In The Q

The sun had yet to rise as Quakertown Community High School freshman Laniya Morton was walking to school.

As she entered the school parking lot on Sixth Street she saw something shiny on the ground, but walked past it. Something, however, made her turn around and pick it up.

“It had some sparkle to it and was very pretty,” Laniya said.

Indeed. Laniya, not knowing the jewelry’s value, had just found a missing engagement ring. The ninth-grader walked into the school’s Main Office and handed it to Secretary Connie Derewal.

Later that morning, Ms. Derewal received a phone call from Pfaff secretary Barb Chadwick, whose daughter Madi is an assistant with the Panther Marching Band. Madi, whose wedding is scheduled for Nov. 3, had lost her ring during band practice in the school parking lot the previous evening and had frantically been searching for it.

Please click here for the full story.

With the growing need for mental health resources in school districts, Quakertown is taking a leading role in providing help to its students through an increased number of SAP counselors.

Two years ago, QCSD had one Student Assistance Program (SAP) counselor. It added two more a year ago and two more for this 2019-20 school year to bring the number to five - two at the high school, two at the elementary school level and one for the middle schools.

“What Quakertown has done is phenomenal,” said Melissa Groden, director of prevention, training and education for The Council of Southeast Pennsylvania. QCSD contracts with The Council for the SAP counselors, who are trained by Mrs. Groden.

“The numbers show the need and Quakertown is meeting those needs better than ever before,” she said. “They might be the only district in Bucks County that has this many SAP counselors five days a week."

The five SAP counselors pictured above are, from left, Betsy Leatherman, Linda Bunda, Amy Bocklet, Trisha Watkins and Sarah Szybowski.

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Each baseball season, Quakertown Community High School Coach Jonathan Pallone speaks to each of his players about goals, both for the team and individually as players and as students.

For three straight years, the Panthers have qualified for the District I playoffs. And the team recently learned that for the 2018-19 school year they finished with a 3.23 grade-point average to earn the American Baseball Coaches Association "Team Academic Excellence Award."

"I am really proud of our guys," Mr. Pallone said. "They work very hard, both at baseball and in the classroom as well. Having success in both is important. It's about working toward a goal. When you have that combination working for you, it leads to success."

Mr. Pallone received a certificate for the "Team Academic Excellence Award" and a letter from Craig Keilitz, executive director of the ABCA.

It read, in part: "On behalf of the American Baseball Coaches Association, I would like to congratulate you and your program on a phenomenal 2018-19 academic year. This is an outstanding accomplishment, and the ABCA would like to honor your program's success with this Team Academic Excellence Award certificate.

"You and your staff have shown great commitment to developing successful individuals, both on and off the field, and the ABCA has a long tradition of recognizing the achievements of baseball coaches and student-athletes. As one of just 310 programs who were recognized nationwide, we hope that you display this certificate with pride, and we hope to be able to honor you again next year."

Nancianne Edwards, Quakertown Community School District Assistant Superintendent for Leadership, Administration and Technology, has been selected for the 2020 Outstanding Supervision Leadership Award by the Pennsylvania Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (PASCD).

Ms. Edwards, an administrator in QCSD since 2003, supervises school principals, leads administrative professional development, facilitates community committees and is the district’s safety coordinator.

“I have developed a real passion for this particular work because I believe that developing principals as instructional leaders is the key to improving student achievement and student experience,” Ms. Edwards said. “It’s incredibly gratifying to see principals grow in their practice and to model that for the teachers in their buildings. I consider this to be the most important work I’ve ever done. What’s exciting for me is that this award shines a light on the incredible strength of our principal leadership team.”

Please click here for the full story.

Quakertown Community School District's Dynamic Duo -- Erin Oleksa-Carter and Erika Studer -- were presenters at this week's World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment (WIDA) International Conference in Rhode Island.

Their presentation to a room of professionals from around the world was titled: "Teaching English Learners: Instructional Strategies and Resources for Mainstream Classrooms."

"One of the highest requests following the session was for access to the Professional Development plan the ESL teachers of our district collaborated to build," Mrs. Oleksa-Carter said "Following our presentation, many educators reached out to us for more information."

Mrs. Oleksa-Carter is Supervisor of Literacy, ELD, Fine Arts and Director of Federal Programs for the district.

Ms. Studer is an English Language Development Teacher.

Please click here for their presentation.

On Wednesday, October 23, the Quakertown Community School District, local police and the Levy School Bus Co. will be taking part in Operation Safe Stop as part of School Bus Safety Week.

