Students and staff return to renovated Frankford High School in Philadelphia after nearly 2 years
After nearly two years of being displaced due to asbestos contamination in the building, students and staff are finally returning to the historic building, now completely transformed following a $29.9 million renovation.
District officials, teachers and community members marked the milestone with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday, one week before the first day of school in the School District of Philadelphia.
The central section of the 108-year-old building was shut down in April 2023 after asbestos was discovered. The closure forced hundreds of students into virtual learning or relocation to nearby schools, including some who were sent to a local middle school.
Now, the building boasts brighter, cleaner and safer learning spaces.
"It looks so wildly different, it's unrecognizable from what it used to be," said English teacher Steven Gravelle. "The floors alone were a dark brown, and now they're this light, beautiful color. "
The renovations include:
Despite some asbestos still being present, district officials say it's safe. The asbestos that remains has been professionally contained and sealed with protective materials.
For Gravelle and others who taught through the disruption, returning to the updated building is emotional.
"It's a big relief to know, to see now all the work that they described that they've been doing for so long to encapsulate the walls in particular," he said.
Principal Michael J. Calderone called the return "surreal."
"It's been two and a half years since we left," Calderone said. "It was dark, the windows didn't open. It's so bright. The floors are redone, air conditioning. It's unbelievable," Calderone said.
Kaylanie Cabrera, who graduated from Frankford in 2023, now works at the school as a bilingual counseling assistant.
She remembers the shift to virtual learning during her senior year and says she's proud to be back.
"I think it's an exciting moment for Frankford High School. … Just seeing the whole building, it's different," she said. "I got shocked myself."
Teachers are already preparing classrooms for the return of students next Monday, the first day of classes for the 2025–2026 school year in Philadelphia.
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I made over a dozen Ina Garten pasta recipes and ranked them by deliciousness
Ina Garten has published many pasta recipes, and I've made 13 from her repertoire so far. Her mac and cheese is creamy and comforting, while her lemon pasta is ready in 10 minutes. Garten's easy and rich penne alla vodka takes my top spot. From a comforting mac and cheese to the quick pasta, pesto, and peas, you'll find a variety of pasta recipes spread across Ina Garten's 13 cookbooks and her Barefoot Contessa site. I started cooking Garten's recipes after I spent a day following her quarantine routine in May 2020. At the height of the pandemic, I often turned to her pastas for simple but comforting dinners. I've now made over a dozen of Garten's pasta dishes. Some are vegetarian and take almost no prep, while others are loaded with meat or cheese. Here's how they all stack up. In 13th place is Garten's broccoli and bow ties pasta. Garten's broccoli and bow ties recipe was the first Barefoot Contessa pasta I ever made. 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Garten says her three-ingredient lemon pasta is "just about the fastest weeknight pasta meal you can make," and she's not wrong. The recipe consists of just pasta, unsalted butter, and the juice and zest of two lemons. Better yet? You'll have dinner on the table in 10 minutes or less. Garten's lemon pasta has a lovely, bright flavor, but it doesn't stand out enough to be the main course. There's not much depth of flavor in Garten's three-ingredient pasta. I whipped up her dish for a dinner party, and my friends agreed that it worked better as a side. "The pasta had me mad at myself for every time I've bought a $20 pasta limon from a restaurant when it's so simple to make," my friend Tyler said. "But if we were just having the pasta on its own, I would have been a little disappointed because it wasn't anything too special." I would serve Garten's lemon pasta alongside her incredible "outrageous" garlic bread, which goes well with just about everything, and would give this meal some more flavor and heft. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's three-ingredient lemon pasta here. Garten's spring green spaghetti carbonara takes the 11th spot. As with all the recipes in her "Modern Comfort Food" cookbook, Garten wanted to give a traditional dish — in this case, spaghetti carbonara — a modern twist. Garten's carbonara comes packed with green veggies, including asparagus, scallions, and two types of peas. Garten's spring carbonara is deliciously light and creamy. I was pleasantly surprised by this pasta, which I think is perfect for spring or summer. The carbonara sauce is creamy without being too heavy, and it's balanced perfectly with the fresh flavors from all the veggies. The pancetta also adds a nice crunch and savoriness to the pasta — I only wish there had been more! I served the dish to my parents, who both loved it. My dad called it "light and lemony," while my mom thought it'd be ideal for a barbecue. