Las Vegas Raiders coach Jon Gruden resigned this week after multiple racist, misogynistic and homophobic emails were made public. Gruden had to go and he shouldn’t be the only casualty.

An injunction hearing is scheduled for this morning in Northumberland County court to determine the fate, certainly short-term and perhaps long-term, of one of the region’s top entertainment locations. The hope is cooler heads prevail today and the owners of Spyglass Ridge Winery and Rockefe…

It was great to see COVID-19 vaccine booster shots administered in a large-scale clinic format Tuesday at the Miller Center near Lewisburg, as well as the welcome response by those seeking the vaccinations.

Before Republican state lawmakers launch a fishing expedition at taxpayers’ expense through data that may contain sensitive personal information in their effort to identify Pennsylvania voters who may have cast “illegal” ballots in the previous two elections, they should consult ERIC.

Kudos to school directors and administrators at Mifflinburg Area, who last week brought in three doctors from Evangelical Community Hospital to address public concerns about COVID-19 vaccines, ongoing and evolving mitigation measures and the district’s handling of the pandemic.

Frances Haugen was the hero few of us knew we needed. Her testimony to Congress this week is a step toward a return of some semblance of the privacy we all value so much but which may only come with significant changes to corporate and personal behaviors.

Normally, the removal of an assistant junior high cross country coach doesn’t raise eyebrows. Unless, a school board botches the required public process, which seems to be the case in Danville.

As the COVID-19 virus continues to circulate across Pennsylvania, it will be especially important to get a flu shot this year.

Sunbury leaders are considering possible bonus payments to city workers who helped the city navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic over the past 18 months, filling in essential roles for the city’s residents.

A troubling 15 percent increase in suicide among members of the military should be a clarion call for action and to immediately increase resources to discover mental health problems and treat them.

This year’s 20th anniversary of A Community Clinic in Sunbury is much more than just a mark in time – it’s a celebration of vision, volunteerism, collaboration, and a refreshing reminder of the many ways people can genuinely care for others.

Every now and then a legislative proposal comes along that makes you wonder how it doesn’t already exist.

Part of the new Republican-led push to revamp the state’s election laws includes a proposal to make the Secretary of State role an elected position.

Ed Helfrick’s life story reads almost as if he was a character in a work of fiction. Coal miner, paratrooper, racecar driver, environmental advocate, passionate lawmaker, philanthropist, family man and gentleman.

State officials issued some welcome news this week, announcing that they will distribute up to $655 million in relief to help support the vital services offered by child care providers.

It has been nearly 11 months since the 2020 election and Pennsylvania’s election system is still being dragged through the mud to prove an unprovable point.

The story of Gabby Petito’s disappearance and death has rapidly become a daily headline and constant cable news segment.

‘If you see something, say something.” It’s a phase that has become a kind of national motto, an informal and ubiquitous call to action in our post 9/11 world.

The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association went to court this week in an attempt to become exempt from the state’s Right to Know Law. The organization argued that because the governing body for high school sports in Pennsylvania doesn’t directly receive state funding it should not…

The name of Susquehanna University’s weekly meeting hosted by the school’s Center for Diversity and Inclusion, Let’s Talk, seems entirely appropriate considering concerns voiced after this week’s session. Now it will be important for the university community — from administrators to faculty …

Survivors of sexual abuse in Pennsylvania want justice, no more or no less. They have long deserved it, but continue to face more roadblocks than they should.

For as long as there has been dialogue regarding a bypass for Routes 11/15 — a time frame that’s covered decades — the potential economic impact of the Central Susquehanna Valley Thruway has been a hot topic of discussion among Valley residents, business leaders, PennDOT engineers and electe…

When everyone is pulling in the same direction, it can lead to reasonable, meaningful and positive conclusions.

State Auditor General Tim DeFoor last week confirmed what we all knew: State officials used a flawed, uneven, unfair and in some cases unjustifiable process to determine which Pennsylvania businesses could remain open during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was troubling to learn that officials within Northumberland County’s Children & Youth system ignored repeated requests by Pennsylvania State Police for reports regarding a potential child abuse case.

