School News

Students, who college officials said are a demographic experiencing an "epidemic" of mental health issues, say they're excited for the new space and see its potential.

Hundreds gathered Tuesday night in Dieruff’s cafeteria for a community forum on the proposal to overhaul Andre Reed Park in Allentown's East Side.

The Nitschmann Middle School Lions softball team and Calypso Elementary could soon be able to use the softball field at 11th Avenue and Spring Street in West Bethlehem.

You Are The Light is a recognition program in the Allentown School District that celebrates staff and students. The district selects honorees each month to be featured on LehighValleyNews.com.

Gov. Josh Shapiro proposed increasing basic education funding by $1.1 billion, laying the groundwork to slash tuition costs at state-owned schools and taking out a $500 million bond to spur economic development.

Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School officials are discussing a planned expansion, with options ranging from $22.1 million to $43.1 million. The entire process would take about three years once initially approved.

With the two wrestling programs, NCC now will sponsor nine intercollegiate sports, beginning in the 2024-25 academic year.

Given expected shortages, Allentown high schools and others are connecting the county elections staff with students in hopes of beefing up the number of young and bilingual poll workers.

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

News Director Jen Rehill talks with journalists Tom Shortell and Brittany Sweeney.

Nearly 800 students at Southern Lehigh's Joseph P. Liberati Intermediate School spent a week learning to write, address, and mail handwritten letters through the Dearist literacy program — sending holiday messages to local seniors, veterans and nonprofit groups.

Wilson Area LINCS will hold its fourth annual Photos with Santa event at the high school Saturday, offering kids a chance to meet the big man and get a photo, pick out presents and so much more.

U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick appeared at Lehigh University on Friday for a "fireside chat" in which he shared his vision to bring AI infrastructure investment to Pennsylvania — and win an "existential battle" with China.

At a Thursday reorganization meeting, the school board selected its president and vice president. Five school directors also were sworn in at the meeting, including four who are brand new to their roles.

The Whitehall-Coplay School District held its third annual Zephyr Holiday event at the Burlington store in Whitehall. Twenty-four elementary and middle school students from challenged families were given $200 gift cards to shop for holiday gifts for family members. Members of area law enforcement accompanied the children during the event.

Bethlehem Area School District is tapping one of its own to lead Hanover Elementary School. The new principal comes to the role with nearly two decades of experience in BASD.

In addition to board officer elections, four new school directors were sworn in Tuesday after having won their seats last month.

At their annual reorganization meeting Tuesday, Parkland School District's board chose new leaders and swore in four winners of last month's election.

Easton Area School District took a preliminary look at the 2027 budget Tuesday, highlighting a prospective $7 million gap, alongside several cost-saving strategies intended to help EASD rebuild its reserves.

The third time was the charm for LoriAnn Fehnel, who was sworn in as a Whitehall-Coplay School District director on Tuesday.

With the approved state budget, Bethlehem Area won't have to draw as much money from its reserves as it initially anticipated. The state budget was late by more than four months.

Members of Carly's Cause have spent the past several months building plans to meet with colleges and universities to forge new partnerships focused on off-campus housing safety.