Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Did the president of the school board plagiarize?

Did the president of the school board, Josephine Posti, plagiarize in her public writing about school issues on her blog, Center Court?

Her critics at the Lebo Citizens blog, which first reported the alleged plagiarism, sure think so. But others, such as David Brown, who wrote to Blog-Lebo about the issue, think the accusations boil down to deceitful “context switching” to make a hard-working volunteer look bad. Mrs. Posti, herself, explained it as an “oversight” where she “had neglected to cite sources” a few times. Which brings us to an important observation.

Whether you believe Mrs. Posti did anything wrong is going to depend not only on the evidence but also on what you already believe about Mrs. Posti. Her strongest supporters, for example, are unlikely to conclude that she did anything wrong, regardless of the evidence. Her most-vocal detractors, in contrast, probably don’t need more than a change in the wind to condemn her and, as always, ask for her resignation – loudly.

That’s why, in situations like these, if you want to understand what happened, you can’t go by what people tell you. You have to look at the evidence yourself.

So that’s what I did.


Looking at the evidence

Is there evidence of plagiarism?

First, let’s be clear about what plagiarism is. It’s the act of presenting someone else’s work in a way that gives people the false impression that it’s your own. Even if you have permission to use the work, and even if you don’t mean to give anybody the false impression that it’s yours, you can still plagiarize by not taking the expected care not to plagiarize. It’s like speeding: you can do it willfully or just by not paying enough attention; both ways will earn you a ticket.

To look for evidence of plagiarism, I examined the articles on Mrs. Posti’s blog, looking for text that matched other documents on the Internet. Then I reviewed the matches and kept only those that showed substantial, unexplained duplication.

Here’s what I found: Blog-Lebo analysis of suspected plagiarism, August 2011.

First, the findings make it hard to believe that Mrs. Posti just forgot to cite a few sources. My search found not three cases of apparent plagiarism, as originally reported on the Lebo Citizens blog, but eleven. Second, in some cases, the duplicated material seems to have been edited in ways that would reinforce a reader’s impression that the work was Mrs. Posti’s own.

So, looking at the evidence, it’s hard to believe that there’s nothing wrong here.


Does it matter?

I asked a number of people that question. Their answers ranged from, “It happens so often it’s not worth worrying about” to “I have a serious problem with this.”

My take is that it is a problem. If we want our children to believe that plagiarism is worth avoiding – and we do try to teach them that in Mt. Lebanon – we can’t expect them to believe us if our actions demonstrate that we don’t believe it ourselves. When someone plagiarizes, and especially when students see that person as a respected authority, how that person handles it – and how we handle it – matter.

In this case, Mrs. Posti handled it by effectively denying it. On her blog post about the subject, “Corrections,” she explains it as an “oversight”:
Recently, a resident accused me of plagiarism as the result of information she received and published from an anonymous source. The anonymous source found three of my 435 blog posts where I had neglected to cite original sources that I had pulled information from. I apologize for that oversight and have made corrections to those posts.
I have a hard time squaring this explanation with the evidence. If it happened once or twice, I could believe the oversight explanation. But more than ten times? That’s not an oversight.

And now, in anticipation of those people who will say I’m out to get Mrs. Posti or that this is mere political mean-spiritedness, I have only this to say: Before you come after me, look at the evidence, and tell me there’s not a problem here. Because, once you understand that there is a problem here, you can understand why it can’t be ignored.

And one more thing: I have nothing against Mrs. Posti. I think she’s trying to serve her community in difficult times – and under a lot of scrutiny. On the plagiarism thing, it looks like she made a mistake in judgment and compounded it with another. We all make mistakes.

But judgment matters. And so does plagiarism.

So I do hope that Mrs. Posti will take care of it, herself. Because, if she doesn’t, I don’t think the rest of the school board will be able to let it pass. Not anymore.

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Trib: Mt. Lebanon seeks more of the same

That chip on Mt. Lebanon's shoulder likely developed back in November 2010 after its unbeaten record was marred by a season-ending, seven-point loss to Woodland Hills in the WPIAL quarterfinals.

