Superintendent's Newsletter

It is my pleasure to present the September edition of the Lower Moreland Township School District Superintendent’s Newsletter. I hope this letter finds you and your family healthy and well.

Striving to maintain and steadily improve upon the quality education our students deserve and our community has come to expect is always energizing. LMTSD is certainly thankful to the teachers, support staff, administrators, parents, and community members who partner and deliver the educational opportunities and experiences needed for all of our students to succeed. As the 2023-2024 school year begins, please join us in visiting with our teachers and staff during your child’s scheduled Back-to-School Night and please stay connected through our Parent/Guardian Resource Center. I am confident that Lower Moreland Township schools will challenge and develop our students academically and socially. Patience and adaptability from all stakeholders are key to all protocols, instructional practices and technology. Please be sure to stay updated with District and specific school information through our website.

Once again, LMTSD will be partnering with Lower Moreland Township Police and employing a School Resource Officer for the 2023-24 school year. Detective Justin Brommer will be assisting the District in all aspects of safety and security as its Resource Officer. Ensuring the safety of all students and staff involves multiple components, including physical security, emergency management, and violence prevention efforts in the form of threat assessment processes. Detective Brommer will assist in all aspects of these areas. I also encourage all parents/guardians to take time and explore the District’s bullying/cyberbullying page in order to locate a number of helpful resources.

Lastly, congratulations to Mrs. Deborah Lawlor, High School Health & Physical Education Teacher and LMTSD K-12 Lead Teacher, for recently being recognized by the Society of Health and Physical Educators in PA as the 2023 Ethel G. Encke Award winner. The Ethel G. Encke Award is the second-highest award bestowed upon a member of SHAPE PA, recognizing his/her exceptional service and leadership to the organization and to the profession.

Have a great September and wonderful start to the 2023-2024 school year.

Scott Davidheiser, Ed.D.

Superintendent

The summer months are an extremely time for the Business Office with a fiscal year-end of June 30th, closing all of the financials in preparation for audit, processing hundreds of orders for equipment, books, supplies, etc. needed for the new school year as well as continuing the daily operations that are needed during the summer. However, one of the larger tasks to be undertaken is transportation. During the summer months, the Business Office, in coordination with the Special Education Department, First Student, Inc., FirstAlt, and the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit sets up all transportation for the students who qualify for the ESY (Extended School Year) programs. These programs ran (in-district) from 7/5/23 to 8/3/23 and there were also some out of district placements that ran longer. In addition, in June of each year, notices are sent out to all of our non-public schools that we have bused to in previous years asking for calendars, early dismissals and student rosters. This information comes in during the summer and are collected into a database for uploading into the transportation program. Under State Law, school districts are mandated to provide transportation for resident students who elect to attend a non-public school anywhere within 10 miles of any boundary of a school district. For Lower Moreland (in 23/24), the District is busing to 38 different non-public schools. Once all information is received, the routes are run through the transportation program and checked/verified to ensure all students were placed on a route. The timeline of these schools are earlier than public schools and have to be put in place as early as August 17th (LaSalle College High School) to ensure students are picked up according to their individual schools’ calendar. With the advent of the District’s agreement with FirstAlt, a subsidiary of First Student, the District contracted 5 on these routes to that company as the industry is still suffering from a shortage of bus drivers.

Once all of the routes are completed and checked, an automated message will be sent through our phone notification system letting parents know that routes are available on a private link on our website. Additionally, copies of the routes will be sent to the individual schools for their reference. All during the school year, students are added/deleted based on information received and the District acts as quickly as possible to address these changes. The Lower Moreland Township School District endeavors to ensure that all students have a safe and efficient ride to and from school and the work that goes on behind the scenes helps make that happen each year.

You may have already received communication from your child's teacher using Talking Points, a free application that lets you communicate with your children's teachers and school. Talking Points is a valuable tool to many parents because it allows you to send and receive messages through the application in your preferred language and the application will translate the message into English for the teacher. Families are able to easily select their language of choice and we understand that the decision is often a very personal one. Some parents have expressed concern related to the selection of a language other than English. The goal of Talking Points is to make it easier for parents to stay engaged and involved with their child's school. Please know that educators do not value one language differently from another and this tool has been amazing as it has removed communication barriers and allowed parents to become more involved in the day-to-day aspects of students' school experience. The Talking Points application can be accessed by scanning the correct image below for your device.

Paw Pass Program

The District is has a Paw Pass program for Lower Moreland residents who are at least 60 years of age. The Paw Pass card entitles the resident to free or discounted rates to LMTSD theater productions, special events, and enrichment programs.

Paw Pass cardholders receive:

• Free entry to the dress rehearsal of the Murray Avenue School and Lower Moreland High School drama club productions,
• Free entry to the Saturday matinee of the Lower Moreland High School spring musical,
• Discounted rates to the other drama club showtimes,
• Free entry to regular season football, basketball, and wresting athletic events played in the District, and
• Discounted rates for adult enrichment classes.

A Paw Pass card may be requested by calling 215-938-0272 or by email at wweir@lmtsd.org.

The Technology Department supports information technology systems and instructional technology programs and practices in the district. Each month, we highlight how our students and teachers engage in 21st Century learning activities. We also share updates on new initiatives and tips and tricks related to devices and technology tools used in the district.

Mrs. Handfinger will be using Staff Wars, an interactive music game, during the course of the year with her students at Murray Avenue. This game allows students to make sure they are on the right pitch by tracking the notes on the screen. When students hit the right pitch, the note will disappear from the screen. To make this game even more fun, it can be used with any instrument!

In order to assist families with obtaining much-needed, and often hard-to-find, resources for mental and behavioral health needs outside of the school environment, the Office of Student Services and Special Education maintains a list of local resources that can be shared with parents upon request. The list is shared with our School Counselors, School Psychologists, and building Principals and is ever-changing. It is updated as the resources in our community change, as new resources become available, and as our office is made aware of them. If you feel your child is in need of outside resources and don’t know where to turn you can contact the appropriate School Counselor who can provide you with contact information for an appropriate resource based upon your child’s needs.

Scott A. Davidheiser, Ed.D.

Superintendent

Email: sdavidheiser@lmtsd.org
Website: www.lmtsd.org
Location: 2551 Murray Avenue, Huntingdon Valley, PA, USA
Phone: 215-928-0272
Twitter: @LMTSD