Kellen Stepler stories, Page 11
South Fayette Township School District starts police force
The South Fayette Township School District has created its own police department and hired Michael Ziemianski as its first officer. Ziemianski, 41, of Canonsburg, is a major in the Army National Guard and has served for the past year as a resource officer with the Fort Cherry School District. He...
Teachers, substitutes, coaches appointed in Burrell
Burrell School Board made a bevy of personnel moves this week as it gears up for the first day of school Sept. 2. Hirings include Vanessa Bauer, a middle school math teacher who will be paid $63,979; and Kayla Farrah, a high school nurse to be paid $48,447. Nicholas Klukaszewski...
Chartiers Valley sophomore sinks hole-in-1
Ryan Viola accomplished the rarest feat in golf during Chartiers Valley’s match Aug. 8. The CV sophomore sunk a hole-in-one at Fort Cherry Golf Club’s fourth hole during the team’s match against Shaler Area. Viola used his 9-iron on the 155-yard hole. According to the National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds...
$8M Burrell High School heating and cooling project awarded; Bon Air work on hold
Burrell School District officials are moving forward with a roughly $8 million heating and cooling project for Burrell High School but will go back to the drawing board for a similar project at Bon Air Elementary. The contract for the HVAC improvements at Burrell High School, awarded Tuesday by the...
Carlynton to restrict student cellphone use during school day
This school year, Carlynton Jr.-Sr. High School will implement a policy restricting personal cellphone use for students. District officials say the policy follows a yearlong research and community engagement process. They say the policy will foster stronger student focus, mental health and academic engagement. “This initiative reflects our commitment to...
Chartiers Valley bolsters security, safety initiatives
Chartiers Valley School District has implemented new safety and security initiatives across all of its buildings for the new school year. Marc Hubert, the district’s safety and security coordinator, provided an update on the plans during the school board’s Aug. 12 meeting. “Every initiative we proposed was done through a...
Community the theme of Carlynton’s back-to-school celebration
Members of the Carlynton School District community kicked off the school year the best way they know how: a celebration. The district’s third-annual back-to-school celebration was held Aug. 15 at Honus Wagner Stadium in Carnegie. “Tonight’s celebration is about more than just the start of a new school year —...
Lower Burrell teens want bread out of ducks’ diets at Burrell Lake Park
Save the ducks — ditch the bread. That’s the message from Lower Burrell teens Katie Harris and Julia Skowronski, members of Girl Scout Troop 16454, on an awareness campaign to inform people of what’s appropriate, and what’s not, when it comes to feeding ducks at Burrell Lake Park. “We noticed...
Gavin Robb appointed Arnold solicitor
Arnold officials will be getting legal advice from a new attorney. Council accepted the resignation of City Solicitor Jaclyn M. Shaw and hired Gavin Robb, an attorney with the law firm of Tucker Arensberg, to fill the position. Both votes were 4-0, with Councilman Adam Zweig absent. Reached by TribLive,...
Upcoming Collierfest, car cruise events ‘brings the community together’
One of the biggest events in Collier Township returns this September. The family-friendly Collierfest will be held from 3 to 10 p.m. Sept. 20 at Collier Community Park, 5 Lobaugh St. Admission is free. “We have food trucks, vendors, local businesses and sponsors,” said Rob Shazer, Collier’s parks and recreation...
Conservative college student organizations more empowered to share views
Julia Cassidy says she has always felt confident expressing her conservative political views at the University of Pittsburgh, even though they aren’t shared by most of her peers. Since Donald Trump regained the Oval Office, though, Cassidy, president of Pitt’s College Republicans, says she has noticed more students sharing conservative...
Bridgeville’s new police chief, Gary James, sworn-in
Gary James was officially sworn-in as Bridgeville’s police chief at a recent council meeting. James has worked in the Bridgeville Police Department for more than 35 years, first as a patrolman, then as a sergeant and now as chief. “His dedication, leadership and deep roots in Bridgeville make him the...