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's spring green spaghetti carbonara here. In 10th place is Garten's comforting baked rigatoni with lamb ragù. Garten's baked rigatoni with lamb ragù is also from her cookbook "Modern Comfort Food." It's one of Garten's more complex pasta dishes. The recipe is packed with a long list of ingredients — including two types of cheese, red wine, and plenty of veggies — and takes almost two hours to make. Garten's baked rigatoni with lamb ragù is super delicious — but it's a lot of work. The rich sauce has that comforting, traditional Italian taste thanks to the carrots and other vegetables, and the rigatoni noodles are perfect for capturing a nice helping of ragù with every bite. I made this dish for friends who thought the pasta was worth the wait. 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On a 2017 episode of "Barefoot Contessa," Garten said this rigatoni with sausage and fennel was one of her "all-time go-to dinners." "You can make the whole thing in one big pot, bring it to the table, and everyone loves it," Garten told her viewers. Garten's recipe is packed with exciting ingredients. In addition to sausage and fennel, the pasta features dry white wine, heavy cream, parsley, tomato paste, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Garten's sausage rigatoni looks beautiful, and it's perfect for cheese lovers. Garten's rigatoni with sausage and fennel has a gorgeous golden color, and there's a richness to it that I didn't expect. The rigatoni noodle perfectly captures the delicious meaty sauce, and I thought the sweetness of the sausage helped balance the saltiness of the Parmesan. While I think this pasta is perfect for cheese lovers, it may be too rich for some. I'd recommend using a quarter cup of Parmesan and tasting the sauce before adding more. But I love that Garten's rigatoni is a one-pot dinner, and I think it's perfect for cold days when you need something super comforting. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's rigatoni with sausage and fennel here. In eighth place is Garten's "grown-up" mac and cheese. Garten makes her "grown-up" mac and cheese in an early episode of "Barefoot Contessa," calling it a "cozy and comforting dinner for Jeffrey and me." "When it comes to comfort food, I'd say mac and cheese is pretty high on everybody's list," Garten says at the beginning of the episode. She's not wrong! Garten gives the classic dish her "grown-up" twist by adding blue cheese, thick-sliced bacon, freshly chopped basil, and homemade croutons. Garten's "grown-up" mac and cheese is packed with delicious flavors. The velvety cheese sauce, smoky bacon, and satisfying tang of blue cheese make Garten's "grown-up" mac and cheese comforting yet unexpected. It's sure to be a crowd-pleaser on any dinner party or holiday menu. 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The dish also stole the show at my Friendsgiving (as did Garten's incredible corn bread). The breadcrumbs gave each bite a nice crunch, and the sauce was creamy and decadent without overpowering the pasta. And since you can make it a day or two ahead, Garten's overnight mac and cheese is perfect for a dinner party where you'll be juggling quite a few things — or a quick but easy dish to delight everyone at a potluck. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's overnight mac and cheese here. Garten's favorite weeknight pasta rounds out the top five. Garten shared the recipe for her favorite weeknight pasta in her cookbook, "Go-To Dinners," which was released in October 2022. "Everyone needs a few quick pasta dinners in their repertoire, and this one is really adaptable," she writes in the recipe description. "It's wonderful as is, but you could also serve it with veal meatballs one night and with a big dollop of ricotta the next. The pancetta and red wine give it fantastic flavor." The dish features spaghettoni or bucatini, San Marzano tomatoes, and freshly grated Italian pecorino cheese. Garten's weeknight pasta reminded me of one of my favorite Italian restaurants in New York City. There's a rustic charm to Garten's weeknight pasta that took me right back to Cotenna, one of my favorite Italian restaurants in New York City. I loved how the rich pancetta paired with the earthy basil and Chianti. The dish also had a subtle sweetness from the San Marzano tomatoes that delighted my taste buds. The red pepper flakes gave each bite a nice kick, and the pasta looked lovely on the plate. Overall, I was surprised by how elevated Garten's dish tasted despite minimal prep and effort. I'll definitely make this pasta again. