Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) has become aware of multiple attempts by fraudsters to obtain individuals’ personal and confidential information through fake Facebook pages and is reminding Pennsylvanians to never provide their information to anyone over social media.

“Unfortunately, the availability of new federal unemployment money is causing a surge in fraud attempts,” said L&I Acting Secretary Jennifer Berrier. “L&I does not communicate directly with individuals over social media, including Facebook.”

L&I operates a Facebook page under the name “PA Department of Labor & Industry” and handle “@PALaborIndustry.” Several similarly named pages have appeared over the past few days, and some scammers have posted on L&I’s legitimate page pretending to be L&I employees.

Important tips

• L&I’s Facebook page has a blue check box next to the name that identifies it as a verified page.
• Comments by the legitimate L&I page also have a blue check box next to them indicating it as a verified page. If a comment or page does not have this check box, it is a fraudster posing as L&I.
• L&I does not post responses directly to claimants, send private messages, or ask for a private message to be sent.
• L&I also will not ask individuals to call or text a phone number. The only phone numbers for unemployment are:
  • 1-888-313-7284 (for UC/PEUC/EB claimants)
  • 1-855-284-8545 (for PUA claimants)
• L&I will not ask for individuals to send an email. The only email addresses for unemployment are:
  • uchelp@pa.gov (for UC/PEUC/EB claimants)
  • ucpua@pa.gov (for PUA claimants)

L&I is working with its partners, including Facebook and law enforcement, to quickly identify and remove fraudulent pages. Individuals who encounter a suspicious page or post are asked to flag it for staff review.

For more information on identifying fraud, what to do if you believe you have been a victim of fraud, or how to report fraud, visit L&I’s website.

Southwestern PA Lawmakers to Wolf: Severance Tax Would Slow COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts, Jobs

 

HARRISBURG – A group of southwestern Pennsylvania lawmakers today issued a letter to Gov. Tom Wolf warning that his latest proposal to enact a severance tax on the natural gas industry would endanger critical pandemic recovery efforts and kill jobs.

The legislators cite the use of natural gas in COVID-19 vaccine production and distribution, as well as in the production of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other hospital equipment.

“The governor has made clear today that he still does not understand the supply chain and the key role the natural gas industry plays in pandemic recovery efforts. Taxing an industry that his administration deemed ‘essential’ and sending that money to be collected and distributed by Harrisburg bureaucrats is a surefire way to slow recovery efforts and threaten more people’s livelihoods,” the lawmakers said.

The letter was signed by Reps. Josh Kail (R-Beaver/Washington), Bud Cook (R-Washington/Fayette), Eric Davanzo (R-Westmoreland), George Dunbar (R-Westmoreland), Matthew Dowling (R-Fayette/Somerset), Carrie Lewis DelRosso (R-Allegheny/Westmoreland), Jim Marshall (R-Beaver/Butler), Rob Mercuri (R-Allegheny), Carl Metzgar (R-Somerset/Bedford), Natalie Mihalek (R-Allegheny/Washington), Lori Mizgorski (R-Allegheny), Eric Nelson (R-Westmoreland), Timothy O’Neal (R-Washington), Jason Ortitay (R-Washington/Allegheny), Michael Puskaric (R-Allegheny/Washington), Jim Rigby (R-Cambria/Somerset), Tommy Sankey (R-Clearfield/Cambria), Jason Silvis (R-Westmoreland/Armstrong/Indiana), James Struzzi (R-Indiana) and Ryan Warner (R-Fayette/Westmoreland).

 

PITTSBURGH, PA – West Penn Hospital, part of Allegheny Health Network, has named Jason Roeback, MHA, as its new Chief Operating Officer.

Roeback comes to West Penn from Erie’s Saint Vincent Hospital, where he had served as COO since 2017. In 2020, he assumed a dual role at AHN as COO of AHN Grove City.

