Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 154, No. 47
INSIDE
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
Avon Grove School Board grapples with some weighty issues
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Eyes on the sky One local eighth grader has already earned a glider flying certificate
The most recent meeting featured an update about the pandemic’s impact on the current school year and a presentation about diversity and inclusion By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer Magical holiday events ...5B
If everything had gone according to plan, the Avon Grove School District would have already welcomed back middle school and high school students to the secondary school buildings for in-person instruction. But this is 2020, and things just haven’t gone according to plan. Just as Avon Grove was looking to ramp up its inperson instruction for students district-wide, the pandemic intervened—once again—and district officials KHS student recognized and parents are confronted for work...1B with some difficult decisions. At the school board’s most recent meeting, district officials discussed how Avon Grove continues to grapple with the challenges of navigating through the school year while the pandemic rages on and health and safety recommendations can change from one day to the next. Avon Grove has generally adopted a conservative approach to reopening schools during the pandemic—while the school district Campaign to enlist volun- welcomed elementary school teer firefighters...11A students back into buildings on a limited basis earlier this month, the secondary school students have been relying on
INDEX Opinion.......................7A Obituaries..........10A & 2B Classifieds..................4B
virtual learning exclusively. The school board has now decided to push back the date when hybrid learning for middle school and high school students can begin to Dec. 14. A hybrid program blends virtual learning with some in-school programming. Many school districts in the area have been utilizing a hybrid program so that families can decide for themselves whether the best option is in-person instruction or virtual learning. But now, with the number of COVID-19 cases increasing both locally and nationally, school districts must make the agonizingly difficult decision on how to move forward amidst a global pandemic. Superintendent Dr. Christopher Marchese said that he and the other superintendents and school leaders throughout the region took part in a virtual meeting with state officials about the coronavirus pandemic and the rising number of cases of COVID-19. Marchese explained that the county continues to see an increased number of COVID-19 cases, and state officials advised that if the incident rate per 100,000 residents continues to stay at high levels in Chester County, there may be a recommendation coming for school districts to pivot to
full virtual learning until the number of COVID-19 cases drops to safer levels. At the Nov. 19 meeting, the Avon Grove School Board voted 8-1 to follow the administration’s recommendation to delay the start of hybrid education for middle school and high school students, while continuing to offer a hybrid program for elementary students. The ever-changing situation will be reevaluated before then to ensure that the reopening of the secondary schools is what’s best for Avon Grove at that time. “This is going to be a fluid process,” Marchese said. “We’re going to look at the data and make decisions based on what’s in front of us.” He added that guidance from health experts will continue to be critical. Marchese said that the number of linked transmissions—those cases of COVID-19 that can be traced back to students and employees who are in schools or participating in schoolrelated activities—will be important in determining if schools in the county, or the state, will be able to continue to offer in-person instruction. The Avon Grove superintendent explained that there
The magical day a person obtains a driver’s license is an event that most people remember when they look back on their lives. But for Lars Trone of Lincoln University, that day for him did not involve a car, nor had he achieved the minimum driving age of 16. Lars, 14, an eighth grader at Fred S. Engle Middle School, obtained his student pilot’s certificate to fly glider planes on July 26. That is his birthday. His excitement on that day was further enhanced by the efforts of individuals at the Federal Aviation Administration who made sure his student pilot certificate arrived on time for his special day when they were informed of his date of birth. By having his certificate in hand, Lars is allowed to solo in a glider – a plane that has no motor but is propelled by wind currents. To date, he has flown solo 15 times. The journey to the certificate was no cakewalk, but given Lars’ apparent talent and love of flying, it proceeded rather smoothly. Lars’ father, Richard Trone, said the adventure
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Photo by Chris Barber
Lars Trone stands beside a glider he aspires to pilot.
By Chris Barber Contributing Writer
Lifting the ‘Ville: Filmmaker shines camera – and hope – on Coatesville
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By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
© 2007 The Chester County Press
Before Sarah Alderman’s first film “BYPASSED” was released this fall; before it affirmed her place as a storyteller; before the hourlong documentary and love letter to her native city premiered to a sold-out audience in October; and before the accolades came rolling in that now pave the film’s incredible future, there was the one-bedroom apartment in Coatesville, where she lived as a child in Coatesville with her mother. Two blocks away, lived her Photo by Sarah Alderman grandmother Theresa “Chille” ‘BYPASSED,’ a new documentary film by Coatesville native Sarah Alderman, feaPuglisi, who was the first tures the profiles of 20 residents of the city.
great storyteller Alderman knew. The tales “Chille” spun about Coatesville painted a picture of a stronger city; they took the young granddaughter into the steel mills and taverns and family-owned stores, and revealed the heart of a community that was held together by its people. “I fell in love with the city through my own childhood experiences, and through my grandmother’s stories about Coatesville’s golden era,” said Alderman, now a married mother of two 12-year-old daughters. “I grew up appreciative of the vibrancy, authenticity and diversity of my hometown. Continued on Page 3A
Baskets of Love Campaign aims to fund ‘wish lists’ for local organizations By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer Since it was founded in April of 2013, Arts Holding Hands and Hearts (AHHAH) has been one of Chester County’s leading forces behind the effort to inspire disadvantaged youth and their families through the arts. AHHAH is far from alone in their pursuit to put paints, microphones, stages, opportunity and open doors in front of young people, however. Recognizing that there is strength in partnerships, AHHAH has collaborated with several non-profit
organizations on programs and workshops that endear to create positive pathways to promising and fulfilling futures. Soon, the initiatives on the “wish list” of AHHAH and one dozen of these groups will all be in one basket. Beginning on Dec. 14 and extending through Feb. 14, 2021, AHHAH will join with 11 of these partnering agencies for the Baskets of Love Campaign, a fundraising effort that will solicit public and private donations to fund the many initiatives on the “wish list” of these agencies throughout the county.
In addition to AHHAH, those organizations participating in the campaign will include: Chester County CCIU Head Start, Chester County Futures, the Chester County Opportunities Industrialization Center (OIC), the Chester County Youth Center, A Child’s Light, Friends Association, GRANDFamilies, the Kennett Library, the Maternal and Child Health Consortium, Revival Productions and Trellis for Tomorrow. “Having partners is what AHHAH has been about, and they have enabled us to
bring our services to them, such as trauma sensitive and self-care workshops, and cooking and writing programs, to name just a few,” said AHHAH founder Jan Michener. “Our mission is to combine arts, mindfulness and literacy to empower children, strengthen families and mobilize communities, so we began to look at the other organizations that are serving the same people with the same mission of equity, social and racial justice. “We thought, ‘How can we come together and collaborate in order to make a larger impact for social good and
the people we serve?’ We are looking to weave these organizations together.” “Giving Tree Wish” The campaign, Michener said, will empower donors to contribute to the organization of their choice by donating to one of its “Giving Tree Wish” programs that it would like to obtain funding for. Gift packages will be available at several contribution levels; for instance, $25 will go toward the purchase of five journal books for a future AHHAH creative writing program, and a Continued on Page 2A