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's favorite weeknight pasta here. Garten's summer garden pasta takes the fourth spot. Garten's summer garden pasta is one of her simplest, yet it has some of the richest flavors of any that I've tried. While the "Barefoot Contessa" star's dish only has five main ingredients — angel hair, Parmesan cheese, cherry tomatoes, garlic, and basil — it has one very important step. You need to soak the tomatoes, garlic, and basil in olive oil for four hours. That extra prep resulted in some of the most incredible tomatoes I've ever tasted. I could honestly eat Garten's olive oil tomatoes as a snack every day. Even though I usually love heavy red-sauce pastas, these tomatoes carried the entire dish on the strength of their intense and rich flavor. You also can't beat how pantry-friendly this dish is. I almost always have tomatoes and basil in my kitchen, making Garten's summer garden pasta an easy dinner staple. This is one Barefoot Contessa dish I know I'll be returning to repeatedly. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's summer garden pasta here. Making the top three is Garten's creamy (and dreamy) five-cheese penne. I first made Garten's five-cheese penne when temperatures started to dip and discovered it was the perfect fall or winter dish. Garten's pasta includes pecorino Romano, Italian fontina, Italian Gorgonzola, fresh mozzarella, and ricotta cheese, along with penne pasta, crushed tomatoes, basil, and heavy cream. Garten's five-cheese penne is incredibly comforting. The penne turns into a beautiful golden color after baking it in the oven for 17 minutes, and there are inviting chunks of mozzarella poking out from the top. I initially expected five different cheeses, plus all that butter and cream, to be too heavy. But Garten's penne strikes the perfect balance of being rich and soothing without being overwhelming. I can't wait to make this dish the next time I need a comforting meal again. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's five-cheese penne here. My second favorite pasta dish is Garten's weeknight Bolognese. The weeknight Bolognese is another recipe that Garten shared on Instagram. She told her fans that the dish can be made with a variety of meats or veggies, making it especially pantry-friendly. Plus, the rich and flavorful dish — which includes ground sirloin, orecchiette, and dry red wine — will only have you in the kitchen for 30 minutes. Garten's weeknight Bolognese is a quick and delicious twist on a classic recipe. The weeknight Bolognese has the comfort of Garten's five-cheese penne and the richness of her baked rigatoni, but with far less work in the kitchen. It's a modern twist on a classic, and Garten's little tweaks all work perfectly together. The orecchiette shells catch some of the sauce in every bite, and the freshly grated Parmesan cheese melts beautifully into Garten's warm sauce. Garten's recipe has so much flavor, but it's also far less heavy than some of her other pastas on this list. I'd happily make the weeknight Bolognese on any night of any season. Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's easy weeknight Bolognese here. 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Fast Company
17 minutes ago
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Don't miss the rare black moon rising August 22—it will be years until the next one. Here's why it'll help you see the Milky Way
It's safe to assume you've heard the term once in a blue moon, which refers to the rare occurrence when there is a second full moon in a calendar month. But you might not have heard the term 'black moon.' However, on Saturday, August 23 at precisely 2:06 a.m. EDT, a black moon is taking place. Although it sounds like something out of a dystopian novel, it's not that ominous. Let's take a deeper look at what this all means. What is a black moon? Much like great artists like Picasso, the moon goes through phases. The moon's version is cyclical, lasting around 29.5 days. A full moon occurs when Earth is between the sun and moon, and the side of the moon facing Earth is lit up by the sun. A new moon is the exact opposite of a full moon. It occurs when the orb is between Earth and the sun, however, the side facing Earth is shadowed and dark, making the phenomenon invisible to the stargazer. Similar to a blue moon, if two new moons occur in the same month, the second is considered a black moon. Are there variations of a black moon? There are actually two types of black moons. The second type of black moon is based on seasons. It is the moniker given to a third new moon in a season of four new moons which is what is happening this weekend. For those in the North Hemisphere summer began on June 21 so new moons took place on June 25 and July 24 making August 23 the third in the line up. The fourth will take place on September 21 which is just a day before the equinox signaling the beginning of fall. How often does a black moon happen? Seasonal black moons only happen about once every 33 months according to Time and Date. What does this have to do with the Milky Way? To some degree our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is always visible in the night sky. During the summer months, the center of this massive grouping of stars, planets, and dark matter rises higher making it more visible to the naked eye. A black moon sky is the perfect time to attempt to see the Milky Way because the night is even darker than normal. So although you cannot see a black moon per se, it might just benefit your Milky Way viewing.
