Teghan Simonton stories, Page 9
Duquesne University cutting faculty to reduce costs
Duquesne University is moving forward with faculty cuts, informing some non-tenured instructors this week that their contracts would not be renewed. The university had announced measures to reduce faculty as early as Dec. 4, according to an email shared with the Tribune-Review. “As a first step, Duquesne has offered a...
Kiski Area reports in-school instruction going smoothly despite surging pandemic
Four weeks after introducing a new instruction model that allows for four days of in-person learning each week, roughly half of Kiski Area students are taking advantage of it. Superintendent Tim Scott said just over 1,800 district students are enrolled in the four-day model. Meanwhile, 963 students are learning fully...
UPMC acquires another Ireland hospital
UPMC has acquired a third hospital in Ireland, the Pittsburgh-based health system announced Monday. The system is expanding services at Aut Even Hospital in Kilkenny. The 105-year-old hospital will be renamed UPMC Aut Even Hospital. Terms of the sale were not disclosed. Aut Even will be operated in addition to...
Point Park University introduces scholarship for transfer students from state university system
Point Park University announced the launch of a new program for transfer students aimed at students who may have been misplaced by recent restructuring in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. It’s called the Smooth Transition Program. “The talk of mergers of state system schools and the elimination and...
Food truck owner hosts ‘ghost kitchen’ in Vandergrift
Tom Scanga, owner of Del Vecchio’s Sausage & Fries, is branching out this weekend with a ghost kitchen — a temporary, pop-up restaurant focusing on something completely outside of his specialty. Friday through Sunday, from 3 to 7 p.m., Scanga will be operating out of his commissary at 328 Lowell...
Pa. officials still leave covid restrictions up to school districts
A day after Gov. Tom Wolf announced a suspension of all school sports and extracurricular activities, Pennsylvania’s Acting Secretary of Education Noe Ortega and Deputy Secretary Matt Stem doubled down on the state’s approach of leaving the ultimate reopening decisions up to individual school districts. “We recognize there is no...
Western Pa. hospitals rush to buy massive, ultra-cold freezers for covid vaccine
Preparing for the covid-19 vaccine is like no other immunization, said Dr. Brian Parker, chief quality learning officer at Allegheny Health Network. In recent weeks, the network has acquired several massive ultra-cold freezers in expectation of the Pfizer vaccine, which requires an environment of minus 70 degrees below Celsius —...
Allegheny County officials: State covid restrictions are neededVideo
Allegheny County officials again said they are expecting new covid-19 restrictions from the state to be announced soon. “We thought today there were going to be some announcements around mitigating strategies,” County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said during a virtual news conference Wednesday. “Obviously they are needed. … These numbers are...
UPMC expects to receive covid vaccine soon, distribute to health care workers after authorization
Pending emergency authorization by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, UPMC hopes to have the Pfizer covid-19 vaccine distributed to all of its front-line workers by the end of January, leaders in the hospital system said Tuesday. The system anticipates arrival of its first allocation of Pfizer vaccine doses in...
UPMC names new president of Center for Emergency Medicine
UPMC appointed a new president of the Center for Emergency Medicine of Western Pennsylvania, which focuses on prehospital care and paramedic services. James Houser will succeed Doug Garretson, who retired in October. Houser will run the critical care air ambulance service, STAT MedEvac, with helicopters throughout the Western Pennsylvania region,...
‘It’s scary,’: Nurses fear covid surge will overwhelm Western Pa. hospitals
As soon as nurses arrive for work at UPMC Altoona, they’re in constant motion. In the hospital’s medical intensive care unit, which became the covid unit in March, the hallways are crowded with machinery, including IV pumps, dialysis machines and other equipment, said Paula Stellabotte, an ICU nurse. Stellabotte said...
EPA grant will go toward electric Port Authority buses in Allegheny County
The Allegheny County Health Department has received a grant of more than $5.5 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to help the Port Authority purchase battery-electric buses. “This is a small but important step toward cleaner air for all,” Health Director Dr. Debra Bogen said. The Port Authority will...
