The Majority Chair of the Pennsylvania House Education Committee says President Trump's executive order dismantling the U.S. Department of Education is "nothing to celebrate." Lehigh County State Representative Peter Schweyer said anyone cheering the president's order yesterday doesn't realize what the federal government funds in every school district in the commonwealth. Schweyer warned shuttering the department will impact low income families and students with disabilities. The PA State Education Association's president, Aaron Chapin says the move would jeopardize $1.6 billion in federal funding for Pennsylvania public schools and the jobs of 7,000 educators and claims low-income families and students with disabilities stand to be impacted the most. President Trump disputes that and says funding for children with disabilities and special needs will be fully preserved. The President says he wants to send education decision making back to the individual states.
New Jersey's Democratic elected politicians on Capitol Hill and in Trenton have blasted President Trump's move to dismantle the Department of Education. Governor Phil Murphy calls the decision unconstitutional and says it will be disastrous for America's students. Senator Cory Booker says the action will have generational consequences. Congressman Josh Gottheimer says the decision is reckless and an illegal betrayal of our families. The White House acknowledges the final decision to dismantle the agency is left up to Congress.
Upper Saucon Township Police and the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office say an a 35-year-old Northampton woman killed herself during a police confrontation early Thursday morning. Police were called to the 4800 block of West Hopewell Road for a report of a home break-in and gun shots fired. When police arrived, they found an armed Jessica Gracia outside a home. After negotiating with Gracia for more than a half-hour, she shot and killed herself. Police say Gracia broke into the home then started firing gunshots. No other injuries were reported. Gracia's motive and her connection to the victims is unclear.
The E-ZPass express lanes are to be closed on I-78 this weekend at the toll plaza in Williams Township. The Delaware Joint Toll Bridge Commission said a contractor will replace a portion of the Express E-ZPass lanes’ pavement just west of the bridge over the Delaware River. That work was supposed to be done last weekend, but was postponed by poor weather. Until 9 o'clock tonight, one lane will reopen. From 9pm Friday through 5 o'clock Monday morning, both lanes will once again be closed. Weather permitting, similar work and lane closures are planned for the following weekend.
Postal workers are expressing concerns about their agency possibly being taken over by the Commerce Department. They spoke out against that potential change during demonstrations in a number of cities yesterday, including here in the Lehigh Valley. Andy Kubat is president of the Lehigh Valley American Postal Workers Union and he says the government can't look at the postal service as a business. "We're here to serve people, just like the fire department, just like the police, just like the city workers," Kubat says. A White House statement reads, President Trump supports the hard work of these individuals and is solely working to make the entire federal government more efficient and uproot waste fraud and abuse.
Goodbye Starbucks, hello Dunkin'. Dunkin' is opening a kiosk at the Lehigh Valley Mall sometime this spring. The chain will open at the mall’s lower level near the escalators. The new Dunkin's opening date, operating hours and menu have not yet been released.
A vehicle crashed into a shopping center in Allentown on Thursday. Authorities say a car slammed into a business on West Allen Street in the afternoon, causing a glass door to shatter. Multiple people reportedly sustained minor injuries. The crash is being investigated.
A missing elderly woman has been found. 80-year-old Ruth Ann Richie went missing Wednesday morning after having last been seen at her home on North Lehigh Gorge Drive in Lehigh Township. Pennsylvania State Police say Richie has been found, but they gave no further details.
St. Patrick's Day celebrations continue in the Poconos and the Lehigh Valley this weekend. The Pocono Irish American Club will stage its 46th annual St. Patrick's Day Parade this Sunday. The event will step off from Stroudsburg High School at 1:15 p.m. In Allentown, that city's 66th St. Patrick's Day parade begins Sunday afternoon at 1:30 at 19th and Liberty streets.
The father and son severely injured in the plane crash in Lancaster County earlier this month are still in critical condition. Matt and Judah White were taken to the Lehigh Valley Burn Center after their plane went down in the parking lot of a retirement community on March 9th. Officials say Matt was piloting a small aircraft to return Judah to college in Ohio. Two other passengers have been released from the hospital, while the condition of the fifth person onboard remains unknown.
A Wednesday accident at the Hollywood Casino at The Meadows has proved fatal. A harness racing driver involved in an accident on the track died early yesterday morning. The driver has been identified as 27-year-old Hunter Myers. Myers was an experienced driver, having raced nearly 20,000 times and had been a participant in the sport since the age of 16.
The Philadelphia Phillies have optioned catcher Garrett Stubbs to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, meaning Rafael Marchan will be the backup catcher to J.T. Realmuto when the season opens next week. Stubbs backed up Realmuto for the past three seasons and was a clubhouse and fan favorite during his time in Philadelphia.
To nobody's surprise, Phillies manager Rob Thomson has chosen Zack Wheeler to start the team's opener on March 27 in Washington against the Nationals. Wheeler is pleased with the assignment. "It's not taken lightly. It's my second one ever. I take pride in it and it's an honor," Wheeler says. Wheeler finished second in the National League Cy Young Award voting last year after going 16-7.