New year, many changes: Districts prepare for upcoming school year

From armed security guards, to new construction, students in Fayette, Greene and Washington counties will see changes in their respective school districts at the start of the 2014-15 school year.
The following is a glimpse of what’s in store.
Albert Gallatin Area
Parents, students, and community members now have a new way to keep up-to-date on the latest news within the Albert Gallatin Area School District once school begins on Aug. 25.
A Facebook page to communicate news has been developed, which is one of the biggest changes within the district.
Elementary and middle school students will also see some changes with regard to their curriculum.
Kindergarten through grade 8 teachers of mathematics will implement a new math program that is aligned to the Pennsylvania Common Core Standards, which incorporates higher order thinking skills, offers a wide array of acceleration, reinforcement and remediation resources, and provides students access to interactive learning tools and lesson specific video clips at home.
Time was redistributed in the middle school schedule to accommodate an enrichment seminar period (ESP). The goal of the ESP is to optimize student potential through enrichment and/or intervention activities that address students’ individual interests and/or academic needs.
Middle school students at AG North and AG South will also construct and utilize geodesic greenhouse domes in their technology education and science classes. The domes were acquired by middle school teacher Ezekial Lux through a Walmart foundation grant.
As for high school students, new Chromebooks will be used in foreign language classes.
High school and middle school lunches will be $2.30, which reflects a 10 cent increase. Elementary lunches will be $1.95, also a 10 cent increase. There was no change in the cost for breakfast. It remains $1.10.
Brownsville Area
Students in the Brownsville Area School District will have an opportunity this year to go on field trips without ever leaving the classroom.
The district is expanding upon its distance learning program with a $175,500 Distance Learning and Telemedicine grant through the US Department of Agriculture.
Dr. Philip Savini, superintendent, said the school district will be able to work with other schools, not only regionally and nationally, but also internationally. He said the new technology puts the district ahead of the curve.
Students will also have the opportunity to design their own video games through a new course offering.
The new curriculum begins with a course the details the evolution of games to the present day. Upon completion of the first class, students can move onto screenwriting and 3D modeling, and will eventually be able to create their own video games.
The district has also added AP Physics and AP Calculus to the current AP course offerings, and nine new teachers will greet students when they return to school on Aug. 25.
Lunch prices have increased to $2.10 for elementary students, and $2.25 for secondary students.
California Area
Middle and high school students in the California Area School District will have the chance to explore the ins and outs of the gas well industry in a new energy technology course.
Superintendent Brian Jackson said the district is offering the new course because of the presence of the Marcellus Shale gas industry in the area.
In addition, there will be a number of course offerings to meet the mandates of the Keystone Exams, and for students who need extra help in those courses, the district has developed a remediation program.
Human biology and biology II are being offered to students in the 2014-15 school year. Biology II will be a college in high school course through St. Francis University.
At the middle school level, the district is employing a modified block schedule, which will provide a block period every other day for 80 minutes or more for courses that will require testing. The block scheduling also provides teachers with the opportunity to team teach, Jackson said.
California Area students are returning to school on Aug. 21, which is a few days earlier than most of the schools in the area.
Students will pay $1.45 for breakfast and $2.20 for lunch.
Carmichaels Area
As the Carmichaels Area School District is undergoing a multimillion- dollar renovation project at the junior senior high school, students will see many changes throughout the 2014-15 school year.
Seventh and eighth graders in particular will be attending classes in the 10 mobile classrooms the district has set up on campus. The district will also need to use half of the gymnasium to serve lunches, which will be prepared in the elementary school’s kitchen. The new cafeteria is slated to be completed in early September.
Two courses geared toward maximizing use of technology have been added to the junior high curriculum. A computer applications course is designed to teach students how to use the computer for business and personal use through Microsoft Office. Students will also learn how to navigate the internet safely.
A multimedia course will use advanced computer applications to prepare students for advanced technology skills needed for academics, employment and leadership. The main focus of the course includes desktop publishing; graphic design; recording and editing audio; video and photography as well as exploring basic computer coding.
The senior project has also been updated to focus on career planning and meet the needs of all students. Students will begin their project during their junior year by completing a career survey, choosing three potential careers to research and creating a portfolio. During a student’s senior year they will focus on one career and create a resume and cover letter, do job-shadowing or a college visit, create a career related portfolio, and have an exit interview with a panel of educators.
Classes begin on Aug. 25 with elementary lunch prices set at $1.80, and secondary lunch prices set at $2.00. Breakfast is $1 district-wide.
Connellsville Area
Students in the Connellsville Area School District will encounter some new faces when school begins on Aug. 25.
Kevin O’Donnell is the new executive director of the Connellsville Area Career and Technical Center, and Dave McDonald is the new principal at Springfield Township and Clifford N. Pritts elementary schools.
Superintendent Dan Lujetic said he’s really excited about both of these appointments. He said O’Donnell brings a fresh perspective and that McDonald, who has been with the district for a few years, is a great collaborator.
He said the district has been continuing to align the elementary reading curriculum to the Common Core standards.
