For four years of our lives – definitely some of the most formative years of our lives – high schools become our second homes. In addition to classes, we might spend additional time there for extracurricular activities. Then when we go home, we do additional work for school that essentially permeates into the rest of our lives. With so much time dedicated to school, we doubtless have an endless amount of stories and other memories, many of which are hopefully positive.

If we are ever forced to part ways with our childhood homes – whether due to moving, foreclosure or something more negative – we would feel like a part of us has been destroyed. We feel as if our identities are being stripped away, identities that soon exist as nothing more than memories.

I believe the case is the same in terms of how we view our school years. Now I am lucky enough to have gone to a high school, Archbishop Ryan, that will hopefully be immune to closure for a long time due to it being co-ed and its accessible location with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia – right on the edge of Northeast Philadelphia and almost right down the street from the suburbs.

Not everybody is so lucky. Take my parents, for instance. My father graduated from Northeast Catholic, which closed in June 2010. And the Archdiocese suggested at the beginning of the month that my mom’s alma mater, St. Hubert’s, be one of nearly 50 schools to close at the end of the school year. The future will be certain once the Archdiocese announces its official decision in mid-February. continue reading »

Dave Kralle at the November 2011 Parkwood Civic Association meeting. Photo/Shannon McDonald

If you go to your neighborhood civic association meeting, chances are you know Dave Kralle. Holme Circle, Bustleton, Parkwood – the residents there know the aide to Councilman Denny O’Brien by name. Before O’Brien’s election to Council, Kralle worked for him at the state level when O’Brien served the 169th Legislative District.

The rest of the city got to meet Kralle earlier this year during O’Brien’s campaign for Council-at-large. Average height, on the thin side and always in a suit and tie, Kralle is as recognizable to district constituents as O’Brien is. That’s likely to work to his advantage if Kralle enters a bid for the now-vacant 169th District seat.

“Denny wants me to run for his old seat in the House of Representatives,” Kralle announced at last night’s Holme Circle Civic Association. continue reading »

Archbishop Ryan Director of Admissions Pam McPeak discussds the school's shadow program with students Christopher Gatton (L) and freshman Julio Polanco (center) as the school prepared to take on displaced North and Dougherty students in 2010. Photo/Morgan Zalot.

UPDATE: It’s being widely reported that St. Hubert’s is among five archdiocesan high schools recommended for closure. The others are West Catholic, Archbishop Prendergast, Monsignor Bonner and Conwell-Egan.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia will hold a news conference this afternoon to discuss the future of Catholic education in and around Philadelphia. For many, it could mean saying goodbye to their schools.

At 4 p.m., the diocese will livestream the event, which is billed as an announcement of the findings of the Blue Ribbon Commission. continue reading »

Pennsylvania capitol building. Photo/Shannon McDonald

Former U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy received an endorsement Thursday for his state attorney general campaign from someone with a local tie.

Murphy, a Northeast native who attended Archbishop Ryan High School, now has the support of Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz, whose 13th Congressional District includes parts of the Northeast.

“I’ve worked with Patrick, and together we’ve fought for our constituents and for all Pennsylvanians,” Schwartz said in a release. continue reading »

Anthony Concha behind the wheel of the car he uses for rally races. Photo by Pamela Seaton.

For Anthony Concha, rally racing has always been in his blood.

“Growing up, my grandfather was really into racing,” Concha said. “He pretty much promoted it within his family.”

I recently read a story on NEast Philly about Sister Alice Hess, I.H.M., a teacher I had at Archbishop Ryan High School eight or so years ago, and it got me to thinking about my appreciation for the Catholic school system in the city — specifically the ones in the Northeast, with which I am most familiar.

Yes, many of the Catholic schools, especially high schools, in the Northeast have merged or closed over the past few years. However, if I had to do it again, I would have gone to the same schools I attended as a kid. continue reading »

Sister Alice Hess of Archbishop Ryan assists archdiocesan eighth grader teachers with their algebra lessons. Photos courtesy of Archbishop Ryan High School.

Summer is here and school is out.  The sights and sounds of summer are everywhere.  Not so for award-winning Archbishop Ryan High School math teacher Sister Alice Hess, I.H.M. and 53 eighth grade Archdiocesan mathematics teachers.

