MESSAGE FROM
Mr . Matthew Patterson Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Education
est Jefferson Hills WEST JEFFERSON HILLS SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWS
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support of the West Jefferson Hills School District . This has been a year filled with preparation , anticipation and excitement ! We have been busy analyzing and mapping our improvement efforts , planning our next steps , and preparing
to put our plan into action . We have already begun transition activities to prepare our students and staff for the 2018-2019 school year .
On May 31 , 2018 , children currently enrolled in grades K-4 had the opportunity to participate in our first-ever “ Rise Up Jaguars ” event . The term “ rise up ” refers to a child “ rising ” to the next grade level . This event was carefully designed by our elementary leadership team to provide children the opportunity to meet their new classmates and teacher ( s ) for the 2018-2019 school year . “ Rise Up Jaguars ” is also intended to help all students with the transition to a new school year and ease the anxiety that the unknown brings . It was a great day filled with meeting new friends , fun , excitement , and many smiles .
Teams of teachers and administrators met with colleagues in the Fox Chapel School District and the Seneca Valley School District in May to learn about programs they are using which we are starting here next year . With a proven track record of academic achievement and growth , collaborating with these
42 WEST JEFFERSON HILLS two districts was a sensible decision that allowed us to establish viable partnerships . This level of collaboration among the three school districts will only serve to enhance the programming in all three districts as we look forward to improving achievement and growth . Work continues with our transportation contractor to develop bus routes and revised transportation systems . Our goal for notifying parents / guardians of bus stop locations and times for next year is early August . As you can imagine , to complete this type of work efficiently is a large undertaking subject to many revisions . By the end of July , we hope to have buses on the road giving the new system a “ test run ” so that any last remaining issues can be corrected before our students board in late August .
Improvements to our facilities are occurring over the summer including the installation of energy-saving , efficient lighting and water conservation measures at the elementary schools . In addition , plans are currently being finalized for the installation of building-wide air conditioning . Also being finalized is the hiring of a Construction Manager to oversee the expansion project at Gill Hall Elementary School . In mid-June , the movers relocated all of our teachers to their new buildings / classrooms . All of this work is in addition to the normal duties
Continued on next page >