Pottsgrove Schools Food Distribution is Monday

Last week, with schools closed due to the corona virus update, Pottsgrove School District worked through the kinks of delivering free breakfast and lunch to students who need it.

By the end of the week, 3,200 meals were provided.

But the district has moved away from providing the food every day and has instead moved to a once-a-week delivery of food for five days and this week, it happens on Monday, March 23.

Pottsgrove Superintendent William Shirk

In a letter distributed to parents, Pottsgrove Schools Superintendent William Shirk wrote, "we have

again made a few changes to help our delivery system for the week of March 23."

"Beginning, Monday, March 23, we will again be providing a combined breakfast and lunch package for all Pottsgrove students 18 and under. The pick-up sites will remain the same at both West Pottsgrove and Lower Pottsgrove Elementary Schools," he wrote

"Pick-up at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School will take place along the lower portico off of Buchert Road. And at West Pottsgrove Elementary School, distribution will take place along the driveway near the main office of the school," according to Shirk.

CHANGES FOR DISTRIBUTION WILL BE:

• Breakfast/Lunch packages will include (5) days of food.
• Monday, March 23 will be the ONLY pick-up day for the week.
• Times for distribution will now be 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

"The changes were part of the recommendations from our local authorities to help limit exposure to our families, as well as members of our staff. The time change will give our food vendor, Chartwells K12 additional time to prepare the meals and make sure they can accommodate the volume," Shirk wrote.

He added, "we appreciate all the feedback and we will continue to work together to strengthen our community through this important quality of life program for our families."

The Science of Skateboarding at Lower Pottsgrove

When I interviewed acting Pottsgrove Superintendent William Shirk this summer, we talked a bit about the positive things going on in the district.

He said he wished there was more average of that.

I said with a reduced staff, there is only so much we can do at The Mercury, but that I would meet him halfway if he could provide some information and photos.

Monday, the first batch came through, and although we'll need to work a bit on test and particularly photography, he kept his promise so I'm keeping mine.

The photo (best one) and text are from an event at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School that used skateboarding to teach certain concepts of physics.

On October 4, 2016, the students of Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School experienced the science behind skateboarding. 

 The event was sponsored by Lower Pottsgrove's PTA. 

 The presenters from the Bureau of Lectures and Concert Artists, Inc engaged the children in science via skateboarding. 

This performance featured staff and student participation in their tricks as they taught scientific concepts including the distribution of force, center of gravity, momentum/inertia, and center of mass.   

On Bonds, Budgets & a Surprise Move on Grades

Prior to the public meeting, the school board held a closed-door
executive session and interviewed Jeff Cardwell, 

who was subsequently hired as the district's new facilities director.

Last night the Pottsgrove School Board approved the re-financing of a bond, saving about $90,000 on the remaining $3.3 million debt left on borrowing to renovate Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School, which is where the meeting was held.

The board also reviewed Gov. Tom Wolf's budget proposal and learned it would mean nearly $1 million in additional revenue if it were to be adopted unchanged b the Republican legislature.

There is fat chance of that.

They also grappled wit the puzzle of how to digitize thousands upon thousands of school records that must be kept by law and are currently occupying way too much space in the district.

And, in a surprise move, board member David Faulkner tried to reverse the district's course on converting from a 7-point grading scale to a 10-point grading scale.

However, his motion was stalled until the next meeting by a successful vote to table it.

Its all here below in the marvelous and often misspelled Tweets issued to you live during the meeting.

Musical Notes and Board Notes

Photo by Evan Brandt

Prior to getting down to the business of holding a school board meeting, the Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School Advance Band taught the board a thing or two about running a band.

Blogger's Note: Don't forget when you get to the bottom, you may need to click the blue "Read Next Page" bar to see everything.

Thank You Veterans

Blogger's Note: The following is courtesy of Michael Wagman, director of technology and communication for the Pottsgrove School District.

Students in Jennifer Thompson’s fourth grade class at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School honored nine veterans Tuesday by singing a song called "Thank You Soldiers" and creating a special video.

(Despite heroic efforts by Mr. Wagman, we were unable to embed the video,  but Here is a link to the video.)

At the end of this special Veterans Day presentation, the students broke into partners and spoke with a veteran to learn more about what it was like to be in the military. This Veterans Day program helped the students understand the importance of Veterans Day.

Robert Gardner, Army & Marines

John Murray, Air Force Reserve & Air National Guard

Eileen Murray, Air Force Reserve

Louis Vernon, Navy

Edward Vernon, Navy

Vanessa Miller, Air Force

Michael J. Heimberger, Jr., Navy

Dustin Dattilo, Marines

Jim Mazeski, Navy