| NPSD Board Members | |
President
Vincent Sherpinsky
Vice President
Timothy Kerr
Members
Josie Charnock
Steve Hladik
Suzan Leonard
Rick Miniscalco
Carolyn Murphy
Frank O'Donnell
John T. Schilling
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| Meetings in Review | |
NPSD Board of School Directors Meeting
To view agenda attachments and minutes from past meetings, please click here.
meeting dates scheduled for 2014, please click here. |
| Upcoming Meetings |
January 27, 6 p.m.
Support Services Committee Meeting
January 27, 6:30 p.m.
Finance Committee Meeting
January 27, 7 p.m.
Safe Schools Committee Meeting
February 10, 6:30 p.m.
Education/Community/Policy Committee Meeting
February 11, 7:30 p.m.
School Board Work Session
February 20, 7:30 p.m.
School Board Action Meeting |
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| President's Letter to the Community |
Dear Community,
I can't remember a school year with as many weather situations as early in the season as we have seen. In fact, as I write this letter, another storm threatens to impact our schools.
Although the board of school directors approves a school calendar each year as we did last week for the 2014-2015 school year, school boards are not involved in deciding when to close schools because of weather.
To me, it looks like one of the toughest decisions our superintendent, Dr. Curtis Dietrich, makes with his team. I know that much time is spent reading weather reports, checking road conditions, and conferring with surrounding school districts when inclement weather is upon us. When the decision is made to close a school or remain open, it is seldom a simple matter or one that will receive 100 percent agreement from those whom we serve. But please know that every decision is based first on the safety of our students and the staff that must bring them here safely and care for them throughout the school day.
I must also take this time to thank the district staff that ensures our schools are ready for students, staff, parents and community during these times. Our facilities staff is to be recognized for their hard work in readying 20 buildings and acres of parking lots and sidewalks, ensuring schools have heat and hot water, and the list goes on and on. I also would like to thank the transportation staff for getting our students to-and-from school safely in inclement weather.
Hopefully, we have seen the worst of the winter. But if not, know that we have the finest of facilities staff ready to serve.
Sincerely,
Vincent Sherpinsky
President
NPSD Board of School Directors
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| 2014-2015 School Calendar Approved | |
The 2014-2015 school calendar was approved at last week's action meeting and can be found by clicking here. The calendar is developed with input from staff and parents. The 2014-2015 calendar, with such input, is a little different than last year. Some differences include four in-service days before students arrive and an instructional day on the day before Thanksgiving. The projected last day for students is June 11. The calendar is developed over a several month period and takes into consideration holidays, professional development needs, parent needs, required instructional hours, and the instructional demands placed on students including being prepared for state tests.
The board also approved the designation of five days as official school holidays (November 28, December 24, December 26, December 31 and April 3) in addition to the dates already designated by the school code as holidays (Memorial Day, Christmas Day, Thanksgiving Day and New Year's Day). Accordingly, as described in Section 15-1502 of the school code, school may not be held on any of these nine days for any reason. |
| Closed Captioning Coming to NPTV | |
The Board of School Directors approved a closed captioning service for North Penn Television viewers. Subtitles of all speech will now be part of NPTV programming. Although closed captioning is not required on educational access channels like NPTV, the board and administration believe it is needed to meet the needs of all members of our community. In the past, the cost of a closed captioning service was completely out of reach financially. With innovations in technology, there are now options that utilize an automated hardware/software system that are much more affordable.
NPTV has a long-standing tradition of providing award-winning communications to our community. Adding closed captioning service to our channel is just another way of ensuring our community stays informed about the quality education provided by NPSD. Community members can find NPTV on Comcast channel 28 or Verizon channel 29. |
| Board Extends Bus Contract | |
First Student will provide bus transportation for private school students continuing in to the 2014-2015 school year. The board approved an extension of the 2013-2014 contract to include a rate increase of three percent. First Student transports approximately 2,332 students who reside in the North Penn School District who attend private and parochial schools. |
| NPSD Celebrates School Director Recognition Month | |
 Public education has long been a cornerstone of America and a great equalizer that gives every child the hope of a better tomorrow. In the North Penn community, many dedicated individuals work to ensure that every child, every day is given the education they deserve. Every January, NPSD salutes a special group of individuals who helps run the schools - the nine elected members of the school board.
