EDUCATION

‘By the Book’ PGH K-12 Bulletins: In-person class for all PPS students, all week this fall, district says

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Welcome to "By The Book: PGH K-12 Bulletins," which provides updates on emerging and ever changing news in the Pittsburgh K-12 education landscape. With more than 40 school districts across Allegheny County, the Bulletins will update you on the region's latest education news, including close coverage of the Pittsburgh Public Schools, other Allegheny County school districts, the Pennsylvania Department of Education and other important agencies, which serve thousands of Pittsburgh families. Please check back frequently and email tylisa@publicsource.org with questions, tips or Bulletin ideas. Follow along on Twitter with the hashtag #PGHed for news updates on Pittsburgh education. 5/14/21: All students, five days a week this fall, district leaders say
All Pittsburgh Public Schools [PPS] students will have the option to return to buildings five days a week for classes this fall, District Superintendent Anthony Hamlet said in a briefing on Friday afternoon.

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Crayons beside child coloring.

‘The strongest lifeline’: Districts struggle to find Allegheny County’s homeless students as COVID increased distance and needs

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These days, Christina Russell and her daughter, Mareica Anderson, are busy unpacking their new home. It’s a brighter time for the duo, who faced housing insecurity living in Pittsburgh during the fall months of 2020 amid the COVID pandemic. “We had to go from a house to a shelter to a shelter to another shelter, you know what I mean, until we found our place where she was comfortable,” said Russell, 41. When school began in the fall, Russell did everything she could to keep her daughter engaged and feeling a sense of normalcy despite changing living environments. “Well, I didn't really let it affect her,” Russell said.

March ‘By the Book’: PGH K-12 Bulletins

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Welcome to "By The Book: PGH K-12 Bulletins," which provides updates on emerging and ever changing news in the Pittsburgh K-12 education landscape. With more than 40 school districts across Allegheny County, the Bulletins will update you on the region's latest education news, including close coverage of the Pittsburgh Public Schools, other Allegheny County school districts, the Pennsylvania Department of Education and other important agencies, which serve thousands of Pittsburgh families. Please check back frequently and email tylisa@publicsource.org with questions, tips or Bulletin ideas. Follow along on Twitter with the hashtag #PGHed for news updates on Pittsburgh education. 3/24/21: By May 3, all PPS students will return, district leaders say
One year after leaving, Pittsburgh Public Schools students are learning when they may be able to return to classrooms. All 22,000 students are expected to return to brick-and-mortar school buildings for hybrid learning by May 3, the district announced Tuesday evening.

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Amber York (left), a youth development professional with Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania serving through AmeriCorps, sits with students during a gym period at the organization's Lawrenceville location. (Photo by Ryan Loew/PublicSource)

How Pittsburgh-area learning hubs helped students through COVID and could change how public education is delivered

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Wanika Steele has clocked into the same job for 14 years. But in September, she put in her two-week notice. She feared her 10-year-old son, Ty’Kir, would have no one to facilitate his new full-time virtual learning experience. “I was ready to actually quit my job so I could be home,” said Steele, 45. But four days before her notice took effect, as if her very own deus ex machina, the Thelma Lovette YMCA learning hub in the Hill District announced it would open for students in kindergarten through middle school.

EDUCATION

Pittsburgh Public board again delays student return to in-school learning, calls on district to survey needs

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Pittsburgh Public students won’t return to brick-and-mortar school buildings until April 6 at the earliest, following a decision by the school board Wednesday evening and a two-day, 127-speaker public hearing in the days leading up to the decision. 

The board approved a resolution in a 7-2 vote, following amendments, to keep students at home in remote learning through the beginning of the school year’s fourth quarter. Board members Sala Udin and Devon Taliaferro voted against the amended resolution, signaling a desire to bring students and teachers back sooner than April. Board members Pam Harbin and Terry Kennedy presented an amended version of the original resolution at Wednesday’s meeting, which had more than 1,000 stream viewers, with additions to address transportation challenges and growing student needs. Among the changes to the resolution:

The district is expected to conduct a current survey of student needs for support, transportation availability, staffing levels and building health and safety protocols. A parent/guardian survey will be circulated on or before Feb.

2021 inauguration
Dr. Jill Biden looks on as President Joe Biden takes his oath of office on Wednesday, January 20, 2021, minutes before noon.

Inauguration Day 2021: Joe Biden is inaugurated, gives his first speech as the 46th U.S. president

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Hours before Joseph R. Biden would be sworn in as America’s 46th president on Wednesday, thousands of flags swayed and fluttered in darkness on the National Mall. The flags dot the grounds in place of Americans who were unable to travel to Washington, D.C., for the inauguration due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and increased security threats. It was an unusual start to mark a momentous shift in American leadership. Safety concerns have heightened in the days since pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 while lawmakers certified Biden's win in the November 2020 election.

EDUCATION

December ‘By The Book’: PGH K-12 Bulletins

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Welcome to "By The Book: PGH K-12 Bulletins," which provides updates on emerging and ever changing news in the Pittsburgh K-12 education landscape. With more than 40 school districts across Allegheny County, the Bulletins will update you on the region's latest education news, including close coverage of the Pittsburgh Public Schools, other Allegheny County school districts, the Pennsylvania Department of Education and other important agencies, which serve thousands of Pittsburgh families. Please check back frequently and email tylisa@publicsource.org with questions, tips or Bulletin ideas. Follow along on Twitter with the hashtag #PGHed for news updates on Pittsburgh education. 12/16/20: Pittsburgh Public passes 2021 budget without a tax increase.