Education category, Page 37
Parents like private school vouchers so much that demand is exceeding budgets in some states
In some states, higher-income families can now use taxpayer money to cover private school tuition — and more people than projected are taking the offer, which might force scrambles to shore up state budgets. It’s especially an issue in states like Arizona and Iowa, where at least some families whose...
Murrysville lawmaker to propose later start to school days for Pennsylvania students
The school day for secondary students in Pennsylvania could not start earlier than 8:15 a.m. under legislation a state representative from Murrysville intends to introduce. If passed into law, the requirement would start with the 2026-27 school year, state Rep. Jill Cooper said in a memorandum seeking co-sponsors for her...
Alumni group raises $500,000 in push against admission of girls at The Kiski School
Some alumni of The Kiski School have been raising money in an attempt to get the all-boys boarding school in Loyalhanna Township to reverse course on welcoming girls in fall 2024 — ending a storied 136-year tradition. Joseph Garcia, a 1985 alumnus, is the chairman of the Friends of Kiski...
West Deer man receives national science medal from President BidenVideo
A West Deer man and University of Pittsburgh professor was awarded one of the nation’s highest science honors on Tuesday by President Joe Biden, just a few days before he is inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame on Thursday. Rory Cooper was among 10 recipients of the National...
$43M CCAC facility to focus on robotics, other advancing technologies
Justin Starr spent years working in Pittsburgh’s robotics industry and saw first-hand the disconnect between the skills students often leave colleges with and those his industry desperately sought. “We always had great success on the engineering end, but when it came to getting technicians to do things like actually build...
Hempfield Area considering search policy changes in wake of gun incidents
Hempfield Area School District may soon have more leeway on how frequently students can be searched for contraband, amid rising parent and student concerns following security incidents at the district. A new section to the district’s search policy, defining rules for the use of metal and weapons detectors, was approved...
Bus driver shortage leaves schools, public transit agencies scrambling
A shortage of drivers is pinching school bus companies and public transit agencies that are left scrambling to transport students and workers, fill vacancies and keep their current stable of employees from burning out. “It’s just hard to get drivers. We just can’t figure it out,” said James Varner, manager...
Hempfield school board candidates talk safety, book policies, high school renovation
There are nine candidates for five seats on the Hempfield Area School Board in the Nov. 7 general election. A field of 15 sought the positions during the primary race in the spring. The district is rehashing a major renovation project, and there’s been lengthy discussion on topics including library...
PennWest, other universities weigh options for unused student housing
“Live here, live well.” That’s the online pitch promoting “Vulcan Village” apartments near PennWest University’s California campus in Washington County. The student complex has a resort-inspired outdoor pool, around-the-clock maintenance and a fitness center. But these days, there aren’t enough students living there. Fewer than half of its 770 beds...
Pa. higher ed system seeks 6.5% boost in state funding to maintain tuition freeze
The board overseeing Pennsylvania’s 10 state-owned universities said Thursday it aims to freeze tuition for a sixth consecutive year in 2024-2025, provided the state boosts the system’s funding by 6.5%. The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s board of governors voted to send Gov. Josh Shapiro an appropriation request of...
Backpacks, metal, weapons detectors discussed at Hempfield security committee meeting
Hempfield Area School District’s new security committee met for the first time this week and mulled ways the district can improve safety. It was formed in response to recent security incidents at Hempfield and is made up of administrators, school board members Mike Alfery, Scott Learn, Diane Ciabattoni and Jeanne...
Penn State hires architect, construction managers for $700M renovation of Beaver Stadium
Penn State has awarded a contract for architectural work on its planned $700 million renovation of Beaver Stadium to a firm versed in major sports construction projects, including on Texas A&M University’s Kyle Field and the NFL’s Buffalo Bills stadium now being built. Monday’s announcements of hiring Populous to handle...
