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Natalia Reyes | On retaliatory medical leaves and the deans who uphold them
On March 13, I met with Sharon Smith, associate vice provost for University Life, and Paige Wigginton, director of Special Services at Penn’s Division of Public Safety. This was the latest in a series of meetings stretching back to December 2023, when, having exhausted all paths to resolve a grievance against a student harassing me and my family, I was relegated to Smith’s office. In December, she had promised to help me feel more comfortable on campus in lieu of a proper investigation. On March 13, however, she admonished me for continuing to report ongoing discrimination, harassment, slander, and exclusion from the Department of English. She also offered a solution: a medical leave, sweetened with continued pay. I agreed, because despite putting my trust in Smith and Wigginton, duly reporting ongoing harassment as they had instructed, and attempting to protect myself by declining to work with the people who had slandered me, I was still being labeled as the problem. No on-campus institution — the Title IX office, the Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity, or the Division of Public Safety — had taken my reports of stalking, discrimination, and retaliation seriously. The retaliation worsened each time I reported a harm.
Citizens' Ambulance juggles a lot of factors seeking to stay afloat
The factors affecting Citizens’ Ambulance Service as it plans to incorporate its for-profit partner Ambulance Service Management Corporation include a problem reported by ambulance services across Pennsylvania and the country. “You get called out to somebody who is having an issue,” said William B. Simmons, Indiana mayor and CAS...
Fetterman and wife involved in Maryland car crash, avoid major injury
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) and his wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, were involved in a Sunday morning car crash along a Maryland highway near the Pennsylvania border, the senator’s office revealed Monday. Fetterman, 54, was evaluated at a hospital for a bruised shoulder and was discharged Sunday with no additional injuries before returning to Braddock, Pennsylvania. […]
PA Thunder Rolls at Latrobe Speedway
LATROBE, PA-In the PA Thunder on Dirt Vintage Modified Series, Wally Stock in the No. 1 was the winner in the Modifieds, and Steve Longo in the No. 20 was the winner in the Sportsman Modifieds. Other winners were Braeden Dillinger (14D) again in the K2 Engineering Pro Late Models,...
Penn resident advisor union unanimously ratifies first contract
Penn undergraduate and graduate resident advisor union members voted unanimously to ratify their first contract on Friday, one of the first RA union contracts in the country. The new two-year contract will provide RAs with 150 meals, a $3,000 stipend — which will increase to $3,100 in the second year — and a $750 contract ratification payment for RAs who worked during the most recent spring semester. Prior to this contract, RAs received only a partial meal plan of 130 meals and a free room in exchange for 20 hours of work per week.
Some Plum residents told to boil water after discovery of E. coli bacteria
Residents of Plum’s Regency Park neighborhood should boil their water before use because it might be contaminated with E. coli bacteria. Residents in the neighborhood found a state Department of Environmental Protection form contained within Plum Borough Municipal Authority envelopes left at their homes Monday. According to the letter,...
Pittsburgh-area dad who allegedly fell asleep on baby charged with concealing child's death
MOUNT PLEASANT TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- A father in Westmoreland County is charged with concealing the death of a child after police say he fell asleep on his 8-month-old baby boy, suffocating him.According to police paperwork, Jason Ludwig admitted to police that he was holding his son in his arms on the couch when he fell asleep. Ludwig then admitted to police that when he woke up, he realized his baby was dead.According to the criminal complaint, when Ludwig woke up, he found the child near his left leg facing his left hip and lower back area. "He knew (the...
10% of Penn State Commonwealth Campus Employees Accept Buyouts
Nearly 400 employees at Penn State's Commonwealth Campuses have accepted voluntary buyouts through a program offered by the university to reduce its budget deficits. In a news release on Tuesday, Penn State provided information about participation in the Voluntary Separation Incentive Program (VSIP) initiated in May and announced plans to move to regional leadership structures for 11 Commonwealth Campuses. Eligible full-time employees had until May 31 to take the buyout, which offered a lump-sum payment equal to a year’s salary and a health insurance subsidy for six months. The program was not offered at University Park, the law schools or the College...
‘That extra whip’: Kennywood’s Thunderbolt roller coaster celebrates a century of thrills
PITTSBURGH - Mike Lowery hasn't been in this spot since he was 10 years old. He edges up to the last stanchion near a pile of hats and backpacks and other loose gear that riders don't want flying into the Monongahela River. Smiling and watching the action, he awaits his...
Murrysville will return $623K, put amphitheater project on hold
Plans for an amphitheater and recreation space at Murrysville Community Park have been put on long-term hold after the cost ballooned past $2 million over the past few years. Hays Design Group/Mackin Engineers. When the state gives you $623,000, they want to see it put to good use. But after...
Jeannette man claims Rialto stabbing justified as self-defense
The lawyer for a Jeannette man accused of the attempted murder of a former high school friend with a pocket knife said Monday his client acted in self defense. Defense attorney Stephen Colafella told jurors that Anthony J. Sharp was tackled and flailed with a knife to break free from his attacker who lay atop of him on the street outside the former Rialto Cafe on Nov. 24, 2022. Police said Joseph R. Williams of New Alexandria was stabbed 10 times during the altercation.
Therapy dogs strut on the runaway for Greensburg nonprofit
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- There's a red carpet, there's a runway and there are hundreds of fans, but it's no catwalk. The second annual Dinner with the Therapy Dogs featured fashionable fur-babies dressed in their best summer styles. The gala raises money for the nonprofit The Top Dog Therapy Team from Greensburg. It was held at Stratigos Banquet Center and KDKA-TV got a peek behind the curtain during dress rehearsal. "Ten (dogs) walk the red carpet to a song that best defines their personality and we have another ten that work our patio and VIP areas. This is our biggest fundraiser of...
Authorities release identity of Whitehall man killed in shootout with police
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner on Tuesday identified the Whitehall man who authorities fatally shot as Selwyn Brown. Brown, 54, opened fire Tuesday morning on state Attorney General’s Office agents and police, who were executing a search warrant for a felon who possessed and illegally transferred firearms, authorities said.
O'Hara Township police warning residents after several attempted break-ins in Fox Chapel
O'HARA TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- Police in O'Hara Township are warning people to be on the lookout for suspicious activity after several attempted break-ins were reported in neighboring Fox Chapel."It's unfortunate, but it's the kind of the way things are in the world today."Officers in O'Hara Township began investigating after a homeowner on Bentley Drive reported a prowler lurking outside early Friday morning.Forty-eight hours later and less than two miles away, several homeowners along Dorseyville Road in Fox Chapel notified police that someone tried to break into a window in the back of both homes around 4 a.m. Sunday."Having faith...
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