The Spark

Our Journalist Roundtable segment for December 20 included Pennlive reporter Jenna Wise. Jenna joined The Spark to discuss her article on The Harrisburg School Department to create it’s own police department. She also discussed her coverage on major breaking news in the City of Harrisburg in the past month. Listen to the podcast to hear the conversation.

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Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education, and media company, announced its selection of 12 educators from across the country to join the Company’s third annual Teacher Fellows Cohort. During the school year, these skilled K-8 educators will work alongside Scholastic Education Solutions’ product development, research and marketing teams and assist with the development of various education-focused programs.

Scott Brewer, a sixth-grade teacher at Eagle View Middle School has been selected to join the 2024-25 teacher Fellows Cohort.  Scott has 19 years’ experience as a Pennsylvania educator, and has worked with students and teachers across various K-8 settings.

The 2024-2025 Teacher Fellows will serve through August 2025 and are listed below:

• Sherri Amos, Grade 4 Teacher, Copeland Elementary School, Augusta, GA
• Anna Catherine Boyd, Grade 6 and 8 Teacher, Brewer Middle School, Greenwood, SC
• Scott Brewer, Grade 6 Teacher, Eagle View Middle School, Mechanicsburg, PA
• Andrea Childes, Grade 5 Teacher, Highcroft Ridge Elementary School, Chesterfield, MO
• Milagros Sanchez-Cohen, Kindergarten Teacher, Horeb Christian School, Hialeah, FL
• Alexandra Felix, Grade 2 Teacher, P.S. 122 Mamie Fay School, Astoria, NY
• Bridget Jordan, Grade 1 and 4 Teacher, Baltimore Highlands Elementary School, Baltimore, MD
• Katie Kim, Grade 5 Teacher, Warner Avenue Elementary School, Los Angeles, CA
• Paul King, Grade 6 Teacher, Global Village Academy North, Thornton, CO
• Morgan Meaux Mercado, Grade 3 Teacher, Dr. Raphael A. Baranco Elementary School, Lafayette Parish, LA
• Keke Powell, Grade 2 Teacher, Sunfield Elementary School, Buda, TX
• Hope Clinton, Grade 8 Teacher, AZ

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Joy to the Burg is an annual Christmas album that features holiday selections from local artists to raise money to benefit Central Pennsylvania residents experiencing homelessness. Proceeds from the album will go to street outreach through Christian Churches United.

In 2019, Sheldon Jones was concerned about the unhoused people in Harrisburg. As an artist, he had this idea to make a Christmas album and sell it to help the homeless.

“And it's just been it has taken off from there. In 2019, when Joy to the Bird first started, it helped open up a winter overnight shelter for women and non-binary individuals. And so, we're super grateful for the legacy of joining the burg and all the artists, “said Nick Mucci, Director of Development for Christian Churches United of the Tri County Area.

Since Joy to the Burg’s inception in 2019, there have been over 80 artists that have been on the annual Christmas album. D-Bo!, songwriter and singer, is featured on the album this year. He has a song titled, “Christmas with My Baby.”

“I'm just honored to be a part of this this great project and collaborate with so many great musicians in the area that me. I mean, I'm very familiar with most of them. I've seen a lot of them perform live. A lot of them have seen me. And so, you know, to be able to get all together on one thing and just, you know, for a good cause, it's just it's just a dream come true, you know? “said D-Bo!.

CLICK here to purchase the album.

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The National Civics Bee is an annual competition that is led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. that provides an opportunity for middle school students to showcase their civic knowledge and become more engaged in their communities.

The civic bee is very important to the Pennsylvania Chamber according to Elizabeth Bolden, Executive Director, of the PA Chamber Foundation. A survey in 2022 showed that less than half of Americans could name all three branches of government.  Another survey in 2023 by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce found that only 25 percent of Americans were confident that they could explain how our government worked to other people.

“It makes for a more effective and efficient government, which makes for a better place for businesses to operate and grow and entrepreneurs to come to the Commonwealth. We know that stability is important for businesses. And so, as the civics fee increases, civic engagement, just not among middle schoolers, but among their family members, we're building a stronger commonwealth where we can have a more competitive economy and businesses can flourish and grow, “said Bolden.

