School News

Sketch plans for an athletic complex for Allentown Central Catholic High School were reviewed by the Whitehall Township Planning Commission on Wednesday night.

The anonymous donation will be used to support the teachers and students across the district, officials from the Foundation for the Bethlehem Area School District said.

Billionaire and civilian astronaut Jared Isaacman discussed the importance of space exploration during an event at Lehigh University on Tuesday night.

Board Treasurer Donald Carpenter thanked residents from all sides of the topic at hand for their emails in to the board. He said he received upward of 40 messages.

A little more than two years after a ceremonial ribbon-cutting opened a Center City location, DeSales University has quietly shuttered its educational hub at 932 Hamilton St.

Allen High School's pool, which was built around 1970, has been leaking for years, causing the school to restrict access to the athletic facilities below it. It was the subject of a social media post that has gained considerable attention.

School Director Emily Gehman said Southern Lehigh has a pattern of pay disparities between female employees and their male colleagues.

“We were looking for answers that aligned with our vision as an association for the work that we want to do in the district,” said Allentown Education Association President Leslie Franklin.

The planning commission will review the sketch plans for the athletic complex Oct. 15. Central Catholic plans to fundraise for the project as part of its centennial capital campaign.

Starting next week, a bridge carrying Lower Macungie Road over the Pa. Turnpike will close. East Penn School District officials warned families to allow extra time to get to and from school.

The American Association of College Professors has censured Muhlenberg College over its firing last year of Professor Maura Finkelstein, who shared her views on the Israel-Hamas war on social media. On Thursday, the AAUP said more and more institutions nationwide are punishing faculty for their views.

The Allentown-based entrepreneurship program trains Lehigh Valley residents on how to successfully acquire and maintain rental properties.

Allentown School District appointed Alicia Knauff as acting head principal in July. She replaced Frank Derrick, who had been leading the school in an acting role for the last two school years.

Allentown's 111th annual Romper Day celebration was held at J. Birney Crum Stadium on Monday night. About 400 students who participated in the summer playground program exhibited skills including dance and calisthenics.

Allentown students took part in STEM activities, including stepping into an airplane cockpit, when Captain Barrington Irving flew into town with some hands-on critical thinking activities from his Flying Classroom.

School directors voted 5-4 Tuesday to part ways with now former Superintendent Michael Mahon, who was on administrative leave for the last five months.

The Southern Lehigh School Board will hold a special meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the boardroom of Southern Lehigh High School to vote on both a separation agreement and mutual general release agreement between the district and Superintendent Michael Mahon.

Allentown school directors approved the $1.14 million partnership Thursday. The agreement runs from next month to June 30, 2028.

Alicia Knauff will start as the new acting head principal of Allen on Monday. She was hired as the principal of the school's Ninth Grade Academy before being tapped shortly after for the acting head role.

Superintendent Carol Birks said she doesn't have to talk about where she lives. School directors defended Birks from social media posts questioning her residency.

The Lehigh Valley’s James Lawson Freedom School is a six-week summer program that uses a multicultural literacy curriculum and an intergenerational teaching model.

Alicia Knauff is poised to take over as the acting head principal of the high school just months after she was hired as the first principal of Allen’s Ninth Grade Academy.