Latest news with #Allegheny
CBS News
07-05-2025
- CBS News
14 charged after authorities disband Western Pennsylvania drug trafficking operation
More than a dozen people are facing charges after authorities said they disbanded a multi-county drug trafficking operation in Western Pennsylvania. Thirty-four-year-old Korrtezz Martin of Beaver County and 13 other accomplices are accused of trafficking pressed fentanyl pills and cocaine in Beaver, Allegheny and Washington counties, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General announced on Tuesday. Prosecutors said Martin employed a network of "runners," all of whom were operating as upper-level dealers in the region. "Our Bureau of Narcotics Investigation worked diligently to identify the leader of this criminal enterprise and his conspirators, which resulted in charges that put a stop to this network of fentanyl dealers," Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said in a news release. "Drug traffickers push poisons into our communities without a care for the lives put at risk. My office will continue to vigorously prosecute traffickers who value dollars over human lives." The charges come after the recommendation by the 51st Statewide Investigating Grand Jury. Martin, who has been arrested, is facing a slew of charges, including possession with intent to distribute, criminal conspiracy, corrupt organizations and illegal firearms possession. He's being held on $500,000 bail. As of Tuesday, ten of the 14 people charged had been taken into custody. Multiple agencies, including Pennsylvania State Police, the Beaver County District Attorney's Office and the Beaver County Drug Task Force helped with the arrests.
Technical.ly
07-05-2025
- Business
- Technical.ly
Pittsburgh is one of the country's top robotics hubs. Is Nebraska next?
This collaboratively reported story is part of the partnership between and Silicon Prairie News, which focuses reporting on the Omaha and Nebraska innovation ecosystem. Find more at Both Omaha and Pittsburgh are using federal Build Back Better funding to tackle shared challenges like workforce shortages and slow regional growth by focusing on robotics and automation to strengthen their economies. Nebraska's Heartland Robotics Cluster and the New Economy Collaborative of Southwestern Pennsylvania are using similar strategies — investing in education, established companies and startup support — tailored to their regional strengths in agriculture and manufacturing, respectively. Collaborative efforts across government, education and private sectors are key to the success of these regional strategies, highlighting the importance of coalition-based approaches to scaling robotics and economic resilience. Omaha and Pittsburgh, despite being 1,000 miles apart and having different economic engines, are facing many of the same challenges, including workforce shortages and slowing regional growth. Each region received federal Build Back Better funding from the Biden administration to turn that around. The grants provide 'an opportunity to introduce changes and inject new opportunities into systems, programs and organizations,' said Benjamin Pratt, senior VP of business investment at the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. Both regions are taking a similar approach, even though Nebraska's industry prowess is in agriculture versus Pittsburgh's strength in manufacturing. The Nebraska Heartland Robotics Cluster and Southwestern Pennsylvania's New Economy Collaborative focus on three main routes to improving automation efforts: education, infrastructure and startup support. Three years in, each region is ready to share what it's learned so far, from helping launch new companies to strengthening decades-old firms. Labor shortages and talent gaps inspire regions to lean into robotics Nebraska's robotics strategy gained national traction in 2022 when the US Department of Commerce awarded $25 million to support the development of the Heartland Robotics Cluster. The grant was part of the Build Back Better Regional Challenge, a federal initiative designed to boost innovation and economic recovery in underserved areas. The funding provided an opportunity for Nebraska to formalize and expand an emerging robotics ecosystem centered on agriculture and manufacturing. 'We were already doing some things around agtech,' said Invest Nebraska CEO Dan Hoffman, a key figure in shaping the state's robotics initiative. 'And what we were starting to see was the first few companies … were tech, but they [were] all robotics companies.' Hoffman pointed to Birds Eye, which was developing a robotics solution for labor challenges in poultry barns and Grain Weevil, which focused on grain bin safety. Virtual Incision was working on surgical robotics and Capstone Technologies was building robotic solutions for the mail industry. 'It was the 'aha moment' that we had,' said Hoffman. 'Wow, there's a lot going on around automation and robotics.' While these companies were working in different sectors, the thread connecting them was their use of robotics to address labor shortages and workforce gaps. 'Robotics is going to be a big, big issue for the world going forward,' said Hoffman. Hoffman believes that if Nebraska doesn't invest in developing robotics locally, it risks falling behind. 'Do we want to be the ones to develop those solutions here in Nebraska?' he said. 