(File Photo of the Beaver Falls Senior High School)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver Falls, PA) A Beaver Falls High School teacher is out on bail and is waiting for a preliminary hearing on charges that she allegedly contacted a male student in her class multiple times this summer because of an interest in starting a sexual relationship with him.

The Patterson Township Police Department filed charges against twenty-four-year-old Sarah Jo Massa of Butler on August 12th, which included third-degree felony charges of one count each of unlawful contact with a minor, corruption of minors with sexual contact, corruption of minors by a defendant age 18 or above and criminal use of a communication facility and one misdemeanor charge of corruption of minors.

Massa was removed from the faculty and staff directory at the Big Beaver Falls Area School District website.

However, before that removal, she was on the district website teacher directory on Friday morning as an English teacher.

According to the criminal complaint filed by Patterson Township Police, Massa is said to have sent over 3,711 messages to the 16-year-old boy over a two-week period in June.

Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 1st.

(Credit for Photo: Photo Provided with Release Courtesy of the Beaver Valley Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver County, PA) The Beaver Valley Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center in Beaver Falls will host a free community Autumn Fest and car show, rain or shine, on September 24th from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The activities at this event are for people of all ages and there will be a car show, live entertainment from the Honky Tonk Heroes, a Chinese auction, carnival games and fall crafts.

There will also be seasonal food and refreshments, and attendees will receive a ticket to enter the free Beaver Valley Cozy Campfire night raffle. 

All proceeds will go towards the Christmas celebration for the residents of the healthcare center.

(File Photo of the Beaver County Courthouse)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver, PA) A controversial topic was discussed at yesterday’s Beaver County Commissioners’ work session at the County Courthouse.

The biggest one was the development of plans from Las Vegas, Nevada headquartered company Switch to build a 600,000 square-foot data center complex that will have three buildings and would span an area roughly equivalent to 300 football fields on the 400-acre former Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum.

Beaver County Solicitor Garen Fedeles provided an update that Switch has submitted an application to the county planning commission for their review.

The recommendations from Switch are now being forwarded to Big Beaver to go over the process for this proposed data center through the company’s approval.

According to Fedeles, “there is nothing that this board (Board of Commissioners) has any oversight on that particular development aside from what the planning commission did yesterday.

Governor Josh Shapiro recently signed an executive order that he confirms will give more control and oversight to municipalities when it comes to development of data centers, and it requires that companies need to pay for their own energy, minimize air pollution, noise and water usage, as well as hire local workers and give back to the communities in benefit agreements which are negotiated. 

Fedeles also mentioned that the biggest question in terms of this planned data center is the usage of water and electricity, which neighbors in Big Beaver are concerned about.

Fedeles noted that those developments are not “something that under the municipal planning code that the county planning agency looks at whenever they’re doing their review” for the local municipality.

Commissioner Tony Amadio and Commisisoner Jack Manning also visited the Pennsylvania Drug and Alcohol Secretary’s visit to Beaver County at the completion of her two year tour, where she honored Dr. Neil Capetta, a long-time drug advocate in the county.

Commissioner Amadio also got a tour update and swore in three trustees, two old ones and one new one, at the Aviation Center at the Community College of Beaver County.

Commissioner Manning also gave an update on the aviation sciences building at the county airport. When that facility is completed, almost 28,000 square feet of new classroom offices will be in place for the airport and for CCBC.

SCOTT TADY

PITTSBURGH — Point Park University invites families and all fun-seekers to attend 2026-27 performances at the university’s Pittsburgh Playhouse.

From concerts, like the River City Brass on Sept. 18, to the Steel City Emerging Film Festival on Sept. 11-12, to three separate dance shows in October, the Playhouse has plenty to offer.

Located at 350 Forbes Ave., in downtown Pittsburgh, the Playhouse presents its third annual Fall Fest, a free community street festival with food, crafts and games, on Oct. 23 to Nov. 1. Visitors can grab a bite or a drink, paint a pumpkin and win prizes at this fun-filled fall outing perfect for all ages. Also included is  the Boo’s Halloween House Party — a frightfully fun family musical filled with music, dancing, laughter and Halloween thrills for little monsters, grown-up ghouls, and everyone in between.

Center Township native Kiesha Lalama, dean of Point Park’s School of Theatre, Film and Animation, and executive producer of the Pittsburgh Playhouse, discussed upcoming public events at the downtown university as a phone-in guest Wednesday on the Beaver County Radio Morning Show.