Roeback joins recently appointed West Penn Hospital President Brian Johnson, MD as the hospital’s top leaders.

A respected health care executive with more than 20 years of experience in leading for-profit, non-profit, and academic healthcare institutions, Roeback came to AHN from Sharon Regional Health System, where he had served as President and Chief Executive Officer since 2015.

His previous roles include President of UPMC Northwest Hospital and President of UPMC Hamot’s employed physician network.

Before UPMC, Roeback was CEO of HMA Hernando Healthcare in Spring Hill, Fla., and CEO of HealthSouth locations in Florida and Arizona. He began his career as a fiscal and administrative officer at the United States Navy Medical Service Corps’ Naval Hospital Jacksonville, in Florida.

An Erie native, Roeback earned his master’s degree in health care administration from Penn State University and a bachelor’s degree in health care management from the University of Kentucky.

Located in Pittsburgh’s Bloomfield neighborhood, West Penn is AHN’s flagship hospital for women’s and infants’ care, and is well-known for many other advanced specialties, including orthopedics, autoimmune disease, neurosurgery, cancer care, bone marrow transplantation, burn care and bariatric surgery, among others. The first hospital in western Pennsylvania to earn three consecutive Magnet recognitions for nursing excellence, West Penn also has been named to the IBM Watson Top 100 Hospital list for two consecutive years, in 2019-2020 and 2020-2021.

Wolf Administration Awards $1.3 Million to Fund Research to Grow PA Agriculture Industry  

Harrisburg, PA – Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today announced grants totaling $1.287 million to eight organizations for research on issues critical to sustaining and growing Pennsylvania’s agriculture industry. Grant recipients include Pennsylvania State University, Temple University, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, American Mushroom Institute, Baarda Farms, Coexist Build, Pasa Sustainable Agriculture and Team Ag, Inc.

“Meeting the challenges of feeding a growing population amid rapid changes in climate, technology and animal and plant diseases demands investment in research and development,” said Redding. “These investments hold the promise and potential to spur the innovation we need to increase productivity; advance human and animal medicine; and support cleaner water, healthier soil and a safer food supply.”

The grants, awarded by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, focus on a broad range of research topics including detecting COVID-19 exposure in livestock, increasing farm productivity and profits, protecting pollinators, safely controlling Spotted Lanternfly and other invasive species and improving soil and water quality and sustainability through regenerative farming.

This funding supplements $900,000 in agricultural research support through the department’s budget to Rodale Institute, the Penn State University Center for Agricultural Law, Penn State Extension, and the Centers for Beef, Dairy, Poultry and Livestock Excellence.

Following is a list of 27 grantees, amounts awarded and project titles:

