SB Monthly Update—Jan 2026

As a reminder, our updates reflect activity up to the Board Committee meetings from the month prior. We look forward to providing our February update following the February 24th Committee meetings.

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আপনার কি এই পৃষ্ঠাটি অন্য ভাষায় অনুবাদ করা দরকার? ডানদিকে পাওয়া অ্যাক্সেসিবিলিটি বোতামে (স্টিক-ফিগার) ক্লিক করুন এবং আপনার ভাষা নির্বাচন করুন।

کیا آپ کو اس صفحہ کا دوسری زبان میں ترجمہ درکار ہے؟ دائیں جانب موجود ایکسیسبیلٹی بٹن (اسٹک فگر) پر کلک کریں اور اپنی زبان منتخب کریں۔

هل تريد ترجمة هذه الصفحة إلى لغة أخرى؟ انقر فوق زر إمكانية الوصول (stick-figure) الموجود على اليمين وحدد لغتك.

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The School Board of Directors warmly welcomes all our families to the new year. Each January brings with it a renewed sense of hope, positive energy, and excitement for the journey ahead. It is also a meaningful time for our district, as January is School Board Recognition Month, a time to reflect on and appreciate the service, leadership, and commitment of those who proudly serve our school community.

Before we know it, our graduating seniors will be walking across the stage and stepping into their bright futures, our pre-teens will be moving on to middle school, and our youngest kindergarteners will be embarking on the exciting first steps of their K–12 adventure. Meanwhile, we parents and guardians will grow another year older, and hopefully, a little wiser.

As we celebrate this new year, we also extend our sincere gratitude to our dedicated school board members, whose work helps ensure strong governance, thoughtful decision-making, and a continued focus on student success. Their service, along with the dedication of our educators, staff, families, and community partners, makes our district a wonderful place to learn, work, and play.

We wish everyone a year filled with growth, discovery, and the resilience needed to continue nurturing these young men and women as they become the remarkable Royal alumni they are destined to be. Thank you for being an essential part of our school community.

Warm Regards,

The Board of School Directors

As part of the Board of School Directors' communication plan, the School Board of Directors sends monthly updates to the school community. Monthly updates include highlights of school board of directors' community engagement and advocacy efforts, important dates, upcoming school district and community events, updates on any new policies or changes in policies, financial updates, and information on district resources. These updates aim to keep everyone informed and engaged with the school community.

The information included in these briefs is not intended to be a complete recounting of Board meetings and do not replace official Board meeting minutes. Official meeting minutes, agendas, reports, and presentations are available at BoardDocs. Also, the Board meetings are live streamed to the District's Official UDSD Board & Board Committee Meetings YouTube Channel.

We welcome you to follow the issues the School Board is considering and to attend meetings to stay informed. Thank you for taking the time each month to read the School Board of Directors' Updates!

What is the Advocacy Corner? — The Upper Darby School District Board of School Directors believes that all students, regardless of background and economic status, should have a quality public education and an equal opportunity for success. The Advocacy Corner provides information and resources for parents/guardians with the goal of ensuring that every child has access to the resources and support they deserve through equitable public school funding. Upper Darby School District has historically faced state underfunding while seeing the cost of educating students in Pennsylvania's public schools increasing steadily and an increase in unfunded mandates.

Education Voters of Pennsylvania (EdVoters PA) offers a comprehensive platform for parents across the state to actively engage in advocating for equitable education funding. EdVoters PA (https://edvoterspa.org/) provides an extensive Advocacy Toolkit designed to empower and equip parents with the knowledge and resources needed to effectively influence education policy. Key features include:

• Step-by-Step Guides: Learn how to contact state legislators, organize community events, and utilize social media for advocacy.

• Budget Analysis: Access breakdowns of state education budgets to understand funding allocations and identify areas needing attention.

• Sample Communications: Use templates for emails, letters, and social media posts to communicate with lawmakers and the public.

Students are selected each month to serve as Upper Darby School District Royal Brand Ambassadors, representing both their school and the Upper Darby School District with pride. As part of their role, these ambassadors engage with their peers by posing a series of questions connected to a monthly theme. Through these conversations, ambassadors help spotlight student voices, promote school spirit, and highlight the diverse perspectives that make each school community unique. For January, The Kindergarten Center hosted the Royals Brand Ambassadors, exploring the theme “New Year, New Me.” Enjoy!

Connecting Our Community Through Engagement and Events

What does In Our Community highlight? — In Our Community" features board members' investment in stewardship and service and their efforts to engage with the community, participate in community events, listen to citizens, promote student achievement, and help community members understand how the school board works to advocate for students and families. Partnering with the community in volunteerism and in service of our community is important to us.

