Pennsbury On Point is a weekly newsletter designed to keep the Pennsbury community up-to-date on district news, events, and information. The newsletter will be emailed to families weekly and archived on the district's Public Relations webpage.

If you have any photos or story ideas you would like to see featured, please email the Public Relations Department at publicrelations@pennsburysd.org.

Earlier today, Pennsbury High School students and staff participated in the Polar Pop, a fundraising event benefiting the Special Olympics of Pennsylvania. All week, PHS students and staff were able to place their donations into either a general bin or a specific staff member's bin. Depending on how much money was placed in their bin, the participating staff had to adhere by the following rules:

• $1 - $20 Pop an ice water balloon on their head
• $20 - $50 Dump a bucket of ice water on their head
• $50+ Dump a large orange cooler of ice water on their head

It's not too late to show your support for this worthy cause! Click here to donate.

Students enrolled in the M.O.S.T. Program (More Opportunities for Student Training) at Pennsbury are gaining hands-on experience running a coffee cart at the administration office in Fallsington. The students serve up a variety of beverages and snacks to staff members on Fridays. The "Daily Grind" gives students the opportunity to practice social, functional and vocational skills. Money raised from the Daily Grind Coffee Cart feeds back to the M.O.S.T. program.

Learn more about the M.O.S.T Program.

Music lovers packed into Pennsbury High School West this week for the annual Falcon Idol Competition. Seventeen performers took to the stage at Keller Hall and performed a segment of a song before the judges selected their top three. Keyonia Proctor, Maddie Magee, and Annamarie Radzinksi returned to the stage to perform their entire selections, and then it was time for the audience to cast their vote. Congratulations to Maddie Magee, who dazzled the audience with her cover of Train's Drops of Jupiter. Bravo to all of our outstanding singers! And, thanks to our esteemed judges Reggie Meadows, PHS principal, Mark Cherpko, Social Studies Coordinator and Teacher, and 2021 Falcon Idol winner, Maahi Kumar.

The Pennsbury High School Choir Department took 85 students to New York City to participate in a workshop with Broadway performers from the hit show Hadestown. The students worked with Brandon Cameron and Yael Reich on music and choreography from the show and enjoyed a Q and A session with the Broadway performers. The students then attended a matinee showing of Hadestown.

Don't miss the talented cast of Shrek Jr. this Friday and Saturday at Pennwood Middle School! Tickets can be purchased online or at the door one hour before showtime.

Show times and dates:

Friday, March 10 @ 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, March 11 @ 2:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.

Three Pennsbury High School seniors have been named finalists in the National Merit Scholarship program. Congratulations to Henry Franklin, Varun Patel, and Robert Papshev, (pictured above with Reggie Meadows, PHS Principal.)

Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.

2023 National Merit Scholarship winners will be announced beginning in April and concluding in July. They are in competition for nearly $28 million dollars in scholarships. These scholarship recipients will join nearly 368,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.

To learn more about the National Merit Scholarship Program, visit the National Merit Scholarship Corporation website.

Fourteen students from the Pennsbury Speech and Debate team will compete in the National Catholic Forensic League Grand National Tournament in Louisville, Kentucky, May 27 - 29, 2023.

Pennsbury captured 11 of the 60 competition slots. The National National qualifiers are

• Gabrielle Bamberski and Ella Kasatkin - Lincoln-Douglas Debate
• Meghan Crohe, Michael Davis, Fabiha Afaf, and Nivrithi Kanubaddi - Policy Debate
• Swathi Bodduluri and Zaki Ali - Congressional Debate
• Michael Lynott - Declamation
• Daniel Kim - Dramatic Performance
• Coral Ramos Saturria and Kierstin Lee - Duo Interpretation
• Amanda Qu - Original Oratory
• Aneesa Shaik - Oral Interpretation

The students qualified at the Philadelphia Catholic Forensic League (PCFL) tournament hosted by William Tennent High School on Saturday, March 4, 2023. Over 15 schools and 160 competitors attended the tournament. The PCFL is comprised of five counties.

Congratulations and best of luck to all our National competitors and Coach Chris Berdnik!

Congratulations to the 18 intermediate German students that participated in the 2023 AATG National German Exam (NGE) for High School. The exam measures the performance of students in reading and listening. Students who achieve the highest percentile rankings on the NGE are recognized on AATG’s NGE Honor Roll, and are awarded medals and book awards. Miranda Newton, Pennsbury's Goldurkunde recipient, is eligible for NGE scholarships. Students at the achievement level are awarded certificates. Pennsbury High School is proud to recognize the following students for their ausgezeichnet achievement on this year's National German Exam. Wir gratulieren euch alle!