• American Mushroom Institute, Avondale, Chester Co. – $42,242 – Carbon Sequestration through Spent Mushroom Compost
• Baarda Farms, Mt. Bethel, Northampton Co. – $6,000 – Refrigeration to Expand Capacity for Fresh Food Access
• Coexist Build, Blandon, Berks Co. – $4,500 – Developing Marketing Strategy for Agritourism Highlighting Regenerative, Organic Farm Featuring Hemp-based Construction
• Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, Millheim, Centre Co. – $87,791 – Soil Health and Economic Benchmarks for Conservation and Climate Resiliency
• Pasa Sustainable Agriculture – $91,179 – Understanding Keys to Direct Market Success through Collaborative Financial Benchmarking
• Pasa Sustainable Agriculture – $79,533 – Linking Soil Health and Nutrient Density for Improved Specialty Crop Marketing
• Pennsylvania State University, State College, Centre Co. – $89,044 – Assessment of Farmers’ Adoption and Implementation of Conservation Plans: A Case of Pennsylvania
• Pennsylvania State University – $86,862 – Re-envisioning Multifunctional Buffers to Improve Water Quality, Profitability and Manage Risk
• Pennsylvania State University – $34,987 Pennsylvania State University – Establishing Pennsylvania’s First Digital Pollen Library
• Pennsylvania State University – $130,300 – Drug Delivery Systems Using Milk Proteins
• Pennsylvania State University – $87,999 – Protecting Bees from Fungicides Applied to Tree Fruits and from Insecticides Used to Control Spotted Lanternfly
• Pennsylvania State University – $104,236 – Impacts of Spotted Lanternfly Feeding on Tree Health
• Pennsylvania State University – $87,614 – Are bee pollinator populations declining in Pennsylvania?
• Pennsylvania State University – $60,291 – Spotted Lanternfly Monitoring Pole Traps; Saving Labor and Increasing Monitoring
• Pennsylvania State University – $9,906 – Spotting and Stopping Spotted Lanternfly in Vineyards: Economic Impact and Decision Management Tools
• Pennsylvania State University – $42,953 – Innovative LIPS Assay to Evaluate Exposure of Livestock to COVID-19
• Pennsylvania State University – $22,080 – Dynamics of the Respiratory Resistome in the Pre- and Postweaning Dairy Calf
• Pennsylvania State University – $11,870 – Improving Molecular Characterization of C. Perfringens and Correlating Strain Type with Histology
• Pennsylvania State University – $25,000 – Molecular Serotyping of Avibacterium Paragallinarum Using Next Generation Sequencing
• Pennsylvania State University – $28,800 – Establish a Metagenome-based Surveillance System to Determine Prevalence and Distribution of Commercial, Backyard and Wildlife Birds in PA
• Team Ag, Inc., Ephrata, Lancaster Co. – $60,000 – Connecting Capital with Pennsylvania Farmers using Regenerative Farming Practices to Draw Down Carbon
• Temple University, Philadelphia – $24,455 – Detection and Genotyping Method Targeting the Apicomplexa Mitochondrial Genome: Piroplasmida
• University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia – $25,000 – Targeted Next Generation Sequencing Panel for Equine Pathogen Detection
• University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine – $10,000 – Evaluation of Reproductive Efficiency on Pennsylvania Dairy Farms
• University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine – $9,348 – Novel Implementation of FARM on Dairy Farm: A Pilot Project
• University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine – $14,432 – Development of Sensitive Method for Analysis of Cannabinoids in Bovine Serum and Hemp Seed Samples
• University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine – $10,578 – Comparison of Different Management Strategies on Quality of Reclaimed Sand Used for Bedding

 Harrisburg, PA – Today, Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Dennis Davin and the Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority (BFTDA) announced that $2.5 million has been awarded on behalf of Magarac Ventures, LP, a Pittsburgh-based fund, which is being established to identify and ultimately invest in 15 to 20 early-stage technology companies with a focus on diversity and inclusion.

“BFTDA helps position Pennsylvania as a leader in the future of business and technology by investing today in tomorrow’s visionaries,” said Sec. Davin. “What’s more, by focusing efforts on early-stage technology companies with proactive outreach to minority businesses and entrepreneurs, Magarac Ventures will use its experience, knowledge, and intention to further cement Pennsylvania’s strong foothold in the technology sector.”

Magarac Ventures will deploy a multi-stage approach with initial investments expected to range from $500,000 to $5 million. The fund will focus on software, robotics, medical devices, and artificial intelligence, and will take a proactive approach to address diversity and inclusion. This will be accomplished by hiring an experienced minority investment partner, targeting at least 33 percent of fund capital into companies founded by individuals of diverse backgrounds, and requiring that each portfolio company agrees to interview at least one female and one minority candidate for each senior position.

Magarac will incorporate both “Seed” stage (approximately $1 million) and “Growth” (approximately $1 million) stage investments. The bulk of the portfolio, however, will emphasize Seed stage deals and it is anticipated that most of those deals will be based in western Pennsylvania.

The funding approved today reflects the agency’s desire to provide additional support to tech companies in Pennsylvania while reflecting the team’s experience and history of returning capital to investors.

