Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Kathleen Matthews shows the applications of crafting arts both in and out of the classroom.
North Penn School District math teacher Kathleen Matthews uses her crafting skills to both help inspire her students and advance good causes. As the owner of Tess’ Totes, Matthews recently showcased her custom handmade purses and craftwork at the 2013 Upper Dublin Craft Fair. According to Matthews, proceeds from Tess’ Totes go to charitable organizations. Among the organizations that Tess’ Totes sales support are Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the American Heart Association. However, to Matthews, perhaps the most important support her craft business supports isn’t an organization, but a very special person. “I was sewing since I was six,” Matthews said. “My mom taught me how to sew.” Matthew’s mother, Tess, had a stroke three years ago. …
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Henry 'Que' Gaskins, the Washington, D.C.-born man credited with transforming Reebok from a shoe company to a lifestyle brand, was the keynote speaker Tuesday at Pennbrook Middle School as part of Black History Month
It's cool to be smart and focus your dreams. Henry "Que" Gaskins knew this was the key to success at an early age, when his parents instilled in him to strive for excellence. It was further strengthened during his junior year in high school when Gaskins was selected to be in a Leadership Education and Development MBA program at University of Virginia. "It changed my life. I've never looked back since," he said. Gaskins would go on to make a career of changing lives, and he was at Pennbrook Middle School in Upper Gwynedd on Tuesday to inspire students to do the same with their lives. To the student body, Gaskins may have been an unknown up on that stage, but the celebrities he has worked with in his career were anything but — Allen Iverson…
Sunday, February 24, 2013
The math classes at the Lansdale middle school know that Food + Donations = Happiness
Food + Donating = Happiness. This was one equation that 26 Penndale Middle Schoolers will remember for life, following their delivery of more than 2,900 canned goods to Manna on Main Street Friday morning. "Throughout the school, all math classes did a canned food drive," said Sara Heil, Penndale eighth grade math teacher. "We made bar graphs for each of the classes and each student filled in one box per can, to see which class could bring in the most. The winning class is the second-period class. They brought in 234 cans. My five classes overall brought in 825 cans. Overall, for all three grades, they brought in 2,929 cans. We filled 67 boxes and brought them over in four vehicles." Heil said it started 11 years ago with just her math …
Friday, February 22, 2013
Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter wrote that the school board voted Thursday to amend the boundaries that affect about 48 students attending North Wales and Gwyn-Nor elementary schools
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Friday, February 22
In September, about 48 elementary students will head to Pennbrook instead of Penndale Middle School, now that North Penn School Board has approved a new redistricting plan Thursday. According to Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter, the students attend North Wales and Gwyn-Nor elementary schools, and are at present part of the Penndale Middle School boundary. The areas affected by the redistricting include around North Wales and Morris roads, and North Wales and Welsh roads. Read more at this link.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
North Penn School District this month denied three applications for charter schools. One applicant, Montgomery Flex, will not be appealing the decision to the Pennsylvania Department of Education
Montgomery Flex Charter School representative Tim Sager said appealing to the state Department of Education following the denial of North Penn School Board of its and two other charter school applications is not an option at present. "After careful consideration, we have decided not to file for an appeal to the Pennsylvania Department of Education. This is in large part due to the cost of launching such an effort," Sager wrote in an email. Sager said Montgomery Flex, in an appeal, must first get 1,000 signatures from North Penn residents. Those signatures must then be reviewed and approved by the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas. "At this stage, the school district can challenge the veracity of the signatures by subpoenaing the …
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Three separate organizations filed applications to form charter schools within the boundaries of North Penn School District. The Reporter's Jen Lawson broke the story of the board's denial of all three applications
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Tuesday, February 12
No charter schools coming to North Penn School District. That's the consensus following votes by the school board Tuesday night, after its members denied three separate charter school applications, according to Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter. Lawson reported that each of the three applicants will appeal. The three applicants seeking charter schools in the district were: Montgomery Flex is the only one of the group that went through this process before. Its initial application was denied by the school board, as it did not favor the cyber aspect of the school's curriculum. According to The Reporter, Montgomery Flex proposed opening at Hillcrest Shopping Center. Education for New Generations eyed a space at 100 Commerce Drive in Montgomery …
Friday, February 8, 2013
Check back with us for updates on rescheduled events
North Penn School District is closing all district buildings at 6 p.m. today, due to the forecasted winter weather. All buildings will remain closed until 1 p.m. Saturday. The district announced that all school and community activities scheduled between 6 p.m. Friday and 1 p.m. Saturday will not be held and may be rescheduled. Souderton Area School District has also cancelled events for this evening through noon Saturday. Events scheduled for tonight included: Here are rescheduled dates for the above events:
Friday, February 1, 2013
Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter wrote that there are no plans for armed guards or school police officers
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Friday, February 1
Weeks after a North Penn School District school safety forum — and in the wake of the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut — North Penn School District’s Safe Schools Committee proposed $150,000 in security upgrades Thursday night, according to Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter. Proposed upgrades include more cameras, portable radios and card swipe and buzzer systems, according to Lawson. There is no plan for armed guards or school police officers, Lawson wrote. Costs for the upgrades would come from the capital budget, according to the article. Research and input from law enforcement, administrators and parents is necessary before upgrades are implemented, Lawson wrote. Read more at this link.
Friday, January 11, 2013
Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter reports that the district must find a way to make up for a $10 million budget gap, and may petition the state to allow them to go above the Act 1 1.7 percent cap on tax increases
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Friday, January 11
Jennifer Lawson of The Reporter reports that North Penn School District is eyeing a 3.8 percent property tax increase in 2014, in order to close as much as a $10 million projected budget gap. In doing so, the district may have to apply for an exception with the Department of Education to allow more than the 1.7 percent cap on a tax increase set by Act 1 of Pennsylvania. District Business Administration Director Bob Schoch told the school board this week that the district implemented $20 million in budget balancing initiatives since 2010, which were one-time options. Futhermore, the three charter school applications under consideration could impact the budget by as much as $7 million, Lawson reported. One way the district could bring in …
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Led by North Penn Safe Schools Coordinator Ray Wilson, a forum Monday night on school safety, in the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy, presented what's keeping students safe and what's going to make them safer
Some things were revealed Monday night at a school safety forum at North Penn High School that informed parents what's keeping their children safe and what's being scrutinized to make them safer. Namely, the possibility of an armed, trained and certified security guard at the high school. Parents also discovered that there is an absence of staffed security at the elementary schools, as North Penn High School and the middle schools are viewed as facilities with higher than average (and older) troublemakers. Specifics of security measures at the schools in the district were generalized, as not to jeopardize them, said Superintendent Curt Dietrich. "During the week since the tragedy at Sandy Hook, we've received emails from parents, …
Raymond A Hopkins
2:22 pm on Thursday, February 21, 2013
See if you offer choice and competition into the market, the local School Disticts then the under performing staff and administration may have to compete and the school district will actually have to admit its many short comings. There are many find NPSD teachers, but the programs, education plans, and poor administration is failing kids in the entire state. Charter schools are not always the … more ›