Burgettstown Area School District

• October 30: Act 80 Half-day
• November 3: End of 1st Nine Weeks

Recently, four of our Burgettstown seniors who participate in our girls' soccer cooperative program with Washington High School were recognized during Senior Recognition festivities. Congratulations to Marlee Martin, Eve Bongiorni, Madison Lombardi, and Taylor Voht! We are proud of these young ladies for their dedication, hard work, and commitment to representing Burgettstown. We wish each of them continued success as they finish their senior season and prepare for the exciting opportunities ahead!

Students at Burgettstown Area Elementary Center recently participated in a fun and energetic assembly designed to build excitement and encourage them to do their best on the Pennsylvania Department of Education's Firefly assessments! These assessments provide our teachers with valuable information about student learning and progress, helping them identify strengths and areas where additional instruction or support may be needed. The results will help guide classroom instruction and better prepare students for the PSSA assessments this spring. Most importantly, the assembly reminded students to give their best effort, believe in themselves, and show what they know!

Did you know that Burgettstown Area School District students have the opportunity to participate in ice hockey through our cooperative program with Trinity High School? This season, Blake Spragg, Brody Spragg, and Cooper Herdman are proudly representing Burgettstown as members of Trinity's team in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League (PIHL). Cooperative athletic programs like this provide our students with opportunities to pursue their interests and talents in sports that we might not otherwise be able to offer. We are proud of these young men and wish them and their teammates a great season on the ice!

Curiosity is in full swing! Our teachers, staff, bus drivers, and cafeteria crew rocked their Get Curious tees recently to kick off the seven mindsets lessons for the year, beginning with "Everything is Possible- Dream Big!" From the morning bus ride to the lunch line and every classroom in between, the entire BAEC team is united to inspire students to dream without limits this year!

Congratulations to our Blue Devil Cross Country team on its recent success at the Uniontown Invitational! Our student-athletes turned in some impressive performances, demonstrating the hard work, determination, and dedication they have put into their season. Cross country is a sport that requires both physical endurance and mental toughness, and our runners continue to make us proud with their efforts and accomplishments. Congratulations to our runners and coaches on a great showing, and best wishes as the season continues!

As we proceed through the school year, we want to share an important reminder with families about items that students bring to school. Our purpose is not to cause alarm, but rather to help prevent an innocent mistake from becoming a serious situation for a student, family, and our school community.

Pennsylvania law takes the possession of weapons on school property very seriously. Under the Pennsylvania School Code, the definition of a weapon includes, but is not limited to, any knife, cutting instrument, cutting tool, nunchaku, firearm, shotgun, rifle, or other tool, instrument, or implement capable of inflicting serious bodily injury.

For families, the most important thing to remember is that the definition can include some items that a child may not necessarily think of as a “weapon.” For example, pocketknives, pen knives, small folding knives, multi-tools containing a blade, and similar items should never be brought to school.

Our District also takes seriously look-alike weapons—items that may appear to be a weapon even though they cannot actually cause the same harm. This can include toy guns, BB or airsoft guns, realistic replicas, water or squirt guns, and other items that resemble weapons. Even when brought to school as a toy, joke, or without any intent to frighten or harm someone, these items can create significant concern and must be addressed by school officials.

We Are Asking for Your Help

We especially encourage parents and guardians of our elementary-aged students to have a simple conversation with their children about what should and should not come to school.

Young children sometimes place things in backpacks or coat pockets without understanding the potential consequences. Likewise, an older student may use a backpack over the weekend and unknowingly leave a pocketknife or similar item inside before returning to school on Monday.

Please periodically check backpacks, lunch bags, coat pockets, and other items your child brings to school and remind your child that if they are ever unsure whether something is appropriate for school, the safest choice is to leave it at home and ask an adult.

A New Pennsylvania Notification Requirement

We also want families to be aware of a recent change in Pennsylvania law. Act 44 of 2025 added Section 1303.2-A to the Pennsylvania School Code, requiring schools to notify parents/guardians and school employees following qualifying incidents involving possession of a weapon on school property. Unless circumstances require otherwise, that notification is to occur within 24 hours of the incident.

Because our schools share a campus, Pennsylvania law may require notification across the shared campus when a qualifying incident occurs.

Families should also understand that our District will communicate when an incident involves a look-alike weapon prohibited by District policy, such as a toy or squirt gun, even when the item is not an actual firearm and there is no indication that students were in danger. As a result, receiving a weapons-related notification does not necessarily mean that an actual firearm or other dangerous weapon was discovered at school. We will provide appropriate information so families can understand the nature of the incident while also protecting student confidentiality.

We share this information not to worry families, but to avoid unnecessary concern when notifications are required and, more importantly, to prevent these situations from occurring in the first place.

A quick conversation at home and an occasional check of a backpack or coat pocket can make

a tremendous difference.

• Competitive Benefits
• Team-Centered
• Essential Role in School Safety
• Pride In Facilities

• Work Directly With Students
• Be A Part Of A Collaborative Team
• Make A Meaningful Impact
• 185 Day School-Day Work Schedule

• Split Day Schedule
• Supportive Work Environment
• Make A Daily Impact On Students
• Training Facilitated
• See Ad Below

We are always looking to hire substitutes in all job categories: teacher, custodian, cafeteria, maintenance, bus driver, paraprofessional, secretary.

If you are interested in employment with the Burgettstown Area School District, please check the employment section of our website at https://www.burgettstown.k12.pa.us/employment/employment-opportunities/overview-employment and/or contact Marci Campa at mcampa@burgettstown.k12.pa.us

Our school community has embraced the uniqueness of conducting commencement exercises at Star Lake for decades. The various management groups throughout the years have supported this by donating the use of the facility and we are most appreciative. While it is early in the school year, we want to make note that in order to hold graduation at Star Lake, flexibility in planning is necessary. Believe it or not, the planning for the next year begins shortly after the school year ends. We notify Star Lake management of our desired date and it is recorded as a preferred date. There are no guarantees, and in the past several years, we have not been able to finalize the date until some point in April. We know this causes a bit of anxiousness on the part of our seniors and their families, but if we want to continue this fine tradition, we must remain flexible. In early September, we informed the management at Star Lake that our preferred date for this year's Commencement is June 4, 2027. While this is our preferred date, there is no guarantee that we will get it. As the months go by this year, the District will remain in contact with Star Lake management. When we know the confirmed date, we will communicate it to our students and families. Though graduation may be the last thing on anyone's mind this early in the school year, we wanted to communicate this information so there are no misunderstandings.

According to the Pennsylvania Crimes Code:

§ 5517. Unauthorized school bus entry. (a) Offense defined.--A person who enters a school bus without prior authorization of the driver or a school official with intent to commit a crime or disrupt or interfere with the driver or a person who enters a school bus without prior authorization of the driver or a school official who refuses to disembark after being ordered to do so by the driver commits a misdemeanor of the third degree. (b) Notice.--A school district may place a notice at the entrance of the school bus that warns against unauthorized entry.

We know our families and our communities enjoy seeing the various photographs and related information about our students and their activities through the various social media platforms and other methods of communication from our school district. If a parent or guardian objects to the use of their child's image and related information, they must notify the school district. Please see the following document for more details.