Facebook Marketplace scam has Allegheny Township police charging Maryland woman
Dan Sevic believed something was off after his business, Sevic Landscaping and Supply in Allegheny Township, took an order for concrete block back in March. Little did he know that transaction would be linked to an alleged scheme that police say used stolen credit cards to buy the blocks, sell...
New Kensington-Arnold hikes pay rate for substitute teachers
New Kensington-Arnold School District officials hope a $30 per-day pay increase will attract more day-to-day substitute teachers to the district. School directors this week set the substitute teacher rate at $130 per day. Previously, substitute teachers made $100 daily for the first 30 days they worked. That would increase to...
Burrell schools beef up, add layers to disciplinary protocols
Burrell’s high school and middle school will be adding another layer to their in-school suspension protocols. Burrell High School and Charles A. Huston Middle School will establish an Alternative Learning Center this school year that’s located within the school buildings but away from other classrooms, said Carla Roland, assistant high...
More than 700 motorcycles expected for 8th annual Shaw Ride
The largest charity motorcycle ride in Western Pennsylvania returns to the Alle-Kiski Valley this weekend. The eighth annual Brian Shaw Ride is set for Saturday. Check-in begins at 8:30 a.m. at the Pittsburgh Shrine Center, Harmar, and kickstands go up at 10 a.m. The ride is in memory of Officer...
Vape sensors to be installed at Valley Jr.-Sr. High School
Vape sensors will be installed in restrooms and common areas at Valley Jr.-Sr. High School in New Kensington. The New Kensington-Arnold school board this week approved buying and installing vape sensors at Valley at a one-time cost of $12,800, said Superintendent Chris Sefcheck. There is an ongoing annual maintenance fee...
Card skimmer found at New Kensington Giant Eagle
Giant Eagle says some of its customers who swiped a credit card at the New Kensington store in June might have fallen victim to a card skimmer. A legal notice, published by Giant Eagle this week, states a payment card skimmer was installed on a checkout lane’s PIN pad between...
Grand opening celebration set for new Allegheny Township Shoe Sensation
A new shoe store in Allegheny Township will have a grand opening celebration next month. Shoe Sensation, located in the Hyde Park Plaza, 451 Hyde Park Road, will hold the celebration Sept. 12 to 14, according to the Indiana-based company. “We’re bringing so much more than just your favorite name...
HVAC project at Burrell High School comes in $1M over budget
Bids for a proposed heating and cooling project at Burrell High School came in about $1 million more than what school district officials were expecting. Superintendent Shannon Wagner told the school board this week that bids for general construction, HVAC and electrical improvements at the high school came in at...
Allegheny Township to pay workers’ compensation for firefighters from fire tax
Allegheny Township will use revenue from the township’s fire tax to pay workers’ compensation insurance premiums for volunteer firefighters. The township supervisors on Monday did not take up a motion by Supervisor Michael Korns that, according to the motion, would “return the fire tax funds removed from the (Allegheny Township...
Man taken to hospital following vehicle, e-bike crash in Arnold
A man was taken to a hospital after he was riding his e-bike and was hit by a Jeep in Arnold on Tuesday night, police said. At around 9 p.m., first responders from Arnold and New Kensington responded to the intersection of Constitution Boulevard and Drey Street in Arnold, near...
Burrell’s Project Discover orientation revamped following district reconfiguration
Burrell School District will undergo some changes this year, and that means its annual, Project Discover orientation will look a little different, too. “We want to make it more engaging and interactive to start the school year and, hopefully, we continue to engage (students and families) throughout the school year,”...
Data center tenant could be announced at new Upper Burrell site within weeks
Signatures between a tenant and TECfusions, a data center company with a new location at in Upper Burrell, could happen within the upcoming weeks, a company spokeswoman said Friday. “We are in discussions and negotiations with some tenants,” said Melissa Farney, TECfusions spokeswoman. “I expect to be able to announce...
Teaching safety, developing culture keys to Alle-Kiski Valley youth football success
Youth football teams in the Alle-Kiski Valley are chugging along, even expanding, despite growing competition for kids’ time and expanding football programs at area public schools. The Rams Youth Football Organization, which takes in kids from the Highlands School District, is fielding three teams this year: 8-and-under, 10-and-under and 12-and-under....
