PA Headlines 8/27/21
AP Photo
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — AP is reporting… Whether students and staff should be required to mask up in Pennsylvania schools will remain a local decision, at least for now, after top Republican lawmakers on Thursday rejected Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s call for a statewide mandate. The majority of districts are not requiring masks as students return to class, and just 36% of Pennsylvania residents between the ages of 12 and 17 are fully vaccinated, according to recent federal data. Children under 12 are not eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.
Republican leaders acknowledged that coronavirus cases are again surging across the state but said that local leaders are best positioned to respond to the pandemic. “At this late date, in many of our communities, local leaders have already made important decisions they believe are in the best interest of their residents and are prepared to adjust those decisions as challenges evolve,” Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Centre, and House Speaker Bryan Cutler, R-Lancaster, wrote in a letter to Wolf. “We believe that the current approach — allowing local officials to manage and respond as needed — makes the most sense and should be continued,” their letter said.
The Republican response, which was expected, came one day after Wolf asked the GOP leaders of the House and Senate to summon lawmakers to Harrisburg to pass legislation requiring masks in classrooms. Wolf cited sharp increases in COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations. The governor did not signal an intention to unilaterally mandate masks Thursday, but repeated his call for legislative action. “Given the rising case count in Pennsylvania and around the country and the legislature’s desire to be included in emergency response, we thought it was prudent to reach out to try to work with them to keep kids safe and in school,” said his spokesperson, Lyndsay Kensinger.
“The governor is disappointed that Republican leadership does not want to come back to session, but quick action is often what is needed during times of emergency when conditions change.” Republican leaders pointed out that Wolf himself had recently ruled out a statewide mask mandate for schools after requiring them last year. The tussle over masking in the classroom comes as Pennsylvania reports nearly 3,000 new confirmed COVID-19 infections per day, up more than tenfold since July. Hospitalizations are also up sharply, to more than 1,600, and deaths have nearly tripled in two weeks, to an average of 16 per day.
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania school leaders are figuring out how to use billions in federal coronavirus relief, a flood of cash that can help lower class sizes, underwrite construction projects, and assist children in catching up after a year and a half of educational disruption. “It’s a game changer for us,” said Brian Polito, superintendent of Erie City Schools, which recently finished a three-year process of long-term planning, including projected facilities upgrades. “This is really helping us jump start those plans and put them in motion.” Erie, with more than 10,000 students, received the state’s fifth-largest allocation, more than $97 million, or some $9,300 per student. The district plans to cut elementary school class sizes from about 25 to 20 or fewer, expand summer enrichment programs, provide more tutoring and grow a pilot program that has placed “blended case managers” — essentially social workers — inside five schools.
Erie also plans to spend about $47 million to upgrade buildings and other infrastructure. “Getting all that work done in just a few years is going to be a challenge,” Polito said. Since March 2020, the federal government has provided $190 billion in pandemic aid to schools — including nearly $7 billion for Pennsylvania — an amount that is more than four times what the U.S. Education Department spends on K-12 schools in a typical year. The Associated Press, relying on data published or provided by states and the federal government, tallied how much money was granted to nearly every school district in the country. The AP tracked more than $155 billion sent to states to distribute among schools since last year, including general pandemic relief that some states shared with their schools. Some districts will receive sums amounting to 50% or more of the cost to operate their schools for a year.
The aid averages nearly $2,800 per student, but it varies widely by district and state, according to the AP’s analysis. Districts in Louisiana and the District of Columbia averaged more than $2,100 per student, for example, while those in Utah received a little more than $400. Nationwide, high-poverty areas received much more under the funding formula. The latest and largest round of funding, totaling $123 billion, is still being distributed and gives schools enormous flexibility in how to spend it.
While 20% must be used to address learning setbacks, the rest can be used on nearly any cost school officials deem “reasonable and necessary.” Schools have three years to spend the latest round, a window that many district officials say is tight for such a large amount of money. In Pennsylvania, the largest cities collected the most in federal pandemic relief money, with the 130,000-student Philadelphia public schools receiving nearly $1.8 billion, or 10 times more than any other district.
CBS Features
‘ABOVE THE KEYBOARD’ CLOTHING IS NOW A THING
You’ll notice something different at the mall: clothing stores have been stocking up on more Zoom-friendly outfits. That means a lot of business-casual shirts and tops but not a lot in the way of pants. They’re calling it ‘above the keyboard’ clothing and retailers from Macy’s to Target are in on it. For women, that includes tops and pants that work for both work calls and hanging out on the sofa.
CONSTRUCTION COMPANY INVENTS FLOWER-SCENTED ASPHALT
A construction company in Poland has come up with flower-scented asphalt. It’s supposed to make things suck less for road-paving crews who have no choice but to smell the stuff all day. It’s supposed to neutralize the usual ‘funk’ and leave a floral smell that lasts a day or two. Asphalt fumes won’t kill ya, but they sure do stink!
BABY BORN ON MILITARY JET NAMED AFTER PLANE
The parents of a little girl born on a US military aircraft after they were evacuated from Afghanistan have named her Reach. The name is for the call sign of the aircraft that flew them from Qatar to Ramstein Air Base in Germany. An Air Force general who announced the news says he hopes the little girl will someday be a US citizen who becomes a fighter pilot.
DOC FIRED FOR EXEMPTING KIDS FROM SCHOOL MASK MANDATE
A doctor at a Florida hospital is out after offering to sell medical letters to parents to exempt their kids from school mask mandates. Dr. Brian Warden posted the offer online, saying he would charge 50 bucks to write the letter on signed stationary. He was fired from an ER at Capital Regional Medical Center after the hospital received a flurry of complaints.
GETTING PAID FOR NEGATIVE DRUG TESTS
Want to get paid to stay sober? It could happen in California for those fighting drug addiction. Each negative drug test pays cold hard cash. How much would depend on how many people enter the program and whether the federal government signs off on it.
POWERFUL POSTURE CAN HELP LESS ATTRACTIVE PEOPLE IN THE JOB MARKET
Ever heard of the “beauty premium?” It’s when hot people get better, higher-paying jobs just because they’re pretty. Unfair? Absolutely. But new research from the University of Buffalo says that you can level the playing field with good posture at work. For example, a strong power pose – hands on hips, chest out, and chin up – conveys the same confidence that comes naturally to all those ‘pretty people.’ They don’t recommend standing around like that all day or everyone’s gonna start thinking you’re weird.
