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Warmer temperatures this week make it seem like spring is right around the corner. Travel restrictions are loosening, to some degree, so now may be the time to begin planning.

The Pennsylvania Tourism Office wants to inspire “dreams and plans” for travel in a post-COVID Pennsylvania, and have published a free travel guide to inspire a Pennsylvania getaway.

Carrie Fischer Lepore is the Deputy Secretary of Marketing, Tourism, & Film, with the Department of Community and Economic Development and she joins Smart Talk Friday to share highlights of the 2021 Happy Traveler guide.

Pennsylvanians seek parks and outdoor activities during the pandemic

When Pennsylvania locked down for COVID mitigation, residents sought relief outside.

Over the last year, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources saw park attendance increase by more than twenty-five percent. A poll of park visitors found that the vast majority felt that time spent in recreation areas has been essential to their mental and/or physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As winter weather abates, park and recreation areas are anticipating more record attendance. Appearing on Smart Talk Friday to discuss recreation opportunities in Pennsylvania are the DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn, along with John Hallas, Director of the Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks.

2021 Central PA Spelling Bee

The WITF Central PA Spelling Bee will be buzzing along to your television soon!

On Sunday, March 7, 32 students from across Central Pennsylvania will compete for the title of regional champion. The winner will advance to compete in the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Program host and WITF multimedia producer Keira McGuire appears on Smart Talk Friday to share the details.

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There are more than 25 thousand state-owned bridges in Pennsylvania; the third-largest number of bridges in the country. With the average bridge more than 50 years old, planners are challenged to develop plans to upgrade and fund the work.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation made headlines last month after announcing plans to toll nine bridges to help fund future repairs.

The tolling concept was approved in November by the Public Private Transportation Partnership board, which does not require legislative approval to move forward. There is opposition to the plan, though, and the potential for legislation to limit PennDOT’s authority to approve tolling.

Appearing on Smart Talk Thursday to address the bridge plan is Ken McClain, Alternative Funding Program Director with PennDOT.

For more information about PennDOT funding, visit here. To contact PennDOT visit here.

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It’s tax time and even in a normal year tax professionals are challenged to answer individual’s questions about their returns. During the pandemic, these questions are even more complicated due to unemployment and stimulus payments.

The IRS has their work cut out for them, too, as they deal with numerous virus-related provisions passed by Congress. Questions persist, including the impact of stimulus payments on taxable income, deductions for working from home, and tax credits that apply specifically to the pandemic.

Joining Smart Talk Wednesday to answer your questions are Ben Bostic, CPA and Director, Boyer & Ritter LLC and Brian Kutz, CPA and Manager, Boyer & Ritter LLC

The Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover makes historic landing

The first human expedition to the “Red Planet” came one small step closer last month with the landing of the Perseverance Rover on the surface of Mars.

The Rover will search for signs of ancient life, while gathering rocks and soil for eventual testing back on earth.

Allen Chen is a systems engineer and Mars 2020 Entry, Descent and Landing Lead with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and he appears on Smart Talk Wednesday to share the significance of the Perseverance landing.

This is the first image NASA’s Perseverance rover sent back after touching down on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021. The view, from one of Perseverance’s Hazard Cameras, is partially obscured by a dust cover. Image made available by NASA/JPL-Caltech

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Years from now, Pennsylvanians will remember and tell stories about how they spent their time during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pennsylvania’s First Lady Frances Wolf is leading an effort to document life during the last year with the One Lens: Sharing Our Common Views virtual photo exhibit.

The submitted images will be displayed for public viewing and archived as visual documentation of the pandemic. Submit photos here.

First Lady Frances Wolf appears on Tuesday’s Smart Talk to discuss the One Lens initiative, along with Porcha Johnson, CEO/Founder of Black Girl Health and One Lens central region ambassador.

York man collects plastic and trash from the Susquehanna River while in his canoe

Also on the program, John Naylor of York is a one-man Susquehanna River cleanup crew. For the last four years, Naylor has cruised the river in his canoe a couple times a week, picking up plastic bottles and other trash.

Unfortunately, there’s more than enough refuse to fill the canoe. Check out his Instagram page for pictures and information.

Naylor is on Smart Talk to describe why he does it and what he’s found on the river.

