the world’s largest particle accelerator is celebrating its 70th anniversary on Tuesday, with the physicists who run it aiming to unlock secrets about dark matter and other mysteries to promote science for peace in today’s conflict-darkened world. Over the last seven...
New dean joins Carnegie Mellon science college
Carnegie Mellon University’s Mellon College of Science has a new dean, Barbara Shinn-Cunningham. Her tenure begins in January. Shinn-Cunningham came to Carnegie Mellon in 2018 as founding director of the Neuroscience Institute. A faculty researcher and an engineer by training, she is a professor of auditory neuroscience. Shinn-Cunningham heads two...
Free speech group urges Penn State to apologize for removing newspapers, newsstands
A free speech advocacy group says Penn State University should publicly apologize to its student newspaper staff for removing dozens of newsstands and newspapers from campus over what the school has called a violation of advertising rules. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) says it is “gravely concerned”...
‘Microschools’ growing as option as more families seek school choice
In the fast-changing landscape of education, where school choice is increasingly valued by families across the political spectrum, a new model is growing in popularity: the microschool. Typically, microschools serve a small group of students, ranging from five to around 20 per school. These schools emphasize personalized learning experiences and...
Trump campaign billed $40K for IUP rally
Indiana University of Pennsylvania billed the campaign of former President Donald Trump $40,000 for its use of the 5,000-seat Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex for this week’s rally. The state-owned university on Friday provided a copy of the invoice agreement in response to inquiries this week from TribLive. The total...
Pitt staff join United Steelworkers union
About 6,300 employees on the University of Pittsburgh’s main and branch campuses are joining the United Steelworkers union, officials confirmed Friday after votes were tallied in a monthlong, state-supervised election. The union will work to secure a collective bargaining agreement between those workers and Pitt, Western Pennsylvania’s largest university. Results...
Shapiro launches Board of Higher Education to get colleges, universities to ‘row in the same direction’
Minutes into its inaugural meeting Thursday, the panel now tasked with bringing order to Pennsylvania’s loosely regulated system of colleges and universities received a pointed reminder of what’s at stake. “Our costs are going up and our enrollment is going down. We’re not graduating enough students with the credentials we...
Pitt approves $50M center to research arthritis, osteoporosis
University of Pittsburgh trustees on Thursday approved a $50 million center for musculoskeletal research, an ambitious science and treatment effort aided by tens of millions of dollars donated by the Greensburg founder of Hillandale Farms. The board of trustees’ unanimous vote green-lights a renovation on the 16th floor of the...
Hillandale Farms owner commits another $18.5M to Pitt for orthopedic-based biobank
It’s one thing to give $25 million to advance medicine, as Greensburg’s Orland Bethel and his family foundation did last year in helping to establish a new University of Pittsburgh center for musculoskeletal research. But Bethel, 88, founder of Hillandale Farms, didn’t stop at that. He and his family soon...
Hempfield Area votes to spend $100K to double its weapons detector devices
After purchasing six weapons detectors for its schools in advance of the academic year, the Hempfield Area School District will double up on its security measures. The district purchased six OpenGate weapons detectors for more than $111,000 in July. The devices — two parallel poles that create a gate for...
Florida officials pressure schools to roll back sex ed lessons on contraception and consent
TALLAHASSEE — Some Florida school districts are rolling back a more comprehensive approach to sex education in favor of abstinence-focused lessons under pressure from state officials who have labeled certain instruction on contraception, anatomy and consent as inappropriate for students. Officials from the Florida Department of Education, led by an...
School administrators discuss Pa.’s teacher shortage, working to add to educator ranks
Not so long ago, Hampton School District Superintendent Michael Loughead wasn’t concerned about the pool of teacher candidates when it came time to fill a spot. “We have a successful district, we pay our teachers well, and at one time we were lucky enough to have 1,000 people apply for...
Penn State removes student newspapers, sparking free speech debate
Penn State University removed dozens of newsstands from campus buildings that contained its student newspaper because nine of them displayed political ads above the newspaper rack itself: three for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and six promoting voter registration. Penn State administrators say the posters violated rules about advertising and...
Penn State to pay $700K in gender discrimination case
Penn State University will pay $703,742 in back wages and interest to settle a U.S. Department of Labor case alleging gender pay discrimination against female staff and faculty, the parties announced. The amount will be shared among the women impacted. Penn State said the inequities found by the department were...
