Avonworth Middle School's own Kate Jeon will be guest conducting with the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Kate, a seventh grader, will be a part of the PYSO's Enchanted Dance on Sunday, March 3rd at Heinz Hall. She is the youngest member of the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra and won the honor of conducting a piece in a recent competition.

The tickets are free and can be reserved here: www.pyso.org/tickets/.

The program is also going to be broadcast on WQED Pittsburgh.

Congratulations Kate! We are so proud of you!

On Thursday, February 15, sixteen Avonworth Middle and High School students traveled to the O'Reilly Theater in downtown Pittsburgh to participate in the preliminary round of the annual Pittsburgh Public Theater Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest.

In the weeks leading up to the contest, they each chose a monologue or scene to perform and learned about the character and play that they selected. They then set to work memorizing their lines and "becoming" their characters. On February 2nd, they had the opportunity to work with a teaching artist/coach from the Pittsburgh Public Theater. The coach came to the middle school and worked one on one with students, helping them to better understand their scenes and deliver their lines.

During the weeks of Feb. 5th and Feb. 12th, more than 800 students from 80+ different schools and organizations across the city performed in the preliminary rounds of the contest. And after thoughtful deliberation by the judges, the finalists were announced. Receiving an Honorable Mention in the Upper Division (grades 8-12) Scene contest were Emma Noss and Sadie Walsh, and receiving Honorable Mentions in the Upper Division Monologue Contest were Lyra Klinedinst and Lyla Sebeck. Named a Finalist in the Lower Division (grades 4-7) Monologue Contest was Kate Jeon.

Kate was then invited to perform live on stage at the O'Reilly Theater on Monday, Feb. 26th in the Showcase of Finalists. Here the top performers in the Upper and Lower Divisions in both the Monologue and Scene categories were highlighted in front of a packed house. After an evening of outstanding performances, the winners were announced. Bringing home top honors in the Lower Division Monologue Contest was Kate Jeon!

Three Avonworth Elementary School students recently participated in the PMEA District 1 Elementary Strings Festival.

Congratulations to Duvineel Cabrera, Sam Case and Maya Robertson!

Docents from the Heinz History Center led a workshop with 8th grade Civics students to help them prepare for their Night at the Museum presentations this Friday evening. Students have put the finishing touches on their artwork.

The entire Avonworth community is invited to see their final projects at the 8th Grade Night at Museum - Overcoming Adversity Project Presentations - Friday, March 1 at the Heinz History Center at 6 pm. There is free admission to the museum for this event.

Second grade has been learning about different personality traits and various careers through the World of Work program.

Our latest lesson focused on social traits and the fitness trainer career. We were very fortunate to have Coach Rob Southall, owner of Pittsburgh Pro Fitness (and dad of Trey Southall, 2nd grader in Mr. Weiss' class), visit ABC and talk to students about what education, training, and social skills they might need if they want to be a fitness trainer when they grow up.

The kids enjoyed the presentation and were very excited to ask Coach Southall many great questions!

Thank you to Coach Southall for sharing part of your day with us!

Congratulations to these Avonworth students who attend A.W. Beattie and are nominated for the National Technical Honor Society:

• Stefania Bounos, Vet Science
• Lexi Mannion, ECE
• Joseph Weiss, ERT
  

Our Avonworth Elementary School counselor Emily Hough is a Best Buddies volunteer.

She and her buddy, Leonard, were recently highlighted in the article about the program and their friendship.

Click here to read "Emily and Leonard: Pittsburgh Citizens Match"

Ninth graders spent the day at A.W. Beattie Career Center to explore the programs and learn about opportunities available to them.

Each student chose three programs to explore and will then decide if they will attend next school year!

Remember to visit Beattie's Spring Open House on Thursday, Feb. 29 from 5:15-8:00 pm. (Feb. 29). You can find more information in the upcoming events section of the newsletter.

Avonworth School District had a Topping Off Ceremony for the construction project on Friday, February 23. A topping off ceremony is a tradition that occurs when the last beam is placed on top of a structure during construction. Students, faculty, administration and board members had the opportunity to sign the beam before it was placed.