During the first two weeks of summer vacation, Hess instructed the teachers in the implementation of the Common Core Standards in Mathematics for the upcoming 2011- 2012 school year.  Teachers voluntarily signed up for the course to help them meet the challenge of teaching Algebra I to eighth grade students in the fall.

The workshop was presented twice during the month of June at Ryan.  The first session was June 20-22, and the second session was June 27-29. continue reading »

Last month, I began discussing a few obstacles to living away from home that lead to me missing the Northeast.

Honestly, when I sit down and think about them, the obstacles can occasionally seem overwhelming.

Therefore, I wanted to use another column to help lay them out.

Take a Walk

Although there are admittedly fewer trees, less grass and fewer parks in the Northeast – partially due to a denser population – than many parts of New Jersey with which I am familiar, one thing I have always liked about my hometown is that you can pretty much walk anywhere.

Of course, just like everywhere else, Northeast Philadelphia has its fair share of highways and high-traffic streets that are difficult to cross. However, just about every street has a sidewalk.

It may seem like a trivial point, but you would be surprised how few streets in northern New Jersey have sidewalks. Of course, most of these towns have sidewalks in and around their downtown areas. But, other than that, you’re pretty much forced to use another form of transportation other than your own two feet.

To make matters worse, many of these towns don’t have streetlights (other than the downtown area, of course). Don’t get me wrong; it’s probably great for residents to cut down on the light pollution. However, it makes it difficult and unsafe for people to attempt to walk in the sidewalk-less streets at night.

I saw it as a rite of passage back when I was in third or fourth grade to be allowed to trek a few blocks by myself to a friend’s house on a Saturday afternoon — an opportunity that would have been difficult to come by if there weren’t any sidewalks around. Additionally, not having sidewalks would have made it a little less safe as I walked to and from Archbishop Ryan High School as a teenager.

No Wawa

It’s funny how much Philadelphians rely on Wawa. But it’s terrifying how much you go into withdrawal when there isn’t one around.

Sure, there are 7-Elevens and Quick Cheks, but there is something about Wawa that makes it irreplaceable. Perhaps it’s the freshly made sandwiches. Perhaps it’s the lemonade iced tea.

The problem is the sheer lack of Wawas in northern New Jersey. The first one just opened a few miles away from my job, and I believe there are plans to open additional shops in the area.

For the time being, though, I guess I’ll just have to stick to making my own sandwiches and mixing together my own proportions of lemonade and iced tea.

Missing the Northeast is a column written by Stephen Wilson, a former Northeast resident who moved to New Jersey for work. You can read his column on the last Monday of every month.

An Archbishop Ryan High School freshman died yesterday afternoon after being struck by a vehicle on Academy Road. Timothy Connors, 15, was struck around 3:30 p.m. outside the school.

“Timothy was an engaging student who had come to us from Our Lady of Port Richmond School and was a proud member of the class of 2014,” said Michael McArdle, President of Archbishop Ryan said in a statement released by the school. continue reading »

As primary elections approach, NEast Philly will interview council-at-large candidates so readers can get to know the names they’ll see on the ballot.

Today we meet Joe McColgan. The St. Martha’s and Archbishop Ryan grad has traded his days in Walton Park for East Torresdale and his time at the Far Northeast Athletic Association for political involvement.

McColgan got involved in politics long before earning political science degrees from Villanova. What began with knocking on doors to hand out political literature at 9 years old has led to a run for council-at-large.

In between all that, he focuses on raising his tow young daughters in a Northeast different from the one he grew up in.

“Today, everything seems more homogenized, more controlled. I think sometimes there won’t be anything authentic or unique left in Philadelphia by the time my daughters are old enough to notice. When the children of today grow up in a mall, when everything is the same everywhere you go in whatever city or state, I think life kind of loses its meaning.  When you sacrifice that feeling of uniqueness, of tradition, of neighborhoods, for the need for comfort, I think you tend to lose a sense of memory, a sense of feeling.  It’s not just a certain time in one’s life; it is what a place is as well.  That is how you knew it.  Sometimes I believe we just might be in danger of losing those things we care about the most.”

NEast Philly: Why council-at-large and not a specific district? continue reading »