Check out the newest segment of North Penn Answers. NPSD Board of School Directors sit down to discuss pertinent issues and answer questions from NPSD community members. In this episode, host Josie Charnock talks with School Nutrition Services coordinator Pamela Gallagher and NPSD assistant Superintendent Diane Holben about SNS program and policies, and Keystone exams. Click here to watch the latest episode of NPSD Answers.

President's Letter to the Community

Dear Community,

SherpinskyNPSB

Just a few days ago, members of the Board of School Directors and I congratulated the nearly 1,000 members of the Class of 2014 as they became the 59th class to graduate from North Penn High School. NPHS Commencement is one of the most impressive events in our district. From the Valedictorian and Salutatorian speeches to the excitement of students, families and friends, it is so nice to come together and celebrate the Class of 2014's successes, achievements and future.

You can view commencement ceremonies on North Penn Television. To access NPTV's weekly schedule, click here. Also, you may want to take a few minutes to enjoy the video captured by the NPHS Model Aviation Club. This clip takes you to new heights and gives you a different perspective of NPSD's biggest event of the year. Click here, and you won't be disappointed.

Earlier this month, I joined Dr. Dietrich in celebrating the more than 70 retirees from North Penn School District. Our district will miss these dedicated teachers and staff members, but I speak for the board in wishing them all the best and thanking them for their years of service to our students. Click here for a video tribute to our retirees.

For me, participating in commencement and the various end of school year activities is a chance to reflect on the year and the accomplishments of the board, students and staff. It is a time to remember that we are all here to prepare students not just ready for graduation, but for a successful life afterward. The decisions made from the board level to the classroom level are made to support the education of our students and to ensure a quality education for generations to come.

The 2014-2015 budget passed at this month's school board meeting is an example of this commitment to our students' success. You can read further in the article below about how keeping our operational costs low combined with smart financial decisions over the past decade is allowing us to keep taxes to a minimum while continually improving the value of a NPHS diploma.

Sincerely,

Vincent Sherpinsky

President

NPSD Board of School Directors

NPSD Board of School Directors Approve 2014-2015 Budget

The North Penn Board of School Directors approved a final budget of $227,035,981 for the 2014-2015 school year at an action meeting on Thursday, June 19. The budget includes a 2.1 percent tax increase for residents, which is the state's Act 1 index. It equates to a $72 increase for the average homeowner in Montgomery County and $61 for the average homeowner in Bucks County.

The 2.1 percent tax increase is needed to help fund expenses, many of which are outside of the school district's control, that exceed total projected revenues for the 2014-2015 school year by $3.96 million. In fact, next year's budget is a 5.7 percent increase from the current year's budget due to a 6.9 percent increase in medical benefits, $2.1 million in funding for the potential of two new charter schools mid-year, new debt service for Hatfield Elementary School renovations and significantly increasing Public School Employees' Retirement System (PSERS) obligations. Due to the impact of pension obligations and health care costs on the overall total cost of compensation of employees, very modest increases are included in the budget for salary increases.

"Many school districts throughout the state are cutting student programs to balance their budget but I am very proud to say North Penn has not had to touch its academic offerings," said Dr. Curtis R. Dietrich, superintendent. "Through the hard work of staff we have focused controlling costs on the operational side of the school district so that our resources remain focused on student learning."

Due to prudent budgeting and continual efforts to raise revenues and decrease costs, NPSD is expecting to end the current year with revenues exceeding general fund expenditures. The savings come primarily from the operational side of the school district and include living with vacancies and energy savings. The district also saw a slight increase in earned income tax revenue. These funds are now available to pay for important capital improvement projects such as roof replacements and technology infrastructure updates, and potentially to begin to replenish the health care fund which was significantly depleted this year by unanticipated medical claims.

Also helping the bottom line is that NPSD continued its efforts to increase alternative revenue sources this past year. These efforts will continue into the 2014-2015 school year. Advertising, district-initiated property re-assessments and other initiatives help to increase revenues and offset expenditures.

"The cost of public education continues to rise at a rate that is difficult to manage without increasing taxes," said Vincent Sherpinsky, president, NPSD Board of School Directors. "I am pleased we once again passed a budget that maintains one of the lowest tax rates in the county, and at the same time provide a nationally recognized education."

Boundary Change to York Avenue and Inglewood Elementary Schools Approved

The school board approved changes to the Inglewood and York Avenue elementary schools boundaries. The changes are needed due to projected increases in student population at York Avenue that cannot be accommodated appropriately while staying within class size guidelines.

A little more than 30 students are currently impacted from this change that moves Hamilton, East Hancock, Jackson, and Jefferson streets into the Inglewood attendance area.

Transition activities are being planned for these families including an Introductory Meeting and School Tour with Inglewood Elementary School Principal Dr. Orlando Taylor. All families will also be invited to Inglewood Elementary School's New Family Orientation in August.

North Penn School District Students Receive Recognition

During both June meetings of the NPSD Board of School Directors, board members had the privilege to honor several NPSD groups for their outstanding accomplishments this school year.

One June 10, students from North Penn High School were honored for their accomplishments as officers of the NPHS Student Government Association (SGA) and the NPHS Air Force Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (AFJROTC). SGA was recently named a National Gold Council of Excellence for the third consecutive year by the National Association of Student Councils.

The officers from the NPHS AFJROTC were honored for their leading the group of 126 cadets through a very successful year; including achieving an Exceeds Standards rating, the highest ever and highest possible rating on the unit's AFJROTC HQ's inspection; and for their community service outreach, which led to the unit receiving the Distinguished United with Merit award for the first time in the program's history.