'Because otherwise we're just going to be adopting somebody else's solutions that have been developed in another state or another country.' He sees Nebraska's strength in knowing its workforce challenges. 'Let's start developing [solutions] in the state,' he said. For Pittsburgh, the grants built on its manufacturing roots and strong robotics presence. From 2017 to 2022, corporate investors and VCs have invested $4.3 billion into robotics companies, plus about $163 million from the federal government between 2015 and 2020. Like Nebraska, Pittsburgh knew its challenges already — largely workforce related — and used the $62.7 million poured into the region from the Build Back Better regional challenge to face them directly. The New Economy Collaborative of Southwestern PA (NEC) targets 11 counties in the region, reaching beyond just Allegheny, with the goal of future-proofing the manufacturing and robotics industry by upskilling locals in automation and other emerging skills to build a sustainable workforce pipeline. 'We saw a really great chance to marry what's happening with our technologists and roboticists with the manufacturers who are looking for a path forward,' said Stefani Pashman, CEO of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the co-chair of the collaborative, 'to try to understand how they adopt and adapt and how they can train a workforce for the future.' More than 90 organizations came together across five NEC projects, led by some of the most influential stakeholders in the region: Catalyst Connection, the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Institute, Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, Innovation Works and InnovatePGH. Reaching across the region to get those stakeholders together is what has made the project successful so far, according to Pratt. 'While dramatic change and progress [have] been made to date, don't forget that major changes and results will take time to be fully realized,' Pratt said, 'and have faith on core intent of the coalition-based efforts; the work is strong as long as the coalition remains strong.' Partnerships with local schools are the beginning of the pipeline For both NEC and the Heartland Robotics Cluster, progress toward a resilient economy in their respective sectors starts with training the workforce. 'With 17 new workforce training programs ranging from pre-apprenticeships to master's degree programming,' Pratt said, 'we view the role of building a robust talent pipeline to support the growth of automation and the robotics and deep tech economy of Greater Pittsburgh as foundational.' While working with big local names like Carnegie Mellon University, NEC's five projects also target smaller colleges in the region. It operates programs at Westmoreland County Community College, Butler County Community College and Robert Morris University. The efforts range widely, often with the goal of helping communities historically excluded from manufacturing break into the field, like Katie Lynn, who says she's still the only woman in many of her classes but nonetheless still excelling in the field. Other schools offer tuition at a fraction of the price, provide free, hands-on training that results in real jobs or even pay students for their time while they learn new skills. At the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL), the College of Engineering is expanding its robotics curriculum and constructing new research and development lab space for hands-on research and prototyping. The Nebraska Innovation Studio, located at the Nebraska Innovation Campus, is expanding its robotics makerspace to accommodate advanced equipment and increase public access. Northeast Community College is utilizing part of the grant to establish an automation fabrication lab that will serve both students and manufacturers. Metropolitan Community College is introducing robotics training and outreach in urban agriculture, with a focus on serving underrepresented communities. According to a 2024 impact report published by the cluster, over 2,000 students have participated in robotics-related programs at partner institutions, including UNL, Metropolitan Community College and Northeast Community College. New facilities and labs are either completed or under construction, providing students and companies with access to the types of resources typically found in larger innovation hubs. At Nebraska Innovation Studio, expanded robotics tools and prototyping stations have already begun drawing in new users and collaborators from across the state. A strong workforce and cohort of founders with new ideas All together, the educational efforts build a pipeline that feeds directly into supporting local companies to find workers who can support their automation efforts. Decades-old Penna Flame in Pittsburgh, for example, used its NEC support to reduce manual labor and, therefore, cut back on workplace injuries. 