The PA Chamber Foundation, Lancaster Chamber of Commerce, and Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC are working to get participation from middle school students in the state. Kat DeSantis, Public Policy Coordinator of the Lancaster Chamber says the deadline for applications for the local competition is February 5, 2025. The first step is responding to a three-question essay prompt with no more than 750 words by submitting their application online through a portal.

“So, we've distributed that to teachers and educators and students themselves to kind of help them develop their essay, Know what the judges are looking for. They'll get the rubric because we do have essay judges that we've solicited from across the state who will then be scoring the essays. And then, like I said, the top 20 essays will then go on to compete in the local competition, which then includes a couple of rounds of multiple-choice questions via tablet. And then as they kind of go through that, they’ll get down to the kind of third round where students will defend their essays and they'll be asked questions about how they would implement it. And to explain a little bit more about their solutions for their community. And then that is how they then the judge, the live event judges, then select the finalists who then move on to the state competition, “said DeSantis.

Kevin DiGuiseppe, Business Policy & Advocacy Manager, Harrisburg Regional Chamber & CREDC is really hoping to see growth of civics knowledge and engagement in our region’s youth during the competition.

“One of the most fulfilling and rewarding parts of this experience, at least for myself, is seeing the kids who come in as competitors, as sixth grade students, as seventh grade students. And then to see them coming back the next year or two as seventh graders or as eighth graders, and really watching that knowledge and understanding of foundational civics principles really growing, taking root and flourishing in these kids. It's really rewarding to see. It reminds me of myself at that age when I was first taking an interest in civics, “said DiGuiseppe.

The first prize of the National Civic bee is $100,000 529 account towards their college education.

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Underground caves are a complex, underground ecosystem that must be treated with care and responsibility. Pat Minnick is a member of the Franklin County Grotto which is a local chapter of the National Speleological Society. Minnick shared some of the dangers of the popular recreational activity.

“The most common type of injury. With the carving action, it is a cave or fall. Someone trips falls and generally it might result in a lower leg injury, sprained ankle, broken leg, that kind of thing.”

Minnick also recommends letting a trusted friend or family member know when you decide to go caving.

“Now, you want to allow enough time so that if you're, you know, maybe an hour late or something, nobody's punching 911. But you need to let somebody know where you're going and have a plan of what you're going to do if the person doesn't come out. Most recreational cavers go to someplace that's known. However, a lot of people are doing project cave in cave mapping, so they're going in to maybe a known cave, but there's unknown passage beyond. So, they're in the process of mapping the cave. And mapping the cave involves compass and a tape measuring, measuring the cave, and then doing the cartography or drawing up the map. So, they're people that that excel at that and produce wonderful cave maps that show new maps and new caves.”

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A few months ago, Dr. Troy Ott became the dean of Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. In that role, he oversees Penn State’s founding college, which includes the statewide reach of Penn State Extension and embodies the university’s status as Pennsylvania’s sole land-grant institution.

Agriculture is one of Pennsylvania’s most important economic drivers, generating more than $132 billion for the state’s economy and supporting nearly 600,000 jobs. But to remain strong and vibrant, the industry needs research to spur innovation, training to build a skilled workforce, and education to develop a new generation of leaders.

Listen to the podcast to hear how the College of Agricultural Sciences and Penn State Extension comes in.

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The Central Pennsylvania Music Hall of Fame is a multi-room museum of autographed albums, guitars, and so much more. Brandon Valentine, Executive Director and Founder of the Central Pa Music Hall of Fame, opened the museum in 2023.

“You’ll see the plaques on the walls with pictures of the artists, you know, their summaries of their accomplishments, their resumes, if you will, of the members who are currently in the Hall of Fame, of which there are 35 members already in the Hall of Fame from 2019 to current voted in. And then, you know, in the other rooms, there's a lot of autographed guitars…We have guitars from Bret Michaels from Mechanicsburg, as well as Taylor Swift from Wyomissing here.”

