Ben Franklin Middle School

Hello families,

Welcome to the 2026/2027 School Year. We are very excited to be welcoming our students back to school. There are a lot of exciting things happening during this school year. We’ll share key updates, upcoming dates, and resources to help you stay informed and support student success.

1. Principal's Message
2. 6th grade Information
3. Counselors Corner
4. Department Highlights
5. Character Strong Updates
6. Sport Updates
7. Career Seminars
8. Important Dates/Upcoming Events

Welcome Back!

Hello Benjamin Franklin Middle School Families!

As we prepare for the start of the 2026–2027 school year, we would like to share some important information to help ensure a smooth and successful transition for all Ben Franklin Middle School students and families. Please take a few moments to review the information below as it contains important details regarding the opening of school.

Student schedules were posted to our Parent / Student Portal and accessible online. If you are unable to access the portal, please contact Ms. Jillian Mobus on our front office for assistance. Students should bring a copy of their schedule with them to school every day as this includes their locker number/combination and bus information.

Chromebooks

Chromebooks have been distributed to all students over the course of the first week of school. We ask that students please take care of these devices, charge them nightly and bring them to school every day for learning. Students are being provided with cases that they are responsible for and must use to protect their Chromebook.

Technology Fee

Our yearly technology fee ($35) is payable through our parent portal by visiting the school store link once logged into your Icampus portal. Payment of this fee will avoid exorbitant costs to repair your child’s device should the screen break or keyboard need to be replaced. You will be responsible for any damage and be billed for repairs if your child turns in a broken device if the technology fee is not paid.

Daily Schedule

First period starts at 8 am and students are dismissed from school at 2:51. We ask that students arrive before 7:50 giving them sufficient time to get to class before first period begins. See the bottom of this newsletter for a visual of our building schedule.

Transportation

Bus stop times and locations are available. Information can be found on iCampus.

Lockers / Book Bags / String Bags / Water Bottles

All students are assigned a locker which they are required to use. Students are not permitted to carry book bags, string bags, back packs during the day. Students can carry a zippable 3 ring binder, small pencil case and their Chromebook case with them in between classes. They are allowed to use a book bag to transport their school materials to and from school but must store it in their locker during the day. Students are permitted to carry a water bottle with them during the day.

Breakfast and Lunch

Breakfast and Lunch are free for all students during the 26 - 27 school year.

Cell Phones

We respect the fact that parents provide their children with cell phones and know that they should be used in case of an emergency. Unfortunately, cell phones are an enormous distraction for our students and disrupt the learning environment. For this reason, we expect students to power their cell phones off before they enter the building. Cell phones are to remain in their lockers for the duration of the academic learning day. Please review our cell phone procedures attached below. Students are permitted to come to the office to use the office phone in the event of an emergency.

Ben Franklin Middle School Cell Phone Procedures

We look forward to working together with all of our families to make this a successful school year!

Regards,

Mr. Kevin P. Boles

Principal, Ben Franklin Middle School

Mr. Robert Kinney

Assistant Principal, Ben Franklin Middle School

We would like to introduce to our new staff. Some are new to BTSD and some are veterans but new to Ben Franklin.

• Ms. Laura Reynolds: School Social Worker

• Mr. Matthew Hayden: STEM

• Ms. Elizabeth Walp: STEM

• Mrs. Diane Hayden: FCS

• Mr. Brian Carroll: Special Education

• Ms. Kelly O'Brien: Special Education

• Ms. Abigail Kutalek: 7th grade Science

• Ms. Cassandra Hogeland: ELA

• Mrs. Christine Kelly: School Nurse

• Ms. Carissa Dea: School Nurse

• Mrs. Lisa Foster: Assistant Principal's Secretary

We piloted the Character Strong program with our 6th grade students last year. We will be utilizing this curriculum in grades 6-8 this upcoming school year. Please see the linked letter for more information about the Character Strong curriculum and why we feel it is important. We will highlight some of the character dares in the upcoming newsletters.

We are excited to start our fall sports season. PIAA regulations allow 7th and 8th grade students to compete in sports. In order to try-out for our sports teams, all students must have a PIAA physical dated after May 1, 2026 and have a Family ID completed by student and parent/guardian. Click here to register with Family ID. Below are the tryout dates for our fall sports along with the coaches for each sport. Good luck to all students trying out. General questions regarding athletics can be directed to Dan Slavin or Dan Spatafore, building managers at Ben Franklin.

• Football: Dan Slavin, Scott Schaeffer, John Timko; September 9th 3pm-5pm

• Soccer: Kelly O'Brien, September 17th, 17th 3pm-5pm, possibly September 18th also

• Field Hockey: Mary Schwartz; September 16th and 17th 3pm-5pm (bring cleats/sneakers, mouth guard, shin guards. Sticks can be provided if needed)

• Cheerleading: Kasey Kenworthy September 16th and 17th, 3pm to 5pm

• Volleyball: Shane Slivinski; September 16th and 17th 3pm-5pm

Hello Ben Franklin Community,

We are excited to continue a fun and informative initiative here at Ben Franklin Middle School and we are looking for your help. Kasey Kenworthy, one of our school counselors, is looking for volunteers to come and speak about your career to our 7th and 8th grade students. This initiative started in March 2025. Over the past two school years we have held 17 career seminars. Previous seminars include plumbing, home constructions, news broadcasting, former American Idol contestant, graphic designer, respiratory therapist and many more. These presentations were interactive, and typically reached capacity within 24 hours. We are hoping to offer more presentations and expose students to more career options this year, but we need your help! If this is something you are interested in, please complete the form below. We are very flexible in terms of scheduling and will work around your schedule.

Google FORM for Career Seminar

Feel free to reach out to Mrs. Kenworthy if you have any additional questions. Thank you for your support and we look forward to hearing from you!

Here are a list of important dates for September:

• Tuesday 9/8/26: First day of school for ALL students

• Friday 9/11/26: Franklin Friday, wear Black and Gold

• Wednesday 9/16/26: Sports Physicals for 7th and 8th grade students

• Friday 9/18/26: Franklin Friday, wear Black and Gold

• Monday 9/21/26: No School- Yom Kippur

• Tuesday 9/22/26: Back to School Night Open House

• Tuesday 9/22/26: SWPBIS Luigi's Pizzarama fundraiser 3pm-9pm

• Tuesday 9/22/26: SWPBIS Tom's Coffee Truck fundraiser during Back to School Night

• Friday 9/25/26: Franklin Friday, wear Black and Gold

• Monday 9/28/26: Picture Day

• Friday 10/2/26: Franklin Friday, wear Black and Gold

Bookmark our Franklin News Network YouTube channel! Be sure to watch, or rewatch our live broadcast each morning. This is another great place to stay up to date with current information and happens at Ben Franklin.