Newsroom

Feds tell Pennsylvania to overhaul alternative education programs

Six years after the original complaint was filed by the Education Law Center, the U.S. Department of Justice has worked out an agreement with the Pennsylvania Department of Education that recognizes discriminatory practices in the state’s vast “alternative education” complex for students who have disciplinary infractions… More

Will a bipartisan slate of technical education bills actually do anything?

Pennsylvania's Democrats and Republicans have come to a rare detente on at least one economic issue: boosting career and technical education in a bid to get people into higher-paying jobs… More

No substitute: School administrators struggle to find coverage for classes

On many days in schools, administrators search for class coverage. Some schools combine classes, leading to 50 students or more in the same room. Principals pull teachers from planning periods, often at an added expense… More

Court rules in favor of high school student in free speech rights case

A federal court has ruled in favor of a Schuylkill County high school student's free speech rights… More

Despite court fix, gerrymandering remains controversial issue at Capitol

A state Supreme Court decision made gerrymandering one of the dominant stories in Pennsylvania politics in 2018. The ruling, which forced a change in the state's congressional district map, led to a dramatic shift in Pennsylvania's 18-member Congressional delegation with Democrats picking up four seats… More

Pennsylvania leaders take on the state’s rural broadband crisis

As Pennsylvanians face a dramatic shortage of rural broadband access, the Centre Daily Times and the Knight Foundation are driving a discussion on the digital divide: what it means for our communities, how it developed and how to fix it… More

New program gives Pennsylvania newborns a head start to college

State treasurer Joe Torsella announced the new Keystone Scholars program in front of toddlers at the Prodigy Learning Center on Hunting Park Avenue. The program puts $100 into the 529 college account of every child born or adopted in Pennsylvania, after Jan. 1, 2019… More

Survey: What school district tech leaders are saying about cybersecurity

District tech leaders have different concerns about cybersecurity, and different strategies for addressing those concerns, which vary by the size of their school systems… More

Gov. Wolf highlights Philly school conditions in severance tax push

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf visited a school in South Philadelphia Thursday to stump for his severance tax proposal. The location was strategic, giving Wolf a chance to highlight the kind of infrastructure projects he’d like to complete with the $4.5 billion his administration says the tax would produce… More

Move over, ‘vo-tech’: ‘Career and technical’ is preferred school code language under bipartisan legislation

The state Senate Education Committee this week unanimously passed a bipartisan bill that would change all mentions of “vocational-technical,” “vocation” and “vocational” to “career and technical” in the school code. The legislation is cosponsored by Landisville Republican Sen. Ryan Aument, who said the measure sends a strong message in support of career and technical education… More