Expect Rt. 412 Delays Monday for Lehigh Graduation

University's 145th commencement on Monday morning is expected to bring extra congestion through Route 412 construction zone.

  PennDOT is warning motorists who use Route 412 in South Bethlehem and Hellertown to plan for “heavy traffic and delays” in the construction zone Monday because the Lehigh University commencement ceremony is expected to bring extra traffic. Lehigh’s 145th Commencement Ceremony will be held at 10 a.m., rain or shine, at Goodman Stadium in the Mountaintop Campus. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation warns that traffic between Commerce Center Boulevard and Friedensville Road will be extra heavy between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. PennDOT is currently in the midst of a $36 million project to improve the corridor between Interstate 78 and South Bethlehem, including widening the road to five lanes. Currently, traffic through the construction …

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Lehigh's Spadola 'Living His Dream' With Jets

Mountain Hawks star wide receiver prepares to go to rookie camp with the New York Jets.

  Growing up on the football fields of a New Jersey Pop Warner league, Ryan Spadola said he and his friends would dream of someday trading in their jerseys for that of their favorite professional team.  When the New York Jets open their rookie training camp, the Lehigh University senior will have the chance to see that dream come true after signing with the team as an undrafted free agent.  Coming out of Freehold Township High School, Spadola said he was just glad when he got the chance to take his game to the college level. Making the jump from college to pro ball was not something on his realistic radar at the time. "At that current stage it seemed like kind of a far stretch," he said. "Throughout my years at Lehigh I started to grow and…

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Eagles Move Training Camp: Bethlehem Reacts

Philadelphia Eagles announce Friday that they will train in South Philadelphia, ending 17-year relationship with Lehigh University.

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C+ Lehigh Grad Asks Judge to Reverse Verdict

Megan Thode isn't giving up on her lawsuit claiming a poor grade from a Lehigh University professor has limited her lifetime earning capacity

C+ Lehigh Student Asks Judge to Reverse Verdict

Attorney for Megan Thode, who lost her $1.3 million lawsuit to Lehigh University, claims judge did not interpret the law properly.

  A Nazareth woman who sued Lehigh University for $1.3 million over a C+ grade and lost has filed post-trial motions asking the court to reverse its decision or grant a new trial. Megan Thode’s attorney, Richard J. Orloski, contends in a motion for “judgment notwithstanding the verdict” that Northampton County Judge Emil Giordano erred in his interpretation of the law in ruling in favor of Lehigh. In the paperwork filed Monday, Orloski argues that the attorney for Lehigh, Neil Hamburg, misstated the law that should apply and Giordano relied on that misstatement in issuing the verdict. According to Orloski, the judge observed that a zero grade for class participation was “not comprehensible, or words to that effect.” Orloski also contends “…

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Dear Lehigh Grad: Deal With Your C+

An open letter to Megan Thode in Forbes magazine says the Lehigh grad isn't entitled to a good grade unless she earned it

Forbes magazine has pubished an open letter to Megan Thode, the Lehigh University grad who lost a lawsuit over a C+ grade that, she claims, greatly diminished her career earning potential. Thode's case went to trial in Northampton County court last week. Forbes contributer J. Maureen Henderson, who writes about early career issues, penned a letter to Thode that reads, in part: "Despite the fact that you received free tuition and on-campus employment as a result of the fact that your father is a professor at your alma mater, you are not owed anything by Lehigh University other than the provision of classes, learning resources, access to faculty and facilities in which to experience said learning and perhaps a student parking spot." Here's …

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Lehigh Grad Loses Lawsuit Over C+ Grade

A Northampton County judge ruled Thursday against former Lehigh student claiming damages because of a poor grade.

A judge has ruled against a local woman suing Lehigh University for $1.3 million because, she claims, a poor grade in one class diminished her lifetime earning potential. The "plaintiff failed to establish that the university based the awarded grade of C+ on anything other than purely academic reasons," the judge said in his ruling Thursday, according to a WFMZ report. A trial on the civil lawsuit brought by 27-year-old Megan Thode of Nazareth began on Monday in front of Northampton County Judge Emil Giordano, who on Wednesday chastised both sides for being unable to reach an out-of-court settlement, according to The Morning Call. Thode claimed sexual discrimination in the case. Lehigh University countered that Thode behaved …

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Student Sues Lehigh U. for $1.3M Over C+ Grade

Lehigh grad student attending tuition-free alleges her stance on gay marriage made her a target of teachers who lowered her grade and stopped her from getting dream job.

BETHLEHEM, PA -- A local woman who attended graduate classes tuition free at Lehigh University is suing for $1.3 million more from the college because, she claims, a poor grade in one class diminished her lifetime earning potential. A trial on the civil lawsuit brought by 27-year-old Megan Thode of Nazareth began on Monday and continues in front of Northampton County Judge Emil Giordano, who today chastised both sides for being unable to reach an out-of-court settlement, according to The Morning Call. Thode is claiming sexual discrimination in the case. Lehigh University counters that Thode behaved unprofessionally—including swearing in class—and hadn’t earned the right to move on in the program. The $1.3 million is the difference between …

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Madeleine Albright Speaks at Zoellner Tonight

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will speak at Lehigh University on Tuesday, Feb. 12