Quincey Reese stories, Page 9
Hempfield Area to present new details on high school renovation, district budget next week
Hempfield Area School Board will present next week a schematic design for the district’s high school renovation. The district has discussed in recent years overhauling the high school building — gutting and renovating the interior while leaving most of the exterior intact. School officials declined to share details of the...
Penn-Trafford School Board tasked with closing $400K budget deficit
Property tax bills could increase by about $80 per year in Penn-Trafford School District following preliminary budget approval by a divided school board this week. But the tax hike would still not be enough to cover the more than $400,000 deficit in the district’s 2025-26 budget, business manager Brett Lago...
4 Western Pa. high schools to compete in national robotics competition
Plum Senior High School’s robotics team has spent hundreds of hours designing, building and refining a 15-pound machine to compete for a national title this weekend. But the 23-student team is fully prepared to watch their labor of love shatter to pieces. Plum is one of dozens of schools that...
Penn-Trafford School Board candidates run unopposed; police chief runs for spot
Four candidates — three incumbents and one newcomer — will run for the four available seats on the Penn-Trafford School Board this spring. Region II incumbents Bryan Kline and Richard Niemiec, along with Region III incumbent Toni Ising, will seek another four-year term. Penn Township Police Chief John Otto is...
If Harvard loses its tax-exempt status, Western Pa. universities, nonprofits could be in trouble
Harvard University could lose hundreds of millions of dollars annually if the federal government is able to revoke its tax-exempt status. But University of Pittsburgh law professor Philip Hackney suspects the move, vocalized by President Donald Trump for a second time Friday, could mean big trouble for higher education institutions...
Greensburg Salem collecting dress clothes donations for 8th grade graduation event
Cleaning out your closets this spring? Greensburg Salem is collecting gently used dress clothes for eighth grade students in need of semi-formal attire for the middle school graduation dinner and dance. The dance was launched by then-assistant principal Joseph Nava in the 1970s to celebrate students’ transition from middle to...
Color analysis, collectibles and women’s fitness: Westmoreland County welcomes 3 new businesses
Friends Angela Vaslavsky and Sarah Thompson knew it was time for a life change. But neither of the Unity residents imagined they would discover that change when they went to House of Colour Mt. Lebanon to receive a personal color analysis. “We were on a self-care journey ourselves,” Thompson said....
Greensburg Community Development Corporation grows roots with new director, vision
After three years of frequent leadership turnover, the Greensburg Community Development Corporation has a new executive director who aims to guide the 50-year-old nonprofit through its new strategic plan and quest for business development funding. Hempfield resident Nancy Ligus takes the helm of the corporation from former board president Elsie...
Penn Borough man accused of setting fire to his home
A Penn Borough man was charged Tuesday after he was accused of setting fire to his own home about a week prior, according to court documents. Andy J. Broadway, 43, is charged with three counts of arson and other related offenses in connection with a fire that damaged his Victor...
Pa. educators push for additional dollars to equitably fund schools
New Kensington-Arnold Superintendent Chris Sefcheck is grateful for the unprecedented funding that was granted to Pennsylvania’s public schools this academic year. But, as education experts continue to note inadequate funding among the majority of the state’s K-12 schools, Sefcheck knows there is still a long way to go in properly...
Pittsburgh Symphony performance at Saint Vincent will honor late archabbot
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra will honor a late Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica archabbot during a performance Wednesday in Unity. The show, “Music for the Spirit,” will pay tribute to Douglas R. Nowicki, OSB, the 11th and second longest-serving archabbot in Saint Vincent’s 178-year history. He oversaw the expansion and renovation...
Lights, camera, action: Westmoreland leaders to take stage in talent show fundraiser
It’s not every day a county commissioner, university professor and pastor end up in the same room. But this week, all of those roles and more will be showcased in the Westmoreland Diversity Coalition’s “Westmoreland Has Talent.” The fundraiser — held occasionally since 2019 — will take place 6 to...
Manor church aims to build community connections through free cooking lessons
Basic knife skills, baking and stove-top cooking are among the topics Manor’s Refuge Church plans to cover in its latest community outreach program. The church, located along Broadway Avenue, is launching a series of free cooking lessons to teach community members how to prepare healthy meals for their families. The...
