Marching to a new beat: Pittsburgh’s Perry High is a rare enrollment winner

From left, Perry Traditional Academy students Josey Cooley, 16, of Perry North, Aaliyha Thompson, 16, of Allegheny Center, Mahlae Pollard, 16, of Perry North, Connie Howard, 15, of Brighton Heights, Makaila Nyambe, 16, of Brighton Heights, and Adevion Cooper, 17, of Summer Hill, at drama club on April 17. Cooley is directing the club’s upcoming zombie comedy. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg/PublicSource) Community organizations and school staff join forces to reimagine the district’s North Side high school by confronting issues of attendance and infractions — and creating opportunities. by Lajja Mistry& and& Jillian Forstadt, PublicSource When Josey Cooley first started attending Pittsburgh’s Perry Traditional Academy earlier this year, the school hadn’t had a drama club since 2021. Now, just months later, students are getting ready to put on a dinner show set in a zombie apocalypse. “We’re, like, so close to the finish line. It feels impossible that we did this,” said Cooley, a junior at Perry who’s directing the show. “But we did it.” Cooley and her peers attribute much of the show’s success to their music teacher, Aaron Taylor, and his efforts to expand the school’s arts offerings. Earlier this school year, Taylor also relaunched the school’s marching band,...