Changes In The Allentown School District

In a comment submitted to the previous post, somebody referred to the change in the student demographics. In that respect, the district certainly has changed. When I graduated Allen in the mid 1960's, I do not recall one minority student. The quickness of this change is somewhat of a sociological phenomenon, but beyond that observation, such discussion does not benefit our current students. There certainly has been some white flight because of these changes, but then again, that's just another frank observation. Although Allentown's total numerical population hasn't changed much in the last 100 years, it now has the same problems of much larger urban centers. As the previous post reveals, there's quite a difference of opinion on the school board on how to process the tight school budget. I applaud all nine members for their dedication.

photo courtesy of Sandy Paul

Emotion vs. Reason at School Board

Last night the school district went through it's annual gnashing of teeth. One again the budget realities dictated that there be layoffs. Once again the teacher's union president filled the chamber with distraught teachers and students. Once again those school directors who accept the reality of numbers were vilified by those playing for acceptance and popularity. Come June, the system will once again allow one of our elected officials from Harrisburg to be a white knight, and announce that he has secured so many more $millions for the Allentown School District.

UPDATE: Allentown School District Launches ASD Virtual Academy The Allentown School District has launched their new ASD Virtual Academy offering students online academic opportunities with a personal touch – the support of our high school guidance teams, face-to-face time with their teachers, and technical support and assistance. ASD Virtual Academy students residing in the Allentown School District in grades 9-12 may enroll in these online program options and receive high-quality online courses through three cyber or virtual educational experiences: · Full-Time Virtual High School Program · Credit Recovery Program · Virtual Supplemental Courses This is an exciting for the Allentown School District. It allows the district to compete with cyber schools, and keep both students and student financial allotments within the district. Hopefully, even the obstructionists will voted against the budget last night can appreciate this development.

The Last Fight

When Abe Simon stepped into the ring at Madison Square Garden on March 27, 1942, it would be his last fight. He had been recently married, and promised his wife that he would stop fighting. One year earlier he had fought Joe Louis the first time, and endured a tremendous beating for thirteen rounds. Fighting since 1935, ranked 6th by Ring Magazine, a shot at the title was something a fighter cannot pass up. Many fight historians consider Louis the hardest hitting heavyweight of all time. Because of the publicity Simon gained from these Louis fights, he was offered a lucrative cross country boxing tour, which he declined. It was also Louis's last title defense for four years, until fighting Billy Conn in June of 1946. After the Simon fight he joined the U.S. Army, where he would fight 96 exhibition bouts at bases throughout the country. Shown above, Simon got knocked out in the sixth round.

reprinted from December 2012

March 27, 1942

Guest Post by Mike Casey
Before 18,220 fans at Madison Square Garden on March 27, 1942, big Abe Simon stepped into the ring for the final fight of his career. Scaling 255 1/4lbs, he was a massive, bear of a man who had once used his considerable size and muscle on the gridiron. Abe outweighed Joe Louis by nearly 48 pounds, but already knew the dangers of duelling with the Brown Bomber. Just a year before at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit, Joe had decked Simon four times and stopped him in thirteen rounds.Coming back for seconds was never a good idea against the prime Louis. But Abe had heart, pluck and a big punch and everyone knew that anything could happen in heavyweight boxing. Simon had knocked out Jersey Joe Walcott in six rounds, beaten Roscoe Toles and drawn with Turkey Thompson. Abe had also waged a thrilling battle of the giants with Buddy Baer, in which he had beaten Buddy severely in the opening round before being stopped in the third.......Louis finished the fight quickly in the sixth round, sending Abe down and out with a final left-right blast. Perhaps Joe had been riled after first snapping Simon to attention with a quick-fire combination in the second round. Big Abe had laughed at him....
copy courtesy of Mike Casey Archives
photograph(added by molovinsky): Abe Simon in corner after fight, with manager Jimmy Johnston

reprinted from December 2012

Heavyweight Championship of the World

On March 21, 1941, my mother's cousin Abe Simon, son a of Jewish egg and butter salesman, fought Joe Louis for the title in Detroit. Lasting 13 rounds, he earned another title shot against the Brown Bomber a year later in Madison Square Garden. After retiring he acted in several movies, including On The Waterfront and Requiem For A Heavyweight.


Administrator's note: I'm reprinting these photo's and captions in a much tighter time frame then originally posted, to give the viewers more of a feel of the Louis era.

reprinted from December 2012

Arena Food Vendor Headlines Paper

A picture of french fries and an article about the chosen food vendor for the arena is the headline today in The Morning Call. The latest arena promotion was again written by Matt Kraus. Actually, there are two seasoned reporters writing these puff pieces, Scott Kraus and Matt Assad. Since the editors of the paper have allowed them to combine their work load, I have decided to combine their names. This way they can better share the fame, or shame, depending on your point of view. In the entire feature story there was one relevant observation, in the last sentence of the article. Albert Abdouche, owner of the Americus property, observed that the arena wants to capture as many of the food dollars as possible, spend on an evening in Allentown by their fans. No surprise there.