There are a few things that go into consideration when an artist is nominated into a class hall of fame. The class is measured by album sales, Grammy nominations, and gold/ platinum records.

“There's a couple of big names from our area, you know, who have already been inducted. Bret Michaels live, your hailstorm breaking, Benjamin and so forth. This year, we're inducting Grammy nominees, August Burns Red from the Lancaster area. So, a lot of those, you know, have accomplished big things in the more recent past, and done large tours. But then you look, and you look at some of the other acts. For example, Pentagon, you know, they did a lot of original. Music at the start of their career, they toured all over. Did a lot of the casino scenes and were kind of a regional band, you know, up and down the East Coast. But they've been around for over 50 years, so a lot of different factors go into play. But ultimately, we're trying to recognize the best of the best from all time in our area. And that's really what it boils down to.”

The Central Pa Music Hall of Fame is located at 1215 W End Ave, Hummelstown Pa, 17036. You can take a FREE self-guided tour from 7am-3pm.

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Christmas Magic at Rocky Ridge County Park has been going strong for the community for 41 years. The holiday tradition started in 1984 following an energy crunch that made it difficult for decorating.

“Folks just were there a lot of the Christmas lights in York area, and so they came together, the commissioners at the time and the Parks Department decided to kind of put together this little bit of a light show that started out with about 10,000 lights. And then, yeah, it just kind of really grew from there. So, yeah, it started in 1984 during the heart of that and has become a great tradition in York area ever since, “said Teddy Fisher, Assistant Director of Parks for the York County Parks Department.

There are about 600,000 lights currently on display. The light show includes many people and takes about a year to plan.

“So, each year we try to mix it up. And Nancy Heizer, she's our park naturalist and really our Christmas magic program coordinator. So, she, she kind of oversees all that. We do have multiple meetings throughout the year with a larger group of staff and volunteers, and we try to brainstorm ideas and come up with things. But she does a lot of playing on the light show. And, you know, she tries to do different themes and kind of group and be strategic about it. And then also, you know, we're using a lot of the same props and lights each year and it's the same area, but we always try to mix it up just that way. It feels like a new experience for those folks that are coming back each year. So yeah, yeah, it's definitely a lot of fun. And let's have a lot of creativity and putting that together.”

This is the 41st year of Christmas Magic. Visitors can stroll the festive half-mile woodland trail filled with Christmas lights and holiday scenes. The event runs through December 30 and will be closed December 24 and 25.

CLICK HERE for more information.

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AAA Central Penn has been reminding mature drivers to stay safe on the roads.  AAA Central Penn service the nine-county region in Central Pennsylvania. It has about ten branches and the driving school is in Lancaster.

“So, these are classroom courses that offer a mandatory insurance discount upon completion. Many of those who take this course usually leave with some renewed sense of confidence or even just having their questions answered about some of the recent traffic lot changes, “said Erik Fitzgerald of AAA Central Penn.”

The mature driving course is for drivers 55 and older. AAA of Central Penn is also breaking the stigmas associated with mature drivers.

“Some feel that once you reach a certain age, you shouldn't be driving anymore. Some feel that age doesn't determine how old or how long they should be driving. And as a result, some feel that they should be able to drive well until they're 100 or so. By taking this course, it puts it puts the control back into their hands and gives them a better perspective on determining when it may be necessary to retire from driving or just things that they can make, changes they can make along the way to enhance the skills that they have, “said Fitzgerald.”

CLICK HERE to read more about AAA Central Penn.

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Eighty years ago today, the German army launched its last major offensive on the Western Front during World War II. It centered on the Ardennes Forest in Belgium and became known as the Battle of the Bulge. Standing in the way that day was a Pennsylvania National Guard division, the 28th, which is known as the Bloody Bucket.

To shed some light on the 28th’s heroic stand, WITF’s Tim Lambert reached out to Walter Zapotoczny. He’s a former member of the 28th Infantry Division, the incoming president of the Divisions Association, and the author of 13 military history books, including his latest that is set to be released next year, “The 28th Infantry Division in the Battle of the Bulge.”

We aired this conversation on The Spark Monday, December 16th.

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