In addition, new equipment has been purchased to supplement student learning in robotics, and students at West Crawford Elementary will be exposed to more technology through a Chromebook lab.
Overall, the district has been working to get more technology in the hands of its students.
Breakfast is $1.35 for both elementary and secondary students, and lunch is $2.05 for elementary students, and $2.35 for middle and high school students.
Frazier
Frazier School District is in the midst of a $22 million renovation project which will provide kindergarten through grade 8 students with a new building when all is said and done.
Since the project is not set to be complete until the 2015-16 school year, students will see construction occur throughout the coming school year.
The appointment of a new superintendent, Bill Henderson, is another big change that has occurred within the district. Henderson assumed his new position this summer, and will be ready to welcome students to school when they return on Aug. 25.
At the elementary level, the district is implementing a positive behavior support program, which promotes positive outcomes for students, and focuses on accountability, responsibility and respect.
The district is also putting mini iPads and Chromebooks into the hands of elementary students.
The middle school is in its second year of Project Lead the Way, and eighth grade students will have the opportunity to take a robotics course for the first time this year.
At the high school, a new face will greet students when they arrive to school; Jason Pappas has been named the new high school principal.
Lunch is $2.35 for secondary students and $1.95 for elementary students.
Jefferson-Morgan
Students will be welcomed back to the Jefferson Morgan School District on Aug. 25 this year by new assistant principal Brandon Robinson.
Robinson’s new duties will allow him to serve grades pre-K through 12. He previously served the district as an elementary math teacher.
Students at the junior senior high school will also be greeted by a new guidance counselor, Katie Fischer.
Students of the junior senior high school will also be able to enjoy a new outside common area this year, during certain times of the day.
Additionally, a new AP psychology course will be added to the high school curriculum. The district currently offers calculus, literature and government as AP courses.
At the elementary, iPads will be provided for grades K-3. Pre-K students are already using iPads for course work.
The prices remain the same this year for breakfast and lunch. Breakfast will cost $1.15 at both the elementary and secondary schools. Elementary lunches will cost $1.90, and secondary lunches will cost $2.
Laurel Highlands
A freshly renovated high school is awaiting Laurel Highlands School District students when classes begin on Aug. 25.
Superintendent Jesse Wallace said the biggest change students will see is the almost 100 percent completion of the high school renovation project.
Wallace said the school will be poised for 21st century learning.
The renovation work will be 97-98 percent finished when the school year begins and the remaining work will done on evenings and weekends, Wallace said.
In addition, this is the third year of the Laurel Highlands Online Academy, the cyber school that the district operates with Intermediate Unit 1.
Class offerings and teacher training for the academy are expanding, Wallace said.
Lunch prices for students have remained the same. The prices at the high school and middle school will remain $2.40 and the elementary price will remain $2.15.
Southeastern Greene
Students of the Southeastern Greene School District will begin another school year on Aug. 25.
Mapletown High School students will see an outdoor classroom that includes seating, a butterfly garden and a small wetlands area. Acting Superintendent Rich Pekar said the classroom is intended to be used by grades 7-12, and will be part of the science curriculum to include the study of horticulture, plants and animals, planting of seeds, plant growth and biological/ecological systems.
Pekar said the classroom, which was paid for by a grant from the Community Foundation of Greene County, will also be specifically integrated into the curriculum of special education, which will include the teaching of life skills and recreational activities.
Over at Bobtown Elementary, a SMALLlab – Situated Multimedia Arts Learning Lab — has been installed. The lab uses a ceiling-mounted projector, motion-sensor cameras, wands and a computer to develop scenarios to create embodied learning experiences to help advance student learning. Pekar said the district received a $20,000 grant from Allegheny Intermediate Unit as part of a STEM Grant for the project entitled “Education Through Movement.”
Additionally, the district has been awarded a grant for $34,730 for the purchase of iPads for sixth-grade students at Bobtown Elementary. This grant is part of the Digital Elementary Science Project through Community Foundation of Greene County. All students at Bobtown in grades four through six will have access to a classroom set of ipads.
Lunch prices for elementary students will be $1.70, and $1.85 for high school students. Breakfast is $1 at both schools.
Uniontown Area
One of the most noticeable changes to occur within the Uniontown Area School District is the completion of the stadium project at the high school.
According to Dr. Charles Machesky, the field surface is completely redone, as well as the track, painting and fencing. The field is already being use by students and community members.
Minor construction work is going on at the entrance to A.J. McMullen to make it as secure as the other schools in the district. And for even more added security, the district has hired armed security guards who will begin their duties at the beginning of the school year.
There was a slight increase in enrollment for the 2014-15 school year, most notably at Lafayette.
As for curriculum changes, the district is continuing to adhere to the Pennsylvania Common Core standards said Deborah Rittenhouse, curriculum coordinator.
A math program that was introduced to elementary students last year is going to be expanded to sixth grade students this year, and a new program called Big Ideas, will be introduced to seventh and eighth-grade students this year as well.
Staff writers Natalie Bruzda, Steve Ferris and freelance writer Toni Cekada contributed to this report.