'Access to this talent pipeline continues to be a top priority across all segments,' Pratt said. Similarly, in Nebraska, the Manufacturing Extension Partnership will lead efforts to introduce automation and robotics to small- and mid-sized manufacturers across the state. Both regions have strong startup support, too. The Combine, a startup support program led by Invest Nebraska, will increase its technical assistance for agtech startups deploying robotic solutions in fields and food systems. Startups supported by the Combine are progressing through early-stage development, with several agtech robotics ventures now piloting their technologies in real-world environments. These include tools for grain bin safety, poultry barn automation and feed monitoring — each designed to solve persistent labor challenges in agriculture. New ventures with NEC support in Pittsburgh include a new approach to vinyl record manufacturing, a safer way to transport luggage at the airport and turning plastic waste into useful infrastructure. Beyond startups, the efforts have helped bridge gaps between sectors, creating stronger connections among universities, community colleges, private companies and economic development agencies — an essential part of keeping the regions competitive in a national race toward automation, the Heartland Robotics Cluster said. No one group can do it alone Both Nebraska and Southwestern Pennsylvania are using federal investment to build long-term capacity in robotics, targeting gaps in labor, training and commercialization. In Nebraska, the focus is on supporting agtech and manufacturing sectors through applied research, workforce development and startup assistance. In Pennsylvania, the emphasis is on accelerating advanced robotics through partnerships with universities and industry. For other ecosystems considering similar initiatives, the programs highlight the importance of coordination across education, government and private sectors to meet workforce and technology goals. As more regions look to reap the economic benefits of automation, NEC and the Heartland Robotics Cluster show it'll take a wide swath of partners to get there. While there is still overlap on how to uplift the ecosystem as a whole, understanding and addressing the differences build the next generation of robotics and automation, according to Pratt. 'Many hands … have played a role [in] making Greater Pittsburgh the destination to build and scale and robust robotics and technology,' Pratt said, 'while derisking adoption of these next generation technologies that advance our other core industry clusters.
CBS News
06-05-2025
- CBS News
Woman recovering after being shot in Rankin
Allegheny County police are looking for whoever shot a woman as she got out of her car in Rankin early Tuesday morning. She's in the hospital recovering. "This is sad, devastating, of course," said Rankin Council President Glenn Ford. Ford was a few blocks down on Fourth Avenue when he got an unexpected call from one of his cousins at 1 a.m. that his aunt had been shot. "She was in her car, and a gunman walked up and started shooting at the car," Ford said. "She got shot all over." Without providing her name, Councilman Ford said his aunt was coming from out of town and had finished parking. She was getting ready to come inside when she was shot at multiple times. He immediately went to take care of the children. "I was with them all night," Ford added. "Very sad, very shocked, traumatic, trauma." Allegheny County police say the suspect fled the scene after the shooting. Without explaining why, Ford believes this is an isolated incident, and he thinks the suspect is a man. "I don't think anyone is nervous or fearful, this is a safe community, but it is a very uneasy feeling that someone too willing to just come up on her car and shoot it is just out." The councilman said his aunt was brought to UPMC Mercy. He said that while she was shot multiple times, she's doing a lot better. "She's a fighter."
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Lafayette exhibit explores French general's visit to Allegheny College
Chris Anderson was leafing through various books in Allegheny College's archival collection when he came across a long 'lost' artifact. 'I was planning an event and I was looking randomly through some of our old books, and I pulled this out and I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, this is the missing Allegheny guest book from 1825 that Lafayette signed,' said Anderson, the archives and special collections librarian at the college's Pelletier Library. The book contains the signature of General Marquis de Lafayette, a French general in the Revolutionary War, who spoke on the steps of a partially completed Bentley Hall 200 years ago on June 2, 1825. For Anderson, who recently began his position at Allegheny and found the book just a handful of months in, it was the discovery of a lifetime. 'We thought the school had sold it possibly or someone had taken it. We had a photocopy of it from a long time ago, and here it is — the original. I thought, 'Wow, I should just go home now, I'm having a good day,'' he joked. Now, it's on display as part of the 'Lafayette at Allegheny' exhibit, which runs now until May 2 on the third floor of the library. On Tuesday, Anderson will host a talk from 4 to 5 p.m. at the exhibit, which is open to the public. The exhibit showcases several original artifacts, including the guest book, a silver tea set that Lafayette would've drank from, various portraits, commemorative gloves from the 1825 visit and more. The artifacts are from the Crawford County Historical Society, Erie's Hagen History Center and Allegheny College alumnus Bill Owens. A tale of two Washingtons Lafayette was at the ripe age of 19 — like that of an Allegheny College student — when he decided to join the American fight for freedom against