Welcome Back Bucktail Families!

I hope that all of you had an amazing summer and had the opportunity to make new memories with friends and family. I know that I am looking forward to welcoming all of our students back to Bucktail for the 2023-2024 school year (and welcoming our 7th grade class to Bucktail). In addition to myself, our outstanding teachers and staff are also excited about the upcoming school year and have been planning for the return of our students. This will be my first year at Bucktail, and I hope to make it a memorable one learning and growing with all of you!

Mr. James Poleto

Note: Add information for each building

August 30 - First Day of School for Students

September 4 - Labor Day - No School

September 21 - Homecoming Parade - Downtown Lock Haven - 6 pm. Pep Rally to follow at LHU East Gym

Please be sure to sign up for Bloomz, our messaging app, so you don't miss any important information from your child's school or teachers.

Stay informed about:

• School events and activities
• Parent-teacher conferences
• Important deadlines and assignments
• Emergency alerts and school closures

All elementary schools within the district are Title I schoolwide schools and receive Title I federal funds to support the positions of Interventionist and Title I Associates. We determine how to use the funding to staff our buildings based on family input and our school data. If you are interested in becoming a part of our Title I team, please reach out to your building Interventionist or principal. Our Policy 917/918 meetings are a great place to start, because we always review our School Improvement plans and the most updated school data during those meetings.

At all school levels, we use Title IV federal funds to purchase incentives for PBIS (our positive school-wide behavior supports) rewards, and we emphasize the goal of following school rules in all schools.

Required documents for families:

Right to Request Qualifications of Teachers (see Annual Notices and Policy Review button above) - if you wish to request a paper copy, please contact rmurty@kcsd.k12.pa.us .

Note: If your child is taught for four or more weeks by a teacher who is instructing in a content area for which they are not currently certified, the district must notify you. Four-week notification letters will be added here if that becomes necessary.

Non-Discrimination Statement (see Annual Notices and Policy Review button above) - if you wish to request a paper copy, please contact rmurty@kcsd.k12.pa.us.

Title I District Parent Policy - Policy 918

Coaching Newsletter for Families - How We Teach Reading

Title I Complaint Procedure

School Improvement Plan

KCSD is making attendance a priority!

Attending school regularly is essential to students gaining the academic and social skills they need to thrive. Help Bucktail Area Middle/High School reach it's attendance goal of 90% regular attendance rate!

Help Your Child Succeed in School: Build the Habit of Good Attendance Early

Be Buck Strong: Show Up and Belong!

If you are concerned about a student for any reason, you can make a SAP referral. The SAP referral can potentially lead to any needed services and/or supports the student may need to be successful.

Click on the picture to make a referral!

If your family speaks a language other than English, the district has access to translators and interpreters that can accompany you in meetings with teachers and school members. If you would like to be connected with a translator or interpreter please reach out to your child’s teacher or the school guidance counselor. The accessibility features in the top right corner of this Smore allow you to translate this page.

During middle school, students experience changes, such as transitioning into adolescence, balancing multiple classes/assignments, dealing with peer pressure, developing new friendships, caring about what others think/fitting in and/or personal situations. Parent(s)/Guardian(s) may contact one of our counselors with any questions or concerns they may have regarding their student's academic, career, behavior and/or socioemotional well-being.

A counselor is someone to talk to, who will listen without judgment. A school counselor can assist in short-term counseling and if needed arrange long-term counseling and the SAP (Student Assistance Program) and Tier II support. Counselors can teach students tools to improve and cope with different situations, especially because sometimes it's hard to figure out where to start. Students may be want to see a counselor for the following reasons:

• Want to share an experience/feelings
• Feel depressed and/or lonely
• Have thoughts of self-harm
• Feel stressed and/or anxious
• Feel angry and/or frustrated
• Want to improve grade(s)
• Talk about college/careers
• Relationship/peer issues/conflicts
• Personal issues (divorce/separation, loss of a loved one, etc.)

To learn more or to schedule a meeting, please contact your student's school counselor.

Miss Sheri Gordon

Phone: 570-893-4900 x3519

Email: sgordon@kcsd.k12.pa.us

Keystone Central School District has School Resource Officers throughout our district for safety and security.

Officer Scott VanGorder - Central Mountain High School

Officer Cory Beaver - Bucktail High School & Renovo Elementary

Officer Luke Motter - Central Mountain Middle School

Officer Mike Fetzer - Elementary district-wide and District Attendance Officer

Officer Todd Brian - District-wide

Did you know the Keystone Central School District offers a full cyber program to students K-12?

Please use the following link to read the upcoming events and information for August and September.

https://www.smore.com/zetq3

Spring becomes a busy time for both state and local assessments. Assessments play an important role in curriculum, instruction and interventions for student learning.

State Assessments

Spring PSSA Window - April 22-May 10

ELA -(Grades 3-8)

Math - (Grades 3-8)

Science - (grades 4 and 8 only)

Winter Keystone Exam Window:

Wave 1: Dec. 4 - Dec. 15

Wave 2: Jan. 3 - Jan. 17

Spring Keystone Exam Window - May 13-May 24 - HS Biology, Alg 1, 10th grade Literature

Lit-

Bio -

Alg 1-

AP Exams

Testing Window -

Local Assessments

Spring Aimsweb and NWEA MAP Window -

Act 35 Civics Exam Window -

Please contact your child's teacher for information and updates on your child's progress.

NWEA Family Toolkit

NWEA FAQ

About Aimsweb

Need to register for the SAT, find out testing locations, dates and registration deadlines!

Many questions can arise concerning your child's laptop, internet access, busing information or maybe you'd like to volunteer in your child's school. These links below can help you get answers or point you in the direction of who to speak to.

Bucktail Main Office Secretary - Dionne Werts

570-893-4900 X3501

dwerts@kcsd.k12.pa.us