With 13 starters returning from that 10-1 team, including several high-impact players, might the Blue Devils be giddy with excitement over the prospects of another run at a championship?

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Letter: When will we take responsibility for rebuilding Mt. Lebanon?

The following is a letter to the editors of Blog-Lebo. It comes from reader, commenter, and frequent letter-writer John Kendrick. —Tom

To the Community of Mt Lebanon,

As I read the threads on this Blog I have asked myself, “At what point will our generation assume responsibility and begin the hard work that is needed to rebuild what was once a great community?” We were given a great treasure from our predecessors, but our generation has not maintained this gift, and all that I have heard is a recurring theme of provisions and entitlements. Who is going to pay for this list of endless demands? Who is going to pay to maintain the resources that we already have? Who is going to repair our streets, our sidewalks, and our dysfunctional school system?

I hope that all of you will consider these questions, because our future, and the future of your children will be determined by the decisions that we are making today.

Sincerely,
John David Kendrick
Mt. Lebanon, PA

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Friday, August 26, 2011

Trib: Mt. Lebanon athletics boosters make big pitch for bond issue

Mt. Lebanon athletic boosters brought their best offense to the board of commissioners Monday to advocate for the passage of a $6 million to $7 million bond for pool improvements and construction of new athletic fields.

Commissioners didn't vote, but dozens of coaches and athletes came to the microphone during the public comment period to say that the community could use the improvements -- though a few in opposition said the time was not right to spend more money on amenities.

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P-G: Hearing postponed in assault of Mt. Lebanon student

A preliminary hearing has been postponed for the man arrested last week on multiple charges that he had improper contact with a 15-year-old Mt. Lebanon High School student.

The hearing had been scheduled for today. Instead, Christopher M. Childs II, 20, of Mt. Lebanon, will appear before District Judge Blaise Larotonda at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.

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P-G: USC challenges Mt. Lebanon for control of Great Southern

Just two seasons removed from a 2-8 campaign, Mt. Lebanon went undefeated through the regular season and until the WPIAL quarterfinals in 2010.

Two other Great Southern Conference teams, Upper St. Clair and Bethel Park, have won WPIAL titles and advanced to PIAA Class AAAA championship games over the course of the previous five seasons, with the Panthers taking the 2006 PIAA title.

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P-G: Blue Chip Chat with Luke Hagy, Mt. Lebanon

A three-sport standout, Hagy was the Post-Gazette Male Athlete of the Year for the 2010-11 school year. He starts a new football season about 10 pounds heavier and stronger than 2010. He was fourth in the WPIAL in rushing yards last season and finished with 1,981 yards on 282 attempts and scored 29 touchdowns. He also was the starting point guard on a Mt. Lebanon basketball team that reached the PIAA Class AAAA final and was an all-section outfielder in baseball. He is an excellent student with a GPA above 4.0.

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Try out the Blog-Lebo SpeedView 3000 Sidebar, now with Extra Wow!

If you read Blog-Lebo by visiting the web site (and not, for example, by subscribing to one of our handy news feeds), here’s something you might like. The Blogger system, which powers our blog, has a new feature that gives you a streamlined just-the-facts view of the site. To give it a try, just visit this link:

Blog-Lebo Sidebar View

It’s still experimental, so it might not work for everyone. (If it doesn’t work for you, try back later because it seems to be hit-and-miss some days.)

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Thursday, August 25, 2011

Trib: Much ado about.... Mt. Lebanon board chief's blog

The Tribune-Review is now reporting about the alleged plagiarism of school-board president, Josephine Posti:
Mt. Lebanon School Board President Josephine Posti temporarily pulled her blog off the Internet and issued an apology after being accused of plagiarism this week – an accusation about which experts disagree when it involves speech online.

Elaine Gillen, a resident, former candidate for commissioner and frequent critic of the school board, said material on Posti's blog, "Center Court," was copied from other sources without attribution.

