On today’s episode of The Confluence:
The state Supreme Court is directing county elections officials to ‘segregate’ undated ballots
(0:00 - 7:36)
The state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that elections officials cannot count votes from mail-in or absentee ballots that are missing handwritten dates on their return outer envelopes.
This comes after the acting Secretary of State Leigh Chapman put out guidance that counties should count those ballots.
“The [state] Supreme Court's order guaranteed that these ballots would not be counted in the immediate term, so you won't see them rolled into counts on election night,” says Sam Dunklau, WESA’s capitol bureau chief. “But if somebody were to sue, these ballots are segregated and preserved. So, it's not like they're being tossed out in their entirety.”
Dunklau says Chapman’s office has indicated updated guidance may come out at some point, but so far, they have not addressed the ruling.
New Pittsburgh program will help single parents pursue higher education
(7:45 - 17:10)
A new program has launched in Pittsburgh to help single parents pursue higher education, called WayFinders Program. Its goal is to disrupt the cycle of poverty, giving those families resources to succeed in their education.
Diamonte Walker, CEO of Pittsburgh Scholar House (which is running WayFinders), says the program is built upon three pillars: economic empowerment, family enrichment and academic stewardship.
“We know that Pittsburgh is often talked about as being one of the most challenging cities for Black residents in particular,” says Walker. “These interventions [for raising families out of poverty] must focus on, I believe, a college education, because we know that that can be the great equalizer in addressing some of the protracted poverty issues that we see, particularly with single female head of household.”
Walker says the program has so far received 175 applications for families to participate in WayFinder’s first cohort. The program will work with 20 to 30 families, starting in January.
Why do parrots talk?
(17:25 - 22:30)
We’ve been asking families for questions, those very good questions that a kiddo in your life might have but leave you scratching your head for our Good Question, Kid! Series.
Salem asked, “Why do parrots talk?”
“No matter what the type of parrot or where they're found, talking can be an important behavior for them in their natural habitat, because it's a way that they can blend in with their surroundings in the sense that they learn to mimic and copy sounds,” says Christa Gaus, senior manager of animal programs at the National Aviary.
Gaus says the birds don’t know that they’re saying words, but they recognize the sounds as part of their environment.
If you have a kid with a good question, you can fill out this form or email confluence@wesa.fm.
The Confluence, where the news comes together, is 90.5 WESA’s daily news program. Tune in Monday to Thursday at 9 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. to hear newsmakers and innovators take an in-depth look at stories important to the Pittsburgh region. Find more episodes of The Confluence here or wherever you get your podcasts.
