School News

Nazareth Area High School's production won five Freddy Awards — including Outstanding Overall Production of a Musical — at the ceremony Thursday night at Easton's State Theatre.

Bethlehem Area high school students won't be able to use their cell phones during class, but they can still use the devices during non-instructional times. There are different rules for younger students.

Wilson Area School Board unanimously approved its $49 million budget for the 2025-26 school year on Monday night. Included is a 3.5% tax increase.

Nazareth High junior Brody Muthard will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a playground he created for autistic children at the Colonial Intermediate Unit 20 in Bethlehem. Muthard received intervention and therapies for autism at the I.U. as a child.

Two area community colleges are expanding their dual enrollment programming, which enables high school students to better prepare for college and careers. The Pennsylvania Department of Education awarded $14 million in Dual Credit Innovation Grants to 15 public institutions of higher education to increase their programming.

Developers behind the new Easton Area School District high school presented some refinements and updates on the project plans to the school board at their Tuesday meeting.

Easton Area School District's board voted in favor of a health insurance buyout option that will offer employees $6,000 in lieu of coverage, offering potentially substantial savings to the district.

With the increase, the average taxpayer would see his or her annual property tax bill increase about $13.99 a month, or $168 total from the year before.

School directors voted 5-3 for a $140.7 million spending plan that includes a 4% tax hike, which would raise $3.2 million in additional revenue for the district.

A new version of Bethlehem Area School District's 2025-26 school year budget presented Monday includes a tax hike and a $5.9M fund drawdown ahead of a final June vote.

It was revealed at a School Board committee meeting Monday that the board on Jan. 26 will vote on a cost-sharing agreement among the project architect, prime contractor and project manager for the investigation.

Easton's band and orchestra took an incredible trip down to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl High School Band Competition at the end of 2025, dominated the competition and enjoyed a bit of Big Easy culture.

The $11 million center is slated to be finished by December. It will have community resources for student enrollment, health care and workforce development.

State Sen. Jarrett Coleman, R-Lehigh/Bucks, has scheduled a telephone town hall at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 13, to hear concerns over the automated school bus enforcement program.

Local high school and college students — including first-generation college student biology major Rachel Apiolaza — received $1,000 scholarships from the Hispanic Center Lehigh Valley and the Latino Leadership Alliance in their first year presenting the awards since a merger.

The Pennsylvania College of Technology, an affiliate of Penn State University, will provide instructor-led labs at Allentown schools to prepare students for in-demand jobs in manufacturing. The program starts this month.

The school district alerted the community about three hours after an incident involving pepper spray occurred in the upstairs cafeteria of Emmaus High School on Wednesday afternoon. Legislation that went into effect this month requires districts to alert parents, guardians and teachers of school weapon incidents.

Wilson planners tabled a decision on plans for the proposed athletic field improvements at the high school to allow time for the developer to address the borough engineer's comments.

Of the thousands of stories covered and told in 2025, our staff picked some of their favorites. They included a bald eagle looking for love in the Hellertown area and an $11 million "sky dome" planned for Easton.

Pennsylvania’s distracted driving law will take full effect in 2026, marking one of the most consequential legal shifts for motorists in years and headlining a slate of new laws set to roll out across the Commonwealth.

With the new year comes a new season of high school musicals, as hundreds of student performers begin rehearsals, hoping for a nomination at the 24th annual Freddy Awards.

Shiv Patel, 18, has spent his winter break in Ahmedabad, India, leading robotics workshops for elementary school students.