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Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Letter: Posti Didn't Plagiarize

The following letter to the editors of Blog-Lebo comes from reader and frequent commenter David Brown. –Tom

The people who are fomenting the moral panic du jour and condemning Ms. Posti for supposed plagiarism are engaging in a form of deceit that I call context switching. Context switching occurs when someone discusses the morality of an action or truth of a statement in one context and continues discussing it in the same manner while silently changing the context and hoping no one will notice.

Plagiarism is obviously an egregious offense in the contexts of academia and journalism. In those contexts, the reader has an expectation of originality, and is justifiably outraged when that trust turns out to have been misplaced. In business, technical writing, and many other contexts, not so much -- the expectation of originality is much diminished if not entirely absent. In those contexts, there is much to be gained by both the writer and the reader by repeating passages verbatim. The emphasis is on communicating ideas clearly and accurately and not on the writer. In those contexts, gratuitously adding variations to the wording out of a misguided sense of integrity just invites confusion and wastes the reader's time as they parse back and forth to see if the meaning is the same. Ms. Posti's critics are judging her by academic and journalistic standards when those contexts are only at most tangentially related to the context in which she wrote.

I view Ms. Posti's role on the school board as a business position. It's true that this is the business of schooling, but she is not a student, not a teacher, and not a researcher. Therefore, the context in which I read her writings is business communication. In that context, I care not a whit if she copied portions of her communication from other sources. She would not have used them if they did not reflect her views. So, in reading her writing, my expectation is upheld that what I am reading is her opinion. That's all I really care about. I don't view it as academic plagiarism at all.

Ms. Posti's critics also take great pains to point out that in her day job she is in public relations and deals with journalists on a regular basis. So what? First, her day job has nothing to do with our schools or her school blog. Second, I never had an expectation of originality when reading a press release. So, the relation of this issue to journalistic ethics is tenuous at best, and all the people a-hootin' an' a-hollerin' as if this is a direct hit on her integrity merely betray their inability to make subtle but very important distinctions.

Furthermore, on a limited scanning of the sources that were copied, I get the distinct impression that they were created specifically to share the information therein. They seem to have been placed on the web by advocates of certain positions as talking points for the very purpose of furthering those positions. I don't think those organizations would feel victimized at all, but rather gratified that their work is being put to the use they intended.

People would also do well to remember that Ms. Posti's blog is a voluntary action over and above her duties as a school board member. Anything she puts up there is a gift to all of us. It is a positive action for transparency. Yes, sources should have been cited, and yes, some of it was clearly copied en masse, so a "tut tut" is in order:

Tut, tut, Ms. Posti!

But that's all you'll get from me.

I would be willing to bet that Ms. Posti has less free time than anyone I know, and I for one am glad that she got the information out quickly so she could spend more time on all her other duties of a board member, professional, wife, and mother. I don't think she was trying to take credit for authorship. I think she was just trying to do her best to channel some important information she felt we needed to know and try not to have to stay up all night.

David Brown

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The Almanac: Devils build 'em bigger

Division I linemen, like money, don't grow on trees even in Mt. Lebanon, which has produced at least a dozen during Chris Haering's 16-year tenure as head coach.

No, to build them big and beefy requires a gestation period nearly as long as a pregnancy. For example, after the Blue Devils ended the 2010 campaign back in mid-November, the players not participating in another activity, particularly the linemen, visited the weight room until training camp resumed Aug. 15.

"Nine months," said Lebo football coach Chris Haering. "It's a process no doubt."

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The Almanac: Goldberg to weigh in on Lebo's success

Arthur Goldberg of Mt. Lebanon gained weight the hard way. He skipped the cake and ice cream.

"No dessert," he said. "I don't have a sweet tooth."

By eating pasta and bananas and drinking milk and water, the 18-year-old senior added 25 pounds of lean muscle to his 6-foot, 3-inch frame. As he enters the 2011 scholastic football season, Goldberg tips the scales at 275.

He's expected to be a force on both sides of the ball for the Blue Devils.

