Laurel: To building on support. Pittsburgh Action Against Rape is closing its South Side office for about a month — not to pause its vital mission but to reinforce it.
Thanks to a $137,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, the organization is implementing security and safety upgrades. That includes controlled entry points as well as better monitoring and infrastructure.
All of that reflects a hard reality. These safe spaces are not just about providing support. They are about ensuring protection. It is not just about appearances. It is crucially about genuine security.
That trust is earned in understanding needs like sliding security windows, controlled access to elevators and reliable fire detection. All of it matters when people walk through the door at their most vulnerable moments.
It is also critical for the work to continue even if the doors aren’t open. Advocates, counselors and therapists will continue meeting clients in Turtle Creek, at community-based locations and online. The helpline remains open. The support remains steady.
This support is not like getting a tooth filled or filing a form. It is deeply personal, traumatic and potentially important justice work. That has to be reflected in the construction.
Lance: To mixed signals. Standardized tests are either essential or optional, predictive or imperfect, a golden ticket or just another line on a résumé — sometimes all at once.
They are a reality for Pennsylvania students who are tested regularly through elementary school and have to pass the Keystone exam to graduate. But there are more tests that may or may not be required to move on to college.
Students are told the SAT is important. They are also told it is optional. They take the test multiple times, pay the fees, invest in preparation — and then face the possibility that the score they worked for may not be necessary, that it might be better to leave it out altogether.
Colleges send their own conflicting messages. Some maintain test-optional policies in the name of access and equity. Others are beginning to reinstate requirements, pointing to research that shows scores can help predict success.
The result is a system that feels less like an evaluation and more like a shell game. Students are left trying to guess what matters in a shifting landscape. They weigh whether a score helps or hurts without knowing how or why.
It shouldn’t be so confusing. If it’s needed, require it. If it’s not, stop with the back and forth. Students are under enough pressure. They don’t need the added burden of standardized uncertainty.
