Sarah Mueller
Education reporterAn experienced journalist, I joined LehighValleyNews.com as its education reporter. I bring several years of media experience at public radio stations including NPR Illinois, WFSU Public Media and Delaware Public Media. I’ve covered state and local government, interviewing lawmakers, governors and congressional leaders. In my personal life, I’m a passionate animal lover, hiker and documentary enthusiast. A documentary for which I worked as a researcher, Fire in the Meadows, won first place at the 2022 Tallahassee Film Festival for best documentary short film. It explored the effects of an investor buying a local mobile home park, raising rents and forcing tenants out of their homes. Contact me at SarahM@lehighvalleynews.com or and subscribe to my newsletter here.
-
The district decided in October to not implement the no-cost meals -
The city removed the check box after concerns were raised over whether the question of legal status was overly intrusive and whether it could be discouraging requests.
-
The center, where access was limited because of the pandemic, has recently opened up and resumed programming.
-
Alleged unauthorized spending sparked the concept of the possible need, and forensic audits are typically done when there are specific allegations of misconduct, according to the district's solicitor and business manager. At least one school board member voiced early opposition to the audit.
-
The annual school board reorganization is among several agenda items on the docket for Thursday night.
-
Carol Birks discussed safety, learning and retention at a town hall meeting Wednesday at Hays Elementary School.
-
Students at Lehigh Valley school districts and across the state are continuing a downward trend of performing below pre-pandemic levels on state standardized tests.
-
Members of the group called for a review of library books and a policy banning transgender athletes, and they questioned white privilege and bias training.
-
Newly-elected Lehigh Valley State Sen. Jarett Coleman has dropped a lawsuit he filed last year against the Parkland School District that sought to invalidate teacher pay raises. The trial over Sunshine Act breaches was scheduled to take place this week.
-
The Board has approved a contract for the services of retired Judge Emil Giordano to conduct an unspecified investigation in the Bethlehem Area School District.
-
The school district denied the application earlier this year. STEAM charters are also applying for charters in Bethlehem and Whitehall.
-
The 11-year-old Golden Retriever comforted Stephen Zamojski, whose Saint Bernard recently passed.
-
Capt. Jonathan Taylor's sword is on display at Nitschmann Middle School. He died in early 1863 after being wounded 105 days earlier at the Battle of Fredericksburg.
-
Former board members Nancy Wilt, Patrick Palmer and Evelyn Santana did not seek re-election.
-
Three Republican school board members are now part of the panel governing Nazareth schools, including two endorsed by the Moms for Liberty Northampton County chapter.
-
Allentown School District didn't attach the new food services contract to its Nov. 16 agenda despite union's assertion the school board had the final draft when it voted.
-
Under current plans, the new school would be built in 2025-2026 and replace the one that goes back more than 100 years.
-
A state mandate requiring schools to identify sexual content in books could cost Lehigh Valley school districts significant time, money and resources.
-
ASD Schools Superintendent Carol Birks said she believes it will take at least six months to determine the best ASD outcomes for graduates.
-
LehighValleyNews.com has requested a copy of the five-year contract, which is retroactive to July 2022. A media law expert says the details should have been available to the public when the board voted on it.
-
Gov. Shapiro, Lehigh Valley lawmakers acknowledge political divisions, outstanding education fundingMembers of the politically divided Pennsylvania Legislature must compromise on a fix to resolve education funding inequities to the state's poorest public schools.
-
The athletic director announced the middle school cheer team's winter season was being postponed “with careful consideration and commitment to the overall well-being of our students.”
