Education category, Page 27
Hempfield Area School Board approves district’s next superintendent
Incoming Hempfield Area School District Superintendent Mark Holtzman is keenly aware of the stalled high school renovation project. “The large construction project that’s been kind of looming over the last couple of years really needs to take shape,” he said. “I think kind of orchestrating and getting those things tied...
70 years ago, school integration was a dream many believed could actually happen. It hasn’t
WASHINGTON — Seventy years ago this week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled separating children in schools by race was unconstitutional. On paper, that decision — the fabled Brown v. Board of Education, taught in most every American classroom — still stands. But for decades, American schools have been re-segregating. The...
Beaver Area School District head recommended as Hempfield Area’s new superintendent
Former McKeesport Area and current Beaver Area Superintendent Mark Holtzman is set to become Hempfield’s top school official. Holtzman will be recommended for appointment as superintendent of Hempfield Area School District at a special board meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, according to a letter sent to parents Tuesday from the...
IUP prepares for academic overhaul with proposed college name changes
Indiana University of Pennsylvania is poised to undergo an academic restructuring that would include name changes for three of its five colleges, discontinuing low-enrolled programs and identifying areas for future growth. Those moves and others will be reviewed by the State System of Higher Education in Harrisburg in the coming...
As low attendance persists, school districts weigh the role of the magistrate
Students who habitually log unexcused absences could be in for more than a trip to the district judge. Instead, they might get a teacher-mentor, access to a licensed therapist or a home visit from a social worker — all steps that school leaders are taking in hopes of reversing a...
From fossil fuels to Israel, university divestment debates can be lengthy struggles
Protesters yelling “divest” outside the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning had a bullhorn, a well-honed message and a chest-high yellow banner that read: “We’re Still Here.” But their focus wasn’t the Israel-Hamas war. On that day in January 2020, they were demanding that Pitt rid its multibillion-dollar endowment of...
‘I put five years of my life into this’: Seton Hill graduates first class of doctor of physical therapy students amid open job market
As Morgan Simkovic watched her brother receive treatment following a brain tumor diagnosis in 2010, she knew she wanted to be a physical therapist one day. Simkovic sat in on some of her brother’s physical therapy treatments at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. He completed seven months of...
University of Pittsburgh faculty ratifies 1st union contract
About 3,500 University of Pittsburgh faculty represented by the United Steelworkers have ratified their first contract with Pitt, and it includes a $60,000 salary floor for full-time professors, yearly raises and enhanced job protections. The union Saturday announced results from weeklong voting on the main Oakland campus and branches at...
Area organizations offer creative and performing arts summer programs for kids of all ages
For kids with a creative streak, the summer can be a great chance to expand their horizons and learn new skills. In the Southwestern Pennsylvania region, many arts organizations are offering programs for the summer of 2024 that will entice and engage students, from 2-year-olds all the way up to...
Duquesne student’s journey from a cracked violin to master’s degree, fellowship
At age 9, Jesse Thompson heard a violin for the first time and was mesmerized by it during a student assembly as a public school student in Williamsport, Pa. There was one problem. There were not enough violins in school for him to study it in class. “I was bawling...
Some residents shocked by news of potential closing of Stewart Elementary
Sharon Nealer’s jaw dropped Thursday when she heard the news that Stewart Elementary School in Lower Burrell might close. “I’m shocked. I think it looks perfect the way it is,” said Nealer, who was shopping along Leechburg Road just a few blocks from the school. Burrell School District officials have...
Penn State branch campuses will offer faculty, staff buyouts
Penn State University is offering eligible faculty, staff and administrators on its 20 Commonwealth campuses the option to leave their jobs with a lump sum payment and benefits. The move comes as Pennsylvania’s flagship public university works to shrink a multimillion-dollar budget deficit. A number of its Commonwealth campuses, including...
Hempfield Area Project 18 students share civics lesson at West Point Elementary
Students of Hempfield Area High School’s Project 18 class visited with fourth graders at West Point Elementary on Wednesday. Project 18 is a state and local government class that originally was spearheaded by the state of Pennsylvania in response to 18-year-olds being given the right to vote. The elective class...