At the January action meeting, Dr. Curtis R. Dietrich, NPSD superintendent, presented each board member with a proclamation recognizing their service to the North Penn community, its students, staff and community members.
 "These nine unpaid volunteers are making difficult decisions to ensure our students are well educated and that our schools are safe," said Dietrich. "And as state funding gets tighter and local tax bases continue to fluctuate, this job has become increasingly challenging."
Dietrich asked that everyone in the community take time in some way to thank a school director for the time and effort they put into helping our schools. Thank them for the long hours spent at meetings and reading through paperwork. Thank them for listening to everyone's concerns. Thank them for serving every child, every day.
Thank you to our Board of School Directors for their time and efforts!
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From Left to Right: Top Row: Stephen Hladik, Timothy Kerr, John Schilling, Rick Miniscalco. Seated: Carolyn Murphy, Frank O'Donnell, Vincent Sherpinsky, Josephine Charnock, Suzan Leonard |
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| Education/Community/Policy Committee Report |
The Education/Community/Policy (ECP) Committee meet on Monday, January 13 with several topics on the agenda. The committee reviewed the proposed calendar for the 2014-2015 school year. This calendar includes 12 teacher in-service days and five designated Section 1502 local holidays. Potential Act 80 days are identified in the calendar. Also, provisions for snow make-up days, should they become necessary, are noted on the calendar.
Updates regarding the NP ADvantage Program were provided to the committee. So far, $39,000 has been billed to advertisers. This undertaking received positive press in two recent articles in the Lansdale Reporter following the January Board Worksession meeting. In addition to selling ad space in designated areas, sales for ads in the 2014-2015 activities calendar are underway.
Also, during the meeting an overview of the PA Educator Effectiveness Model was presented to the Committee. This is Pennsylvania's new observation and evaluation process that is being implemented this year for teachers and in 2014-2015 for principals. The model is based on the Charlotte Danielson rubric and incorporates information gleaned from observations and data.
The Committee also discussed Board Policy #5143 which addresses the School Nutrition Service charging policy and how it is applied at the elementary, middle and high schools. Parents are able to register online with My Payments Plus to receive updates regarding their student's account. School Nutrition Services will ensure that parents are notified when their child has charged a meal at school. Student travel requests were also on the agenda.
The ECP committee proposed action for the 2014-15 School Calendar and the Student Travel requests as part of the January 16 meeting agenda.
The next ECP Committee meeting will be Monday, February 10 at 6:30 p.m. |
| NPSD Educational Foundation Committee Report |
The NPSD Educational Foundation's first-ever e-newsletter and year-end appeal were met with much success. More than $2,000 was raised via the year-end appeal which featured a Foundation project with one of our English Language Learners (ELL) classes. Thanks to English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher Marilyn Loefler for allowing us to feature her grant and the wonderful work she does with our students.
The Foundation also held its annual Staff Tribute and raised close to $800. The Paul Murphy Memorial Fund is close to $7,000 in donations. Two mid-year grants related to science have been chosen to receive support from this fund for this school year and the fund will continue to support projects in years to come.
The North Penn Alumni Association hosted a reception following the NPHS Winter Concert in December and welcomed more than 40 alumnus and friends to the event. More events are being planned for the spring.
Unfortunately, the charity luncheon scheduled for Molly Maguire's in February has been cancelled. The Foundation is working on scheduling a different location for the spring.
Any questions about the Foundation can be directed to Christine Liberaski at 215-853-1020. |
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