Pennsylvania’s Capitol Complex to close for covid concerns
Pennsylvania’s Capital Complex will close to the public once again, citing rising covid-19 cases. Starting Monday, the complex will disallow visits and events including rallies, school or group tours, performances, receptions and other public gatherings in all interior venues. The Capitol Complex includes the Main Capitol Rotunda, East Wing Rotunda,...
Residents, staff test positive for covid at Concordia at Cabot
Ten residents and 11 staff members have tested positive for covid-19 at Concordia at Cabot in Butler County, which includes both a skilled nursing and an assisted living facility. All 10 residents are in the Lund Personal Care Center (Bachman Hall), an assisted living section of the campus, along with...
Pa. officials share mental health resources for pandemic and holiday season
Isolation through the holiday season could exacerbate the country’s existing mental health crisis amid the covid-19 pandemic. Officials on Tuesday reminded Pennsylvania residents of available resources for mental health and substance abuse treatment. “We know that these decisions and spending an important time of year away from loved ones can...
St. Therese of Lisieux in Munhall moves to online learning
Saint Therese of Lisieux School, a Diocese of Pittsburgh school in Munhall, will move to remote learning immediately, after identifying covid-related issues over Thanksgiving break. School administrators were notified of one positive test due to an “exposure unrelated to school.” Two other staff members also reported possible exposures. The resulting...
Levine: Pa. has reached ‘concerning milestone’ in covid-19
Pennsylvania has reached a “concerning milestone” in covid-19 infections and hospitalizations, Health Secretary Rachel Levine said Monday. Levine said the state’s percent positivity rate — measuring the number of covid-19 tests that come back with positive results — is over 12%. Health experts have said any rate above 5% is...
Vandergrift adjusts Christmas parades for covid concerns
Christmas festivities in Vandergrift will be altered to account for covid-19, but the festivities will continue. The Vandergrift Improvement Program’s (VIP) “Light-up Night” takes place every year the weekend after Thanksgiving, normally including a Christmas parade attended by every fire department in the area, incorporating floats, food vendors and entertainment....
Allegheny Township proposed budget has no tax increase
Allegheny Township residents won’t have a property tax increase next year, marking the 11th consecutive year without an increase. Township supervisors presented the preliminary 2021 budget Monday. The budget includes a general fund of just under $4 million, along with about $335,000 allocated for debt service, $235,000 for the fire...
Kiski Area High School reopens, district introduces online covid tracker
Kiski Area High School reopened Monday after a week-long closure, allowing students to attend class in person for up to four days a week. Students had moved online last week after seven cases of covid-19 were reported among students and staff. The school district had just reported two new cases...
10 Allegheny County Jail employees test positive for covid, 50 in quarantine
Ten Allegheny County Jail employees tested positive for coronavirus since Saturday and another 50 are quarantining after they were identified as close contacts, officials said Monday. Officials said the cases are the result of community transmission — not exposures in the workplace. “While these steps will impact staffing levels at...
Pittsburgh City Council considers covid sick leave resolution, historical designations
Pittsburgh City Council on Monday introduced a resolution granting paid covid-19 sick leave to city workers. The legislation aims to supplement a federal policy that is set to expire Dec. 1. “Due to failed federal action, workers should not have to choose between their family’s health during a worldwide pandemic...
A look inside schools’ reopening decisions
Gary Peiffer was “cautiously optimistic” at the beginning of this school year. The superintendent of Greensburg Salem School District felt ready for the district’s planned hybrid model. Federal CARES Act funds had been used to purchase laptops, cleaning materials and plastic barriers. Teachers had gone through training for new remote...
Nov. 20: Here is covid-19 data from select Western Pa. colleges
Western Pennsylvania is home community to several colleges and universities, attracting students from around the state and country. During the coronavirus pandemic, many are tracking the number of positive covid-19 cases as they emerge on campus. University of Pittsburgh Enrollment: About 30,000 students Number of new cases: There were 98...
Pittsburgh public relations group establishes Black Excellence Award
The Pittsburgh Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), a professional organization for marketing and public relations workers, announced a new award to recognize Black men and women working in the region’s communications field. The $2,000 Black Excellence Award will be given annually to recent graduates of African...
