Upper Adams School District

161 N. Main Street

Biglerville, PA 17307

(717) 677-7191

FAX (7170 677-9807

Upper Adams School District's Mission and Vision is:

All Students College and Career Ready.

Thank you to everyone for taking on the school year with a steadfast commitment to safety as we continue to navigate the challenges of COVID-19. While COVID-19 has extended into the winter months, the District has been able to remain open for instruction with all K-6 students every day since August 26, 2020. Secondary students in grades 7-12 continue to follow a hybrid schedule in order for the District to follow health and safety guidelines provided by the PDE, DOH, and CDC.

Your role is essential in combatting COVID-19 as we strive for some sort of normalcy.

By continuing to follow our District Health and Safety Plan, based on the guidelines of the PDE, DOH and CDC, and staying home when you show any signs of COVID-19 symptoms, we’ve successfully been able to remain open for instruction with minimal positive COVID-19 cases and student/staff quarantine cases.

Currently we are learning more about the release of an additional single dose vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, which will assist us in providing an additional protection option for our staff in the near future. We are hopeful that as vaccinations are distributed, the PDE, DOH, and CDC will ease guidelines appropriately to provide an opportunity for our students in grades 7-12 to return for instruction on a more “traditional” school schedule.

As we focus on the health of our school community, we are also focused on providing the most positive and inclusive school district for every student. Students have bravely shared personal experiences, bringing important attention to behaviors that were not reflective of our values of respect and inclusiveness. Our role is essential to supporting thriving future generations and we take that responsibility with great seriousness by doing everything we can to foster a learning environment free of racism, discrimination and bullying.

As we continue in our pursuit to be our very best and leading by example, we have embarked on a sustainable Anti-Racism Plan to apply an intentional lens to all that we do to support our entire school community. Our continual efforts will be released in our Anti-Racism plan by the end of March and may be available on our district website.

You play an important role in creating a stronger Upper Adams County community. We ask that if you see or hear something that is not right in any of our schools, report the concern to the Safe2Say Something PA website, at Safe2SayPA.org or through our Policy 103 form on our district website.

Our entire district is dedicated to providing a comprehensive educational experience by preparing our students for post-graduation schooling and career opportunities. Our District Vision is clear and concise: “All students college and career ready.” Today, the lens of our vision has expanded to how we affect fostering a community and world that supports our students’ success as we teach, mentor, and lead through exemplary behavior that inspires equitable change.

School Board of Directors Officers

Mr. Tom Wilson, President

Mr. Ron Ebbert, Vice President

Mrs. Susan Crouse, Treasurer and Finance Chair

Board Members

Mr. Chris Fee, Board Member

Mr. Bruce Hollabaugh, Property Chair

Mrs. Cindy Janczyk, Curriculum Chair

Mr. Jim Lady, Athletic and Transportation Chair

Mr. Ed Ponce, Student Activities Chair

Mr. James Rutkowski, Personnel Chair

The public can view the meetings of the Board of Directors via YouTube. The YouTube link can be found on the district website at www.upperadams.org at the bottom right of the homepage under the Quick Link Section.

If you have questions about the meetings or if you would like to be placed on a future agenda to speak to the board during public comment, please contact the following email address: Questions4Board@upperadams.org.

UPPER ADAMS SCHOOL DISTRICT - KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION

for the 2021-2022 school year was held on March 10 & 11, 2021

at Biglerville Elementary School. If you have, or know of a child who is

age 5 or older before September 1, 2021, please contact the

Biglerville Elementary School Office for registration information.

You may call the school at 717-677-5200, 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Monday-Friday

or email Kelly Shannon at k.shannon@upperadams.org

In January 2021, the Upper Adams School District Board of Directors approved not to raise taxes more than 4.2% for 2021-2022. Preliminary budget for 2021-2022, will be available after the May 18, 2021 board meeting. Final adoption of the 2021-2022 budget will be voted on June 15, 2021. For updated information on the 2021-2022 budget, please visit: https://www.upperadams.org/Page/4015

Congratulations are extended to Courtney Smith, Daniel Neiderer and Carter Mickley, members of the Apple City FFA who were awarded their FFA Jackets. These three students competed in a state wide competition and were selected as winners to receive their jackets which are normally presented at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. (from left to right: Courtney Smith, Daniel Neiderer and Carter Mickley)

The Upper Adams School District is pleased to announce that the following students were selected to participate in the Adams County Arts Council Annual All County High School Art Exhibition. The exhibition was held from 2/5/2021 through 2/28/2021.