Britain. He was a Frenchman from a noble class, so it took some deception and innovation to get to America. It was there he met George Washington who he would grow incredibly close with and name his son after. Lafayette fought as a major general in the war and played a large role in America's independence. Afterward, he returned to France to fight in its revolution for independence. But 50 years after the American Revolution, President James Monroe invited Lafayette, then the only surviving major general of the Continental Army, to tour the nation. Lafayette was considered an official 'Guest of the Nation' and toured 24 states beginning in 1824. When he returned to Pennsylvania, the place he met Washington, he was 67, almost as if an alumnus visiting his old stomping grounds, and he had his son George Washington Lafayette with him. Lafayette traced the steps of the original Washington, who took the same route from Pittsburgh to Fort LeBoeuf in Waterford in 1753. 'In 1753, George Washington, as a young military officer, was sent up through this area to deliver letters to the French saying basically the 1750's equivalent of 'get off our lawn' by the British,' explained Crawford County Historical Society Director Josh Sherretts. 'Washington's journal of this area is a big part of what influenced David Mead to choose here to settle.' Anderson said it's unknown exactly what Lafayette said on the steps of Bentley Hall, but there are some clues. 'What little we know about the speech he gave at Bentley Hall was just a bit that I read from a report where he's at Bentley Hall, he gives this talk, then they have him look down the hill toward French Creek to say, 'This is where Washington walked on his early visits through what is now Meadville,'' Anderson said. At that point, Allegheny College was likely a not-quite-finished Bentley Hall and some outhouse facilities. It's unknown how much time he spent on campus, but he spent part of one day in Meadville, so it's estimated that he didn't stay long. In Meadville, Colonel John Bliss led Lafayette to Gibson's Tavern followed by a tea reception at Samuel Torbett's Sign of the Stag. 'When Lafayette came through Meadville, he was thrown a tea reception lunch when he first got here at a tavern owned by Samuel Torbett called Sign of the Stag,' Sherretts said. 'And we have the silver tea service that was purchased in 1820 and was the main service in the dining room of Sign of the Stag at the time that Lafayette came here in 1825.' In addition to the tea set on display, there is a pair of gloves thought to be memorabilia for the tour, as well as Torbett's liquor license. Tressa Snyder, dean of the library, said the gloves reflect the period and help visitors conceptualize what it was like back then. 'There was no social media back then. There were no phones. There was a whole different way to advertise,' she said. 'So I think students can imagine, 'how did he actually do this stuff without all the things we have now?'' A series of panels from a traveling Lafayette exhibit provides information and context to the artifacts and Lafayette's life. 'It's just enough I think to not overwhelm you with information,' Anderson said. The 'spirit of 1776' When Lafayette was invited back to celebrate 50 years of freedom, Monroe hoped Lafayette would inspire the 'spirit of 1776' in American citizens. 'After the American Revolution, we, as a country, invited him to come back and travel the whole country, and there were parades, and there were banquets and all kinds of things, and you can see how excited we were about our history,' Sherretts said. 'I mean, it was a huge deal that the United States was an independent nation for the first time.' The spirit Monroe referred to is evident in the exhibit at Allegheny. 'What I think is valuable about this exhibit is yes, it exhibits his military life, but it also then talks about his interest and work with anti-slavery and enslaved persons and how he was involved in Europe as far as trying to help with the eradication of slavery,' Anderson added. The exhibit includes information about a slave that Lafayette worked closely with and then helped to free after the war ended. His passion for human rights is a lesson that all those involved hope visitors learn. 'I think there's very much a spirit of 'we do what needs to be done to help others that need it the most.' For all intents and purposes, Lafayette was living in France, which had its own set of revolutionary activities … and he chose to come over here,' Sherretts said. 'He did so because, in his mind, those ideals were worth not just fighting for, but there were people who needed help, and he had a set of skills that he could help a group in need to do a thing that needed done. And I think that's something that on an every daily basis, all of us could do a bit more.' Although the exhibit at Allegheny College is tailored to the college and Meadville, there will be another chance to learn about Lafayette's regional impact later in May when the artifacts make their way to the Baldwin-Reynolds House Museum. The Crawford County Historical Society, in partnership with the college, will host a free presentation May 31 in Ford Chapel on campus featuring alumnus Richard Arthur speaking about Lafayette. Then, on June 1, there will be a more in-depth look into Lafayette over a luncheon and tea service featuring a period menu. 