Every week, syracuse.com looks back at the best stories from the previous week. Here are six stories from the week of September 1, 2024.
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Whistleblowing or dirty politics? Inside the last-minute anonymous allegations against John Mannion
A week before the Democratic primary for Congress in central New York, an anonymous poster posted a letter online detailing the hostile environment he experienced while working for state Senator John Mannion. Was the letter a dirty political ploy spread by partisans on social media? Or was it a legitimate attempt to stop an abusive boss from appealing to Congress?
At last! Syracuse family with smart twins escapes FAFSA prison
When Caroline and Myra Menon arrived on campus for move-in day at the State University of New York at Geneseo two weeks ago, their mother was still staring at a bill for $21,740 for their first semester’s tuition. It took seven months, but the high-achieving Syracuse University twins finally got their scholarships approved on Tuesday. Their mother said a Syracuse.com article and editorial last month about the frozen scholarships finally got the wheels of bureaucracy moving.
Syracuse University reverses course, won’t demolish old dorms, scales back large-scale dormitory construction plans
Syracuse University has scaled back plans for new student housing after facing opposition from city officials, neighbors and historic preservationists. Just before the Syracuse City Council voted this week on whether to preserve a vacant university-owned mansion on Comstock Street, the university withdrew a demolition application it filed in the spring as part of the dorm plans.
NYS Fair vendors reflect on chaos and kindness after reports of shooting
Crystal Harrison had never seen anything like it. She’s worked at the New York State Fair for seven years and saw a crowd of hundreds pass by her at about 8:45 p.m. Sunday. The fear was sparked by two back-to-back calls on Sunday evening about a possible active shooter at the fairgrounds.
Mushroom forager in Syracuse: His forest discoveries will power fine dining meals during CNY
Zach Papallioni recently walked through Whiskey Hollow Nature Preserve in Van Buren, peering at the forest floor. He bent down to pluck a tiny, tan mushroom from the ground and twirled it in his fingers, examining the fungus from every angle. Papallioni is an expert mushroom forager, and supplies wild and cultivated mushrooms to about a dozen CNY restaurants, including The Krebs, The Century Club, Apizza Regionale, Lemongrass, Rosalie’s and Funk & Waffles.
Hundreds of you responded to the survey. We need to limit students’ use of mobile phones in schools.
As the school year gets underway, at least eight states and 14 of the nation’s 20 largest school districts have enacted rules to limit student cellphone use at school. New York state may soon join the group, and readers who responded to a syracuse.com request for comment overwhelmingly support the move.