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Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Letter: Re-thinking the McNeilly property

The following is a letter to the editors of Blog-Lebo. It comes from Richard Gideon. —Tom

Gentlemen:

Over the past several days I have had a spirited exchange of E-mail messages with four of the five members of the Mt. Lebanon Commission concerning the municipality's role in providing entertainment to its residents in general, and McNeilly Park in particular. The majority of these conversations have been with Mr. Miller, who has provided me with some interesting background on the McNeilly property. While I don't agree with Mr. Miller on all subjects, he has been a real gentleman and I am happy to say so publicly.

I would like to address two points that keep coming up from various members of the Commission: 1)parks (and other “facilities”) attract new, younger residents into Mt. Lebanon, and 2)parks increase property values.

As to the first point Commissioner VanKirk writes, “In order to stay a viable community, we have to have the facilities that attract young families. These families, who buy homes, pay taxes, and use local businesses are the future of Mt. Lebanon.” There is certainly some truth to this, but why is it necessary for the municipality to own “the facilities that attract young families?” I adduce the town of Sandy Springs, Georgia, which since 2005 has managed to outsource and privatize almost everything except police and fire service. (Believe it or not, Chicago has privatized some of its ROADS.) In this current economic climate how many young families are flocking to Mt. Lebanon because of our parks and recreation facilities? Is there a study available to prove this? Of course, McNeilly Park is a strange situation, given that it cannot be sold and was acquired without an access road. Which leads me to discuss the more interesting second point.

“McNeilly Park...will increase property values.”

Who benefits from increased property values? This is not as strange a question as it might seem. The first and most immediate beneficiaries are Mt. Lebanon and the Mt. Lebanon School District. It is in the special interest of those who derive income from local taxes to keep property values as high as possible – higher property values mean higher taxes; higher taxes translate into more money for teachers and municipal employees at contract renewal time. It also means more money for infrastructure repairs and upgrades. The second beneficiaries are property owners – with some very strict qualifications. It needs to be pointed out that an increase in property value is not immediately accessible to the property owner! You only access the “equity” in a home if you a)take a loan out for it (go into debt), or b)sell it. But does the McNeilly property necessarily mean increased property values? The answer is alluded to, ironically enough, in a National Parks Service white paper entitled “Economic Impacts of Protecting Rivers, Trails, and Greenway Corridors.” On page 15 NPS states the following (I retained government spelling): “The effect on property values of a location near a park or open space has been the subject of several studies. Statistical analyses have been a common method of attempting to measure this effect. These analyses attempt to isolate the effect of open space from other variables which can affect property values, such as age, square footage, and condition of homes. Isolating the effect of open space can be difficult and results have been varied. Nevertheless, many studies have revealed increases in property values in instances where the property is located near or adjacent to open spaces. Most studies have addressed traditional parks or greenbelts (large open space areas), though a few studies are available for greenways.” Then on page 4 we have the following: “The effects of proximity to open space may not be as simply quantified as in the above studies. Many studies (Brown and Connelly; Colwell, 1986) have found the potential for an increase in property value depends upon the characteristics of the open space and the orientation of surrounding properties. Property value increases are likely to be highest near those greenways which: 1) highlight open space rather than highly developed facilities; 2) have limited vehicular access, but some recreational access; 3) have effective maintenance and security.”

The bottom line, according to the National Parks Service, is that homeowners living withing 3200 feet of a park with quiet, open spaces, walking trails, benches, and maybe a bike path are more likely to experience increase property values. Conversely, property owners living within 3200 feet of a “nuisance” park – described as a highly developed property – could expect a decrease in the value of their properties, with the amount of decrease assuaged by distance from the park.

As one might expect, the National Parks Service is a huge supporter of parks and is a cheerleader for parks as a means of increasing property values. But, to their credit, they do note that not all parks are good things; and they say so.

Baseball fields and concession stands aside, perhaps Mt. Lebanon should re-think how best to use the McNeilly property.

Richard Gideon

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Primanti Brothers Coming To Mt. Lebanon?


Is a Primanti Brothers coming to Mt. Lebanon? They might be. According to the above posting on the mtl - Mt. Lebanon Magazine Facebook page, Primanti Brothers is taking a look at a location on Washington Road across the street from the Galleria. Sounds great to me!

