WCCC sees enrollment increase after years of decline
After 14 years of declining enrollment, Westmoreland County Community College may be starting to reverse the trend. As of the first day of classes, enrollment is up nearly 1.9%, or 42 students, compared to the first day of the 2024-25 academic year. And that doesn’t account for students taking late-start...
Penn Township takes over local recreation as commission dissolves
After nearly a quarter-century in operation, the Penn-Trafford Area Recreation Commission will close its doors. The nonprofit’s five governing bodies — Penn Township, Penn Borough, Penn-Trafford School District, Manor and Trafford — voted in recent weeks to dissolve the organization, with Penn Township commissioners casting the final approval last week....
D.C. man seen throwing sandwich at agent charged with misdemeanor after grand jury declines indictment
WASHINGTON — A man captured on camera hurling a sandwich at a federal agent in D.C. has been charged with a misdemeanor offense after prosecutors failed to convince a grand jury to return a more serious felony indictment, according to court papers filed Thursday. The move is a blow to...
Trump proposed getting rid of FEMA, but his review council seems focused on reforming the agency
Four days after starting his second administration, President Donald Trump floated the idea of “getting rid of” the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which manages federal disaster response. But at a Thursday meeting, the 12-person review council he appointed to propose changes to FEMA seemed more focused on reforms than total...
Fed official sues Trump over attempt to fire her, challenging his power over independent agency
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has sued the Trump administration in an effort to overturn the president’s attempt to fire her, launching an unprecedented legal battle that could significantly reshape the Fed’s longstanding political independence. The lawsuit seeks an emergency injunction to block her firing and “confirm her...
European nations move to impose a ‘snapback’ of Iran nuclear sanctions at UN
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — France, Germany and the United Kingdom moved Thursday to reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, further isolating Tehran after its atomic sites were repeatedly bombed during a 12-day war with Israel. The process, termed a “snapback” by the diplomats who negotiated...
U.S. applications for jobless benefits fell last week as layoffs remain low
WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week as employers appear to be holding onto their workers even as the economy has slowed. Applications for unemployment benefits for the week ending Aug. 23 dropped 5,000 to 229,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Measures of the job market are being...
Authorities are looking for a motive for the shooter who killed 2 kids at a Minneapolis church
RICHFIELD, Minn. — Investigators were examining the videos, writings and movements of the shooter who fired through the windows of a Catholic church in Minneapolis, killing two children and wounding 17 people, for connections to the church and its school to understand the motivation for the attack. Armed with a...
Trump administration asks military base outside Chicago for support on immigration operations
CHICAGO — The Trump administration asked a military base outside Chicago for support on immigration operations, the base said Thursday, offering a clue of what an expanded law enforcement crackdown might look like in the nation’s third-largest city. The Department of Homeland Security has asked Naval Station Great Lakes for...
Gallery: Photos from August 28, 2025
Embark on a visual journey around the Western Pennsylvania region with TribLive’s latest collection of captivating images for Thursday, August 28, 2025. From the rustic landscapes of Western Pa. to diverse corners of the globe, experience the shared moments of humanity....
Minneapolis Catholic schoolchildren listened to a prayer, then ducked for cover from gunfire
MINNEAPOLIS — In the vaulted church of a Catholic school in Minneapolis, the pews were packed with teachers, parents and schoolchildren listening to a psalm on the third day of the new school year. “For you darkness itself is not dark, and night shines as the day,” a church member...
Jury awards more than $2 million to protester shot in face with nonlethal projectile
LOS ANGELES — A jury has awarded at least $2.2 million to a protester who was shot in the face with a less-lethal munition by a Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy during a demonstration against police brutality in 2020. In the verdict last week, the jury found LA County liable for...
Guard not needed in Chicago, Pritzker tells AP during tour of city to counter Trump’s crime claims
CHICAGO — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is doubling down on his message to President Donald Trump that the nation’s third-largest city doesn’t need or want military intervention to fight crime, showing off parts of the city where violent crime has decreased and saying sending in the National Guard could only...
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will attend a military parade in Beijing next week
BEIJING — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will make his first visit to China in six years to attend a military parade next week, the two countries said Thursday, in an event that would bring him together with a group of world leaders for the first time since taking...
Mass Russian drone and missile attack kills 15 and injures 48 in Ukraine’s capital
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia bombarded the Ukrainian capital with drones and missiles early Thursday, including a rare strike in the city center, killing at least 15 people and wounding 48, local authorities said. It was the first major Russian attack on Kyiv in weeks as U.S.-led peace efforts to end...
Trump Station? Feds coy on potential rebranding of NYC Penn Station amid redesign
NEW YORK — The Trump administration’s plan to begin rebuilding Penn Station in 2027 doesn’t officially involve a rebranding — though Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was coy when asked about that possibility Wednesday. “I imagine you’re asking, ’ Is this going to be Trump Station?’” Duffy replied when asked if...
What is known about the shooter who killed 2 and wounded 17 in Minneapolis
Authorities are working to learn the motive of the shooter who fired into a Minneapolis Catholic school’s church during Mass, killing two children and injuring 17 worshippers. Officials identified the shooter as Robin Westman, 23, and said Westman was found dead in the parking lot from what they believe was...
Amish woman accused of killing her 4-year-old son by throwing him into an Ohio lake
An Amish woman who told authorities she was testing her faith when she threw her 4-year-old son into an Ohio lake was charged Wednesday with two counts of aggravated murder in the boy’s death. Authorities said Ruth R. Miller, 40, of Millersburg, Ohio, told investigators she believed she was acting...
Louisiana urges Supreme Court to bar use of race in redistricting, in attack on Voting Rights Act
WASHINGTON — Louisiana on Wednesday abandoned its defense of a political map that elected two Black members of Congress and instead called on the Supreme Court to reject any consideration of race in redistricting in a case that could bring major changes to the Voting Rights Act. Appealing to a...
Wisconsin missing kayaker who faked his own death sentenced to 89 days in jail
MADISON, Wis. — A Wisconsin man who faked his own drowning while kayaking and left his wife and three children to meet a woman in the country of Georgia was convicted Tuesday of obstructing an officer and sentenced to 89 days in jail, which was the amount of time he...
CDC director Susan Monarez is out after less than a month on the job; other agency leaders resign
NEW YORK — The director of the nation’s top public health agency is out after less than one month in the job, and several top agency leaders have resigned. “Susan Monarez is no longer director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We thank her for her dedicated service...
CDC dramatically scales back program that tracks food poisoning infections
Federal health officials have dramatically scaled back a program that has tracked food poisoning infections in the U.S. for three decades. The Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network, known as FoodNet, has cut required monitoring to just two pathogens that cause infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention....
Pa. Dems celebrate Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s engagement — then ask for donations
What do Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court have in common? Not much. But that isn’t stopping the Pennsylvania Democratic Party from trying to capitalize on the celebrity engagement of Swift and Kelce, announced Tuesday, to solicit campaign donations. “We’re sure you’ve already heard the news, but...
Democrat Catelin Drey’s victory in Iowa special election breaks GOP supermajority
DES MOINES — A Democrat has won a special election for an Iowa state Senate seat in a district that had been held by Republicans and had voted heavily for President Donald Trump in 2024, adding to the Democratic Party’s hope that it can flip more seats during the 2026...
Trump extends control over Washington by taking management of Union Station away from Amtrak
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s administration is taking management of Union Station away from Amtrak in the latest example of the federal government exerting its power over the nation’s capital. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the takeover Wednesday alongside Amtrak President Roger Harris at Washington’s main transportation hub during the...
