Education category, Page 8
Hempfield Area parents, students raise concerns about potential changes to high school gifted program, pool
As Hempfield Area administrators consider changes to the high school gifted education program and renovations to the district’s pool, parents and students laid out their concerns to the school board. Three parents and two middle school students spoke during a board meeting Monday night about changes being considered for the...
Harvard makes tuition free for families making less than $200K
Harvard will offer free tuition to students whose families make less than $200,000 per year beginning next year, the school announced Monday. Additionally, the entire school experience — including housing, food and other costs — will be free for students whose families make less than $100,000, university leaders said. “We...
Grove City College names its 10th president
Bradley J. Lingo will serve as Grove City College’s next president following a unanimous vote of the Board of Trustees. In July 2025, Lingo will replace Paul J. McNulty, who served since 2014 as the school’s ninth president, following his retirement at the end of the 2024-25 academic year. “Brad...
Education Department staff cuts could limit options for families of kids with disabilities
WASHINGTON — For parents of kids with disabilities, advocating for their child can be complicated, time-consuming — and expensive. Changes at the Education Department are likely to make the process even more difficult, advocates for kids with disabilities say. When a parent believes their child is not receiving proper services...
Students in North Hills school districts continue to organize against hate ahead of upcoming conference
Students throughout Pittsburgh’s North Hills have persisted in organizing events and countering hate in their communities as they prepare to convene for a conference later this month at Acrisure Stadium with more than two dozen schools. The event is a follow-up to last October’s Eradicate Hate Global Summit in Pittsburgh,...
Some universities are freezing hiring and laying off staff as Trump cuts federal funding
Universities across the country have announced hiring freezes, citing new financial uncertainty as the Trump administration threatens a range of cuts to federal contracts and research grants. Some have announced layoffs. Johns Hopkins University said Thursday it is eliminating more than 2,200 workers because of a loss of funding from...
Federal student loan site experiences outage, a day after layoffs gutted Education Department
WASHINGTON — An hours-long outage Wednesday on StudentAid.gov, the federal website for student loans and financial aid, underscored the risks in rapidly gutting the Department of Education, as President Donald Trump aims to dismantle the agency. Hundreds of users reported FAFSA outages to Downdetector starting midday Wednesday, saying they were...
Greensburg Salem School Board moves to reduce livestreaming only to voting meetings
The Greensburg Salem School Board will only livestream its voting meetings, following board action Wednesday night. The board voted 6-3 in favor of reducing its livestreaming to one of its two monthly meetings. Board members Lynn Jobe, Kacey Byrne-Houser and Emily Miller opposed. This is the first time the board...
Western Pa. school leaders uncertain how Education Department cuts will affect them
Leaders of Western Pennsylvania school districts reacted Wednesday to the sweeping job cuts announced at the U.S. Department of Education with uncertainty, saying they did not yet know how the cuts might affect their programs or budgets. While Trump administration officials have said the latest job cuts won’t affect federal...
Baldwin-Whitehall will rename district offices to honor former superintendent
Baldwin-Whitehall school directors will rename the district’s administration building to honor longtime superintendent Charles H. Faust, who filled the role from 1986-2004. Current Superintendent Randal Lutz said Faust, a native of Ruffs Dale in Westmoreland County, was fully dedicated to his job at Baldwin-Whitehall, and even recalled seeing Faust sit...
Trump wants to dismantle U.S. Education Department. Here’s what it does
President Donald Trump has said he wants his education chief, Linda McMahon, to “put herself out of a job” and close the Education Department. McMahon, after being confirmed by the Senate on March 3, told employees it was the department’s “final mission” to eliminate bureaucratic bloat and turn over the...
Education Department plans to lay off 1,300 employees as Trump vows to wind the agency down
WASHINGTON — The Education Department plans to lay off over 1,300 of its more than 4,000 employees as part of a reorganization that’s seen as a prelude to President Donald Trump’s plan to dismantle the agency. Department officials announced the cuts Tuesday, raising questions about the agency’s ability to continue...
