The Philadelphia Regional Institute of STEM Educators (PRISE) is hosting the annual STEM Educator Conference in West Philadelphia – on Saint Joseph’s University’s University City Campus (formerly USciences) – this Saturday, Oct. 26. The conference, entitled “Inventing and Affecting the Future through STEM: Working together to create the world we want,” will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and educators, high-school students, college students, and anyone interested in STEM education are welcome to attend.

The Keynote Speaker at this year’s conference is Gere Johnson, Women In Natural Sciences (WINS) alumna, graduate of the School District of Philadelphia and now a Conservation Planner with CT Resource Conservation & Development.

A student panel, The Future of STEM: A Student’s Perspective, will be facilitated by Dominique Thomas, a Philadelphia native and Manager of Social Justice Programs at The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University. She works with WINS, which she is also a proud 2012 Alumna.

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Here’s some great news for Alain Locke Elementary School students and the surrounding community. Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national nonprofit that helps connect communities to the benefits and joys of the outdoors, has announced the groundbreaking for the revitalization of Alain Locke’s schoolyard into a dynamic community space. A barren, cracked asphalt lot will be transformed into a green oasis for the entire neighborhood to enjoy!

Located at 4550 Haverford Avenue, Alain Locke School has long been a cornerstone of the community. With a goal to foster learning and community engagement, TPL has partnered with the City of Philadelphia, the School District of Philadelphia, Drexel University and the Philadelphia Water Department to reimagine the schoolyard as a multifunctional space that will serve as a catalyst for social, recreational, and educational activities.

The transformation of the schoolyard will include the installation of new play equipment, green infrastructure elements, and outdoor classrooms. These enhancements will not only provide students with a safe and engaging environment for learning and play but also create opportunities for residents of all ages to come together, connect with nature, and lead active lifestyles.

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The 2023-2024 school year begins Tuesday, Sept. 5. In anticipation of extreme heat conditions next week, with temperatures reaching mid-90’s, the School District of Philadelphia has issued an Extreme Heat Protocol for the public schools without air conditioning or inadequate cooling (see the list below).

These schools will follow the schedule below for Tuesday, Sept. 5 through Thursday, Sept. 7.

• Tuesday, Sept. 5 – Wednesday, Sept. 6: Students will attend schools in the morning and then be released on an early dismissal schedule.

• Thursday, Sept. 7: The District will continue to monitor heat conditions. Any decisions about Thursday or Friday will be announces by 12 p.m. on the day before.

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Speed cushions near Lea School at 47th and Spruce.

Motorists will have to slow down when passing many local schools thanks to new traffic calming measures being installed around the city. In the past month, speed cushions have been installed near several West Philly schools and more are on the way. The work, which will continue throughout the summer, is being carried out by the Philadelphia Streets Department.

This work is part of the city’s efforts to make it easier for schools to have traffic calming measures installed as new legislation cutting the red tape was passed in the spring. Any city block can now request a traffic calming and safety study, but it takes around a year for this study to complete. The new legislation allows schools to bypass the study.

Around 50 School District of Philadelphia schools will get traffic calming measures by September, according to a report by CBS Philly.

In an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses in school, reduce absenteeism and prioritize in-person learning after the winter break, the School District of Philadelphia will reinstate mandatory masking for students and employees for 10 days following the winter break – from January 3 through January 13, 2023.

This implementation is part of the District’s general COVID-19 protocol for the 2022-2023 school year that was shared in August.

District employees, students and families can pick up free at-home COVID-19 test kits at five school-based testing locations while supplies last. SDP testing locations will be closed on December 26 and January 2 in observance of the federal holidays.

Testing locations, the most updated COVID-19 data and more information can be found on the District’s COVID-19 Information Hub.

Open houses for a planned independent community school in West Philly begin this Saturday, Oct. 1.

Set to open in Fall 2023, the Roots and Branches School is recruiting kindergartners and first graders, according to experienced West Philly educator and the school’s director Rowan Machalow.

“Our vision is providing a broad and balanced elementary education to children from a range of cultural and financial backgrounds in the West Philadelphia community,” Machalow wrote in an email. “Our educational model supports educating the whole child through investigation and exploration in our academic curriculum and daily arts, music, and foreign languages, and movement.” Continue Reading