Magarac Ventures, formerly operating under the name Draper Triangle Ventures, was founded in 1999 and established by successful Pittsburgh entrepreneur, Donald H. “Don” Jones.  Today the firm is led by his protégés Jay Katarincic, Mike Stubler, and Zach Malone, as well as former Pittsburgh Steeler Will Allen. The firm re-branded itself as Magarac Ventures, in honor of Joe Magarac, a fictional character associated with Pittsburgh’s leading role in the industrial revolution.

As one of the largest state technology development programs in the nation, the Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority was established to promote an entrepreneurial business environment, advance technology innovation, and create a technology-ready workforce.

The mission of the Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority (BFTDA) is to encourage and coordinate programs and investments, which advance the competitiveness of Pennsylvania companies and universities in the global economy.

For more information, visit the DCED website, and be sure to stay up-to-date with all of our agency news on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Pennsylvania Department of Education Seeks Sponsors for Summer Meals Nutrition Programs

Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Department of Education is asking organizations across the state to consider providing nutritious meals to youth during the summer months (June – September) through the United States Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program.

The Summer Food Service Program, which began in 1976, is a federally funded child nutrition program designed to serve youths ages 18 or younger in economically disadvantaged areas. Individuals over age 18 who are mentally or physically disabled and participate in public or nonprofit private programs established for the disabled are also eligible to receive free meals at the Summer Food Service Program sites. The program’s regulations allow participating organizations to be reimbursed for meals served to youth who live in areas in which at least 50 percent of the children qualify for free or reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program.

Due to the pandemic, the Summer Food Service Program was approved to operate beginning March of 2019 and continues to operate in off-summer times to ensure children across Pennsylvania have access to meals during COVID-19.

“The Summer Food Service Program removes barriers, so that children don’t have to worry about where their next meal is coming from,” Acting Secretary of Education Noe Ortega said. “I am grateful to food service staff and sponsors across Pennsylvania for their tireless work to ensure that children will continue to have access to nutritious meals in locations throughout their community – even during the time of year when schools are not fully in session.”

Approximately 250 organizations normally participate in the Summer Food Service Program, providing nutritious meals to children at over 2,200 locations across Pennsylvania during the summer season. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a greater need for more sites throughout the state.

Participating organizations must be year-round, not-for-profit entities – this may include schools; local, municipal, or county governments; libraries; places of worship; fire and police stations; summer camps; and national youth sports programs. Organizations approved to sponsor the Summer Food Service Program are responsible for managing the sites that provide meals to children.

Most participating organizations may be reimbursed for up to two meals a day: lunch or dinner, and breakfast or a snack. Those serving primarily migrant children may be reimbursed for up to three meals a day. Camps may serve up to three meals a day, but they are reimbursed only for meals served to children eligible for free or reduced-price meals.

The deadline to apply to become a participating organization is June 15, 2021. For more information, visit PDE’s website: www.education.pa.gov/sfsp or call 800-331-0129.

Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g. Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.), should contact the Agency (State or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.

For more information about Pennsylvania’s education policies and programs, please visit the Department of Education’s website at www.education.pa.gov or follow PDE on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

Department of Human Services Announces Updates to Employment and Training Programs for TANF Participants

Harrisburg, PA – Department of Human Services (DHS) Secretary Teresa Miller today outlined recent changes to the Employment, Advancement and Retention Network (EARN) and Work Ready programs – two comprehensive employment and training programs that provide support for people who receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits to obtain employment skills, prepare for work, and sustain good jobs.

The previous iteration of DHS’s largest employment and training programs prioritized a work-first job placement in any job, regardless of job quality and participant readiness. An analysis of these programs found that for people who left TANF for employment, about 50 percent returned to TANF within a year.