Update: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is also reporting on Primanti Brothers' purchase of the building

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Trib: Mt. Lebanon's Hagy says he's ready to shoot for 2,000

Luke Hagy isn't shy to admit that he'll be getting a few pedicures this football season.

"Once a month, I'll go and get one done after a big game," Mt. Lebanon's bruising star running back said with a laugh. "I'll get my calves massaged, and my feet can get pretty nasty."

Give him a break. For a guy who carried the ball 282 times in 11 games last season, his feet need a respite every now and then. And a little well-deserved pampering doesn't diminish the fact that Hagy is one of the toughest ballcarriers in the WPIAL.

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Trib: Mt. Lebanon's leaf grinder usage violated grant terms, DCNR says

Mt. Lebanon will have to find another home for "The Beast," thanks to an impending order from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources expected to say that use of the giant leaf grinder in Robb Hollow Park violated terms of a state grant.

The municipality used $41,500 in state aid to purchase land for the park. The grant required the land be used solely for recreational purposes.

But in a clearing near Painter's Run Road, the municipality has used the large grinder, dubbed "The Beast" by its manufacturer, to shred leaves the municipality collects in the fall.

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Monday, August 22, 2011

The Almanac: Mt. Lebanon to rebid high school project

If all goes according to schedule, Mt. Lebanon could be breaking ground this winter on the high school renovation project.

Architect Tom Celli unveiled a rough timeline on Aug. 8 for the rebid of Mt. Lebanon's high school renovation. He said his firm, Celli-Flynn Bryan, could have a new design ready Sept. 10. The project would then go out to bid in early October, with bids due on Nov. 22.

Tom Berkebile, project manager for P.J. Dick, expressed confidence despite the "aggressive" schedule.

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Pop City: Mt. Lebanon entrepreneur advances glare-blocking eyewear

If you've ever driven into blinding sunlight--heading west on the Pennsylvania Turnpike at sunset comes to mind--you will appreciate the invention of Mt. Lebanon resident scientist and entrepreneur Chris Mullin.

Mullin is developing sunglasses that use an electronic shield to instantly block the sun's blinding glare. The technology is based on the strategic placement of liquid crystals in the lens. No more squinting or tensing up from dangerous situations on the road.

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Sunday, August 21, 2011

Lebo Citizens Blog: School-board president Posti plagiarized (updated)

Update 2011-08-22 12:35: Mrs. Posti’s blog is back online and now contains a “Corrections” article that includes an apology for “neglecting to cite original sources.”

The Lebo Citizens Blog is reporting that the president of the Mt. Lebanon School Board, Josephine Posti, has been involved in “numerous instances” of plagiarism in her public writings about school issues:
There have been numerous instances over the last year of Mt. Lebanon School Board President Josephine Posti stealing information from websites and posting it on her blog as her own. In the three instances outlined below, I have copied word for word her blog post and indicated in yellow highlighted text where that information was sourced from and the original text of that source. Again, Mrs. Posti has never indicated that her sources were from anything but her own intelligence.
At the time of this writing, Mrs. Posti’s blog, Center Court, is no longer available to readers. Visitors to the blog are told that “This blog is open to invited readers only.”


Update: Mrs. Posti issues “corrections”

At around noon on Monday, August 22, 2011, Mrs. Posti’s blog was reopened to the public. Its most-recent posting, Corrections, includes an apology:
Recently, a resident accused me of plagiarism as the result of information she received and published from an anonymous source. The anonymous source found three of my 435 blog posts where I had neglected to cite original sources that I had pulled information from. I apologize for that oversight and have made corrections to those posts.

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Friday, August 19, 2011

P-G: Mt. Lebo volunteer charged with improper conduct with student

A former volunteer with the Mt. Lebanon High School track team has been arrested on multiple charges alleging he had improper contact with a student after the school year ended, according to the Mt. Lebanon police.

Christopher Childs, who volunteered last year, is no longer involved with the team, according to school district officials.

