K-12 News

The League of Women Voters of the Lehigh Valley organized a forum Monday for all six candidates funning for the Parkland School Board. It was held at the Univest Public Media Center in Bethlehem.

Liberty High School Principal Brandon Horlick said, “I feel like while students might not like the idea of being electronic device-free during instructional timeframes, they’ve risen to the occasion."

In a video posted to social media platforms Thursday, Stephanie Williams, 39, said she has bipolar disorder and experienced a manic episode on Sept. 13 at Bucky Boyle Park in Allentown.

The complex will have both a turf field and track for use by multiple athletic teams. It also will be opened up to Central Catholic's partner schools for younger students to have field days.

In an hour-and-a-half public comment section, numerous parents and residents called on Easton Area School District to fire a school nurse supervisor over controversial social media posts.

PBS39 broadcast and livestreamed the event, the first of four such candidate forums put on by the League of Women Voters of Lehigh County. All but one Allentown candidate attended the Monday event to discuss their reasons for running.

In the past couple weeks, two elementary school students have managed to wander out of their respective schools unattended. Allentown School District said it's implementing a buddy system.

Police said Stephanie Williams, 39, kicked out the window of a police car during a Sept. 13 incident at Bucky Boyle Park.

Policy revisions to freedom of speech, educator misconduct and tobacco/vaping use were approved by the Whitehall-Coplay School Board on Monday night.

Bethlehem Area school directors approved a resolution Monday to withhold some charter school payments amid the state budget impasse. Full payments will resume and back pay will be issued once state funding is available.

Allentown School District held a kickoff event Thursday at South Mountain to tell students and families about the Verizon Innovative Learning Schools program that gives each student an iPad for the school year.

The Lincoln Leadership Academy Charter School in Allentown held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its $16.8 million school for fourth-to-eighth graders on Friday morning.

Commonwealth Charter Academy, a large, public, cyber charter school for all school-age children, plans to convert a nearly 47,000-square-foot, one-story building into office space for teachers and staff at 2200 W. Broad St.

Critics of the hiring process argued for a superintendent search instead of a direct appointment. Others said Karen Trinkle had more than proven herself ready to lead, and a search would be lengthy and costly.

Planned to open to students for the 2027-28 school year, the roughly $59 million project will go up on the same land as its predecessor facility, which dated back to the 1930s.

School directors voted 5-2 to approve Ethan Ake-Little’s resignation and settlement agreement. His resignation takes effect Aug. 31.

Southern Lehigh school directors appointed Karen Trinkle as chief of schools. They also approved a settlement agreement with Ethan Ake-Little, the HR director who filed discrimination and retaliation complaints against the former superintendent.

Ethan Ake-Little has been suspended with pay since June while the district investigated allegations about his job performance. Ake-Little previously filed discrimination, retaliation and fraud complaints against the former superintendent.

Additional cleaning and air quality testing remain underway at Sheridan and Ritter elementary schools, Allentown School District said in an update Sunday.

School directors are scheduled to vote Monday on whether to promote Assistant Superintendent Karen Trinkle to chief of schools. The proposed five-year contract comes a month after school directors voted to part ways with the previous superintendent.

Northampton Area School District’s inaugural Summer Career Mentorship Program exposed 50 high schoolers to careers in manufacturing, interior design, healthcare and more.

In an email, Allentown School District said mold spores were found in several elementary school classrooms. Remedial action has been taken, the district said in a release, and the classrooms will be tested ahead of the first day of school.