From the Newsroom podcast: A look at the student protests at Pitt
Over the past few weeks, universities and colleges across the country have seen unrest tied to the growing public sympathy for Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war. The University of Pittsburgh also saw a version of this national protest with its own Schenley Plaza as the site of students’ pro-Palestine encampment....
PennWest trustees recommend 2 presidential candidates
PennWest University trustees on Monday forwarded the names of two presidential hopefuls – one from Utah and the other from Tennessee – to the State System of Higher Education, which will pick the institution’s next president later this month. They are:Jon Anderson, provost and vice president for academic affairs/professor at...
Striking deals to end campus protests, some colleges invite discussion of their investments
NEW YORK — Anti-war demonstrations ceased this week at a small number of U.S. universities after school leaders struck deals with pro-Palestinian protesters, fending off possible disruptions of final exams and graduation ceremonies. The agreements at schools including Brown, Northwestern and Rutgers stand out amidst the chaotic scenes and 2,400-plus...
Penn State trustees advance proposed property sales involving Behrend, Harrisburg campuses
Property zoned for college housing at Penn State University’s Behrend campus near Erie may gain new life as a church, while a Penn State Harrisburg building could be going to that city’s school district. A panel of Penn State trustees endorsed both real estate divestitures Thursday as board members began...
Monroeville 17-year-old finishes high school, community college, master’s degree in 8 years
About this time, most 17-year-olds are looking forward to the end of another year of high school and a little summer vacation. R.J. Krishnaswamy of Monroeville was graduating from the University of Pittsburgh. Again. Krishnaswamy graduated from community college at 13 and earned his bachelor’s degree in computer science from...
A closer look at how University of Pittsburgh handled protests amid national strife
Many universities across the country are facing a harsh reckoning over vandalized buildings, mass campus arrests and chilling images from this week of student protesters battling police and sometimes each other. But the University of Pittsburgh is not — at least thus far. The university fared differently than other campuses...
Former students of the for-profit Art Institutes are approved for $6 billion in loan cancellation
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration on Wednesday said it will cancel $6 billion in student loans for people who attended the Art Institutes, a system of for-profit colleges that closed the last of its campuses in 2023 amid accusations of fraud. Saying the chain lured students with “pervasive” lies, the...
Pa. auditor general visits Westmoreland County Community College to tout new hiring practicesVideo
Pennsylvania Auditor General Timothy DeFoor knows the value of a community college education. It’s where he got his start on the road to becoming a state official. “We’re here to support you,” DeFoor told a group of Westmoreland County Community College students and staff Tuesday morning at the college’s Youngwood...
Encampment is gone from Schenley Plaza in Oakland
Protest signs and tents that had punctuated Schenley Plaza were gone by Tuesday, as pro-Palestinian demonstrators ended a weeklong encampment there and briefly on the University of Pittsburgh campus. Since last Tuesday, Pitt students and others had occupied the city-owned Plaza located in the shadow of the Cathedral of Learning,...
Israel-Hamas war protesters and police clash on Texas campus, Columbia University begins suspensions
NEW YORK — Protesters and police clashed Monday at the University of Texas in a confrontation that resulted in dozens of arrests, and Columbia University began issuing suspensions as colleges around the U.S. begged pro-Palestinian demonstrators to clear out tent encampments as commencement ceremonies approach. From coast to coast, demonstrators...
‘Perfect storm’: Property tax crisis threatens suburban Allegheny County school districts
Throughout Allegheny County, waves of mall owners, hoteliers, office park operators and big-box retailers are stampeding to slash taxes by challenging their property assessments. But as property owners keep winning big breaks, they’re also creating big headaches. The more the owners succeed, the more they’re choking off critical revenue for...
Point Park, Pitt 2024 grads relish triumphs over pandemic-era troubles
Marley Parker began her studies four years ago at Point Park University living out of a hotel room Downtown — a comfortable enough space just a few blocks off campus, although light years from a normal freshman experience. Housed there temporarily by her university to reduce dorm occupancy amid a...