Gold Urkunde (90th percentile or above)

Miranda Newton (Level IV)

Silber Urkunde (80th-89% percentile)

Sarah Gygax (Level III)

Ella Kasatkin (Level III)

Nora King (Level III)

Achievement

Onkar Bajwa (Level III)

Jaclyn Hauben (Level III)

Charles Kealy (Level III)

Wesley Rittenhouse (Level III)

Derek Bednarz (Level III)

Megan Oleynick (Level III)

Samantha Smith (Level III)

Nicole Rago (Level IV)

Ahnika Hernandez (Level IV)

The Pennsbury High School World Language Department hosted International Day, in honor of World Language Week, on Wednesday, March 8. This year's festivities focused on all things German! Students enjoyed German dancing, cultural discussions, and music, courtesy of the band "Doppelganger." The World Language Department would like to thank the Pennsbury Arts Foundation for the generous support of the event.

Over the last few weeks, Penn Valley Elementary students collected almost 500 boxes of cereal to be donated to local food banks. Students and staff enjoyed seeing all of the “dominos” fall for a good cause. Check out the video below to see the dominos in action!

Good luck to Pennsbury High School wrestlers Shane McGurrin, Anya Abel, and Eliana Riva, who will compete at the state level this weekend! McGurrin will compete in the boys' championship in Hershey, marking the first time a Pennsbury student competes at the state championship in eight years. Abel and Riva will blaze their path as they compete in the girls' tournament.

Pennsbury High School senior Vincent Biehn (pictured above, seated, right) will represent the district in the PIAA Bowling Singles Championship on March 17 in Ephrata, Pennsylvania. Vincent recently finished second in the regional competition.

The PHS Girls Bowling team is headed to the state competition as well. The team made it to the quarterfinals in the regional competition to advance. Congratulations to all!

Congratulations to the William Penn Middle School Boys Basketball team who captured the Lower Bucks County Middle School Championship! The undefeated squad topped Pennwood Middle School this past Wednesday to claim the championship!

Bear-a-Palooza came to Quarry Hill Elementary School this week! Kindergarten students in Ms. Tomko's class have studied bears over the last few weeks, and the cross-curricular lessons culminated in a special show for parents on Thursday, March 9.

The presentation kicked off with a special recitation of Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See, written and illustrated by Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle. Ms. Tomko, dressed in a bear suit, then led her students in special songs about bears. The event concluded with students leading their special guests through the Bear Library, Bear Museum, Hibernation Experiment, Bear Writing Pieces, and the Bear photo station. A "beary" good time was had by all!

Kindergarten students at Afton Elementary School recently jumped into the "Shark Tank" to see who would pay the most money for their inventions. The students read Big Smelly Bear by Britta Teckentrup, an endearing tale about a bear who was so dirty that it made his back itch horribly! The students designed their back scratchers in Mrs. Slota's SPARK class and presented their designs to Dr. Smith, superintendent of schools, Gary McManus, Mathematics Supervisor, Jamie Swanson, Science Supervisor, and Miss Ruppersberger, Afton Special Education Teacher.

In honor of Black History Month, art teacher Mrs. Brody and the students of Manor Elementary School created a hallway display exemplifying peace and love. Students read the book "Magic Trash: A story of Tyree Guyton and His Art" with Mrs. Edson and were inspired to create a Positive Message bulletin board from discarded book pages.

"MAGIC TRASH offers strong themes of working together, the power of art, and the importance of inspiring community--especially kids--to affect action. The Heidelberg Project is internationally recognized for providing arts education to children and adults and for the ongoing development of several houses on Heidelberg Street. Not only does the Heidelberg Project prove that when a community works together it can rebuild itself, but it also addresses the issues of recycling, environmentalism, and community on a global level."

Set up shop and refresh your child's wardrobe at no cost by swapping gently worn clothing! This event is FREE to all Pennsbury families! Click here to reserve your table! Questions? Email Patty Kropp at pkropp@pennsburysd.org.

Earning one of the Girl Scouts’ highest awards challenges girls to be their best and develop, plan, and implement a Take Action project. The Gold Award, open only to Girl Scouts in high school, is the most prestigious and most difficult award to earn for girls and requires a minimum of 80 hours to complete. In 2022, only 3500 girls in the nation earned the Girl Scout Gold Award. One of those 3500 was a local Sandy Run Girl Scout named Gavriella.

Gavriella Weinstein, a 2022 graduate of Pennsbury High School and a member of Troop 266, earned the Gold Award by completing a project aimed at increasing awareness in her community about bicycle safety and helmet laws. Gavriella conducted community presentations to children and created a YouTube video on the importance of wearing a helmet. In her YouTube video, Gavriella interviewed a pediatrician, a victim of a bicycle crash, and a police officer. Gavriella also created a quiz so that people in her community can test their bicycle safety knowledge. Gavriella now attends the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In earning the Gold Award, Gavriella completed the Trifecta, earning all three of Girl Scout’s highest awards – Bronze, Silver, and Gold!

