Education category, Page 63
Pressley, Warren push Biden to nix $50,000 in student debt
BOSTON — President Joe Biden should help those struggling under crushing student loan debt by immediately canceling up to $50,000 of debt for federal student loan borrowers, Democratic elected officials said Thursday. Biden can make the move by using existing authority granted to him under the Higher Education Act, said...
Larry Davis, pioneering dean of Pitt School of Social Work, dies at 74
Editor’s note: Mr. Davis’ age was incorrect in the original version of this story. When Larry Davis was promoting his most recent book “Why Are They Angry With Us?” in February 2016, he shared his frustration over the lack of progress when it came to race relations in America. “The...
Pitt issues shelter-in-place order amid covid surge
The University of Pittsburgh will increase public health restrictions to its Oakland campus today at 9 p.m., following several days of high covid-19 case numbers. In posts on social media, the university instituted a shelter-in-place period beginning at 9 p.m., which will remain in place “until the (Covid-19 Medical Response...
Pitt says covid is ‘widespread’ in residence halls, adds 30 cases
The University of Pittsburgh saw another surge in cases over the weekend, according to the most recent report from the school’s Covid-19 Medical Response Office. Pitt on Tuesday recorded 29 new cases among students and one new employee case on its Pittsburgh campus. There are 67 students in isolation, while...
Pitt Greensburg officials pivot on Hempfield campus commencement plansVideo
Two weeks after announcing it would hold a drive-thru commencement, the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg has pivoted and will offer students the opportunity to turn the tassels on their mortarboards and march to “Pomp and Circumstance” at its Hempfield campus on May 1. The change in plans came after...
Pittsburgh Public Schools prepare for students’ return to in-person classes
Her kindergarteners used to sit at tables, in groups. But now there are tiny disks spread across Amy Belitz’s classroom at Lincoln PreK-5, each about three feet apart from each other. Last year, Belitz said, her classroom seated 24 kids. Now there are only nine desks, and there will be...
Latrobe council honors visually impaired teen for leadership, service to othersVideo
At 17, Adison Lemmon knows where she wants to go. On track to join the National Honor Society and to graduate from Greater Latrobe Senior High this semester, a year earlier than usual, the Unity teen wants to become an early childhood and special education teacher. Her choice of career...
Covid cases surge at Pitt
The University of Pittsburgh on Friday recorded 42 new cases of covid-19 at its Oakland campus since Tuesday. There are now 71 students in isolation, according to the university’s online data dashboard. Eight cases have been identified among faculty and staff. The students’ overall five-day moving average is now 8.6...
Faculty union blasts leader of Pa. state universities: ‘His job was to improve the system, not tear it down’
Instructors and coaches are blasting the leader of the state-owned universities for saying that the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education should be reorganized or dissolved. At a Senate budget hearing last week, Chancellor Dan Greenstein warned that if a proposal to consolidate some universities doesn’t happen, he will come...
Covid variant identified on Pitt’s Oakland campus as cases spike
University of Pittsburgh officials confirmed at least one case of the U.K. covid-19 variant has cropped up on campus, something they believe will lead to an uptick in cases that have already spiked in recent days. “We confirmed that the U.K. variant … is present on the Pittsburgh campus,” the...
More than 100,000 educators in Pa. vaccinated through state initiative
More than 100,000 educators have been vaccinated through a Pennsylvania initiative using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, state officials announced Tuesday. A total of 102,161 school teachers and staff have gotten the vaccine since the initiative got started across Pennsylvania. “Vaccinating more than 100,000 teachers and staff in less than...
Pa. House passes bill to loosen rules on substitute teachers
Legislation to provide more flexibility when it comes to finding substitute teachers to staff classrooms won unanimous approval on Monday from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Barb Gleim, R-Cumberland County, now goes to the Senate for consideration. It aims to help ease the problem districts...