2 earthquakes recorded about a hundred miles from Pittsburgh
Two earthquakes occurred about a hundred miles southwest of Pittsburgh this week near the same southeastern Ohio town. A 3.1 magnitude earthquake occurred just after 4 a.m. Tuesday about a mile away from Pleasant City — a 0.18-square-mile village east of Columbus. A 3.4 magnitude was recorded near the area...
Morning Roundup: Liberty Tunnel overnight lane closure extended
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, April 25: PennDOT extends Liberty Tunnel closures The state Department of Transportation will continue its overnight lane closures of Pittsburgh’s Liberty Tunnel starting Sunday night. The tunnel has been under a partial lane closure from 8 p.m. to...
Penn Middle students bring cult classic film turned musical ‘Mean Girls Jr.’ to stage
Penn Middle School student Felice Hutchison has learned there is more to the movie-turned-musical “Mean Girls” than the title may imply. Hutchison is one of dozens of Penn Middle students who have rehearsed since November for their performance of “Mean Girls Jr.,” slated for April 25 to 27 in the...
Pittsburgh man accused of burning girlfriend with hot iron
A Pittsburgh man who police say attacked his girlfriend with a hot iron, burning her over about 60% of her body, was arrested Thursday morning. Burton L. Byrd, 55, of Pittsburgh’s Perry South neighborhood, is charged with various crimes including aggravated assault, kidnapping, intimidation of witnesses or victims and unlawful...
Hot enough for ya? Temperatures move above typical April in Western Pa.
Surprised by this week’s rise in temperatures? According to the National Weather Service’s Pittsburgh office in Moon, there is some validity to that reaction. Temperatures are forecast to reach into the low 80s on Thursday, with a 30% chance of going above 82 degrees, said meteorologist Liana Lupo. Late April...
Gov. Shapiro denounces violence in recounting arson attack in New York Times guest essay
Gov. Josh Shapiro recounted the arson attack that burned through his Harrisburg home earlier this month, penning a guest essay published Wednesday in the New York Times. A state trooper alerted Shapiro and his wife, Lori, of the fire just after 2 a.m. April 13. They escaped without injury from...
McKeesport kindergarten student hit, injured by school bus
A kindergarten student was injured Tuesday afternoon after being hit by a school bus, McKeesport Area School District officials said. Police and emergency services were dispatched to the corner of Soles and Stewart streets in McKeesport around 3:45 p.m., Superintendent Don MacFann wrote in a statement posted on the district’s...
East Deer man charged with animal cruelty, neglect of 3 dogs
An East Deer man was arrested Monday by the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office and was charged with multiple counts of animal cruelty and neglect, according to court papers. A deputy from the sheriff’s office discovered three dogs while executing an eviction order around 10:30 a.m. April 17 at the residence...
Morning Roundup: Police find teen shot in East Liberty; threat investigated at Chartiers Valley
Here are some of the latest news items for this morning, Tuesday, April 22: Teen found shot in East Liberty A teenage boy was shot in the head early Tuesday morning in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty neighborhood, according to Pittsburgh Public Safety. Police were dispatched to the intersection of North Euclid...
Derry Township firefighters invest in equipment washer, aim to reduce cancer risk
Derry Township firefighters have taken a step toward cancer prevention, purchasing a washing machine to better clean their gear. The $30,000 gear washer was installed last week at Derry Township Volunteer Fire Department No. 1 in Bradenville. It will help the station’s 38 firefighters clean their self-contained breathing apparatus devices...
Greensburg Night Market slated to kick off 7th season this week
The Greensburg Night Market returns for a seventh season this week, expecting once again to draw thousands of people to browse vendor tents and enjoy live music along South Pennsylvania Avenue. The Night Market was launched by Jessica Hickey, owner of the Downtown Greensburg Project, in 2019 — featuring just...
Gender-based violence prevention is aim of Greensburg’s Walk a Mile in Her Shoes event
Red high heels will hit the pavement in downtown Greensburg next week as the community gathers for the Blackburn Center’s 14th annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes. The event, slated for April 26, is part of an international movement launched in 2001 that raises awareness of gender-based violence. Though...