Pitt freezes all hiring amid funding cutbacks
The University of Pittsburgh has instituted a hiring freeze of all faculty and staff that takes effect immediately. It will remain in place at least for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends June 30, the university said. “In response to a shifting federal landscape and in order to...
Trump warns that arrest of Palestinian activist at Columbia will be ‘first of many’
NEW YORK — President Donald Trump warned Monday that the arrest and possible deportation of a Palestinian activist who helped lead protests at Columbia University will be the first “of many to come” as his administration cracks down on campus demonstrations against Israel and the war in Gaza. Mahmoud Khalil,...
Lawsuit aims to strike down LGBTQ antidiscrimination protections in Pennsylvania
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Two public school districts and several parents have sued the state in a bid to undo antidiscrimination protections for gay and transgender people in Pennsylvania, saying that the two-year-old regulation is illegal because it goes beyond what lawmakers intended or allowed. The lawsuit, filed in the statewide...
Safer schools: Pa. program has intercepted over 120 weapons in schools before they could be used
Thirty-five weapons were intercepted before they could be used to commit acts of violence in Pennsylvania schools last school year, as officials credited the anonymous safety reporting system Safe2Say Something for preventing catastrophes. Since the program’s inception six years ago, at least 123 weapons — including guns and knives —...
Quaker Valley’s Black Student Union teaches valuable lessons to elementary students
Quaker Valley High School senior Olivia Jordan said maintaining traditions is important to her. An older brother, Malcolm, founded the school’s Black Student Union in 2019. Another brother, Noah, later became president of the group designed to empower Black students and create a comfortable environment to share stories, experiences and...
Facing Trump’s threats, Columbia investigates students critical of Israel
NEW YORK — Columbia University senior Maryam Alwan was visiting family in Jordan over winter break when she received an email from the school accusing her of harassment. Her supposed top offense: writing an op-ed in the student newspaper calling for divestment from Israel. The probe is part of a...
Youth Empowerment Project in Sharpsburg buoys children to ‘reach full potential’
Their name couldn’t be more fitting. Youth Empowerment Project, an afterschool and summer program situated along Main Street in Sharpsburg, is a place where children can become their best selves. “There are so many positives here,” said Ashley Ireland, whose daughter and two sons attend. “The people who run it...
10 Japanese exchange students to attend Shaler Area High School classes in March
Hailing from Niigata High School on Japan’s western coast, 10 Japanese students attended three days of classes at Shaler Area High School. The students, mostly third-year high schoolers, sat in on science, technology, engineering and math classes from March 10-12 in an effort to learn more about American STEM education....
Senate will vote on confirming Linda McMahon to lead an education agency Trump has vowed to close
WASHINGTON — The Senate is voting Monday on whether to confirm former wrestling executive Linda McMahon as the nation’s education chief, a role that would place her atop a department that President Donald Trump has vilified and vowed to dismantle. McMahon would face the competing tasks of winding down the...
Pitt-Greensburg reading initiative to focus on mental health as anxiety, loneliness remain high
It’s not uncommon for Sheila Confer to hear that her students at University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg are struggling with their mental health. An assistant professor of interdisciplinary studies and Academic Village director, Confer has noticed an uptick in mental health conversations with her students. It’s particularly the case during...
Quaker Valley School Board approves new courses, curriculum changes
A new music pathway for students who prefer not to perform, as well as focus on business and entrepreneurship, are among the new courses being developed at Quaker Valley School District. School directors voted 7-0 on Feb. 18 to approve amended program of studies for the middle and high school....
Dozens at Pitt-Greensburg rally to support LGBTQ+, Latino communities in Trump era
University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg sophomore Debany Renovato stood before a small group of protesters Thursday afternoon, recounting her experience moving from Mexico to the United States when she was in fifth grade. Two dozen students — many from the college’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance club — and handful of...
Penn Hills students push for their voices to be heard
Time is being reserved at Penn Hills School Board’s next public meeting for a group of students to speak publicly after their comments were cut short during the Feb. 26 voting meeting. The Linton Middle School Media Center was filled with students and teachers seemingly wanting to show support to...
