The TribLIVE Education Team is starting a new video series called Inside the Classroom. We’re going to show readers what students are learning and how they’re learning it, highlighting innovative programs and teaching methods along the way. Is there an exciting program happening in a classroom near you? An outstanding teacher doing something extraordinary to help students learn? Changes to curriculum or teaching that parents might want to see in action? Let us know when we can visit. Reach us at schooltips@tribweb.com or 724-850-2867. HAPPENING NOW: Community College of Beaver County and Shell Oil Company are hosting events Thursday to educate area residents about opportunities in Beaver County, including the thousands of jobs the new ethane cracker plant is expected to provide. TribLIVE Reporter Natasha Lindstrom is covering the day’s first event, a conference for current and former military members interested in working at the Shell Pennsylvania Chemicals Project. Story coming later today. A career expo is open to the public this evening at 6 p.m. Shell Pennsylvania Chemicals: building/Construction Trades and Manufacturing Career Expo Open to the public, 6 p.m. in the CCBC Dome. CCBC Center Township Campus, 1 Campus Drive, Monaca, PA Now, five things to know about education this week. 1. TO MERGE, OR NOT TO MERGE: Residents of the Leechburg Area School District, which serves students in both Westmoreland and Armstrong Counties, want the district to revisit a 50 year-old district consolidation plan. Residents argued that the district should not take out a bond issue — $7.7 million, approved last month — to maintain what one resident called a “dying school district.” Leechburg serves 749 students in grades K-12. Meanwhile, an architectural firm will study the growing student population at the West Jefferson Hills School District in Allegheny County to determine what new facilities are needed. A demographic study of the district showed that the student population is growing at the preschool and elementary school levels, possibly because of several housing developments being constructed in Jefferson Hills. The Franklin Regional School District in Westmoreland County conducted a similar study earlier this year. A demographer predicted that the district’s drop in students will start to reverse in 2025. The Norwin School District experienced a growth in enrollment this year and is one of a few districts in Westmoreland County to maintain steady enrollment over the last 10 years. 2. THREATS OF VIOLENCE: The Bethel Park School District canceled classes Thursday because of threats against several schools circulating on social media. The district of about 4,200 students in Pittsburgh’s South Hills has one high school, five elementary schools and two middle schools. Classes will resume Friday. The district is one of at least five area school districts to investigate threats so far this school year. School has been in session for about seven weeks. 3. SCHOOL BOARD UPDATES: The Gateway School District is one step closer to securing 18 Tasers for the district’s police force. The Tasers are valued at nearly $20,000 and will be donated by the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office. A Hempfield Area School District principal charged with theft earlier this year was granted sabbatical leave through June by the district school board this week. He will receive half of his salary plus benefits, per Pennsylvania school code. 4. LIGHT BOARD DONATION: Students with special needs at the Penn Hills School District now have access to a new piece of equipment — a giant light board — as part of the school’s sensory space, an area with equipment designed to help students focus. The school’s sensory space also has a trampoline, swing and a desk with a sandbox. Students can go to the room when they need to calm down, the district’s occupational therapist said. Many of the school’s special needs students are sensitive to noise, light or visual distractions. Penn Hills Elementary has about 350 special needs students, and about 100 use the sensory space equipment. 5. DRUG EDUCATION: The Hempfield Area School District, along with the Westmoreland County Drug Overdose Task Force, will host a Community Drug Forum later this month. The event will focus on support and recovery, organizers said. More information is available here and on Facebook. Follow the Triblive Education Team on Twitter: •Emily Balser (Valley News Dispatch) •Debra Erdley (Greensburg) •Natasha Lindstrom (Pittsburgh) •Jamie Martines (Greensburg) Jamie Martines is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at jmartines@tribweb.com, 724-850-2867 or on Twitter @Jamie_Martines. Email Newsletters TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.