Isabelle Allen - Word Art

Cindy Chavez - "It's All About Me"

Abigail Cogliano - Pottery

Marcos Cruz - Texture Art

Erik Garcia Tucuba - "It's All About Me"

Sylvia Glassmann - Contour Line Drawings

Tyler Kiel - Black & White Photography

Sarah Landauer - Oil Paintings

Lily Newcomer - Word Art

Lani Wherley - Contour Line Drawings

Mackenzie White - Pottery

The Upper Adams School District received approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) to implement five (5) Flexible Instructional Days (FID) for our weather cancellations or other emergencies by using remote instruction. What is remote instruction? It is when instruction is done with students without the students being present in district buildings. A FID can be utilized for all students in Grades K-12.

We tested a Flexible Instructional Day on Friday, 2/12/2021 for our first snow make-up day. And we tested it on 2/18/2021 for an inclement weather day. These were days where all student, faculty and staff including all office and district office activities were completed remotely. We will be gathering feedback from a number of stakeholders to review the successes and the challenges from the day so revisions and modifications can be considered for future Flexible Instructional Days.

The district hopes that you find the Flexible Instructional Day as an opportunity for your child to participate in remote instruction when an emergency day would arise in the future. We appreciate the continued support from our district families as we work together to creatively develop options for students to participate in school both "remotely" and "in-person". We value the partnership with our families and look forward to serving the educational needs of your student(s).

Parent Reminders from Transportation

If changes need to be made to your students bus stops, it is important that you contact Transportation at 717-677-7191 ext. 2711.

When there are delays or early dismissals due to inclement weather, please be patient as our bus schedules may vary. Please be prepared for a few minutes early or a few minutes late as we work to get students to and from school safely.

The USDA has extended school meal waivers through the end of the 2020-2021 school year, allowing school districts to serve free breakfast and lunch meals to all children, regardless of a family's economic status. At this time, the Upper Adams School District is implementing free meals for all students. This free meal will be for one regular breakfast and/or one lunch per student per day.

Second meals, extra milk, and a la carte items are NOT included in this waiver, and will be charged to student’s accounts accordingly.

If your student has a negative balance, please pay the outstanding balance prior to the end of the school year. Payment may be made using MySchoolBucks, https://www.myschoolbucks.com/ver2/login/getlogin or by sending a check in with your student to be applied to his/her account.

Effective for the 2021-2022 school year, any year-end negative balances will be sent to collections. If you should have questions, please contact Ms. Cless at 717-677-7191 ext 2740 or k.cless@upperadams.org

The Canner Cyber Connection was created during the summer of 2020 for students and their families who were not comfortable returning to school in the fall of 2020. The Canner Cyber Connection is an online platform available to our students and families during the 2020–2021 school year which provides a digital curriculum in lieu of in–person learning. There is a cost to the Upper Adams School District for each student who is participating in the Canner Cyber Connection. However, this expense is significantly less than if the student would attend an independent cyber school. Therefore, the Canner Cyber Connection presents a significant cost savings to the school district versus other providers. In addition, students in the Canner Cyber Connection are still connected to the school district, can participate in any extra–curricular activities, and receive a Biglerville High School Diploma if they are a senior. Flexibility is also provided for students to easily transition back to the school building when they feel safe and comfortable doing so in the future.

The Canner Cyber Connection is powered through an online provider called Edgenuity. Edgenuity is a leading provider of K–12 online learning solutions, partnering with schools and districts throughout the country to provide the tools and support they need to leverage technology to improve student outcomes. Their online courses and curriculum are built using an instructional model grounded in research and are aligned to the Pennsylvania State Standards. They combine direct-instruction content using on-screen teachers with rigorous assignments, performance tasks, and assessments to engage students and ensure subject-area mastery.

Edgenuity has been recommended by our local Intermediate Units as part of their online learning options. The Pennsylvania Department of Education partnered with Edgenuity in the Spring of 2020 to offer free licenses to students until June 30, 2020, and continues to be recommended as a leading provider for online education and an alternative tool for school districts to have an online option for students.

While "in-person" learning is still the best and most ideal learning environment, the Upper Adams School District is pleased to offer some flexibility to our families this school year for their educational needs during the pandemic.

As a School District committed to respect, diversity and inclusion, we strive to foster a healthy and positive learning environment free if harassment, bullying and discrimination of any kind.

Our efforts include participation in the Safe2Say Something program, a campaign launched by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, providing students a safe space to report concerns anonymously. Since 2019, the School District has encouraged students to use the Safe2Say Something system to ensure concerns and reports are addressed quickly and in accordance with state nondiscrimination and anti-bullying policies.

Safe2Say Something allows students and community members to submit school safety tips or concerns of any kind. Information may be submitted anonymously or individuals can choose to provide their names in order be contacted if further details are needed. As always, we strongly encourage our school community to report any school safety or discrimination concerns that they may have in order for all issues to be addressed.