Virginia researchers may have a clue to increased colorectal cancers in African-Americans

Finally, African-Americans are disproportionately affected by colorectal cancer. The American Cancer Society reports that African-Americans are 20% more likely to develop colorectal cancer and 40% more likely to die from it. Overall colorectal cancer rates have declined in America in recent years, but African-Americans have not seen the same decreases as people of European descent. And even as the overall rates have dropped, the rate among younger people has gone up.

Researchers at the University of Virginia may have a reason why African-Americans are more susceptible to colorectal cancer.

One of them, Dr. Li Li is with us on Tuesday’s Smart Talk. Dr. Li is a primary care physician and chair of the UVA Department of Family Medicine, lead researcher in the study and head of the Cancer Control and Population Health program at the UVA Cancer Center.

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Both President Joe Biden and Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf have proposed increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour by the year 2027.

Those who support hiking the minimum say it will help millions of low-paid workers and lift them out of poverty while opponents say it will result in a loss of jobs because employers won’t be able to afford to employ workers at higher wages.

Both sides can point to statistics to back up their arguments, which is one of the reasons raising the minimum wage is such a contentious issue.

The Congressional Budget Office recently released a report saying a $15 minimum would raise close to a million people out of poverty, but also kill 14 million jobs.

Dr. Arindrajit Dube, Ph.D., Professor, College of Social & Behavioral Sciences Department of Economics, Univ. of Massachusetts Amherst has researched the minimum wage through dozens of studies and is critical of the CBO report. He appears on Monday’s Smart Talk.

Immigrants assisting law enforcement in solving crimes could be deported due to backlog

Also on Monday’s show, the U-visa program, designed to provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who are the victims of crime but assist law enforcement, is significantly backed up. As a result, immigrants who may be eligible to become legal U.S. residents, could be deported while waiting for their cases to be heard.
A group of attorneys is pushing to speed up the U-visa program. Two of them — Whitney Phelps, Esq., Managing Attorney, Community Programs with the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center and David Freedman, Esq., Barley Snyder Attorneys at Law — join us on Smart Talk.

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The Watch Party streams LIVE on WITF’s YouTube channel and broadcasts LIVE on WITF 89.5 & 93.3 on Thursday, February 25 beginning at 9am.

Submit your questions now to smarttalk@witf.org

One year ago, Smart Talk hosted the last road trip before the pandemic shut down outside productions. The topic involved Career and Technical Education, with schools and students highlighting the need for skilled workers in Pennsylvania.

The highlight of the show and conversation was how both schools and students were preparing for the future by focusing on strong academic, technical and real-world skills. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all path for high school graduates, and adults, seeking continuing education opportunities.

A year later, how has the pandemic impacted students and educators? What has changed for their plans, now that the needs of the community require certain fields as essential to the work force? And how can the Pennsylvania Department of Education and schools set the conditions for students to succeed in STEM fields?

Guests for the show (by order of appearance):

• Judd Pittman, Special Consultant to the Secretary of Education for STEM
• Tom Palisin, Executive Director, Manufacturers Association (York)
• Megan L. Brightbill, D.H.Sc., HACC Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Health Sciences, and Associate Professor of Dental Hygiene
• Karen Pflugh, Ed.D., Administrative Director at Dauphin County Technical School, a member of the TechLink Consortium
• Jeff Remington, National STEM Teacher Ambassador

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National Alliance on Mental Illness Helpline 1-800-950-6264

It has been a stressful year — a global pandemic, COVID deaths, economic turmoil, the list goes on.

Coping with stress — especially for children and young adults, can be difficult. Over time, the impact to one’s physical and mental health can be significant. Conditions like depression and anxiety don’t get better under these circumstances; they are exacerbated and problems can seem insurmountable.

A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 25 percent of 18-24 year olds had seriously considered suicide compared to 11 percent in 2018.

Complete statistics for suicides in 2020 aren’t available but anecdotally, hospital emergency departments and coroners say they have seen an increase in suicide attempts. Those that suffered from underlying mental health illnesses or conditions before the pandemic at at risk now because their treatments may have been disrupted or stopped.

Wednesday’s Smart Talk focuses on suicide during the pandemic.

