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Articles by Grace Roche
Smart4Food: New Opportunities for Farmers and Agri‑Food Entrepreneurs in Rural Leitrim
Leitrim Organic Farmers Co-op is delighted to share our enthusiasm for the Smart4Food project, an EU‑funded initiative that supports farmers, smallholders, and agri‑food entrepreneurs by providing practical, accessible digital and business skills. Recently, Leitrim Organic Farmers Co-op was introduced to Smart4Food, and we explored how the project’s microlearning resources could benefit our members and the wider rural food community across Leitrim.
A tough test: How to get kids in school on time
This is Part 2 of a two-part series. Today, we explore the solutions that school officials are implementing to address absenteeism and tardiness. Yesterday, we explored local schools’ challenges with the issue. New Bedford’s Superintendent Andrew O’Leary sits in his office and pulls up a dashboard that offers a suite of insights. With a few clicks, he can see a raft of information about New Bedford’s almost 13,000 students, including predictions about their future attendance based on recent trends.
Missing students: The problem of absenteeism on the South Coast
This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Today, we explore local schools’ challenges with absenteeism and tardiness. Tomorrow, we explore the solutions school officials are implementing to address the issue. Absenteeism can look vastly different, depending on the student.
Pride Center celebrates LGBTQ+ graduates
Lavender lighting washed over decor and flowers of the same color, turning the usually plain Great Room in the Clayton University Center into a colorful space. Pride flags lined the walls, and a stage stood at the center of the room, completing a celebratory scene. Each year, The Pride Center hosts a ceremony to honor LGBTQ+ graduates.
City leaders prepare for immigration policy changes
Immigration and border security has been a major focus of President Donald Trump’s administration, with several executive orders signed in the weeks following his inauguration. In Bethlehem, an area with a significant immigrant population, fear has grown amid uncertainty about how these policies might impact the local community.
Edit Desk: The present tense of goodbye
The end of the school year is always an exciting time — and even more so as a senior. I’m looking ahead to the next chapter of my life, starting my job search and dreaming about having my own little place to call home. But it can be easy to get caught up in the excitement of the experiences on the horizon and forget what’s right in front of me. Throughout my life, I’ve often found myself looking toward the future, counting down the days, weeks or years until the next big thing.
Bethlehem Co-op Market to open late 2025
Situated on the ground floor of a Broad Street apartment building is a mostly empty storefront, dotted with construction materials and stray equipment. The horseshoe-shaped space might not look like much yet, but with the addition of equipment, shelving and products, it will be the home of a new grocery market before the end of the year. Members of the Bethlehem Food Co-op have been dreaming of opening and running their own grocery store, the Bethlehem Co-op Market, for more than 10 years.
Stroll around the neighborhood: Staying connected in the community
The Brown and White took a stroll around the neighborhood and spoke to community members about living and working on the South Side. Hector and Maria Rodriguez The Rodriguezes are Bethlehem residents and regularly visit the South Side. Q: What have you found enjoyable about spending time on the South Side? Hector Rodriguez: Bethlehem, it’s a growing city. Back (when I was younger), all you had was Bethlehem Steel. There wasn’t much. But now, since it’s growing, there’s more things to do.
Lehigh hosts Hope and Healing art show
Nestled in a corner of Lehigh’s Health, Science and Technology Building is a colorful display of photographs and paintings. From pets and nature to abstract designs, the art is designed to give viewers a sense of peace and hope. Each piece was created by a high school or college student as part of the 15th annual Hope & Healing Juried Art Show, held for the first time at Lehigh this year.
Award ceremony recognizes local Black women's achievements
More than 70 people gathered in the Cohen Room at the Bethlehem Area Public Library on Saturday to celebrate the accomplishments of six local Black women as part of the city’s Black History Month and Women’s History Month commemorations. The HerStory Awards Ceremony was organized by the Rising Sun Initiative in partnership with Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds and the city’s director of equity and inclusion, Janine Santoro.
Community voices: Enjoy our thriving community
Kim Piergallini is a retired school teacher who lives on the South Side of Bethlehem. She is part of several volunteer organizations and leads English classes for non-native speakers at the Cathedral Church of the Nativity. In 2017, an apartment building was being constructed along Third Street in South Side Bethlehem. Having come from a home in the suburbs of Easton, my family and I wanted to downsize to a simpler lifestyle and a smaller footprint.