Come out on Sunday, April 30, for a healthy, fun, family day in support of Pennsbury School District PTOs! Click the link below to sign up. All proceeds benefit Pennsbury PTOs and the non-profit, Pennsbury Kids.

The Pennsbury Parent Academy (PPA) is a series of educational programs and presentations offered to Pennsbury parents and guardians to support school success and continued home-school partnerships. The PPA program includes monthly, live in-person and/or virtual programming on a variety of topics to promote parent and guardian community engagement, such as:

• Mental Health & Wellness
• Supporting School Success
• Social Media & Internet Safety
• Diversity & Inclusion

Visit our website for recordings of recent presentations.

Click here to register.

Click here for more information.

The Pennsbury Scholarship Foundation is now accepting applications for the 2023-24 school year! All PHS seniors planning to attend college/trade school can apply, and PHS graduates can apply each year they are in school! Click here for more information and to apply.

TMA Bucks Community Traffic Safety Program is hosting its 3rd annual Teen Safe Driving ROADeo. This FREE event is open to all high school students in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties. The event is designed to keep teens safe on the roadway through education, interaction, and fun. Click the link and sign up today!

The Affordable Connectivity Program is a Federal Communications Commission program that helps connect families and households struggling to afford internet service. This new benefit provides a discount of up to $30 per month toward broadband service for eligible households. Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers.

Eligible households can enroll through a participating broadband provider or directly with the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) using an online or mail-in application.

You can learn more about the benefit, including eligibility and enrollment information, by visiting www.fcc.gov/ACP, or by calling 877-384-2575.

The mission of the Pennsbury School District's Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) is to collaborate with administration and parents to facilitate communication, sharing of resources, and offering of support programs. SEPAC strives to improve the experiences and education of all students who receive special education, while promoting understanding, acceptance, and inclusion within the Pennsbury School District. Click here to learn more.

SEPAC holds monthly meetings, and all parents are welcome to join. Their next meeting is Thursday, March 16 at 1:00 p.m. If you are interested in attending, please fill out this interest form.

The Pennsbury School District is making a concerted effort to ensure that students who reside within our District boundaries are able to attend the school they are assigned to based on their home address. To help us, we have established a Confidential Residency Reporting Tip Line. If you believe someone is falsifying their student's address to attend the Pennsbury School District, please call or email:

residency@pennsburysd.org

(215) 428-4100 ext. 84777 (TIPSS)

Please click here for more information.

Do you enjoy working with children?

Do you like working close to home and earning a competitive salary?

Becoming a Pennsbury Bus Driver is the job for you!

We offer…

- A competitive salary
- Flexible hours
- A student-centered work environment
- Paid training for your CDL

Come join our team!

Apply online at: www.pennsburysd.org or call: 215-428-4140

Current CDL holders can start right away! (Once they receive proper clearances)

Click here to visit the Pennsbury School District's E-Flyers Page.

These flyers represent current or ongoing announcements of interest to Pennsbury students and their families that emanate from local community organizations, sports leagues, scouting groups, and other non-profits. Browse through our gallery!

To obtain approval for a flyer to be posted on the E-Flyers Page, please email your request to Macy Cellitti at mcellitti@pennsburysd.org.

Click here to view Pennsbury High School's Student Job Board and find local area businesses with open positions. Some positions allow applicants as young as 14 years old.

Click here for information on how to obtain a work permit.

The annual required Chromebook fee that allows students in grades 5-12 to take their device home can now be paid online. The price is $40.00 (reduced to $15 for students who qualify for free and reduced lunch). The Chromebook fee can be paid by logging on to PowerSchool through a web browser, not the PowerSchool mobile app. Cash or check payments are also accepted at each school.

Please click here for more details

Have a question about Pennsbury? Don't trust the rumors, ask Penny!

Send Penny an email at askpenny@pennsburysd.org, or leave a message at 215-428-4100, ext. 73669 (PENNY).

Safe2Say Something is a youth violence prevention program run by the PA Office of Attorney General. Report a confidential tip to help prevent violence and tragedies.

Click here to submit an anonymous tip.

Did you miss an email from the District? Check the archive!

The Nutrition Group is now hiring! Positions include Food Service Workers, Cooks, and Kitchen Managers with rates from $15-$17 per hour. The hours are Monday-Friday, school hours only. No nights, weekends, or holidays! Apply today by calling the Nutrition Group office at 215-949-6740 ext. 2, or click here and search for "Pennsbury"!

Dr. Thomas Smith, Superintendent of Schools

tsmith@pennsburysd.org

215-428-4111

Email: publicrelations@pennsburysd.org

Website: www.pennsburysd.org
Location: 134 Yardley Avenue, Fallsington, PA 19058
Phone: (215)-428-4100