Thank you to Avonworth junior Jase Klatzkin for filming and producing this video. Click here to watch it.

Congratulations to Avonworth School District's Food Service Director, Melissa Schad and her staff that have been officially named Child Hunger Heroes!

Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank has recognized us as one of their 2023 Child Hunger Hero recipients for our contributions for outstanding food service to our students.

Click to learn more.

Students at the Primary Center created 475 valentine cards to be distributed at local hospitals and nursing homes.

Thank you to our APC students for spreading kindness throughout our community!

On February 9, seniors Ameila Hardiman and Aidan Tinker ran a math bee for fifth grade students. Students answered challenging math questions in the format of a typical spelling bee.

All of the students did a great job, and the top three contestants were awarded medals.

Save the Date!

6th Annual Chase the Antelopes 5K & One-Mile Walk is on Saturday, April 27 at 9 a.m.

In March, students in the 8th Grade will begin planning their annual Spring community event: The Chase the Antelopes 5k & One-Mile Walk.

Since 2017, this event has hosted more than 1,000 participants, secured donations from more than 250 local businesses, and raised more than $35,000. Additionally, during this project, students learn authentic skills, develop good citizenship qualities, and unite their community around an important cause.

Don't miss out! Registration is open now and online donations & sponsorship opportunities are also available. Register by April 1st for a discounted rate & receive a guaranteed t-shirt.

Check out www.ChaseTheAntelopes5k.com before it's too late!

All proceeds benefit the Hannah Milbert Memorial Fund, an Avonworth High School Scholarship Fund.

We are excited to share that Avonworth is participating in the Pittsburgh Kids Marathon on May 4, 2024!

Please refer to the flyer for information and directions to sign up. It's very important to register your students for Kids of Steel (with either AES or APC) when you sign up. By registering your child with Avonworth, your race rib and shirt will be distributed at school and you don't have to go to the Convention Center to pick them up. Race time will not be determined until closer to the event date but we will run sometime during the morning of May 4th.

Please also check out the Kids of Steel website for training ideas, events and ways to log your child’s training so that they complete 25 miles before the culminating 1.2 mile event. This is not required, but a fun opportunity to keep your kids active outside of school leading up to the event.

If you have any questions, please contact Kbuttenfield@avonworth.k12.pa.us or kedwards@avonworth.k12.pa.us.

The second grade was thrilled to welcome Native American, Tylar Melfi in February.

Mr. Melfi’s visit complimented the Module 2 of the Wit and Wisdom Curriculum, The American West. Tylar is Erie/Seneca and Kiowa. He is Deer clan, and he descends from Salamanca New York Senecas.

The students were able to listen as Tylar played his tribal flute and sang native songs. The event ended with everyone participating in a “Snake Dance.”

This is Tylar’s second year speaking to the second grade. His visits have been made possible by a grant from the Avonworth Fund for Excellence in Education.

Recent years have been incredible for Avonworth athletics and more history could be made this Friday at the Peterson Event Center! A victory for the girls' basketball team on Friday would make Avonworth the only school in WPIAL history to have three female programs with back-to-back WPIAL championships!

Read more in the Post Gazette article posted below.

Our Northgate/ Avonworth swim and dive teams finished another incredible regular season with both boys and girls earning section titles.

The boys secured their second consecutive undefeated season (7-0, 11-0 overall) and the girls split their section (6-1, 9-2 overall) in a three-way tie with Hampton and Freeport.

Northgate/ Avonworth also advanced several athletes to the WPIAL AA dive and swim championships. Avonworth’s Ryan Hartle and Lilia Mackenzie both qualified for the dive championship at North Allegheny High School on Friday, February 23rd.

Lilia earned 4th place and Ryan earned 3rd, both punching their tickets to the PIAA state meet.

The AA WPIAL swim championships will be held on Thursday, February 29th and Friday, March 1st at Trees Pool – 3:00 p.m. start times for both days.

WPIAL 2A Girls’ and Boys’ Swimming Championships

Location: Joseph C. Trees Pool (University of Pittsburgh)

Thursday, February 29th - Time: 3:00p.m.

