K-12 News

A Democratic-sponsored proposal to boost public school funding by billions and impose stricter rules on cyber-charter schools is on its way to the Pennsylvania Senate after passage in the state House.

Says Cathy Leibensperger, Saucon Valley High School's wrestling scorekeeper for 44 years: “I look at the other inductees and I see people that have traveled the world, people that coached champions — I’m just a little scorekeeper from a little high school in Hellertown, Pennsylvania.”

The release is the first of a long list of fun summer activities planned for young readers at the library.

Aryash Shyam and Sudha Chandrasekaran, sixth-graders from Lehigh Valley Academy Regional Charter School, won first place at the state competition of National History Day earlier this spring. They compete in the national round of the contest next week with their exhibit on the Great Depression.

A group of Northampton County judges selected a new school director to join the Northampton Area School Board, filling a vacancy that had been open since mid-March.

The Whitehall-Coplay School Board voted 5-4 to adopt a final 2024-25 budget with a 4.5% tax hike at its May 28 meeting.

University students cleaned out their living quarters as another year of designer clothing, furniture and other useful bargains go up for grabs to benefit community schools.

Miara Mitteff, a Dieruff High School senior, will study integrated business and engineering at Lehigh University in the fall on a full-ride scholarship from the U.S. Army.

It's hard to miss the new mural on Third Street in South Bethlehem. The artists, William Nieves and Jermel Fountain, painted and designed the mural with help from seven fifth-graders from Donegal Elementary School.

The Pennsylvania Cancel Lunch Debt Coalition is offering Nazareth Area School District a donation to cover its 2023-24 school meal debt so families don't have to pay.

Easton Area School District approved a $214 million budget for the upcoming school year. With a 3.5% tax increase to keep the district running, $3.3 million will go toward the new high school project.

School directors voted 5-4 to remove Emily Gehman as school board president. School director Stephen Maund was subsequently elected to serve out the rest of Gehman's leadership term, which ends in December.

A new analysis from East Penn's financial planners found that major renovations to Emmaus High School would require a referendum or decades of tax hikes — options school board members rejected.

The anti-violence program is funded through a $1.28 million grant from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. The program will continue next school year.

The Neighborhood Center and Andre Reed Foundation are partnering to kick off the season with an event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at 344 N. 7th St.

Bethlehem Area teachers have a new contract thanks to early bird negotiations. The agreement ensures three more years of raises.

The Lehigh Valley Transportation Study approved nearly $2.6 million in projects designed to fund children’s education programs, improve safety, extend trails and expand bicycle and pedestrian options across the region.

Parkland School District locked down its $248 million 2025-26 budget on June 17, and despite a 4% tax increase, all board members approved.

Gerald Bretzik sued the district for violating his First Amendment rights following a board incident in 2022.

The district will operate four elementary schools in the 2026-27 school year when East Allen Elementary opens. Moore Elementary will be closed, but the district will keep the property for potential use.

Northampton Area School Board voted 5-4 for the spending plan. Some school directors said the tax hike was too high and the district should have cut more expenses.

Night at the Drive-In: On Tuesday, June 17, Shankweiler's will host Brad Klein and Marty McGuire for Watching the Skies' first live event. And they will screen (also for the first time) a presentation by Bethlehem’s "Backyard Astronomer" about his favorite planet, Mars.