District guidelines require athletic coaches and volunteers to submit state and federal criminal clearances before working with students. Mr. Childs's clearances showed no prior violations, according to school officials.

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Thursday, August 18, 2011

Trib: Proposed Mt. Lebanon bond issue to upgrade recreational facilities

Sports fans in Mt. Lebanon are hoping a proposed $6 million to $7 million bond issue for recreation improvements could give the community more practice and playing fields.

Demand for open space is tight -- and getting tighter -- with proposed construction projects. The bond issue would cover a number of improvements, including a new fire truck, and repairs and upgrades to the municipal pool and locker rooms, Commission President Dan Miller said.

But parents and coaches of Mt. Lebanon athletes were most interested in another part of the proposal: developing a swath of unused community land on McNeilly Road as multipurpose athletic fields for about $3.1 million.

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Trib: Mt. Lebanon superintendent to get 3.5% raise

The Mt. Lebanon school board has unanimously approved a 3.5 percent pay raise for Superintendent Timothy Steinhauer, citing his work holding the line on taxes, reorganizing the district's administration and guiding the high school renovation project through its redesign.

Steinhauer's yearly salary increased from $146,300 to $151,420, retroactive to July 1, district spokeswoman Cissy Bowman said. The board on Monday also approved increasing his vacation days from 20 to 25, and agreed that he could be paid for up to 15 vacation days if they went unused at the end of each year.

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Monday, August 15, 2011

Trib: Man found dead in Mt. Lebanon home

Police found a man who barricaded himself inside a Mt. Lebanon home Saturday dead in a second-floor bedroom about four hours after they began urging him to come out.

Allegheny County real estate records show the home on Adeline Street is owned by Lawrence D. Carpico, a county homicide detective.

Mt. Lebanon police spokesman Aaron Lauth could not confirm the man`s identity. The Medical Examiner`s Office was waiting to notify next of kin before releasing any information.

Lauth said a member of the South Hills emergency response team entered the house with a key from a relative after hearing a gunshot.

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Trib: Stormwater utility fee approved in Mt. Lebanon

The Mt. Lebanon commissioners approved a monthly stormwater utility fee for every property in the municipality Tuesday night, but the board acknowledged it still had to clarify some of the related policies.

Starting Sept. 1, all single-family homes, townhouses and duplexes will be charged an $8-per-month fee to go toward the operation, repair and expansion of Mt. Lebanon's 75 miles of storm sewers, along with its drains, curbs and gutters.

All other developed properties will multiply the $8 fee by every 2,400 square feet of impervious surfaces they have, such as pavement, roofs, sidewalks and patios. The fees will be collected in January, May and September.

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Thursday, August 11, 2011

LeboDesign.net: Is this the high school you want?

Over on lebodesign.net, Dan Rothschild has written a great article about the recently released cost-cutting changes to the high-school plans. If you’re wondering what’s been changed or what those changes mean – and you should – read his article.

Mr. Rothschild argues that, when bids for the school board’s preferred design came in almost 20% over budget, the school board was forced to drastically reduce the cost of the project. But how?

Examining the list of proposed cost reductions, Mr. Rothschild concludes that the school board is attempting to cling to its original design and extract savings by “diminishing” that design, cutting away or downgrading pieces of it.

But drastic cost reductions, he continues, usually require a different design or substantial design modifications – if you want to preserve your original design intent. That’s because everything that was part of the original design was there for a reason. If you cut that design back by a fifth, you’re likely to sacrifice things that were essential to it. (Think about it: if a four-fifths version of the original high-school design would have met our original design goals, wouldn’t we have gotten that design in the first place?)

So Mr. Rothschild asks, highlighting some of the things our community is likely to give up with the diminished design, “Is this the high school you want?”

Is it?

Read his article, consider what we’re giving up, and think about that question.

Also consider the alternative that Mr. Rothschild offers: Reusing Building C. If you would like this alternative to get the consideration it is due, ask the school board to study it and estimate not only its potential cost savings but also its potential educational benefits.

Mt. Lebanon does have more than one option. It’s time for the school board to stop acting like it doesn’t.

