Local category, Page 3217
Metal detectors to be installed in Gateway high, middle schools
Gateway High School’s large group instruction room was packed Feb. 12 for a Safe School community meeting, where administrators discussed new safety practices, including plans for utilizing metal detectors and an app that collates anonymous tips. Assistant Superintendent Dennis Chakey, who is part of the district’s five-person safety team, said...
Penn-Trafford cheerleaders earn top-10 finish at national competition
The Penn-Trafford high school cheerleading squad made its first-ever trip to the UCA National Competition, held in Florida, and finished among the top 10. Teams from 50 states and several international squads competed, showcasing group stunts and tumbling skills. The Penn-Trafford squad finished 10th in the competition’s Large Varsity Division...
Fox Chapel Area senior citizens get free showing of high school’s ‘Les Miserables’
Senior citizens in the Fox Chapel Area School District can get a sneak peek at the high school’s upcoming spring musical during a free dress rehearsal of “Les Misérables School Edition.” Students will perform the show at 3:45 p.m. March 12 in the auditorium. Refreshments will be served prior to...
Franklin Regional cheerleaders post top-20 finish at national competition
Franklin Regional varsity cheerleaders returned to the Universal Cheerleaders Association’s National Competition for the first time in the past three seasons this year, and coaches Courtney Shovel and Nikki Ziringer liked the results. “We set a pretty clear goal at the beginning of the season: qualify for nationals,” she said....
15 North Allegheny students to be inducted into National Technical Honor Society
Fifteen North Allegheny High School students attending the A.W. Beattie Career Center will be inducted in to the National Technical Honor Society this year, district officials announced. To be considered for the honor, students must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale, have a...
Summer food truck events planned in Jeannette
The 500 block of Clay Avenue in Jeannette is going to see some action this summer. Construction of an amphitheater was approved by city council Thursday as were plans for a biweekly food truck event, both of which are in the same block where a microbrewery is relocating. “We’re really...
Gifts support safety nets for Westmoreland children, familiesVideo
Bob and Kaylene Musser didn’t have to think long about where they’d like to see money go when grant funding became available from the Wireless Zone Foundation. The Harrison City couple, who own eight Wireless Zone franchises, immediately nominated the Welcome Home Shelter and Westmoreland County’s CASA (Court Appointed Special...
Franklin Regional students prepare to stage ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’Video
Last year, as “Young Man with Clipboard” in Franklin Regional’s production of “42nd Street,” junior Jonah Hartman only had one line to worry about: “Yeah.” On the afternoon of Valentine’s Day, he was dangling at the edge of a faux skyscraper window-ledge, pleading with the woman his character loves during...
Carnegie exploring new banking options
Carnegie borough officials say the municipality will likely switch banks from PNC to Washington Financial Bank in order to take advantage of the lower fees and more favorable interest rates it offers. Carnegie council passed a motion by a unanimous vote on Feb. 11 authorizing Borough Manager Steve Beuter to...
Turnpike to close between Irwin and Pittsburgh for bridge removal
The Pennsylvania Turnpike will be closed for about five hours early Sunday between the Pittsburgh and Irwin interchanges as crews remove a bridge. The closure is planned from 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m., depending on the weather. Crews have been working to replace the bridge that previously carried Trafford-Murrysville Road...
A.W. Beattie students win World of Wheels competition
A.W. Beattie Career Center students have won the World of Wheels Peddle Car Challenge for the second consecutive year. The career center is a three-time champion in the competition, having also won in 2015. The most recent victory, at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, was in A.W. Beattie’s Automotive...
Kyle Baxter announces bid to become Westmoreland County judge
North Huntingdon lawyer Kyle Baxter said Friday she will be a candidate for judge this spring to fill one of two vacancies on the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas. Baxter, 51, is a Republican but plans to cross-file to run in both the GOP and Democratic primaries in May....
Kittanning police searching for missing woman, 27
Kittanning Borough police said as of 3 p.m. Saturday a 27-year-old woman remained missing. But police said they are receiving tips concerning her whereabouts. Katie L. Stoner has been missing since 6:30 p.m. Thursday. “We’ve had some tips and we want others to call,” Officer Ken Bussard said. Police said...
