The Central Bucks Board Note

Teachers were celebrated throughout the district during teacher appreciation week. A video, released by the district’s communications and community relations department, was shown to those gathered at the meeting. The video (linked below) honors the impact that teachers have on the lives of their students. Seniors surprised former teachers with touching tributes about what their experiences in their classrooms meant to them. Thanks are due to Mr. Matt Murray, district video specialist, for spearheading the video’s creation.

It was announced at the board's May meeting that Central Bucks School District is among the first in Bucks County to obtain CHOP's "Heart Safe School" designation for all 23 schools! Banners signifying that all 23 schools have completed the necessary requirements to be designated as a “Heart Safe School” by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia were presented at the meeting.

The Central Bucks School District has been working with CHOP’s Youth Heart Watch program to implement the best practices in cardiac emergency preparedness and response and have officially earned their Heart Safe School designation in May 2022. The process included the formulation of a “Code Heart” emergency response plan. Each school’s critical event response team (CERT) was trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillator (AED) use. Faculty and staff received education on CHOP’s “Code Heart” emergency response procedures, and the expectations and assignments for each CERT ream member during a sudden cardiac arrest. Following the education, proctored, live drills took place in each building during school hours. Using a CPR manikin, a “Code Heart” was called overhead in each school and the CERT team was expected to arrive to the scene and follow the steps outlined in the district’s cardiac emergency response plan. Leanne Cichelli (Certified School Nurse and Nursing Department Coordinator), Sara Hedges (Certified School Nurse) and Dave Cell (Chief of Public Safety & Emergency Management) collaborated with local emergency medical services, fire, and police to create a simulation that would be tailored to each school. Emergency responders arrived at the scene, participated in the drills, and provided brief education to the CERT teams on what to expect upon their arrival. Following the proctored drills, each school’s CERT team debriefed as a group and were given the opportunity to reflect on the drill, as well as identify areas of strength, needs for improvement, and lessons learned.

“After hearing the inspiring story of a local high school student, Maddie, whose life was saved after she suffered a sudden cardiac incent at her school, we were moved to action in order to ensure that individuals who work at our schools are equipped, trained, and prepared to do the same for any child or adult on our campuses,” Central Bucks’ Director of Pupil Services Alyssa Marton explained, “Building the capacity for our staff to take life-saving steps like those taken for Maddie is a charge that our district has whole-heartedly embraced.”

“It has been an amazing experience working with the passionate staff at Central Bucks and seeing teams work together during realistic drills on campus. Teams were eager to practice their skills and participate in post-event discussions to improve their responses. Youth Heart Watch at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is confident that district staff know how to respond to a cardiac emergency and are prepared to help save lives. We’re excited to designate Central Bucks as one of the first Heart Safe School Districts in Bucks County,” Dr. Vetter said.

Now that the groundwork has been laid, each Central Bucks school will continue to review their plans and hold drills and trainings each year to ensure that students, staff, and families are safe while on campus.

“The staff at Central Bucks School District have done a fantastic job of implementing the Youth Heart Watch Heart Safe School Program across all 23 schools. Despite their large size, the Central Bucks nursing staff coordinated centralized cardiac emergency response plans and CPR/AED training for all schools and conducted effective response drills at all sites in record time. Being prepared for a cardiac arrest doesn’t just mean having an AED, but requires having staff who know how to recognize an arrest, perform high quality CPR and use an AED effectively,” Lindsey Flanagan said.

For the ninth year in a row, the Central Bucks School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation from The NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education. Now in its 23nd year, the Best Communities for Music Education designation is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in efforts to provide music access and education to all students. This award was presented to under 800 school districts nationwide.

To qualify for the Best Communities designation, Central Bucks school district answered detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program and community music-making programs. Responses were verified with school officials and reviewed by The Music Research Institute at the University of Kansas. Read more here.

CB South Senior Anshul Shukla presented the board with an overview of a student liaison program intended to increase student voice and advocacy. The program proposes three speaking representatives from CB South, CB West and CB East, five middle school representatives, and fifteen elementary school representatives. These representatives will be given a voice in appropriate school board agenda items that impact student life. Students will learn about board operations, practice public speaking skills, and allow students and adults to work together in the best interest of all CB stakeholders.

The board approved the appointment of Ms. Andrea DiDio-Hauber as Central Bucks’ Chief of Staff. Ms. DiDio-Hauber will continue to serve in her current role as Director of Human Resources and take on additional leadership responsibilities in her new role.

• Mr. Brian Merrill, Educational Technology Analyst, gave an eSports update.
• Dr. Charles Malone, Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Education and Ms. Alyssa Marton, Director of Pupil Services, presented the Alpha System for guidance services.
• Dr. Nadine Garvin, Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education, presented an overview of the CBSD Comprehensive Plan.
• Listen to the meeting. | View the agenda.

May 11 Meeting

• Policy 119: Current Events
• Policy 218: Student Discipline
• Policy 218.1 Weapons
• Policy 218.2 Terroristic threats
• Listen to the meeting. | View the agenda.

May 19 Special Meeting

• Policy 109.1: Use of Print and Non-Print Material in the Classroom/Age-Appropriate Standards Applicable to Policy 108-Textbooks and Policy 109-Resource Materials
• Policy 109.2: Library Materials
• Listen to the meeting. | View the agenda.

• Mr. Joseph Messemer of GKO Architects, presented an update on the Lenape HVAC renovation.
• Mr. Robert Kleimenhagen, Director of FEMO, presented the bid from Weatherproofing Technologies Inc. for the Unami roof replacement.
• Mr. Kleimenhagen presented the proposal from Keystone Fire Protection for fire protection upgrades at Bridge Valley.
• Listen to the meeting. | View the agenda

• Ms. Tara B.G. Houser, Business Administrator, presented the final 2022-2023 budget.
• Ms. Houser presented the revised 2022-2023 MBIT budget
• Ms. Houser presented the 2021-2022 budget vs. projected actual.
• Listen to the meeting. | View the agenda.

The members of the Central Bucks School District's Board of School Directors each represent one of nine regions in the district. Each region includes one or more municipality. While each region elects one school director, members represent the interests of the district as a whole once elected.

Regular school board meetings are generally held on the second Tuesday of the month. Download a complete list of 2022 meetings, including regular meetings and meetings of the board's committees. Download meeting agendas.

Correspondence for the Board of School Directors should be sent to Stephanie Radcliffe, Secretary to the Board, at sradcliffe@cbsd.org.

The "Central Bucks Board Note," is an e-newsletter designed to provide Central Bucks School District constituents with an overview of the work of their Board of School Directors.

Please share any feedback with Angela Linch, director of communications and community relations, at alinch@cbsd.org or by calling 267-893-2073.

Email: alinch@cbsd.org
Website: www.cbsd.org
Location: 20 Welden Drive, Doylestown, PA, USA
Phone: 267-893-2000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cbschools/
Twitter: @cbsdinfo