Aug. 10, 2026
— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
The Bethlehem Area School Board will vote tonight on removing a student who doesn’t live in the district.
The agenda for tonight’s Bethlehem Area School District meeting notes that “a residency dispute” hearing was held June 15 and “The Hearing Officer ruled that the family has not sufficiently proven residency within the District and recommended removing the student” following approval by the school board.
There is nothing new about students crossing borders to attend a school district their family may prefer. In some cases, families move a short distance out of the district but keep the child in their school. Some districts in Bucks County have problems with students crossing from New Jersey to attend highly rated districts just across the Delaware River.
The residency issue will come up during the special board meeting. The board will also hold a combined committee meeting. The agenda for both says they will start at 6 p.m.
The board will also discuss the Community Charter School of the Arts and review a list of resignations and job appointments.
If anybody wants to be a school bus trainee, that pays $17 per hour. I don’t think that’s quite enough for me to get into one of those mobile madhouses, but I wish the trainees well.
The board will also hear an update on construction at the new Fountain Hill Elementary School and about getting more security cameras at middle schools.
“The additional cameras will augment the existing security cameras at East Hills Middle School, Nitschmann Middle School, and Northeast Middle School,” according to the district website.
The combined committee meeting will be held first, followed by the special board meeting. The first meeting starts at 6 p.m. on Aug. 10, Monday, at the Education Center, 1516 Sycamore St., Bethlehem.
** Editor’s note: About 40 years ago a parent who knowingly sent their child to the Bethlehem Area School District but did not live in the district sought my help, as a reporter, when the BASD went after them. I told this person there was nothing I could do. This was not even an honest mistake, the parent did this and didn’t seek to pay tuition to the district.
Reporters report. That’s that.
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 
Allentown school board needs to get security camera for Allen, and Trexler ASAP
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What concerns me isn’t individual families or kids, it’s the inconsistency in how rules are applied. When some students are held strictly to district boundaries while others are quietly granted exceptions because of their parents’ positions or influence, it creates an uneven playing field for both academics and athletics.
Not confirmed, but there is a family that may be getting approval for their students to play sports at a high school outside their districted location. If this is happening, it sets a concerning precedent for private to public situations. If one family can choose a preferred school for athletics, then all students public or private should have the same opportunity to pick the high school they play for within the district.
It’s about asking for transparency and fairness so every student is held to the same expectations.
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What bothers me is someone using a bogus address (an in-law’s, for instance) to lie about residency so their child can go to a certain district. What a terrible example to set for a child, who usually tends to feel a bit entitled.
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we need school choice. If therecwas real competition among public school districts all schools would improve.
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