Appearing on the program are Perri Rosen, Ph.D., consulting Psychologist with the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS) in the Bureau of Children’s Behavioral Services. Joining her are Matthew Wintersteen, Ph.D., Executive Board member with Prevent Suicide PA and Christine Michaels, CEO National Alliance on Mental Illness Keystone Pennsylvania.

In Crisis? Call 1-800-273-TALK (8255)

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The expansion of telehealth, or remote clinical care, has increased by more than 150 percent since 2019. This is due in large part to pandemic-related policy changes, along with public necessity.

Joining Smart Talk Tuesday to break down the issues are Warren Kampf, the Hospital and Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania Senior Vice President, Advocacy and External Affairs, along with Dr. Hal Baker, MD, WellSpan Health Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Information Officer.

Mobile applications reach people where they are

There’s an app for everything, it seems, and on average mobile users in the U.S. have at least 20 they use regularly. The majority of Americans have cell phones and nearly three-quarters of the population own a tablet or computer, so health providers are finding opportunities to reach people where they are — on their devices.

Capital Blue Cross recently launched NeuroFlow, a self-guided mobile app that focuses specifically on mental health wellness. Dr. Jennifer Chambers, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Capital Blue Cross, appears on Smart Talk Tuesday to discuss the focus of the application.

Advocates push a plan to protect the Amazon

A bipartisan group of seven former U.S. cabinet secretaries and climate change negotiators have organized to produce a first-ever Amazon Protection Plan.

The plan is a set of policy recommendations they say will protect the Amazon, and mitigate climate change. The plan, though, comes with a big price tag.

Monica de Bolle, Ph.D., a Brazilian-born economist and professor at John Hopkins University joins Smart Talk Tuesday to outline the recommendations.

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The Pennsylvania Department of Aging’s role is to advocate for the interests of older Pennsylvanians and because the pandemic has put this vulnerable population in its crosshairs, that job is much more complicated and important.

Aging Pennsylvanians are facing a myriad of stressors: Higher COVID risk, difficulty accessing vaccines, and social isolation have changed their landscape and lifestyle for the foreseeable future.

What can be done to improve support for older Pennsylvanians during this critical time? The Pennsylvania Secretary of Aging Robert Torres will join Smart Talk Monday to discuss this, along with community based solutions.

Fossil Fuel Subsidies in Pennsylvania

America’s dependence on fossil fuels is a complicated and hotly debated topic. PennFuture published their third in a series of reports looking into one of the lesser-known factors keeping the country tethered to non-renewable energy: fossil fuel subsidies.

It is estimated that Pennsylvania alone subsidized the fossil fuel industry $3.8 billion dollars in 2019. Emily Persico, report author and Policy Analyst for PennFuture, points out the difficulty collating the information because subsidies are, in part, “buried out of sight and difficult to disentangle.” Persico appears on Smart Talk Monday to analyze the complicated web of revenue and tax credits subsidizing the industry.

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Women around the country are experiencing the economic impact of COVID at a rate substantially higher than men.

This is due in large part to the shortage or absence of childcare, forcing women to make a choice between working or caring for their families. Also, women are disproportionately represented in low-wage jobs, which is especially problematic if they are the sole earner in the family.

This is one of the topics that will be addressed on Mentoring Monday, an annual women’s networking event that seeks to connect women.

Cate Barron, is the President of PA Media Group who own and publish The Patriot News and the digital PennLive, and she joins Smart Talk Friday to share details of the women’s networking event. Also on Smart Talk Friday is former CNN correspondent and Pulitzer Prize winning Journalist Sara Ganim who will deliver the keynote on the economic impact on women.

42 Today: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy

Jackie Robinson is remembered as the African-American who broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947 when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers. Robinson not only became a sports hero, but he used also his status as a pioneer to blaze a trail for other Black Americans in all walks of life and became a civil rights icon.

Michael G. Long has written several books on Robinson, civil rights and nonviolent protests. Long discusses his latest book on Friday’s Smart Talk, 42 Today: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy.

What is causing gas prices to rise?

Gas prices are rising. In Pennsylvania, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded is $2.87 — that’s up 19 cents from last month and 21 cents from this time last year.

What’s driving the price increases and what will prices do in the coming weeks?

Smart Talk is joined by Patrick De Haan Head of Petroleum Analysis, Fuel Insights.

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