Also discussing curriculum, including  a new three-year accelerated degree at Point Park, Lalama’s interview can be heard here:

 

Lalama has created more than 50 works for stage, film, and television, and is instrumental in Point Park hosting a world premiere Nov. 13 – 22 of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,”  a high-energy musical inspired by the beloved 1985 film, featuring iconic ‘80s hits, unforgettable dance, humor, heart and nonstop fun.

.

(File Photo of a Fire Background)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Baden, PA) The Baden Fre Department was dispatched yesterday at approximately 8:53 P.M. for a reported building fire at a multifamily apartment building.  

The caller reported that there was smoke on the third floor. 

Even though there was no smoke that was visible from the exterior, there was a strong odor that smelled like something was burning. 

Smoke also pushed from underneath the door of one of the apartment units.

The fire was extinguished and there were no reported injuries.  

(File Photo of Quaker Valley High School)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Leetsdlae, PA) Quaker Valley High School was ranked as the Number 9 school in the top 10 Pittsburgh-area high schools in U.S. News and World Report’s annual list of the best high schools in the country. 

The rankings were released yesterday and they are based on six factors to find the best public high schools across the United States.

These factors included college readiness, graduation rate and state assessment performance.

These schools were located in all 50 states and nearly 18,000 schools were included in the list.

Quaker Valley High School was ranked as No. 737 nationally on this list.

(File Photo of a Dollar Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Moon Township, PA) A man is now facing charges after authorities said he altered and cashed checks that were placed in the mailboxes of an 87-year-old man in Moon Township and Ross Township fire officials. 

According to a criminal complaint, officers were dispatched on August 3rd to a home along Jamestown Road in Moon Township following reports of a theft. 

Officials arrived at the scene and found that the victim received a phone call from his financial institution, who requested to speak to authorities on scene. 

A fraud investigator with the victim’s bank, Clearview Federal Credit Union, told officers they had talked with him before police arrived after suspecting that he was a victim of fraud. 

The investigator stated that three checks were drawn from the victim’s account and were made payable to the same individual, “Rasheed Dawson,” who the victim said was not the intended recipient. 

The victim later told police that the three checks were written so he could pay several bills and they had been placed in the mailbox outside his home. 

It was determined that the checks did not reach the destinations that they were intended to go to, even though they were drawn against his account for about $8,005. 

The original amount of one check to Mastercard was unknown and was altered to $2,362.46. The complaint confirmed that a check for $178.18 to Duquesne Light was changed to $3,300.25, and a $1,394.25 check to State Farm was changed to $2,342.25.

The payee on all three of them was changed to the name of a Clearview account holder, who is not charged. 

According to the complaint, the suspect was later identified as 26-year-old Jaden McDougald.

He was seen on three video banking sessions identifying himself as the holder of the account and depositing the checks of the victim into the Clearview account. 

Police detailed the purchases and transactions in which the cash was withdrawn from the account. 

According to the complaint, officials also said that in Ross Township, a check to a garage door company for $8,383, which the township’s fire police had placed in a mailbox outside the West View post office, was altered and deposited.

McDougald was charged in connection with that altered check and charges were filed against him by Ross Township police on Monday.

McDougald is now facing several charges, including forgery, identity theft and theft by deception. 

(File Photo of a Gavel)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(New Castle, PA) A man from New Castle who unsuccessfully ran a campaign for the Pennsylvania House is now the suspect at the center of a grand jury indictment and is charged with sex offenses.  

Justin Byers most recently unsuccessfully tried to run for an open state representative position in the primary election and he also unsuccessfully ran for a spot that was open on the New Castle school board.  

KDKA recently confirmed that Byers is now banned from all property that is owned by the New Castle Area School District. 

Court documents show that the grand jury charged him in early August and it was recently unsealed in federal court.  

Byers in now in jail because prosecutors deem him a flight risk and say that he is a danger to the community. 

Sources told KDKA-TV that he’s accused of having sexual pictures of children under the age of twelve after law enforcement seized two phones and two laptops from his home and sources also confirm that he worked as a student helper in a district elementary school while he was a senior at New Castle High School.

The FBI confirmed that agents authorized search warrants in connection “with an investigation into child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and the use of artificial intelligence.” 

Byers will have a detention hearing on Friday and be appointed a federal public defender.