Students from North Penn High School were also honored for their participation in District, Regional and even All-State Band, Chorus and Orchestra during the June 19 meeting. Continuing in the field of musical accomplishments, members of the North Penn High School Wind Ensemble and Pennbrook and Penndale middle schools received proclamations for their outstanding performances this year.

The Pennbrook and Penndale middle school Jazz Ensembles performed at the annual Pennsylvania Association for Music Education (PMEA) conference held in Hershey, PA. These two ensembles submitted audition tapes and were selected out of hundreds of middle school bands, orchestras and ensembles from throughout the state.

Members of the North Penn High School Wind Ensemble were also honored for performing at the PMEA conference in Hershey. The NPHS Wind Ensemble also followed the same stringent audition process as the middle schools but was the only program selected in the state to represent the category of high school concert band. This is the second time in the history of the NPHS Band program that the wind ensemble has been selected to perform at this conference.

Education/Community/Policy Committee Report

The ECP Committee met on Monday, June 9, during which information was provided to the committee on a variety of topics.

Nine schools in the district received the annual Governor's Award for Excellence in Academics. Schools that earn 90 or higher on the School Performance Profile (SPP) are honored with this distinction. The district is very proud of the students and their teachers whose hard work resulted in this achievement.

The committee investigating full-day kindergarten at the request of the board, and presented a summary of the work it completed this year. This committee researched the learning needs of kindergarten students, the academic impact of full-day kindergarten, and the funding and costs to implement and conduct a full-day program. Another consideration was additional classroom space that would be needed if a program was implemented. In addition to conducting this research, the committee visited other districts that have full-day kindergarten programs. The committee presented an analysis of the financial and resource implications of various full-day kindergarten models.

The Wellness Committee provided an update for the 2013-2014 school year. Key goals, such as PE/Health curriculum and the promotion of wellness and nutrition standards, were shared. A component of these goals included the Wellness Policy review. The committee's key accomplishments include meeting with Coordinating Council, updating the wellness website, providing information at Home and School meetings, and updating nutritional information using "Choose My Plate" information. The committee also conducted school wide and district wide activities to promote wellness.

The ECP Committee will not meet in July. Therefore, the next meeting will be Monday, August 11, 2014.

Support Services Committee Report

The Support Services Committee met on Tuesday, May 27, and discussed the several important issues.

Two job meetings have been held for the Hatfield Elementary School additions and renovations project. Schedules have been refined and work is set to begin after the last teacher day. Work on the modular unit at Pennfield Middle School for the Hatfield project started on June 2.

The administration reported on the status of the NPHS Security Fencing project. The project was delayed due to a late shipment of the gates and will be completed in the next few weeks.

The committee heard a presentation from Bonnett Associates, Inc. regarding potential renovations at North Penn High School. The committee asked for additional information on scope and schedule.

The administration reported that roofing work and secured entrance projects are on hold, pending funding.

The committee heard requests from Nor-Gwyn Baseball to allow them to build a new concession stand and the Squires Football organization to install a scoreboard on land sublet to them on the Pennbrook Middle School property. Both items were approved during the June 19 School Board meeting.

The administration updated the committee on energy conservation projects, electricity procurement and natural gas procurement. Due to market conditions there will be no recommendation for an extension for electricity, but a natural gas contract extension for a 24 month extension is recommended for ratification on the June 19 agenda.

The next meeting of the Committee will be held on Monday, June 30 at 6 p.m.at the Educational Services Center.

Finance Committee Report

Bob Schoch distributed the Budget Planning Model Packet. He reviewed the model and explained that all data listed were reasonable assumptions. He reviewed the one-to-five year projections and explained that numbers would be greatly affected by charter schools and PSERS rates.

Marjie Scott, coordinator of the Extended School Care program, proposed strategies, including increased prices, increased enrollment, to cover growing expenses and deficit of the Extended School Care program. A $12,000 loss is projected for 2014-2015.

The coordinator of the School Nutrition Services, Pam Gallagher, proposed strategies to increase sales and revenue; including increased lunch prices for North Penn High School and elementary schools, bottled water sales at North Penn High School, and changing menu items to increase student interest.

Bill Bartle and Rhonda Diliberto of the aquatics program reported that efforts in increased advertising have benefited the community education and swim program. The swim team met and exceeded budget projections, mainly due to increased enrollment. The program is considering capping administrative fees.

Steve Skrocki reviewed the on-going strategies used by the North Penn Community Education Program being used to generate revenue.

Please note, the June 30 Finance Committee meeting has been cancelled.

NPSD Educational Foundation Committee Report

The NPSD Educational Foundation held its final meeting of the school year this month and what a great year it has been. The trustees are very proud of new and exciting initiatives of the past year including a successful online auction and the addition of student liaisons to our board.

Student representatives, Taylor Young and Erin Huebner, coordinated their second fundraiser for the Foundation. On Tuesday, June 17, Rita's Water Ice donated 15% of each purchase from customers with a Foundation flyer. The Foundation received $90 and thanks these young ladies for their hard work in getting the word out to their fellow Penndale students and the entire community.

Foundation trustees continue to work on the Golf Classic which will be held Monday, August 18 at Pinecrest Golf Course. Spots are still available for both golfers and business sponsors at this time.

The Foundation also announced it will hold a charity luncheon on October 5 at Bacco Italian Restaurant in North Wales. Tickets will go on sale soon for this popular event.

In grant news, the grant committee approved 24 grants for the upcoming school year worth $13,445. The trustees thank the educators who took the time to write proposals this year and for their commitment to innovation in the classroom. There will be an additional request for grants for the 2014-2015 school year in the fall.

Any questions about the Foundation can be directed to Christine Liberaski at the ESC.