Western Pa. districts welcome new student social distancing guidelines
News of updated student social distancing guidelines was met with enthusiasm Friday at Burrell School District, where Superintendent Shannon Wagner said about 70% of students have chosen in-person learning throughout the school year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines will allow schools to relax social distancing measures in...
Ruffs Dale bassoonist, 17, earns Friday Evening Music Club’s Gardner Scholarship
Until Walter Vinoski was 11, he couldn’t have told you what a bassoon even was. Now the 17-year-old Yough senior is the Friday Evening Music Club’s 2021 Mildred Gardner Scholarship Competition winner, earning $1,000 through this year’s virtual competition. He is a member of the Westmoreland Youth Symphony Orchestra and...
More colleges signal fall reopening as stimulus begins to flow
Two more Pittsburgh-based universities — Carlow and Point Park — plan to return to full in-person operations this fall. Friday’s announcements, the most recent in a series at local universities, came as the U.S. Department of Education announced an expanded list of areas new federal stimulus money can underwrite. Those...
CDC changes school guidance, allowing desks to be closer
NEW YORK — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention relaxed its social distancing guidelines for schools Friday, saying students can now sit 3 feet apart in classrooms. The revised covid-19 recommendations represent a turn away from the 6-foot standard that has forced some schools to remove desks, stagger scheduling...
Penn State announces in-person commencement plans
Penn State officials say the university will host in-person commencement ceremonies at University Park and at its other campuses across the state. The state’s largest university cited increasing vaccination rates and a relaxation in state guidelines in its decision to move forward with a more traditional graduation for the class...
U.S. schools prepare summer of learning to help kids catch up
After a dreary year spent largely at home in front of the computer, many U.S. children could be looking at summer school — and that’s just what many parents want. Although the last place most kids want to spend summer is in a classroom, experts say that after a year...
Schools weighing whether to seat students closer together
BOSTON — U.S. guidelines that say students should be kept 6 feet apart in schools are receiving new scrutiny from federal health experts, state governments and education officials working to return as many children as possible to the classroom. Even as more teachers receive vaccinations, the distancing guidelines have remained...
Hempfield Area to get more Chromebooks for next school year
Hempfield Area School District will buy 500 new Chromebook laptops for use by next year’s high school students. During Monday’s school board meeting, board members unanimously voted to authorize the business office to advertise and seek proposals for the purchase of the Chromebooks. Board member Sonya Brajdic was absent from...
Robert Morris University announces plans for return to normal operations this fall
Citing positive developments in the rollout of the covid-19 vaccine, Robert Morris University President Christopher B. Howard on Tuesday said RMU plans to return to a normal schedule of in-person classes and athletics with fans in the stands this fall. With the announcement, RMU joins a growing list of colleges...
Norwin students criticize return to full-time in-school instructionVideo
Norwin’s plan to have students return to school five days a week beginning Friday was panned by eight high school students Monday, who claimed they are being made to choose between their health and their education. The students say social distancing is not possible in the high school, and not...
La Roche University plans in-person classes in fall
La Roche University will fully reopen for in-person instruction in the fall, leaders announced Monday. The semester will start Aug. 23. The university will follow a regular schedule — unlike last fall, when many campuses adjusted breaks and course scheduling in attempts to avoid major covid-19 surges around the holidays...
Colleges weigh a return to in-person commencement
One year after a global pandemic shuttered campuses across the country, colleges and universities in Western Pennsylvania are weighing the return of an annual rite of spring — commencement ceremonies. The University of Pittsburgh, the region’s largest school, has announced it will stagger smaller in-person ceremonies at its Oakland campus...
Mass vaccination programs pave the way for gradual return to school in Pennsylvania
Matt Jones breathed a sigh of relief Friday as he met with Jeannette High School Principal Joe Baker to chart the latest stage in a phased-in return to five-day-a-week in-person classes. Like fellow school administrators across the region, the superintendent of Jeannette schools has spent countless hours on the phone,...