The scientific trail toward the highest levels of protection against COVID-19 — a pathway blazed with data generated here in Pennsylvania — leads directly to the vaccines.

Valley businesses, it seems, have been much more proactive in trying to fill hundreds of vacant positions. They must to be considering the worker shortage many still face.

Annual in-person inspections of nursing homes are designed to be vigorous, challenging and transparent.

Thousands of people rightly, justifiably, ran away. Hundreds of others ran into two burning buildings and never came out.

The words, 20 years later, are still difficult to come by. How could they not be? What happened was, and still is, unimaginable.

A renewed focus on agriculture in Pennsylvania schools is generating locally produced foods to help boost food security and nutrition for children while likely sparking more understanding and interests in an industry that employs nearly 600,000 people across the state.

Quality child care for working parents is vital and it yields benefits on multiple levels, but the solutions for boosting the availability of affordable and flexible care are complex.

We all want our kids back in school for in-person education. It’s the best atmosphere for actual learning and teaching. Accomplishing those principle goals of education in the current climate of COVID-19 requires some sacrifice.

When Dr. Raymand Kraynak appears in federal court on Tuesday for jury selection, it will be 1,354 days since the former Mount Carmel doctor was charged as one of the state’s most prolific opioid prescribers.

Not to be lost in the COVID-19 pandemic is the years-long opioid epidemic, thrust back into the spotlight this week on International Overdose Awareness Day, which included an event in Shamokin that was heartfelt and heartbreaking at the same time.

Any traffic death is tragic. They often emerge from uncontrollable circumstances, carelessness, bad timing or a combination of any or all of them.

If one American who wanted to get out of Afghanistan was not airlifted out because of some arbitrary deadline, then shame on President Joe Biden.

To build a new highway, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) must first purchase land from many property owners.

Three Valley school districts have joined Lewisburg Area in adding some sort of mask requirement for some or all students and staff members, a sign that COVID will still have a significant impact on education this school year.

Sunday night Danville and Southern Columbia announced policies. Mount Carmel followed on Monday. Danville's policy — requiring masks of all students in grades K-5 and all unvaccinated staffers — came after four days of in-person learning. Mount Carmel's came after a week of class. Southern announced its policy — all students, faculty, staff and visitors are required to mask inside — on the eve of Monday's start.

"Please understand that this decision was not taken lightly. In the past week, we have had multiple positive cases that resulted in dozens of students needing to quarantine as a result," Mount Carmel Superintendent Pete Cheddar said. "This decision was made due to our belief that this choice will ensure our buildings stay open five days per week for in-person instruction and will decrease the number of students that would possibly need to quarantine as inevitable cases rise. Where 40 students needed to quarantine today due to two positive cases, if masks were worn at all times by students, less than five would have had to possibly quarantine."

The reason Valley schools were able to stay in-person for the majority of the 2020-21 school year is that they followed detailed plans, devised in the weeks and months before the start of the school year. School leaders worked with medical professionals and surveyed parents and found a working model that succeeded.

Significant portions of that model — masking and social distancing — have been, in part, eliminated this year.

We understand the dynamics of the pandemic are different as this school kicks off as opposed to last year. Last September, no one was vaccinated. Today, thousands are in the Valley, and that does make a difference.

But thousands aren't, either, particularly in primary and intermediate schools because children under 12 are still not eligible for a jab. In Montour County, which houses nearly all of the Danville Area School District, a state-high 71.1 percent of the population is fully vaccinated according to the state Department of Health. In Northumberland County, it's more than half: 51.5 percent. State data show 43.9 percent of eligible residents are fully vaccinated, while the total is 39.0 in Snyder County.

So masking in schools makes sense, especially in schools where most or all students are no eligible. It is our hope more districts consider this sensible approach to keep our children in classrooms this year.

NOTE: Opinions expressed in The Daily Item's editorials are the consensus of the publisher, top newsroom executives and community members of the editorial board. Today's was written by Managing Editor Bill Bowman.

Most days, we would hardly notice that empty drainage ditch in the backyard, the nearby babbling creek or the normally calm and gentle flow of water on the Susquehanna River.