K-12 News

The two slates of candidates in the 11-person East Penn School Board race continue to spar over alleged connections to political players in and outside of the district as funding sources come to light. Election Day is Tuesday.

Take a look at stories throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

Many of the nine candidates seeking one of five seats on the board said the race has been insulated from clashes over social issues.

Lehigh Valley high school students had the opportunity to see firsthand what it's like to be a nurse. A nursing simulation was held during National Nurses Week.

Candidates have formed two groups: one made up of mostly incumbents, and the other made up of Republican challengers. Transparency, spending and projected overcrowding in the district's middle and high schools have become key issues in the race.

The Lehigh Valley STEAM Academy Charter School is seeking approval to open at an office building on South 12th Street that’s zoned for industrial uses.

The After School Satan Club met for the first time Wednesday at Saucon Valley Middle School — a little more than a week after a federal judge ordered the school district to allow three meetings by the end of the school year.

The budget includes a 2.5% increase to the millage rate, the biggest increase in seven years. The district would still have the lowest millage rate in Lehigh County.

Culture war issues are hot topics in the races for four of the nine seats on the Nazareth Area School Board up for election this year. Three incumbents are not seeking re-election.

East Penn School Board race features two contentious slates of candidates.

When the pandemic forced traditional schools to go remote, interest in the Commonwealth’s cyber charter schools surged. Enrollments went way up, and costs followed.

It’s been a year since Allentown schools were open. When the pandemic hit, the Allentown School District sent more than 17,000 students home to grapple with learning virtually.

The Allentown School District will face a nearly $55 million budget deficit by 2025 unless it makes major changes, or unless the Commonwealth changes the way it funds schools.

The William Allen High School boys basketball team is undefeated so far this season thanks to the team led by Head Coach Darnell Braswell, the first Black coach in the team’s history.

All Bethlehem and Northampton Area School schools are going fully remote this Monday and won’t return to in-person learning until at least January 11th.

The Easton Area School District is looking to build its own cyber academy. District staff say the current program isn’t working for many families. And as WLVR’s Tyler Pratt reports, it appears to have cost the district millions of dollars.

Current state guidelines say schools should move to 100% virtual instruction in counties with “substantial transmission” rates. But many Lehigh Valley schools remain open, despite meeting that standard.

State officials say they are concerned about student cyber safety. With so many Pennsylvania students attending classes virtually now, reports of online harassment and threats of violence are rising.

When schools closed in March many parents became teachers overnight. But for those who have children with special needs, virtual learning presented a real-world challenge.

Students across the Lehigh Valley have been speaking out about racial inequalities in schools. And as part of these discussions, students say that they don’t want the police to play a role in their academic future. WLVR’s Genesis Ortega reports.

Summertime is typically a time for kids to get a break from school. It can also be a time for summer slide; the learning loss many children experience during summer vacation. And this year, COVID-19 class cancellations turned what’s typically a two month recess into six months.

For 34 years, Russell Valentini, the man Allentown knows as Rooster, has been the one person families could turn to. When landlords locked them out, when shelters were full and when there was no cash left to pay for dinner.