25-year-old Ashjakia Washington and 69-year-old Otero Guillermo, who were reported missing last week from their homes in West Philadelphia, have been found and are in good condition, according to police. Washington, from the 5500 block of Chancellor Street, went missing on Jan. 22 and Guillermo went missing from his residence on the 4800 block of Pine Street.

Washington had been reported missing before – in April 2014, according to police.

In an effort to improve teacher selection process, the School District of Philadelphia has launched a new online teacher application portal. Approximately 400 teacher vacancies are expected for the 2015-16 school year. “Our revamped selection process is designed to attract highly qualified and committed teachers to The School District of Philadelphia,” Superintendent Dr. William R. Hite said in a statement.

“We hope new-to-teaching and experienced educat[ors] will join our efforts to make all schools great,” Hite said.

In addition to the online application, the teacher selection process now includes a phone interview and other online activity, both administered centrally, before candidates are presented to principals for site selection.

The hiring timeline has been shortened compared to previous years. Qualified candidates will know within four to six weeks if they are eligible for site selection.

The School District is particularly seeking to hire individuals with experience in secondary math (grades 5-12), secondary science (grades 5-12), special education, art, music, and upper elementary (grades 5-6). Approximately 9,000 teachers currently work for the District. The District’s starting salary for teachers with no experience is $45,360.

The application is available through the Employment section and Office of Talent webpage on the District website (www.philasd.org).

Teacher candidates may contact recruitment@philasd.org for more information.

Here’s this week’s menu for local public schools (Monday, Feb. 2 through Friday, Feb. 6). If your school uses a Satellite menu, click here.

Come back every Sunday evening for the coming week’s menu.

BREAKFAST (K-12)

A variety of three cereals will be offered daily and served with a yogurt parfait or a mini loaf.

Monday

Choose 1: Chicken Sausage, Egg & Cheese on English Muffin or Cinnamon Granola Round
Choose 1: Raisins or Fresh Pear
Variety of Milk

Tuesday

Choose 1: Mini French Toast or Cream Cheese Filled Pretzel
Choose 1: Pear Cup or Fresh Apple
Variety of Milk  Continue Reading

We’re happy to pass along some recent news from the West Philly food and restaurant world.

Renovations Underway at Rx The Farmacy

(Left to right): Danielle Coulter, Ross Scofield, and Tim Blair.

Some Spruce Hill residents and Rx The Farmacy (Facebook page) fans may have noticed that the restaurant has been closed for several days, so we got in touch with one of the owners, Ross Scofield, to see what’s going on. Turns out they are doing renovations to the kitchen. “A lot of things/equipment in the kitchen were left over from Rx,” Ross explains. ” Now that the Farm is on a steady track, we are taking the opportunity to update our little cooking space.”

Ross and his partners, Danielle Coulter and Tim Blair, who now also manage the recently opened The Barn on Baltimore, are taking the opportunity to renovate the kitchen during the slower winter season. Ross also shared some of his plans for the busy spring season.

“Spring time is a busy time for The Farmacy with UPenn having graduation and the neighborhood coming out for the nice weather. I want to have a new outside seating arrangement in place. The Farm needs a nice, big sign out front. New plates, flatware, and glasses are all needed. The kitchen also needs to be “repositioned” to handle the volume of brunch service,” Ross wrote us in an email.  Continue Reading

A neighbor reports that someone recently stole a license plate from her car parked near 44th and Pine. She didn’t notice until cops pulled her over the next day. Here’s what she wrote us:

“I’m not sure if this is happening elsewhere around the neighborhood, but my license plate was stolen off my vehicle [Tuesday] night (after 7 pm), while parked on the 4400 block of Pine. I found out when I was pulled over this morning, and had to visit the station to make a police report, and now get a new plate. It’s not a huge expense, but definitely a hassle just the same…”

This type of theft used to be really popular, but not so much anymore, according to police.

And here’s an example of why plates get stolen (from a Facebook post by one of our readers):

Some changes are being planned for 30th Street Station and the area surrounding it, and if you’re interested to learn more about the Philadelphia 30th Street Station District Plan, come to an open house at the station this Wednesday, from 4 to 7 p.m. The project team will be there to present the plan and answer your questions, including how you can get involved in the planning process. Some information boards will also be at the station for everyone to check out (see the flier below for more details about tonight’s event).

The 30th Street Station District Plan is a joint effort among Amtrak, Drexel University, SEPTA, and Brandywine Realty trust, and other public and private stakeholders. The Master Planning process involves three main elements of analysis: transportation, the station and associated facilities, and commercial opportunities. The planning process is expected to take about two years.