Aug 4, 2016 5 min read

Bethel Park School District

Orientation

Aug. 29: Independence Middle School orientation

Chromebook pick UP

Aug. 24: Seventh grade

Aug. 25: Eighth grade

Aug. 29: Make-up day

First Day of School

Sept. 6

New This year

• There is new Integrated Language Arts curriculum for grades 3 and 4 (Wonders). This curriculum will also be piloted in kindergarten, first and second grades.

• Independence Middle School will receive two new STEAM-related areas in the library, thanks to a $20,000 grant from the Allegheny Intermediate Unit’s Center for Creativity.

• At the high school, new courses include a pilot introductory course that will utilize the STEAM Innovation Studios; a game coding course in the math department; and a Big Data and Data Analytics course in the marketing department. New Advanced Placement Courses are AP United States Government and Politics and AP Psychology, bringing the total number of AP courses to 18.

Keystone Oaks School District

Orientations

Aug. 24: High school and middle school sixth-grade orientation

Aug. 29: Kindergarten orientation

First Day of School

Aug. 29

New This Year

• Kindergarten students will ease into the full-day schedule during the first week of school by attending an orientation with their parent/guardian on Aug. 29, followed by three half-days and then the first full day on Sept. 2.

• Students in kindergarten through fifth-grade will participate in a weekly STEAM course, giving them the opportunity to develop the creative and critical thinking skills necessary for college and career success. The new STEAM course is one of five “special” classes that elementary students will have during a six-day rotation, which is new this school year. The other classes are art, library, music and physical education, which students will have twice during the rotation. The rotation schedule can be found online at www.kosd.org/sixdayrotation.

• At Keystone Oaks Middle School, visitors will only be able to enter through the McNeilly Avenue entrance. Visitors will not be able to enter the middle school through the lower-level Kelton Avenue entrance.

Mt. Lebanon School District

Orientations

Aug. 18: Jefferson Middle School and Mellon Middle School sixth-grade and new-student orientation

Aug. 23: Mt. Lebanon High School freshman orientation (also known as Link Crew)

Aug. 24: Freshman parents and new students (grades 10-12) orientation at the high school auditorium

Aug. 25: Elementary new families reception and meet and greet at all buildings

First Day of School

Aug. 29

New this year

• All Mt. Lebanon schools will stock Naloxone.

• The high school renovation will wrap up this year, with construction of new tennis courts and final site work on Horsman Drive.

• The Mt. Lebanon School District School-Community Speakers/Bureau will launch this year. Community members and alumni of the high school are invited to register at www.mtlsd.org in order to share their expertise with students. The selection of speakers will be based on the needs of the teachers and curriculum.

• Foster Elementary School will celebrate its 75th anniversary 1-4 p.m. Oct. 8.

Peters Township School District

Orientations

Aug. 23: Bower Hill Elementary new student orientation

Aug. 24: Peters Township Middle School new student orientation, orientation for eighth-graders taking high school classes

Aug. 25: Seventh-grade summer orientation

Aug. 26: McMurray Elementary new student orientation

Aug. 31: Fourth Grade Mixer, McMurray and Bower Hill elementary walk through night, Peters Township High School welcome back night

Sept. 1: Pleasant Valley new student orientation and walk through night

First Day of School

Sept. 6

New This year

• Students in grades 4-6 will enter the completely renovated facility at McMurray Elementary. This project began back in June 2015 and the final phase is being completed this summer.

• Among other projects, the technology team has been working on new wireless systems at the middle school and Bower Hill Elementary that will improve access to district devices throughout the schools.

Seton-La Salle Catholic High School

Orientations

Aug. 22: Grades 10-12 orientation

Aug. 23: Freshman orientation

First Day of School

Aug. 24

New This year

•The high school is in the process of giving its old chemistry lab a completely new look as part of the STREAM initiative. The STREAM initiative will provide students with unique class offerings, including astronomy, robotics, culinary arts, and increased music, digital arts and computer science options, while providing hands-on training in those fields. The chem lab will be stripped down and brought back to life after receiving a total remodel from ceiling to floor.

• There will be 30 new, top-of-the-line computers for the IT and coding lab, and the Innovation Lab is progressing nicely.

• Flat screen televisions will be located throughout the building.

• Seton-La Salle recently released a website, www.slshs.org.

South Fayette School District

Orientations

Aug. 17: Freshman orientation

Aug. 18: Sixth-grade orientation and meet the teacher, elementary and intermediate meet the teacher

First day of School

Aug. 22

New this year

• The district’s operational planning theme for 2016-2017 is “Exploration and Inventiveness.”

• The high school 1:1 technology distribution and implementation will complete the K-12 technology rollout.

• The stadium’s additions and alterations project is nearly complete with the first big event, the “Senior, Senior” to be held Aug. 26.

• The high school’s alterations and additions renovation project continues throughout the school year.

Upper St. Clair School District

Orientations

Aug. 9: Boyce new family orientation

Aug. 12: Freshman open house

Aug. 16: High school new student orientation, Streams new family breakfast, Fort Couch new family orientation, freshman open house, Boyce Family Welcome Day

Aug. 19: Baker New Family Welcome Day

Aug. 23: Kindergarden orientation

First day of School

Aug. 23

New this year

• The Innovation Hub at Boyce Middle School will launch this fall, and will provide STEAM opportunities for all fifth- and sixth-graders, including a new STEAM design course.

• This year, the district’s 1:1 learning initiative will expand as emerging ninth-graders matriculate to the high school with their iPads.

• In addition to the STEAM design course at Boyce, among many curricular enhancements is a new keyboarding and technology applications course that will be implemented at Fort Courh Middle School.

• The high school stadium recently underwent an artificial turf replacement, which will greatly increase player safety for the thousands of student athletes who compete on the surface.