Israel-Hamas war has roiled U.S. campuses. Students on each side say colleges aren’t doing enough
America’s colleges aspire to be places where ideas meet and common ground emerges. As the death toll rises in the Israel-Hamas war, they have become seats of anguish. Many Jewish students and their allies, some with family and friends in Israel, have demanded bold reckonings and strong condemnation after the...
Black student disciplined over hairstyle hopes to ‘start being a kid again’
For over a month, Darryl George, a Black high school student in Texas, spent each school day sitting by himself in punishment over his hairstyle. This week, he was sent to a separate disciplinary program, where he’s been told he will spend several more weeks away from classmates. In an...
Hempfield Area preps for homecoming festivities
Hempfield Area School District is getting ready for its upcoming homecoming game Friday by focusing on the district’s past and present. This year’s homecoming parade has a theme of “Community.” Floats representing each of the schools in the district will participate in the parade. Before the game, representatives from each...
PennWest interim president says new university has hit ‘enrollment floor,’ will rebound
PennWest University charges the same tuition and recruits heavily from the same region as fellow state-owned institutions Slippery Rock University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania, yet PennWest’s enrollment plunged again while its two peers have grown. In an interview with the Tribune-Review, PennWest leaders, including interim President R. Lorraine “Laurie”...
Pittsburgh area school directors say career, technical education centers lack funds to meet modern needs
With 16 career and technical education programs offered in the Pittsburgh Public School District comes the weight of providing quality education in the face of rising expenses. For Angela Mike, executive director of CTE for Pittsburgh Public Schools since 2010, challenges arise when pursuing the results students need to meet...
Late schoolteacher with affinity for W&J College gives record $50 million gift
Anica Donnan Rawnsley taught school as a young adult, and while she never attended Washington & Jefferson College, she developed an affinity for the place early on through family members who enrolled there and graduated. Now, months after her passing, she has made gift of approximately $50 million to W&J...
11-year-old student accused in shooting threat at Wendover Middle School
An 11-year-old Wendover Middle School student is accused of posting threats on social media to bring in a bomb and “shoot up” the Hempfield Area school Wednesday, state police said. The boy, who was not identified, is accused of making terroristic threats. Police say he texted fellow students on the...
ACT test scores for U.S. students drop to new 30-year low
High school students’ scores on the ACT college admissions test have dropped to their lowest in more than three decades, showing a lack of student preparedness for college-level coursework, according to the nonprofit organization that administers the test. Scores have been falling for six consecutive years, but the trend accelerated...
Hempfield chooses owner’s rep to navigate stalled high school project
Hempfield Area School District hired McKinley Architecture and Engineering this week to work as an owner’s representative in the preconstruction phase of the district’s high school renovation project, which has been on pause since bids came back millions of dollars over budget. The firm, which has locations in Pittsburgh and...
Pennsylvania universities are still waiting for state subsidies. It won’t make them more affordable
HARRISBURG — Four of Pennsylvania’s universities are plugging budget gaps while they await hundreds of millions of dollars in aid that has been snarled in a partisan dispute among lawmakers in a state that has one of the nation’s most abysmal records for funding higher education. Education advocates argue that...
Biden’s 2nd try at student loan cancellation moves forward with debate over the plan’s details
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s second attempt at student loan cancellation began moving forward Tuesday with a round of hearings to negotiate the details of a new plan. In a process known as negotiated rulemaking, 14 people chosen by the Biden administration are meeting for the first of three hearings...
Hempfield Area parents question school’s response to gun incident
Several Hempfield Area residents and student leaders shared their concerns at Monday’s school board meeting about the district’s response to an incident last week involving guns at the high school. Resident Lindsay Stevens expressed frustration that much of the discussion about school security has been behind the scenes in executive...
As PennWest struggles, 1st-year enrollment up again at other Pa. state-owned universities
In revealing fall 2023 enrollment data Monday, leaders of Pennsylvania’s state-owned universities asserted that they potentially had turned a corner in reversing 13 years of student declines. But there’s a problem with that scenario – PennWest University. Data shows a continuing steep drop at PennWest, established last year by merging...
