Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 155, No. 3
INSIDE
Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Public Nature Preserve envisioned along Octoraro Creek
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Avon Grove grad develops earlier breast cancer detection technology in new study
The Brandywine Conservancy and Oxford Area Foundation recently partnered to acquire 577 acres of the Glenroy Farm that is situated in Lower Oxford Township and West Nottingham Township. The plan is to establish a publicly accessible nature preserve State lawmakers prioritize economic recovery...6A
The Brandywine Conservancy & Museum of Art has partnered with the Oxford Area Foundation to acquire 577 acres of the Glenroy Farm situated along the Octoraro Creek. This land will be owned and managed by the Oxford Area Foundation for use as a publicly accessible nature preserve. The announcement of the acquisition was made on Jan. 11. “This is an outstanding achievement for the Law enforcement Brandywine Conservancy, builds bridges with working in partnership youngsters...1B with the Oxford Area Foundation, and state and local government,” said Ellen Ferretti, the director of the Brandywine Conservancy. “The acreage and diversity of resourc-
es made this property a high priority of permanent protection in southeastern Pennsylvania.” The property for the public nature preserve was acquired from the Thouron family, and the acquisition was made possible by grants from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Chester County Preservation Partnership Program, the Oxford Area Foundation and the Brandywine Conservancy. The property is situated along the east side of Octoraro Creek in Lower Oxford Township and West Nottingham Township. The land consists of open meadows, arable cropland, mature and successional
woodlands, numerous streams and ponds, floodplains and wetlands, and five miles of trails. The agreement also includes an access easement area comprising of 16 acres to an adjacent, nearly three-mile long strip of land situated at the top of the east bank of the Octoraro Creek and extending to the centerline of the creek. Ferretti said, “The transition of the Glenroy Farm property from the Thouron family to a public preserve will create a unique, contiguous area of public open space that will provide exceptional recreational and educational opportunities for the community and will have lasting effects on the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay—a
Bill Lotter, a 2006 graduate of Avon Grove High School and the co-founder of a Boston-based artificial intelligence software company, recently published the results of a study that illustrates an ability to detect breast cancer a year or more earlier than current practice. See the story on Page 1B.
national priority for conservation. It has been a wonderful experience to work with the Foundation and the Thouron family to conserve this beloved land, in perpetuity, for the public good.” For over 50 years, four generations of the Thouron
family have been the owners and stewards of Glenroy Farm. Rachel Nicoll, a Thouron family member, said, “The Thouron family is delighted that now, with the help of the Brandywine Conservancy, this deeply Continued on page 3A
Kennett High School and Middle School welcome back students for in-school instruction By Chris Barber Contributing Writer Donations to Chester County Food Bank...6A
INDEX
A large percentage of the Kennett Consolidated School District’s high school and middle school students returned to classrooms on Jan. 11 after almost a year of virtual learning
and shutdowns imposed by COVID-19 safety measures. At the school board meeting on that reopening day, both High School Principal Jeremy Hritz and Middle School Principal Lorenzo D’Angelis reported that things had gone well on the first day back.
Hritz said the students seemed delighted to reunite with their friends and their teachers. “You could feel the positive energy,” he said. “The kids were excited to be back. We spent the time going over procedures – getting them reoriented, especially the
ninth graders. It can be a bit intimidating.” He said about 70 percent of the high school population had signed up to return to hybrid instruction, but that number had not been reached on the first day. D’Angelis said the middle school students likewise
showed they were happy to be back. “You could see the smiles under those masks. We’re still ‘school’ and there’s still anxiety. We wanted to be transparent and let them know we were going through this together,” he said. Continued on page 2A
Opinion.......................7A Obituaries..............4B-5B Classifieds..................6B
Collaborative agencies re-connect children to their virtual classrooms
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By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
© 2007 The Chester County Press
As the arrival of the pandemic last March sent local school districts into the organized chaos of virtual and hybrid learning, a network of people, agencies and businesses in Kennett Square quickly realized that one component of the local student population – those in kindergarten through the fifth grade who live in the underserved pockets of the community – were deprived of valuable learning tools needed to keep them in class. If there is any town that knows the full power of collaboration, it is Kennett
Square, and the deep connection between people, agencies and businesses has become a lesson by lesson primer in how a municipality should embrace its community. On Jan. 11, that spirit of unity unveiled its latest chapter, when a small group of area schoolchildren were introduced to the Kennett Continued on page 4A Courtesy Photo
With direction by the Southern Chester County Opportunity Network, several local agencies recently collaborated to form the Kennett Learning Pod, which provides local children from kindergarten through the fifth grade with valuable internet and computer access to their virtual classrooms during the pandemic. The program is being held at the offices of Chatham Financial in Kennett Square.
State allocates $2.2 billion in federal stimulus funds to help K-12 schools improve services to students Gov. Tom Wolf has announced that Pennsylvania is dedicating $2.2 billion in federal stimulus funds to K-12 school districts and charter schools affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to support food programs, technological improvements and other education services. “All schools have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and I commend school communities for rising to the challenge to combat the toll it has taken,” said Gov. Wolf. “This extra funding is critical to help
schools meet the unique needs of educating students at this time while keeping school buildings safe when students return to the classroom.” The federal relief is provided by the bipartisan Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER II) Fund passed by Congress in December. “Additional, much needed support is on its way to Pennsylvania schools,”
said Acting Secretary Noe Ortega. “These funds will provide critical assistance to school communities as they continue to navigate COVID-19.” To promote equity, efficiency, transparency, and local flexibility, PDE will administer 100 percent of ESSER II funding through the Federal Title I, Part A formula which considers the number of low-income students served by school districts and charter schools. Each entity will receive an amount proportional to fed-
eral Title I, Part A funds received in the 2020 fiscal year under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). PDE has urged school entities to continue to prioritize equity and consider how investments can accelerate opportunities for vulnerable students and families, including those living in deep poverty, students with disabilities, English learners, migrant students, students experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care. School districts and charter schools may use ESSER
funding for a wide range of activities, including food service; professional training; technology purchases; sanitization and cleaning supplies; summer and afterschool programs; and mental health supports. A list of ESSER II fund allocations is available on PDE’s website. Funds must be used by September 2023. School districts and charter schools must apply to PDE to obtain their allocated funds. The application process will be posted on the Continued on page 3A