DUI, drug cases among those recently handled by Judge Zucco in Plum – Feb. 14, 2019
District Judge Linda Zucco recently handled the following cases. Charges were filed by Plum police unless otherwise noted. Waived preliminary hearingsMark Uhrmacher, 56, of Oakmont on charges of driving under the influence. Oakmont police filed the charges Nov. 27. Daniel Domenick, 33, of Plum on charges of driving under the...
Nominations for 24th North Hills Sports Hall of Fame open through April 1
Nominations for the North Hills School District’s 24th annual Sports Hall of Fame are being accepted through April 1. Each year the district honors alumni who have distinguished themselves in athletics during or after the years they attended North Hills High School or the former West View High School. Inductees...
Second-grader hits all the right notes with contest-winning composition
Alex Lauver barely has a free moment — and he doesn’t mind. The Gill Hall Elementary student’s evenings are filled with basketball, soccer, Cub Scouts, church choir and running — things many 8-year-olds like to do. One way Alex spends his time, however, isn’t something most musically-inclined people start doing...
North Allegheny’s IT director nets statewide tech association’s top honor
The director of information and technology for the North Allegheny School District recently was selected as the 2019 Chief Technology Officer of the Year by a statewide technology association. Richard Platts, who joined the district in n January 2017, received the honor by the Pennsylvania Association for Educational Communications and...
Valentine’s Day project at Poff Elementary shares kindness nationwide
A group of Hampton second- graders got to show the love to students at schools across the nation this past Valentine’s Day thanks to a new social media educational project led by their teacher. Marilyn Adams, a second-grade teacher at Poff Elementary, spearheaded an online Valentine’s Day project where her...
13 suspects in gambling ring appear in North Huntingdon court
For more than half a century, law enforcement has tied Robert “Bobby I” Iannelli to illegal sports betting and numbers lotteries throughout Western Pennsylvania. Now 88, Iannelli, of Wexford, along with his son, Rodney “Rusty” Iannelli, 58, of Pittsburgh, is once again accused of heading a widespread gambling operation that...
Gateway student wins Monroeville design contest
A Gateway High School student received $500 for her winning emblem design for the municipality’s new Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System, or MS4, fund. Kaitlyn Waros, a senior, was awarded the college scholarship money at Monroeville’s February council meeting. She posed for a photograph with Monroeville Mayor Nick Gresock. Councilman...
Highlands senior spreads message of acceptance on Valentine’s Day
Having a brother with autism showed Cameron Babinsack the kinds of issues and troubles faced by those who don’t fit into societal norms. “The world would be a better place if people would accept the differences in others instead of pointing them out,” said Babinsack, 17, a Highlands High School...
House along Route 356 in Allegheny Township destroyed by fire
No one was injured, but a house was destroyed Thursday afternoon in a fire along Route 356 in Allegheny Township. The fire closed a portion of the road for about six hours as multiple fire departments worked to get the blaze under control. Route 356 reopened about 7:30 p.m. The...
North Hills partnering with Apple for free family tech workshops at Ross Park Mall
A series of free Family Technology Workshops is being offered at the Apple Store in the Ross Park Mall through a partnership with the North Hills School District. The program will cover the operating system features on the iPhone and iPad that help users become more aware of how their...
Franklin Regional school board expected to award Sloan project bids next weekVideo
Franklin Regional school board officials are expected to award bids Monday night for a project that will see the renovation of Sloan Elementary School and the construction of a second elementary building on the Sloan property, off Sardis Road in Murrysville. Bids were opened on Feb. 12 for the project,...
Visit by Brinley the pig is a hit with Leechburg students
A potbellied pig ruled the school this week at David Leech Elementary. Brinley, a 3-month-old kunekune mixed-breed pig from Gilpin, visited students in grades K-5 this week to promote PIG WARS, a new fundraiser sponsored by the PTA. The pig was welcomed by teachers in each classroom, receiving much attention...
