School News: Week of Jan. 11
Kindergarten registration
South Fayette School District announces 2017-18 kindergarten registration for children that will be five years old on or before Sept. 1, 2017. Screening and registration will be held March 14 and 15. To schedule an appointment, call 412-221-4542 ext. 8315 or ext. 8332, beginning Jan. 16.
• Incoming Kindergarten Parent Meeting, 7 p.m. Feb. 23, in the elementary school’s all-purpose room. Parents will receive their child’s registration packet during this meeting. School principals, kindergarten teachers, nurse and Extended Day Program staff will explain the kindergarten process and answer questions.
Environmental art contest
Canon-McMillan high school students (including home- and cyber-schooled students) are invited to enter an original work of art in “Water in Our Future,” an environmental art contest sponsored by the Chartiers Creek Watershed Association (ChCWA) in cooperation with Canon-McMillan High School. Six prizes, including a $100 cash prize and gift certificates, will be awarded to winners. All entries will be on exhibit at the Frank Sarris Library in Canonsburg Jan. 30-Feb. 17. Deadline for submitting entries is Jan. 28, at the library. More information is available from the high school art department or by emailing ChCWAartcontestinfo@gmail.com.
Open house
Saint Elizabeth Elementary School, Pleasant Hills, will host its annual Catholic Schools Week Open House from 1 to 3 p.m. Jan. 29. Opening Liturgy will be held at noon. For more information, call the school at 412-881-2958.
Kindergarten preview
St. Elizabeth Kindergarten will hold “Connect to Kindergarten,” a Kindergarten Preview, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Feb. 1 in the Kindergarten Classroom for parents and children who want to experience the learning center activities. Kindergarten teacher Lisa Jarosh will be on hand to answer questions. To reserve a spot, RSVP to 412-881-2958. Email Mrs. Jarosh with questions at ljarosh@st-elizabeth.org.
Kindergarten preregistration
Bethel Park School District parents whose children will be age five on or before Sept. 1, 2017, are asked to preregister their children for kindergarten at this time by downloading the form at www.bpsd.org. Forms can also be picked up at any Bethel Park elementary school. Parents are asked to complete the preregistration form and return it to their children’s elementary school by Feb. 1. Once the preregistration form has been completed, parents are asked to complete the kindergarten registration forms in advance of their children’s kindergarten registration day, which will begin in February 2017.
Kindergarten registration forms can be picked up at any Bethel Park elementary school or downloaded off any Bethel Park elementary school webpage, under “New Student Registration” on the left hand side of the page.
Preregistration assists the school district with its planning for the 2017-2018 school year.
Catholic Schools Week
The students, faculty and staff of Saint Anne School, Castle Shannon, will be celebrating Catholic Schools Week, which begins Jan. 29, with the following events and activities throughout the week:
• Jan. 29, In Our Parish – Opening Mass will be held at 10 a.m., with donuts and coffee for parishioners immediately following, courtesy of the seventh- and eighth-grade students.
• Jan. 30, In Our Community – An open house will be held at the school from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. This will be a dress down day, in which students in grades PS-3 may dress as a character from their favorite book, and students in grades 4-8 may dress as the career they wish to pursue.
• Jan. 31, Celebrating Our Students – Students in grades PS-8 will attend the Book Fair with their classes, with the PTG providing a treat for all. In addition, students may invite a parent to share a continental breakfast with them from 8:10 to 9:30 a.m. during the Special Person Breakfast.
• Feb. 1, Celebrating The Nation – Students will have the opportunity to visit the Book Fair with their guest.
• Feb. 2, Celebrating Vocations – There will be a Mad Science Assembly for all students, with the PTG providing a treat for the clergy. There will be no school for grades 4-8 (Parent-Teacher Conferences grades 4-8). Students in grades K-3 will participate in the Body, Mind and Soul Olympics. Students may dress down in a shirt from their favorite sports team.
• Feb. 3, Celebrating Faculty, Staff and Volunteers – There will be a Science Fair at 6 p.m. in the school gym for students in grades 6-8, with the PTG and students providing a treat for the teachers and staff. There will be no school for grades K-3 (Parent-Teacher Conferences grades K-3). Students in grades 4-8 will participate in the Body, Mind and Soul Olympics. Students may dress down in a shirt from their favorite sports team.
