Every week is a great week in Blue Devil Country! Please scroll down to learn more. #True2theBlue

• June 5: Class of 2025 Commencement: 7:00 PM @ The Pavilion at Star Lake

It was a difficult week in Blue Devil Country, with widespread power outages and storm damage. The school closure on Wednesday, April 30 may impact the school calendar, but it will not impact the schedule for our seniors. Commencement remains scheduled for June 5, and all senior activities will keep the schedule they have. In the coming days, we will assess our options with regard the missed instructional day. While there are built in make up days in the school calendar which would mean extending the school year by one day, we are going to explore all options with the Pennsylvania Department of Education with regard to meeting the mandated number of school days and instructional hours. We will communicate with families when we have more information.

May 1st was School Principals' Day! We celebrate our school principals! Mrs. Mankey, Dr. Cooke, and Mrs. Shaffer work tirelessly to ensure our students are able to thrive educationally and socioemotionally! Thank you, to our principals, for everything they do!

Burgettstown Area Elementary Center Principal

Middle/High School Principal

Middle/High School Assistant Principal

April 28 was National Superhero Day! Students and even some faculty and staff celebrated the day by dressing up to celebrate their favorite superhero! Fun theme days like these help engage students and create a healthy, happy culture at the elementary center!

In mid-April, members of our Blue Devil football team joined Burgettstown Mayor Luke Snatchko, employees from Energy Transfer, and the Pennsylvania Game Commission and together, they tackled illegal dumping and litter in several key areas of Smith Township, including a section of State Game Lands 117. They also cleaned up the roads near the Energy Transfer facility and Verlest Field, home to Burgettstown Lions youth football practices. Thank you to all who helped in the clean up efforts!

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) establishes "testing windows" for Keystone and PSSA tests. These windows are blocks of time in which school districts may schedule their administration of the various assessments. Each of our schools consider events that are occurring within school during these dates and then determine the specific dates that are the most appropriate to use. Attendance at school, and participation in the assessments is important, so we are providing the testing windows that PDE established for 24-25, 25-26, and 26-26 so families may consider if planning vacations or other planned absences. KEYSTONE ASSESSEMNT NOTE: The Burgettstown Area School District does not typically participate in Summer Testing, and rarely utilizes the Winter Wave 1 window.

This year, the Burgettstown Athletic Department is introducing digital ticketing for regular season football, volleyball, girls and boys basketball, and wrestling. Though all fans may still purchase a ticket "at the gate," but those who wish to avoid lines and pre-purchase an electronic ticket may do so by accessing the digital ticketing feature on the Hudl Fan page. Single game regular season tickets for both students and adults are available. Also, for those who know that will likely attend all games in a particular season, a season pass can be purchased. Please note: there is a processing fee, per ticket. This fee does not go to the school district, it is a vendor fee in support of the electronic ticketing feature. Scan the QR code or the button below to access the Hudl Fan page.

We remind students, employees, parents, guardians, and community members that smoking, the possession or use of alcohol or other drugs, and the possession of weapons on school grounds, including outdoor athletic areas, by any individual, is prohibited. These acts are subject to police action and must also be reported to the Department of Education.

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. This week, the members of the Class of 2025 were informed that Star Lake was contacted on May 31, 2024, and informed that our preferred date for this year's Commencement is June 5, 2025. 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.

Student and employee safety is extremely important to us. We are constantly looking for ways to make our schools, school grounds, and property safe for all. Recently, we ordered signage that will be placed on all of our school busses, warning that unauthorized boarding will be subject to criminal prosecution. This is not something new, it is simply something we are creating a greater awareness of.

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.

Our school district prides itself on providing the best possible learning environment for our students, and school buildings and other facilities that can be a source of pride for the community. We are constantly monitoring the conditions of our schools, athletic complexes and other district-owned property but sometimes we miss things. You can help us by completing this form when you notice something that you think needs our attention. It can be something as basic as noticing that there is a light out in our parking areas, or that the trash receptacles at the baseball field need emptied. Just like you have for your home, we have a running list of items that need our attention. These items get prioritized and acted upon. We may already know about the issue you raise, but if we don't, we can't prioritize it until we do. We are all in this together and your input is greatly appreciated. Please click her to access this form: HERE

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.