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Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Trib: Mt. Lebanon closer to seeking high school bids again

The Mt. Lebanon High School renovation project could begin early next year if a series of proposed changes are enough to bring contractors' bids in under budget, officials said Monday night.

In the four months since bids came in millions over budget, school officials, architects and project managers have been poring over more than $16 million worth of changes, ranging from removing an entire floor from the plans to using different materials in the benches for a dance classroom.

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Arts Action Fund: Arts CHAMPIONS of the Mt. Lebanon School District

The Arts Action Fund is proud to highlight one of our CHAMPIONS, the Mt. Lebanon School District. They caught our eye because as a student activities group, they are unique among our supporters. We were then further intrigued by the robust arts achievements and activities happening throughout the district.

Both the students and faculty of the Mt. Lebanon School District have been extreme busy this 2010/2011 academic year racking up all kinds of accolades and honors.

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Trib: Mt. Lebanon water main break buckles Cedar Boulevard

A water main break in Mt. Lebanon buckled a portion of Cedar Boulevard tonight.

The break that occurred at 7 p.m. in the 1100 block of Cedar Boulevard damaged the driveways and landscape of several homes and caused minor flooding in the basements of three homes, Mt. Lebanon fire Lt. Chris Switala said.

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Sunday, August 07, 2011

P-G: Mt. Lebanon Village to hold intergenerational games Aug. 13

More than 200, ranging in age from 2 to 92, turned out last year for the Mt. Lebanon Intergenerational Summer Games, a competition that matches older adults with younger competitors.

"We had tremendous good feedback about the day," said Larry Evans, a board member for Mt. Lebanon Village, a nonprofit group that helps adults age 50 and over remain in their homes.

And so Mt. Lebanon Village decided to hold the summer games again this year.

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P-G: Pitt offers scholarship to Mt. Lebanon’s Hagy

Luke Hagy seemingly did everything for the Mt. Lebanon athletic program this past school year.

He now has his first Division I scholarship offer.

According to Pantherlair.com, Hagy, a senior, picked up an offer from hometown Pitt while visiting the school last weekend.

“I visited Pitt and they offered me,” Hagy told Pantherlair. “I was talking to Coach [Todd] Graham for a little bit and we went to his office. He sat me down and said that he was planning to wait before offering me, but then he decided not to and he told me he was giving me a scholarship and he wanted me to come play for him.”

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P-G: Mt. Lebanon grad is new Loyola coach

Jake Lawrence never had the chance to play collegiate volleyball because his school, Xavier University, did not have a men's team.

So Lawrence, a 2002 Mt. Lebanon High School graduate, stayed connected to the sport in another way -- he served as student assistant for the women's team for four years. Lawrence was not about to complain either. His passion for playing volleyball was only exceeded by his passion for coaching the sport.

Becoming a head coach seemed inevitable for Lawrence. His father, John, took the Mt. Lebanon boys' volleyball team to the playoffs in 1988. By the age of 3, Jake was on the bench at practice watching his father and the team.

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Wednesday, August 03, 2011

The Almanac: ML group to host tours of churches

The Historical Society of Mount Lebanon will host another walking tour of two historic churches at 6 p.m. Friday, Aug. 12.

Society docents will lead "Saints & Stained Glass" tours inside St. Bernard and Mt. Lebanon United Presbyterian churches on Washington Road. The tour, which will take about 90-minutes, covers the history of both churches with a primary focus on the stained glass windows. Tour-goers should meet in the parking lot of the Presbyterian church.

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Monday, August 01, 2011

Trib: Program helps terminally ill patients care for pets

Almost no one knows or understands Leethia Haddad better than Niles and Alexander.

"They even come up to me in bed -- they just know I'm not feeling well," Haddad, 69, of Pennsbury Village said of her two Siamese cats. "I do not know what I would do if I could not take care of my two cats."

Haddad knows that the emotional bond between pets and their owners can be impenetrable. So she was among the first to volunteer for Pet Peace of Mind -- a program run by a Mt. Lebanon hospice in which volunteers care for the pets of terminally ill patients.

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