• Feb. 4, Celebrating The Family – There will be a Talent Show at 7 p.m. in the school gym. Instructional, JV and Varsity Girls home basketball games are underway. Times may be found on the school website.
For more information, visit www.saintanneschool.org.
Open house
Jubilee Christian School, a non-denominational school for grades K through 8 in Mt. Lebanon/Dormont, will conduct Winter Open House events from 10 to 11 am. Jan. 19, from 6 to 7 p.m. Feb. 23, and from 10 to 11 a.m. March 16. Learn more about the school’s integrated approach to education and tour school facilities. A Q&A session with the principal will follow. To RSVP for the Open House, contact James Hilton at 412-561-2855 or jhilton@jubileecs.org. Visit www.jubileecs.org to learn more.
DECA awards
Forty Bethel Park High School students won 14 First Place, 11 Second Place and eight Third Place Awards at the 2016 PA DECA District III Career Development Conference and qualified to compete at the PA DECA Career Development Conference, which will be held in Hershey in February.
Earning First Place Awards were senior Katie Bustamante (Quick Serve Restaurant Management event), Rachel McClaine (Human Resources Management), Tarush Bahl and Maggie Wolf (Marketing Management Team); senior Zach Sanker and junior David Conely (Hospitality Services Team); and senior Max Heller and freshman Marissa Christenson (Business Law and Ethics Team).
Also earning First Place Awards were juniors Sami Dunn (Principles of Hospitality and Tourism), Rachel Gilliam (Hotel and Lodging Management), Justin Lesnak (Marketing Communication) and Paige Davidson (Logistics), as well as sophomores Alyssa George (Restaurant and Food Service Management), Lance Chorney and Alex Duguid (Travel and Tourism Team), and freshmen Sydney Burns (Principles of Business Administration), Sarah Gilliam (Principles of Finance), and Max Schipani and Tyler Thimons (Buying and Merchandising Team).
Thirteen students earned 11 Second Place Awards. They are senior Logan Runco (Hotel and Lodging Management), juniors Emma Beck (Apparel and Accessories Marketing), Nikki Bello (Logistics), and Gavin Campbell and Mark Kozleuchar (Marketing Management Team).
Also earning Second Place Awards were sophomores Samantha Huwe (Business Services Marketing), Brett Marquardt (Food Marketing), Connor Price (Human Resources Management), Brenna Manko (Personal Financial Literacy) and Tim Nuss (Retail Merchandising) as well as freshmen Hunter Dorfner (Principles of Hospitality and Tourism), and Alyssa Arnold and Gabriella Hegedus (Business Law and Ethics Team).
Eight students earned Third Place Awards. They are seniors Cassidy DeLeo (Accounting Applications) and Courtney Manns (Principles of Business Administration); juniors Christine Dunlap (Marketing Communications) and Dallas Jones (Principles of Finance), sophomores Emily Kraska (Business Services Marketing and Lexi Schanck (Retail Merchandising) and freshmen Olivia Greene (Principles of Marketing) and Lauren Mazzacone (Personal Financial Literacy).
Bethel Park High School Teachers Emily Smoller and Maria Christenson prepared the students for this competition.?
USC published authors
Two Upper St. Clair High School seniors are published authors as a result of their top-rated short prose submissions in the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s Ralph Munn Creative Writing Contest.
Mahima Reddy’s piece, “Dear Thotappa,” and Claire Zalla’s, “Polonius Laboratories,” are among the student writings published in the 2016 Ralph Munn Creative Writing Anthology, which is distributed to all Allegheny County public and school libraries.
Mahima was the second place winner in the short prose category. The contest, funded by an endowment from former Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Director Ralph Munn, awards first place winners in each category with $250 and second place winners with $100.
The contest – which has categories for poetry, short prose and screenwriting – was promoted by high school librarians Janine Despines and Debbie Rentschler, the Upper St. Clair Township librarians and the high school English department.