'Without some of that history, we don't really understand where we come from,' Sherretts said. 'In an era where we're trying to make sure that we have the context of what's in the news and the context of how we got here, it's a crucial thing to remember or to be reminded of the steps that we, as a people, have taken to get to this point.' Continuing, he talked about how these events highlight the spirit of unity rather than division: 'We can look at some of these pieces of history that we had a common set of problems that we all had to put our thinking caps on and work together to make a nation.' YOU CAN GO From 4 to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Chris Anderson will host a talk and showcase on the 'Lafayette at Allegheny' exhibit on the third floor of the college's Pelletier Library, 555 N. Main St. The exhibit will be open to the public and on display until May 2.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Allegheny College ALIC @ Bessemer achieves accreditation as a branch campus
Allegheny College announced Tuesday the accreditation of its Allegheny Lab for Innovation and Creativity (ALIC) branch campus by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. Located with the Economic Progress Alliance of Crawford County on Bessemer Street, ALIC @ Bessemer solidifies Allegheny's commitment to leveraging liberal arts education in workforce development and advanced manufacturing, college officials said in an email announcing the accreditation. Officials said ALIC @ Bessemer integrates traditional liberal arts education focused on the development of critical thinking, problem-solving and interdisciplinary learning with practical workforce training in high-demand sectors for adult learners. 'The accreditation of ALIC @ Bessemer is a claim on the future of higher education and its role in strengthening communities,' said Allegheny President Ron Cole. For more than 200 years, Allegheny has been a leader in developing innovative educational models, officials said. ALIC @ Bessemer expands opportunities for workforce-focused education for nontraditional students in northwestern Pennsylvania and also creates new avenues for collaboration between the college's faculty, staff, students and the broader community. 'This initiative also allows our traditional students to engage with hands-on, industry-driven learning experiences while reinforcing the value of liberal arts education in an evolving job market,' Cole explains. 'By embracing workforce development and manufacturing education, we are building a stronger regional economy and ensuring that Allegheny College is relevant and accessible to a diverse range of learners.' ALIC @ Bessemer already has made significant strides in this direction, piloting industry-relevant training in software programs like Mastercam and Solidworks; developing hands-on coursework in Additive Manufacturing; and designing courses in close collaboration with regional manufacturing industry experts. Now as a branch campus of Allegheny, ALIC @ Bessemer is positioned to further expand its offerings by providing a unique blend of hands-on training and critical thinking. Future plans that support research and development will provide distinct opportunities for Allegheny students. From use-inspired research to marrying ideas with production, the facility will soon enable students to augment their studies in real-world applications, with the potential to work in innovative solutions with regional manufacturers. Due to a decline in the number of traditional college-aged students across the higher education industry — a phenomenon known as the 'demographic cliff' — many institutions have been forced to rethink their models of education. ALIC @ Bessemer positions Allegheny to thrive despite this shift by serving the professional development and adult education needs within the surrounding community. Its approach also demonstrates how colleges can successfully adapt by adding workforce-driven learning opportunities to more traditional offerings. The accreditation of ALIC @ Bessemer is also a significant win for Crawford County and the state, according to officials. As a region with deep industrial roots and a growing need for skilled workers, the county stands to benefit from ALIC's role in helping to prepare the next generation of workforce-ready professionals. ALIC @ Bessemer will fuel economic development by strengthening the local job market and attracting new business investment, officials said. 'This is a game-changer for our region,' said Elisabeth Smith, CEO of Acutec Precision Aerospace. 'Having an accredited branch campus of a top-ranked national college in Meadville, focused on advanced manufacturing, provides students and workers with valuable opportunities for education and career advancement. It also signals to the manufacturing industry that rural Pennsylvania is dedicated to equipping its workforce with the skills needed to thrive in the global marketplace.' 'The launch of ALIC@Bessemer was made possible by building partnerships with local industry and importantly with the Economic Progress Alliance of Crawford County who serves an important role in this work,' Cole said. Allegheny will officially unveil ALIC @ Bessemer to the public during a two-day celebration starting April 24 with a ribbon-cutting, facility tour and featured speakers, followed by an open house and additional happenings April 25.