Operation Safe Stop is a public awareness and enforcement effort to educate the motoring public that passing a stopped school bus, when children are loading or unloading, is both dangerous and illegal.

Police will be monitoring “hot spots,” areas where motorists are known to disobey Pennsylvania's School Bus Stopping Law, which requires drivers to stop at least 10 feet away from school buses that have their red lights flashing and stop arm extended.

Please click here for the full story.

Three of Quakertown Community High School's Class of 2019 graduates recently spent time together at the United States Military Academy for a Tulane-Army football game.

Zach Zajkowski, left, and Paul Hand, right, made the drive from West Chester University to West Point to visit Cadet Lizzie Maceri!

Go Panthers!

Please welcome Private Cybil Krout back from Marine Corps Recruit Training! She is a 2019 Graduate of Quakertown Community High School.

She is the third of 11 students that have chosen to serve in the United States Marine Corps from the class of 2019!

Look who found one another during this week's Pennsylvania School Leadership Conference.

Quakertown Community School District Superintendent Dr. Bill Harner ran into former Quakertown Community High School Dr. David Finnerty, now the Assistant Superintendent of the Twin Valley School District.

"The former Panther is continuing to do great things for students at a higher level!" Dr. Harner said.

The multi-day conference for school leaders from across Pennsylvania is a joint effort by the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.

Richland Elementary School's Color Fun Dash & Run is set for Friday, October 18, at 4:30 p.m. A special guest for the event will be The Upper Bucks County Technical School's Food Truck, which will have great eats created by students.

If you’re planning a high school reunion or searching for old school records or photos, visit the Richland Library Company on Quakertown’s Historic Main Street.

In 2012, the Quakertown Community School District asked the Richland Library to accept and preserve many of their old records, some dating back to the one-room schools. The “QCSD Room” at that Library now contains an assortment of archives that were received from the school district and from community members. Some of these items include yearbooks; attendance records; scholastic magazines; class memorabilia like pennants, jackets and ties; several cornerstones and school plaques and a large collection of photos from school activities. Additional school-related donations to the “QCSD Room” are always welcome.

The Richland Library Company at 44 South Main Street, Quakertown, is a great place to explore. Its many rooms include hundreds of genealogy and local history books as well as several art galleries—one featuring retired teacher Calvin H. Ruth’s paintings.

The Library is handicapped-accessible and open to the public on Wednesdays from 1 to 4 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon.

Quakertown Community High School's outstanding student journalists are executing their craft on a digital platform for the first time.

Please click here to read the first edition of Paw Prints for 2019-20.

Vaping has become a major concern for us in the Quakertown Community School District.

Vaping by students in grades 6 to 12 is skyrocketing. To better educate students, QCSD is closely looking at our curriculum for when to introduce and further discuss the harm that comes from vaping and using illegal drugs. It's important that parents have conversations with their student(s) about the dangers associated with vaping.

For more information, go to www.qcsd.org/vaping or click here.

Vaping-linked deaths hit 33 as officials expand lab testing: CDC

Please click here for The Washington Post story.

Applications for the Veteran of Foreign Wars Voice of Democracy Patriotic Audio Essay Competition and Essay Writing Competition are now being accepted.

Each year, nearly 40,000 high school students compete for more than $2 million in scholarships and incentives.

Please click here for more information and an application for the audio essay.

Please click here for more information and an application for the written essay.

Please click here to download your application.

The Quakertown Community School District is in need of custodians. SSC Services, which services the district, is seeking full and part time permanent and seasonal custodian positions.

Candidates may contact Laird Ihle, director of SSC, at 610-392-1059 or via email at lihle-ssc@qcsd.org.

The Levy School Bus Company is seeking drivers.

The position has flexible hours, a positive environment and is conveniently located in the Quakertown area.

Levy offers a competitive wage package, 401(k) benefits with company matched funds, bonus incentives, training and development, career opportunities, extra hours available evenings and weekends (optional), and community involvement.

This is a perfect job for people who love children, stay-at-home parents, college students looking for education experience, former teachers and anyone in need of extra income.

If you’re interested in becoming a school bus driver or want to hear more, please call Len at 215-536-4567 x121 or email len@levybus.com.

Gary Weckselblatt, QCSD Director of Communications, writes about the people and the programs that impact the Quakertown Community School District.

Email: gweckselblatt@qcsd.org
Website: www.qcsd.org
Location: 100 Commerce Drive, Quakertown, PA, USA
Phone: 215-529-2028
Facebook: facebook.com/QCSDNews
Twitter: @QCSDnews