Last week U.S. Magistrate Judge Lisa Pupo Lenihan ruled that a state law allowing for faster firings of management-level school employees was unconstitutional. Though this decision could have future implications, it came as a direct result of a lawsuit filed by Dwight Mosley, Ph.D., in November 2007.

DWIGHT MOSLEY

Mosley, a graduate of Westinghouse High School and the University of Dayton where he earned his bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D., was fired from his position as the director of recruiting and staffing with the Pittsburgh Public School District Aug. 23, 2007. He filed a lawsuit against the district on the grounds he did not receive due process when he was terminated.

After seven years as state house representative of the 19th Legislative District, Jake Wheatley has remained focused on his commitment to closing the racial achievement gap. For him, education is a top priority and improving education in his district, he said, is the key to resolving other issues.

JAKE WHEATLEY

“When I talk about education I always talk about the complete sense. It’s important to really make sure every child receives a high quality education,” Wheatley said. “We really see that as a critical piece; everything else is based on that. That’s the foundation.”

As subcommittee chairman on education appropriations as well as a member of the state education committee, Wheatley has been at the center of resolutions to improve education throughout his district and beyond.

Polls that show him trailing in his race to unseat U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter don’t matter to U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak, nor do the polls saying he’d lose to Republican candidate Pat Toomey if he somehow managed to defeat Specter in the May primary election. What matters, he says, is integrity.

OPPORTUNITY OR OPPORTUNIST—That, says U.S. Senate candidate Joe Sestak, is the choice Democratic primary voters face between him and incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter.

“There is an absolute lack of trust in politicians by the public and Arlen Specter epitomizes that lack of trust,” Sestak told the New Pittsburgh Courier editorial board. “He’s shown time and again, he’ll do anything to keep his job. I think you should stand or fall on your convictions, which is why I’m not running to keep my congressional seat.”

The recent decision by the Pittsburgh Public School Board to close Pittsburgh Rooney 6-8 and Pittsburgh Vann K-5 schools has left some angry, some hopeful and some confused. Some groups are focused on improving the existing schools in Pittsburgh’s African-American community and others are worried more school closings will follow.

“As we have been watching the decline of the student population in Hill District schools and as we have been listening to the board, going back three years, we can’t say it came as a surprise, although it was a disappointment,” said Sala Udin, chair of the Hill District Education Council. “Especially Vann because Vann, at one time, was a model of academic excellence that people came from across the country to see.”

PITTSBURGH ROBERT L. VANN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Last Updated on Monday, 03 December 2012 19:20

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