Friday, March 1st - Time: 3:00p.m.

Tickets:

All tickets for swimming are ONLY available at the gate!

Livestream:

All sessions of the WPIAL Swimming Championships will be livestreamed via the NFHS network

The Avonworth girls’ basketball team earned a section title this season after going 10-0 in the section and ending the regular season with a 19-1 record.

The ‘Lopes earned the #1 seed in the WPIAL 3A playoffs for the second year in a row, winning their first two playoff games against Apollo Ridge (64-13) and Keystone Oaks (69-45).

On Friday, March 1st, the 'Lopes will take on Shady Side Academy in the WPIAL Championship at the Peterson Event Center (University of Pittsburgh) at 3:00 PM. Go Lopes!

The Avonworth Ggrls' basketball team will play in the WPIAL championship game on Friday, March 1st at the Peterson Event Center (University of Pittsburgh) at 3:00 PM.

Tickets are $10.00 each and available in the High School Office.

A fan bus will be provided for high school students only if 30+ students register to take the bus to and from the game. The cost to ride the fan bus is $10.00. A seat can be secured by responding to the message sent to students by Mrs. Andrea Patton's message.

At the ‘Lopes WPIAL 4A quarterfinal game at Mt. Lebanon on Wednesday, February 21st, Rowan Carmichael broke the Avonworth boys’ basketball scoring record that was currently held by Avonworth and University of Virginia standout Dan Bonner (1971).

Rowan needed 9 points to tie the record (1,416 points) and poured in 36 points in the ‘Lopes victory on Wednesday. Rowan is on pace to become Avonworth’s first 2,000 point scorer.

Rebecca Goetz joined an elite group of Lady ‘Lopes on Saturday, February 3rd during a non-section matchup against Beaver Falls, when she poured in 19 points to push her over the 1,000 point mark on her career.

Rebecca is a 4 year varsity starter for the ‘Lopes, serving as captain for 2 years, and is a 2x All-Section Selection. Rebecca helped lead the ‘Lopes to a WPIAL 3A title in 2023, earning herself the WPIAL 3A Player of the Tournament recognition. Congratulations on an incredible career, Rebecca!

Greta O’Brien also etched her name in the record book during the girls’ WPIAL semi-final game against Neshannock. Greta needed 18 points and poured in 22 in route to her 1,000th career point.

The ‘Lopes defeated Neshannock 71-52 to earn their spot back in the 3A WPIAL championship game set for this Friday, March 1st at 3:00 p.m. at the Peterson Events Center.

Good luck, ‘Lopes!

The Avonworth boys’ basketball team finished their season with a 15-7 overall record, winning 7 of their 10 section games.

The boys earned the #6 seed in the WPIAL playoffs and won their first two playoff games, including a huge win over #3 ranked Montour at Mt. Lebanon (63-56).

The ‘Lopes were outmatched on Saturday during the WPIAL semi-final game against #2 Hampton. The ‘Lopes continued their post-season with a PIAA seeding game on Tuesday, February 27th at 7:00p.m. at Uniontown High School. The team showed a lot of fight defeating Uniontown 59-55 finishing 4th in the WPIAL in a strong 4A classification.

Good luck in the PIAA Playoffs, ‘Lopes!

Avonworth’s wrestling program reached new heights this season, clinching their first WPIAL team playoff berth since 2011 and going 4-2 in their section with powerhouse programs Quaker Valley and Montour.

In addition, Avonworth advanced 8 individual wrestlers to the WPIAL AA individual tournament starting on Friday, February 23rd at 5:00p.m. at Chartiers Valley. Results from the Northern Sectionals are below:

Auston Kosanovic – 114 – 1st Place – Section Winner!

Justin Beck – 215 – 2nd Place

Dimitri Velisaris – 145- 3rd Place

Bryce Metz – 160 – 3rd Place

Luke Hollywood – 189 – 3rd Place

Michael Tabano – 127 – 4th Place

Jackson Krul – 172 – 4th Place

Angelo Valeriano – 152 – 6th Place

Congratulations to all of our wrestlers on an incredible regular season! Congratulations to Auston Kosanovich, who is advancing from the WPIAL individual championships to the PIAA regional tournament set for Friday, March 1st and Saturday, March 2nd at Altoona Area High School!

