Public education is a civil right

February 24, 2018

By Doug Rosenberry As both a public school teacher of 21 years and a former student in the Altoona Area School District, I have seen firsthand the impact a quality education can have on a child’s life. Pennsylvania was one of the first states in the nation to establish a free public education system for all children. It was considered a priority at the time as a means of creating an educated citizenry and promoting democracy. Although many would argue differently, public education has been and continues to be one of our nation’s greatest success stories. Our public schools ...

Graham offered words to live by, a life to admire

February 23, 2018

On a cool Tuesday night in October 1958, the Rev. Billy Graham walked onto a stage at the Charlotte Coliseum for the 26th sermon of a five-week Charlotte crusade. “Tonight,” he began, “I want to talk on how to live the Christian life.” More than 13,000 people had jammed the arena to see the young North Carolina preacher just a decade into his public ministry. By then, Graham had already become one of the most well-known figures in evangelical Christianity; for two years running, he had appeared on Gallup’s list of most admired men and women. He would appear on it 53 more ...

Writing Pennsylvania’s next chapter

February 16, 2018

In his fourth budget address, Gov. Tom Wolf challenged lawmakers to write “a story about a brighter future we can build together.” Nice rhetoric, but the truth is, the strides Pennsylvania has made in recent years have come despite Wolf’s opposition, not because of his support. Public pension reform is a primary example. While Wolf signed a bill last year that began to address the pension crisis, he did so after vetoing a similar measure in 2015. Likewise, Wolf vetoed liquor store privatization, but later allowed more modest reforms. And in his first three years, Wolf ...

County made right call on opioids suit

February 15, 2018

Last week, the Dauphin County commissioners filed suit against 11 drug manufacturers and three doctors for ignoring the effects of prescription opioids and pursuing profits over patients. We support that litigation. We acknowledge that the solution to the opioid crisis is complicated, and a lawsuit alone will not solve the crisis locally. But it does help address an important question: “Did pharmaceutical companies knowingly disregard and actively downplay the addictive nature of prescription drugs in order to increase sales?” The inclusion of specific doctors from Utah and ...

US infrastructure needs better access

February 12, 2018

For a White House often accused of being divisive, President Donald Trump may yet bring warring parties together on a major initiative that few voters will oppose. In his State of the Union address last month, the president declared a major priority of his administration will be the rebuilding of America’s crumbling infrastructure. Offering free ice cream at a summer camp could scarcely meet with greater enthusiasm than pledging to repair and renew the failing highways, bridges and railroads that frustrate commuters and slow the economy. The American Society of Civil ...

Districts should consider school starting times

February 7, 2018

Penn State researchers are far from the only ones who have found that later high school start times would better serve the adolescent internal clock. This isn’t a matter of “babying the future generations,” as one commenter on LancasterOnline put it. It’s a matter of biology. We know what many of you are thinking, because we’ve had the same thoughts ourselves: “Our kids learned to go to bed earlier, other kids can, too — parents just need to set household rules.” ‘’Farm kids get up before dawn and somehow, they survive.” And so on. But we believe in research ...