K-12 News

Some Lehigh Valley school districts are seeing an increase in chronic absenteeism and truancy following the COVID-19 pandemic. And what was already an issue before COVID appears to have reached a level of urgency in some schools.

The Allentown School District made school uniforms optional this year for the first time since 2013.

Schools in the Lehigh Valley are about to start. Here's a roundup of the 17 school district's important dates and things to note.

Bethlehem Area School District teachers hit the streets on the city's South Side to help students feel comfortable transitioning to a new school experience.

A federal court judge is allowing the assistant principal who filed the civil rights lawsuit to amend his complaint. It stemmed from an altercation at a high school football game last fall.

Last year, Bethlehem Area and Allentown school districts were waitlisted to get rebate funding through the Clean School Bus program. Another round of applications for this fiscal year is open until later this month.

The Parkland School District now has two final options for how it will address projected overcrowding in its schools. A decision could come within the next two months.

The school was designated with a state Targeted Support and Improvement designation due to lagging performance by its cohort of economically disadvantaged students. Officials laid out plans to improve the issues present.

The new makerspace at Slatington Elementary School will help students learn STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) skills. It will primarily be used by an after school program called Schools & Homes In Education, or SHINE.

House Education Committee Chair Peter Schweyer said Level Up funding should be released immediately.

The Northampton County District Attorney’s Office and Lower Saucon Township police have announced additional charges in connection with bomb threats made in the school district last week.

East Penn administrators pushed for a slate of new hires to the district, making permanent temporary positions that were created from COVID relief funding.

Raise taxes, dip into the fund balance, cut expenses — or a mix of all three to balance the budget for the incoming year? Bethlehem school district officials will make the final call in June.

The Northampton County District Attorney's Office says charges have been filed in juvenile court against a girl in relation to bomb threats made in Saucon Valley School District this week.

Lower Saucon Township police say they once again found no evidence to corroborate a threat made Wednesday night. It was the second reported threat that prompted a second-straight day for closing the schools.

The Lower Saucon Township Police Department has requested any information be submitted through its Crimewatch Tipline at lowersauconpolice.org or by calling the department at 610-317-6110.

Asst. Superintendent Timothy Chorones on Tuesday gave the Parkland School Board a presentation about staffing the district may need to add to next school year’s budget.

Fountain Hill Elementary School students will be eligible for daily transportation to the temporary facility as the new borough school is under construction. Students are expected to be away from the Fountain Hill school for two years.

Dieruff High School is in the process of modernizing and expanding its Learning Dome, a space for interactive, three-dimensional lessons.

The event, put on by St. Luke's University Health Network and the Foundation for the Bethlehem Area School District, featured some striking auction items, as well as live music.

Early budget discussions among the East Penn School Board show expenses are projected to significantly increase in the next five school years.

The Bethlehem Area School District alerted parents Monday morning that East Hills Middle School would be dismissing students at 10 a.m.