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Empowering Families and Youth with Disabilities Across Pennsylvania

Friday, February 13, 2026: 1:30 pm - 2:45 pm

CLICK ON THE FLYER TO REGISTER.

What is the Board Member Highlight? — Board members are passionate about serving our students and the Upper Darby School District families and regularly engage in ways that enrich our community. The Board Member Highlight showcases the contributions, experiences, achievements, and insights of individual board members and is an opportunity to get to know your elected Board members a little better.

View the Board-approved reports here.

Congratulations to Kristin O'Neill, our 25 Years of Service recipient for the month of January. We are grateful for your dedication, professionalism, and unwavering commitment over the past quarter century. Your hard work, loyalty, and dedication have made a lasting impact, and we celebrate this incredible milestone with you and your family.

Kristin O'Neill, Curriculum Supervisor of ELA, Reading, Social Studies and Library K-5

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District administration requested permission to pilot LinkIT, a district-wide data warehouse platform. LinkIT will be used to manage assessments, store local and state data, support intervention tracking, and generate custom reports and graphs. If approved at the February Board meeting, the pilot will begin in February. View the presentation here.

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District administration provided an update on the District’s 2026 financing plan. Additionally, they sought authorization to proceed with the necessary steps to issue a General Obligation Bond for 2026.The Board approved the recommendation. View the presentation here.

The Policy Report informs the public, staff, and stakeholders about key educational policies, initiatives, and decisions made by the school board. Proposed policies are first reviewed by the school board's Policy Committee, then presented to the Board for consideration through a 1st and 2nd reading before being put to a vote. The following policy revisions are up for consideration:

1st Readings

1. (Revised) Policy 102 Academic Standards

2. (Revised) Policy 105 Curriculum

3. (Revised) Policy 209.2 Diabetes Management

2nd Readings

1. NO REPORT

The Board of School Directors would like to thank the following organization(s)/person(s) for their donations to support our students:

• Ms. Alessandra Seggi for a donation of holiday items to the students of Garrettford Elementary

• KG’s Kids for a donation of books (2 books for each student) to the students of Garrettford Elementary

• Ms. Kowalczyk and Ms. Baker for a donation of handmade winter gloves, scarves, hats to the students of Highland Park Elementary

• Ms. Kate Bowersox for a donation of books to the students of Garrettford Elementary from Books in Homes

• Ms. Anne E. McElfresh for a monetary donation to the District’s Student Assistance Program

• Beyond the Hardwood for a donation of books and games to the District’s Libraries

Click on the link(s) below for the January Donation(s) Reports:

• January 23, 2026 Donation Report

If you know a neighbor or community member who would like to sign up to receive these updates and other important messages from the District, please do the following:

• Click HERE to sign up

• share this link with a community member or neighbor to sign up: https://upperdarbysdorg.finalsite.com/departments12/communications-media-services/community12/sign-up-to-receive-district-emails.

The regular School Board meetings and the School Board Committee Meetings are held in-person in the board room at 8201 Lansdowne Avenue in Upper Darby and livestreamed to the UDSD Board & Board Committee Meetings YouTube Channel.

The Upper Darby School District calendar includes events, activities and important deadlines for the school year. Updates may be made to this calendar as the year progresses, so please visit the calendar often to stay up-to-date.

School buildings keep their own calendars of events on their webpages that include dates for school-level events. Please visit your school building website for more information. You can also access the district and school-level calendars on the Upper Darby School District mobile app. Visit your App Store to download it today!

Website Online Calendar

2025-2026 Year at a Glance Calendar

2025-2026 Summary of Calendar

2026-2027 One-Page Calendar

2026-2027 Summary of Calendar

The 2025-2026 Student Services Mental Health Services Guide is a resource that provides information about available mental health support options, including counseling, therapy, crisis intervention, and community programs. It helps individuals understand where and how to access professional help and what services are offered in the local area.

This resource, created by Pupil Services, offers information about nearby places in Upper Darby that provide assistance with housing, food, utilities, mental health, childcare, and after-school activities. Our team will continue to update this resource as new information becomes available. If you need help locating support services, please reach out to your school social worker.

to keep up with our official social media!

Members of the School Board of Directors are members are your neighbors and are public servants who make decisions that affect all students. Board members are volunteers and have a deep desire to serve children, a strong belief in the value of public education and a deep professional respect for the District staff who serve our children and their families every day. Serving as a School Board Director requires many dedicated hours of service to our community.

Click HERE or to learn more about how the Board of Directors serves the Upper Darby School District community.

Email: udsdschoolboard@upperdarbysd.org

School Board of Directors' Webpage:

https://upperdarbysdorg.finalsite.com/school-board12/about-the-board