Stroll around the neighborhood: A changing South Side
The Brown and White took a stroll around the neighborhood and spoke to community members about living and working in the South Side. Issam Sakr Sakr is the managing partner of King Wing and has worked on the South Side since 2002. Q: What’s your favorite part about the South Side? IS: Bethlehem is a historical city, a tourist city. People from all over visit here, and it’s a nice quiet place. It’s a merge between a historical city and a rural area, and you find many things here.
Federal funds freeze causes confusion, mayor and university officials speak out
President Donald Trump’s administration announced a freeze on all federal funding Monday, prohibiting the federal government from disbursing any grants or aid to federal, state and local governments, as well as nonprofits. Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds held a press conference Wednesday at City Hall to address the funding freeze and its impact on the city. Around 45 people attended in person, and over 2,000 people viewed the meeting virtually.
Karin Fischer delivers keynote address for International Education Week
There are nearly 1,000 international students from 91 countries at Lehigh, and about 800 students traveled abroad in the 2023-2024 academic year, according to Lehigh data reports. The university is celebrating these students, and global education, this week through International Education Week. Karin Fischer, a senior writer for the Chronicle of Higher Education, gave a keynote address on Nov. 19 in the Linderman Library as part of this week-long celebration.
Compact Disc Center keeps physical media spinning
A young woman enters the Compact Disc Center on a slow, sunny afternoon. She ignores the wooden boxes filled with a mix of plastic-wrapped records and more tattered old ones. Instead, she turns to the hundreds of CDs displayed along one wall and in racks on the floor.
Tea Club brews connections across campus
Kayleen Tran grew up watching her parents drink tea, and her job at a boba shop in high school showed her how the beverage can foster community. Tran, ‘26, joined Lehigh’s Tea Club her first semester, and when the club put out a call for executive board applications, she knew she wanted to get involved. She said she applied for the secretary position, but when the board decided to disband the next year, she became the president instead.
Via of the Lehigh Valley aids disabled community
A group of workers chat as they stuff bright pink makeup sponges into cardboard packaging. One of them packs a group of six sponges into a box, labels it and sends it off to a nearby pallet. They are part of just one of the many workstations inside Via of the Valley’s building. Located at 336 W. Spruce St., this organization is home to a small group employment program.
Chilifest spices up the Southside
The Southside is home to a diverse selection of cuisine, but once a year vendors focus their culinary efforts on chili. Locals and visitors from out of town roamed Bethlehem’s Historic Arts District to try the different twists on a classic fall dish on Oct. 19 for this year’s 28th annual Chilifest.
Sociologist shares research of southern Black communities
Brian Foster, the Africana Studies program’s fall Visiting Faculty Fellow, spent two weeks at Lehigh discussing his sociological research about the experiences of Black communities in the rural South. He presented his work through a screening of two short films he made and a discussion of one of the books he wrote, and contributed to a theater performance talkback and art exhibit walkthrough. He also spent time in classrooms across campus, sharing his research and publications.
Lehigh dining serves up sustainable sustenance
Lehigh’s Rathbone Dining Hall received a four-star certification from the Green Restaurant Association this summer, becoming one of 14 universities in the country, and the only one in Pennsylvania, to attain a rating this high. Every year, the association inspects restaurants and dining facilities and assesses their environmental sustainability. They offer four levels of certification based on eight categories, including energy and water usage, chemicals and pollutants, and waste production.
Professor combines activism with art
Joseph Amodei perches near the ceiling of the Paul Green Theater on the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s campus. They carefully attach lights to the grid hanging from the ceiling, positioning each one just so. After positioning the lights, Amodei climbs back up to run the power cables and connect them to the lighting board that controls them. They take a step back.
Initiative mixes art and science for mental wellnes
When Lehigh put out a call for ideas on how to improve student retention, marketing professor Laura Smarandescu was quick to start crafting a proposal pairing mental health with art. She partnered with Gretchen Meyerhoefer, the coordinator for the College of Business, and Julie Miwa, a biological sciences professor, to create Harmony Within.