“Our goal at DHS is to help families reach long-term economic sustainability. We want to be advocates and partners for the people we serve and use TANF both to meet essential needs and empower people to take a step forward for themselves and their family. To accomplish this, we recognized that we need to shift how we serve this population. One immediate way to do so was in the way we operate our employment and training programs,” said DHS Secretary Teresa Miller. “Last year we launched a redesign of these programs to make sure we were meeting the needs of the people we serve. It is our hope that this redesign will put the people we serve on the path to economic stability and independence.”

Rather than prioritizing a job regardless of job quality and participant readiness, the redesign includes a more thorough assessment that addresses clients holistically to support financial independence. DHS worked with all 22 local workforce development boards and multiple community action agencies and used direct feedback from participants, caseworkers, and providers to shape the new design, which officially launched July 1, 2020.

Under the redesigned programs, each person will work with a caseworker to identify strengths and barriers in reaching career goals and will receive the support they need to meet those goals. The redesign introduces a focus on education and training activities that will help participants get the skills and certifications they need in the workforce, including GED diplomas or job credentials. Participants will also have access to case managers, individualized coaching, and mental health counseling services. These supports will be available for one year following sustainable employment, meaning participants will have continued support if issues arise within the first year of employment to help problem solve and establish stability and independence during this time.

The redesign also supports participants by addressing barriers to employment so that employment can not only be achieved, but maintained. In many instances, participants may be eligible for financial support for materials, supplies, child care, transportation costs, and more, in order to successfully participate in employment.

Funding for the redesign comes from an increase in the amount of federal TANF block grant funding allocated to the employment and training programs to support these expanded services. DHS also adjusted the programs’ funding structure to allow providers more flexibility to implement these services and modified incentives for vendors to help get people into job training programs.

DHS will work closely with program providers throughout the year to deliver these new services and to evaluate how these changes impact participants and will be monitoring if providers achieve established performance outcomes, such as whether a client has achieved long-term employment.

Current participation in the employment and training programs has been shifted to remote services due to COVID-19. In the months since the redesign’s launch, more than 300 people have interacted with a licensed counselor via ongoing counseling, more than 100 participants have been engaged in remediating their barriers to employment, and 112 individuals have met at least one of their personal goals in their individualized employment plan. DHS is continuing to support families by providing skills trainings and mental health service referrals, continuing job-related work activities and services, and implementing options to ensure participants have adequate devices where possible.

“We want to create programs that give people the space they need to envision a better future for themselves and their families and then provide them with the tools they need to actualize those dreams. This is our opportunity to really try to help change circumstances for parents and families living in incredibly difficult circumstances. No one should have to go at this alone, and we must take a community-wide approach to help people know that they will be supported throughout their journey. We hope that this employment and training redesign will help our clients achieve just that,” said Secretary Miller.

Only families with children are eligible for TANF, and job loss, domestic violence, child care availability, and the need for education are just some of the reasons that someone may need the support of the TANF program. Statistics show that in Pennsylvania, black individuals and families are disproportionately impacted by poverty. This disproportionality is also reflected in the demographics of our public assistance program enrollment – 53 percent of TANF beneficiaries are black. Discussions about TANF must acknowledge the ways that racial inequities and systemic racism impact the populations DHS serves and we must work to actively dispel the myth that poverty and enrollment in public assistance programs are tied to some kind of moral or personal failure.

Applications for TANF and other public assistance programs can be submitted online at www.compass.state.pa.us. Those who prefer to submit paper documentation can pick up an application at their local County Assistance Office (CAO), where social distancing protocols are in place, or they can print from the website or request an application by phone at 1-800-692-7462.  They can then mail it to their local CAO or place it in a CAO’s secure drop box, if available. You do not need to know your own eligibility in order to apply. While CAOs remain closed, work processing applications, determining eligibility, and issuing benefits continues. Clients should use COMPASS or the MyCOMPASS PA mobile app to submit necessary updates to their case files while CAOs are closed.

For more information on DHS’ E&T Programs visit www.dhs.pa.gov.