Tips can be submitted via the Safe2Say Something mobile app, website (Safe2SayPA.org), or by phone (1-844-SAF2SAY/723-2729). All information submitted is managed directly by the PA Attorney General’s Crisis Center office who will determine next steps. Tips are then delivered to the impacted school and/or law enforcement for further investigation and action, as directed by the Crisis Center. The information provided helps our school leaders to take necessary actions and put important support systems into place to maintain the safety of all students.

The Safe2Say Something program is a very important tool in maintaining the safety and security of all students in our district, in addition to addressing any issues of racism, discrimination or bullying.

Each year in schools across the country there are millions of students who either hurt themselves or are hurt by others verbally, physically, and digitally. Safe2Say Something teaches youth and adults how to recognize warning signs and say something before it is too late. By training our youth to speak up and have a brave voice, we can more effectively implement necessary school support systems and also help students access support resources outside of the district if necessary.

While Safe2Say Something training programs are designed for students in middle school and high school grades, our elementary and intermediate schools continue to provide anti-bullying training directly through our schools programming. Bully prevention training involves class lessons on how to recognize bullying, standing up to bullies, and ways to access help when bullying situations arise.

Our School District is building upon the Safe2Say Something training with our Anti-Racism Plan, which includes training to educate students about fighting racism and any form of discrimination through understanding and reporting behaviors not reflective of our District’s values of respect, inclusivity and diversity.

We greatly appreciate our school community’s commitment to putting an end to racism, school violence and bullying. Please continue to utilize the Safe2Say Something tool as we work together to establish a safe and inclusive learning environment for all of our students. If you’d like more information on Safe2Say Something, please visit www.upperadams.org and click “About Us” or visit Safe2SayPA.org.

For updated employment opportunities at Upper Adams School District, please visit our website at https://www.upperadams.org/domain/111 and click on the appropriate sublink on the left-hand side of the page.

If interested in employment opportunities with one of our contractors, please reference the chart below for positions and who to contact.

Contractor Employment Opportunities and Contact Information

Aramark

Custodial

Substitute Custodial

https://www.aramark.com/careers

Positions are available now!

Chartwells

Food Service Worker

Substitute Food Service Worker

www.compassgroupcareers.com

or Mike at 717-677-7191 x2510

Positions available now!

ESS

ESL Instructional Assistant

Instructional Aides

Personal Care Assistants

Substitute ESL Instructional Assistant

Substitute Instructional Aides

Substitute Personal Care Assistants

Professional Substitutes

Website: https://jobs.willsubplus.com/jobs?countyIds=108&selectedJobPostingId=944

Jacoby Transportation*

Bus drivers

Van drivers

Substitute bus drivers

Substitute van drivers

Website: https://www.jacobytransportation.com/careers/

Rolling Hills Transit/Folium Inc.

Van drivers

Substitute van drivers

Website: https://foliuminc.com/current-opportunities

Weaver Transportation*

Bus drivers

Substitute bus drivers

Contact: weaversbusservice@gmail.com or Matt at 717-968-2340

*Paid training maybe available

Spring sports practice began on Monday, March 8, 2021 for all varsity sports and on Monday, March 15, 2021 for all middle school sports will begin. Below is information for the first day of practice.

· Spring sports practice for varsity sports began on Monday, March 8, 2021

o Softball: 3-5pm (North Gym)

o Baseball: 6-8pm (North Gym)

o Boys and Girls Track and Field: 3:10-5:30pm (Report to HS Cafeteria)

o Boys Tennis: 3-4:30pm Tennis Courts

· Spring Sport practices for middle school will begin on Monday, March 15, 2021

o Boys JH Soccer: 5:30-7:00pm Pitzer Gym

o Girls JH Soccer: 3:30-5:00pm Pitzer Gym

o Boys and Girls Track and Field: 3-5pm (Report to Pitzer Gym)

Schedules and team information will be handed out on the first day of practice. If you have any questions pertaining to one of the spring sports offered, please contact the respective head coach via email listed below:

o Varsity Softball

§ Head Coach: Ken Shafer

§ Email: k.shafer@upperadams.org

o Varsity Baseball

§ Head Coach: Jeff Taylor

§ Email: j.taylor@upperadams.org

o Boys and Girls Varsity Track and Field

§ Head Coach: Jessica Collins

§ Email: j.collins@upperadams.org

o Boys Varsity Tennis

§ Head Coach: Travis O’Brien

§ Email: t.o’brien@upperadams.org

o Boys Junior High Soccer

§ Head Coach: Jebb Nelson

§ Email: jebbnelson@gmail.com

o Girls Junior High Soccer

§ Head Coach: Brooke Gates

§ Email: b.gates@upperadams.org

o Boys and Girls Junior High Track and Field

§ Head Coach: Jim Schwalm

§ Email: j.schwalm@upperadams.org