Former teacher sentenced, new flights, council pay: Top Centre County stories

In Centre County news on Tuesday, a former State College Area High School teacher was sentenced to state prison and local officials announced that the State College Regional Airport will gain a long-sought nonstop destination.

Here’s a roundup of the day’s top local stories.

• Former Spanish teacher Cesar J. Caceres Tello, 45, was sentenced Tuesday to 18 months to 4 years in state prison for inappropriately touching a 15-year-old student and asking her sexually explicit questions in his State College Area High School classroom in December 2022. He must register as a sex offender for 25 years and faces possible deportation to Guatemala. A jury convicted Caceres Tello of unlawful contact with a minor, corruption of a minor and indecent assault of someone younger than 16 after a three-day trial. Judge Katie Oliver handed down the sentence five months after the conviction, and the defense indicated he is weighing an appeal.
• State College Regional Airport will add two daily nonstop flights to Charlotte, North Carolina, starting Oct. 5, with American Airlines as the carrier. The new service joins existing routes to Chicago, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. The Charlotte expansion follows an air service summit held seven months ago, where community leaders identified Charlotte and Florida as top priority destinations. Charlotte was prized as a major American Airlines hub that connects to 170 destinations, including 17 in Florida alone.
• Borough council members across Centre County’s 10 boroughs do not receive salaries or hourly pay under Pennsylvania’s Borough Code. A Centre Daily Times analysis found that compensation varies widely, from no pay at all to $1,500 annually in Bellefonte or $30 to $50 per meeting in smaller boroughs. Allowable benefits for borough council members can include potential health insurance coverage and trainings in addition to any compensation. State College, with its population of more than 40,000, offers no compensation to its seven council members.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.