Lehigh professor lands spot as 'Jeopardy' contestant
Kathy Olson has been watching “Jeopardy!” her whole life. She’s wanted to be a contestant on the show for nearly as long. On April 3, Olson checked off a bucket list item by competing in a taping of “Jeopardy!” that aired on May 15. The Lehigh journalism professor said she started applying to compete on the show after graduating college. The required qualifying test is offered once a year in cities across the United States. She took it four times without advancing further in the process.
Senior class gets first in-person graduation
For graduating seniors, commencement weekend is an important milestone in their educational journey. For the class of 2024, it’s even more special. Because of COVID restrictions in 2020, this year’s undergraduate commencement weekend will be the first time many seniors walk in a traditional graduation ceremony. The Student Senate is responsible for selecting the graduate and undergraduate commencement speakers.
Trump holds his first rally in the Lehigh Valley
A sea of red and American flags covered the Schnecksville Fire Hall ground April 13as thousands of people lined up waiting for Donald Trump’s first rally in the Lehigh Valley. Trump arrived at the venue from a Bucks County fundraiser around 8 p.m. Immigration was one of the main topics of the day, with Trump addressing it several times in his hour-long speech. Todd Shimko, who attended the rally in support of Trump, said he wanted to hear more from him about securing the border.
City Council tables public comment limits
Bethlehem’s City Council is no stranger to long-winded meetings, but discussions surrounding a resolution for a ceasefire in Gaza have prompted extensive public comment this year. At a March 15 meeting, where calls for a ceasefire lasted past midnight, the council adjourned before voting on scheduled agenda business.
Struggle for IVF access at State of the Union
Christie Nicas, a Bethlehem resident who had two of her three children through in vitro fertilization, was invited by Rep. Susan Wild to the State of the Union. She has been working on a bill to protect access to IVF and other assisted reproductive technology through her Family Building Act. The Alabama Supreme Court ruled Feb. 20 the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act applied to all unborn children, even frozen embryos resulting from IVF treatments.
Author discusses his book on Greenwood District
Victor Luckerson, an author and journalist, was welcomed by The Department of Journalism and Department of Africana Studies on Feb. 28 to talk to students and faculty about the history of his book “Built from the Fire: The Epic Story of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, America’s Black Wall Street.” Armando Anzellini, professor of sociology and anthropology, facilitated the discussion with Luckerson. During the discussion, Luckerson emphasized the importance of telling a rounded story of Black history.
Double the bed races, double the fun
“Chaiway to Hillel,” “Fast and Furious Feminists,” “Mission ContrOL” and “Pi Beta Bed” were some of the team names competing in this year’s Bed Races, pushing toward the finish line to champion the decade-long tradition. The annual Bed Races on Packer Avenue took place on Wednesday night with 40 teams competing, which is double last year’s count.
The science of Family Weekend hotel booking
Family Weekend is a designated space for Lehigh families to come from near and far, hosting events and activities to celebrate time together. However, with an influx of weekend visitors coming to Bethlehem, places to stay the night fill up fast. Every year, Lehigh provides families with information about the year’s upcoming Family Weekend, including places to stay. They list these hotels both on their website and in an email that they send out to families in May.
Genealogía holguinera de William Navarrete, punto de partida para la Ley de Memoria Democrática española en Cuba
Desde 2022, después de que el gobierno español decretó la Ley de Memoria Democrática, beneficiando con la ciudadanía de su país a ciudadanos de América Latina cuyos abuelos eran españoles, miles de cubanos se han lanzado en la búsqueda de sus orígenes para probar su filiación y obtener el anhelado pasaporte comunitario europeo. La genealogía es una herramienta sólida para conocer de dónde venimos.
Two federal grants to assist affordable housing
Bethlehem’s Housing and Community Development department is working with the city to decide how to spend money received from two federal grants. The department presented their recommendations for how to spend the Community Development Block Grant and Home Investment Partnership Program funds at Bethlehem’s City Council meeting on April 4.
Lehigh visits the U.N. to honor women in science
The United Nations Partnership and the College of Engineering took 99 faculty, staff and students to the United Nations headquarters in New York City on Feb. 10 for the eighth annual International Day of Women and Girls in Science Assembly. The theme of this year’s assembly was I.D.E.A.S., which stands for Innovate, Demonstrate, Elevate, Advance and Sustain.
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