Coach Vulcano and Coach Maisner earned AA Northern Section Coaches of the Year after leading the ‘Lopes to their first WPIAL team playoff appearance since 2011.

The ‘Lopes also advanced 8 wrestlers to this weekend’s AA WPIAL individual wrestling championships.

Congratulations to both coaches on their hard work, sacrifice, and dedication to building our wrestling program!

Avonworth’s incredible bocce team won the gold medal at the Unified Bocce Regional Championships on Feb. 28.

The gym was packed for the championship with eight teams competing and fans of all ages cheering them on. The Avonworth bocce team will continue to compete next week at Geneva.

Congratulations to our coaches Tiff White and Jen Wickert as well as our play-off qualifying team of Sam Hustwit, Cadance (Cadi) Kuretich, Luke Chrissis, Abigail Zwick, Caroline Sweeney and Connor Bryan! In addition, Alex Fisher did an awesome job singing the National Anthem at the championship.

The bocce team’s win at the Unified Bocce Regional Championships comes after a stellar regular season for both our bocce teams. The teams were 6-3 and 4-5 during the regular season.

Congratulations to all our bocce players. And a very special thank you to everyone who helped with our teams throughout the season.

Let’s Go, ‘Lopes!

The Avonworth Bowling teams have wrapped up their seasons with a lot of accomplishments. Despite only having 4 boys - senior Alek Wert, junior Marshall McCann , Sam Huswit and Brady Dennis - they still were able to place 4th in WPIBL west.

The Lady Lopes were led by Captain Leah Kuban and succeeded to make it to the first round of team championships on February 15th. Senior Alivia Lantzy qualified to compete in the Single championships on Feb 22nd!

Varsity hockey finished the regular season with a 16-3-0-1 record - the most varsity wins in school history! The team was led by captains Austin Gatti, Jake Seifarth, Silas Newhouse.

The 'Lopes finished 2nd in their division and earned a first-round bye in the Penguins Cup playoffs. Connor Ralston, Jack Dolan, and Cooper Powell finished in the season in the top 15 scorers in PIHL single A.

Avonworth was well represented in the all-star game. The players selected were Ralston, Dolan, Gatti, Powell, Seifarth, Newhouse with Danny Mack in goal.

Twenty-five different players contributed this season including many that play both JV and varsity.

Thank you to State Representative Arvind Venkat for stopping by to recognize our awesome girls soccer team for being 3 time WPIAL champions!

Dear Avonworth School Community,

If you'd like to view the progress of the new addition and other aspects of the project, please use the links below to see the latest update from our Construction Manager and access the construction section of our website.

View the February 1st Update.

View the construction website.

Jeffrey M. Hadley, Ed.D.

Superintendent
Avonworth School District

You are cordially invited to the Heinz History Center to take part in this unique student-led event on Friday, March 1, 2024 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. On that evening, admission to the History Center is complimentary for all Avonworth community guests.

The Heinz History Center is located at 1212 Smallman Street in the Strip District. While admission to the museum this evening is complimentary, regular downtown parking fees will apply.

We hope that you can join us for Avonworth’s “Night at the Museum” on Friday, March 1, 2024.

Tickets are on sale now for Avonworth High School's musical production of Into the Woods!

Performance dates:

• Friday, March 15 - 7:30 pm
• Saturday, March 16 - 7:30 pm
• Friday, March 22 - 7:30 pm
• Saturday, March 23 - 7:30 pm

Tickets are $12 each. To purchase tickets:

Online: Click here to purchase your tickets online using a debit or credit card. All tickets must be picked up at will call.

In person: Purchase tickets in person on Tuesday, February 20 from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm or Saturday, March 9 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at the High School Auditorium.

At the door: Tickets will be available for purchase (with cash or check) at the door on show nights up to 15 minutes before the start of each show or until they are sold out.

For more information, email avonworthtickets@gmail.com.

Kindergarten registration is now open for the 2024-2025 school year!

Click the here for the registration packet and much more.