Upper Merion Township
EDUCATION
Beloved Sun Valley High School wrestling coach dies suddenly; community gathers for balloon release
ASTON, Pa. - A community in Delaware County is mourning the loss of a beloved father, husband, brother and coach who died suddenly on Friday. Tommy Ellis, 43, the longtime wrestling coach at Aston’s Sun Valley High School passed over the weekend after his family says he suffered an aneurysm late Friday in their Brookhaven home.
Deep dive into Jay-Z’s private voucher plan for Philadelphia schools tethers him to Republican interests, faces public backlash
In Roc Nation’s mission to education reform creates negative responses due to the aligning with the conservative-backed PASS It Forward program. The American rapper and business mogul, Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, has found himself embroiled in controversy on education reform. Recently, it was discovered that he is in support of “school choice,” which is a policy that provides public funding to parents for their child’s education, even if it is not at a public school.
Determining the Future of the Radnor Cabrini University Campus
As Villanova puts its own renovations on the Cabrini campus in Radnor, it is also looking at ways to honor the university's legacy. Radnor’s Cabrini University officially closed on June 30 and will now become an extension campus for Villanova University. The closing brings an end to a campus...
Cheyney University of Pennsylvania no longer on probation, school says
CHEYNEY, Pa. - Cheyney University, the oldest historically Black college in the United States (HBCU) is no longer on probation. According to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the university has had its accreditation reaffirmed after the commission placed the school on probation last November due to alleged "insufficient evidence" that it was in compliance with multiple university standards.
4 Pro-Palestine students at UPenn face suspensions, activist group says
PHILADELPHIA - Four University of Pennsylvania students have been notified by the school’s disciplinary office that they will be suspended due to their involvement in pro-Palestine actions on campus, according to the activist group, Freedom School For Palestine. The group says for months the university has been trying to...
Penn faces lawsuit for allegedly failing to respond to antisemitism on campus
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Days before the University of Pennsylvania's 268th commencement ceremony last May, graduating senior Eyal Yakoby walked through campus with a heavy heart. "People say graduation should be bittersweet," Yakoby said. "It's just bitter at this point."In the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Yakoby, who is Jewish, is one of several students suing Penn alleging the university has failed to sufficiently respond to antisemitism on campus and has violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964."In the aftermath, we had a number of Jewish families, both students at Ivy League and other universities,...
Renovations to Close Radnor Cabrini Campus for 2 Years, Villanova Says
Villanova University has announced that the Cabrini University campus in Radnor will be renamed Villanova University Cabrini Campus and will close for two years so renovations can take place, writes Susan Snyder for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Villanova officially took ownership of Cabrini on Friday. Most of the campus is closed...
Retired Teacher Volunteers at Upper Merion Township Library As ‘English as a Second Language’ Class Instructor
Jean Olexy retired as a teacher years ago, but has since began teaching ESL classes at Upper Merion Township Library. Jean Olexy is an Upper Merion Township woman who volunteers her time to teach “English as a Second Language” courses, reports Nick Iadonisi for 6abc. After retiring from...
Saying Goodbye And Thank You To Pennsauken Public Schools
As I leave and hand over the reins to Ms. Caroline Steer, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the entire Pennsauken School District community. Serving as your Superintendent has been one of the greatest honors of my professional career. Over the past several years, we have achieved...
2024 Philly Live II: Day 2 PYB Standouts (Sat., June 29)
AJ Altobelli (2025 | Union Catholic, N.J.) Although listed at just 5-10, he shows a rare ability to control the entire flow of a game. An excellent passer who created nothing but good looks for his team against a talented Archbishop Carroll (D.C). A true offensive catalyst who had one of the best first steps at the event, he always makes the right decisions and is the ideal lob partner for his 7-0 and 6-7 teammates Yaw Ansong and FK Muntari. Altobelli racked up countless assists while also showing his ability to keep defenders honest when he’s on the three point line.
Salus University’s merger with Drexel made official by Middle States Commission’s approval
John Fry, president of Drexel University in Philadelphia, announced today that the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) has approved the merger of Salus University with Drexel. The approval makes merger plans long in the making official. In late March, Salus published a memo detailing the plan:. In the...
College Together provides different path for Philadelphia students to earn their degrees
Sign up for Chalkbeat Philadelphia’s free newsletter to keep up with the city’s public school system.Sanya Sek worked hard in high school. She got all As, including in Advanced Placement courses. She applied to college and even got into Bryn Mawr.But her parents, both of whom had fled the Khmer Rouge in war-torn Cambodia when they were young, could not afford college, even though they prized education. The financial aid she was offered fell short of covering all the costs, including room and board, books, and the myriad ancillary fees. So she enrolled instead in Community College of Philadelphia.“I took...
Philly students rally for more school funding at state capitol as budget debate grinds on
Sign up for Chalkbeat Philadelphia’s free newsletter to keep up with the city’s public school system.Students from 17 Philadelphia high schools rallied at the state capitol in Harrisburg last week to demand that lawmakers provide adequate support to their underfunded public schools.The roughly 40 students who participated in the rally were part of a Youth Leadership Fellowship at PhillyBOLT — which stands for Building Our Lives Together — to learn how to create change in their communities through field trips and curriculum. They also went on a similar trip to the city in May to stress the importance of school...
Interview with Carroll High Eagles Head Coach Matt Mellown
In the season premier of “The Wiregrass High School Football Report”, Phillip Jordan sits down with new Carroll High Eagles head coach Matt Mellown. After the 2023 season former head coach Patrick Plott moved on to become an assistant for the Auburn High Tigers. The Eagles made a great hire by brining in Mellown. He comes from Andalusia where he was the offensive coordinator. In the interview, Coach Mellown discusses how the first few months have been, strength and conditioning coach Logan Richards, past coaching experiences, the 2024 Carroll Eagles, and much more.
Incentivize Child Care in any Redevelopment of UArts Real Estate
The ranks of people left angry and confused over the abrupt closure of UArts have steadily spread outward from the inner rings of displaced students, teachers and staff. They now include lawmakers, lawyers and members of the broader arts community, all of whom continue to ask questions about the decision to close the 150-year-old institution, which the school’s board members claim was in “urgent” financial distress.
Meet Baseball Coach of the Year: MLB pedigree built confidence in his high school players
Jeff Manto's belief quickly turned into reality. In his second season as head coach, Manto guided Conwell-Egan to a 16-6 record (9-3 in the Philadelphia Catholic League) and the school's first-ever baseball victory in the PIAA state playoffs. That's quite a transformation from a 1-13 mark (1-10 in the PCL)...
My future – and the future of education – is in Harrisburg’s hands [opinion]
I graduated from Abington High School in June 2023. Yes. My graduation took place amidst the smoke from the Canadian wildfires. And yes. Half of my high school experience was virtual due to the pandemic. I just completed my freshman year at Penn State in University Park. It, too, was...
Michelle Hall: Peirce College Graduate’s Journey to Commencement
Michelle Hall is a graduate of the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership & Management program at Peirce College and recipient of the Alumni Association’s Raymond L. Palzer ’52 Academic Leadership Award. Her journey has been an experience!. “Peirce College has changed my life. I am grateful to...
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