Hello KAUE Families,

We had a very fun week at KAUE celebrating Red Ribbon Week each day and Halloween today!  So here are just a few of the many pictures we compiled from the week.  If I did this right, you should be able to click on any of the pictures to see the full-size image:

Next week:

• Monday, October 31st - Halloween!  Be careful trick or treating :)
• Monday, October 31st - First day of the second grading quarter (9-weeks)
• Tuesday, November 1st - Parent/Teacher Conferences - KAUE will be open from 12:00 - 8:00 pm.  If you were unable to schedule a conference for this date and would still like to schedule a meeting, please email your child’s teachers through Skyward Family Access to set up an alternative date and time.
• Sunday, November 6th - Daylight saving time ends (Turn your clocks ahead 1 hour)

As always, if there are any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office or email us directly at [email protected] and/or [email protected].  Enjoy the final weekend of October!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Thank you all for another successful week of school at the Upper Elementary School.  We are rapidly approaching the end of the first grading quarter, and we encourage you to take some time over the next few days to review your child’s academic progress through Skyward Family Access.  The second grading period officially begins on Monday, October 31st, so all grades become final at the end of the school day on Friday, October 28th.  If you have any academic questions or concerns, please reach out to your child’s classroom teacher.

Next week we will be celebrating Red Ribbon Week across the district.  This nationwide campaign serves as a catalyst to mobilize schools and communities, educate youth, and encourage participation in drug prevention activities.  Our student council has already started the process of decorating our campus and promoting themes for each day next week.  For more information on each day, click here.

Also next week:

• Monday, October 24th - Officer Hollis’s birthday!  We are so grateful to have Officer Ken “Duke” Hollis as our school resource officer.  He is a major part of our team here at KAUE, and we hope all of the students remember to wish him a happy birthday on Monday!
• Wednesday, October 26th - School Picture Retake Day.  Any student that was absent for pictures in September or had an unsatisfactory picture is welcome to have a retake this coming Wednesday during the school day.
• Friday, October 28th - Last day of the 1st grading quarter, and Halloween costume day.  (Please note that masks, props, and look-alike weapons are not permitted).

As always, if there are any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office or email us directly at [email protected] and/or [email protected].  Enjoy the nice weather this weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

We have several items to share with you this week:

Next Week:

• Monday, October 17th - Friday, October 21st - Cavathon Cookie Sale (see above)
• Tuesday, October 18th - Parent Advisory Council Meeting at Central Office (9:30 am)
• Friday, October 21st - Get Fresh Friday full club schedule

As always, if there are any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office or email us directly at [email protected] and/or [email protected].  Have a great weekend!

Roll Cavs!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

We had a very busy week this week at KAUE.  I would like to thank Mrs. Stankowski for her leadership in acquiring a grant through Friends of Flight 93 that allowed our 6th-grade student to attend the memorial in Shanksville for the second year in a row.  I would also like to thank the parents that dedicated their time to help chaperone the trip and provide a meaningful experience for our students.  This was a total team effort, and I am so grateful to all of the parents, teachers, and staff members that made this possible.  

Speaking of team efforts, I would also like to thank Melissa Monaco, Michelle Terry, Tamara Baum, Lisa Sterling, Jodie Edder, and the other PTO members for their efforts in organizing and running the fall Scholastic Book Fair.  This is always a fun event in our building because reading is such an important part of our school culture.  It was very well organized, and I enjoyed watching the students get excited about taking home a new book or two to read.  Participation at this event was excellent, and this will allow our students to take home some free materials when the book fair returns in the Spring.  

Next Week will be a little less busy as we slowly approach the end of the 1st grading period (only 13 more days):

• Monday, October 10th - Staff In-Service - No School for Students
• Wednesday, October 12th - KASD School Board Information Meeting
• Friday, October 14th - Fresh Friday Club Schedule
•  

As always, if there are any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office or email us directly at [email protected] and/or [email protected].  Stay warm tomorrow and enjoy the fall weather this weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Today was the 26th day of school for the 2022-2023 school year, and it marks the completion of another successful week of learning here at Kiski Area Upper Elementary School.  

We had several events this past week that we would like to share:

• Monday, September 26th marked the mid-point of the first grading quarter.  Deficiencies were issued through Skyward Family Access for all students who are performing below expectations in a particular subject/course.  Although this is a good checkpoint for all parents and students, we encourage you to monitor your child’s skyward grade book and Google classrooms frequently and reach out to their teachers if you have any questions or concerns.
• Tuesday, September 27th - Mrs. Insko and Mr. Priore held a meeting for all parents that have children interested in participating in instrumental music at KAUE.  If you were unable to attend this meeting, please click here for additional information.   
• Thursday, September 29th - Kiski Area Upper Elementary hosted its first annual Title 1 Presentation.  The meeting outlined the Title 1 process and created an initial draft of a parent/student/school compact that outlines shared responsibility in the educational process.  To access this presentation, click here.   
• Friday, September 30th was our first full club day for students.  All students that signed up for clubs attended meetings during our morning activity period from 9:00-9:45.  Clubs that are now up and running are Announcement Club, Art Club, Bible Club, Cavathon Committee, Green Team, KAUE Helper, Kindness Club, Student Council,  and Volleyball Club.  

Next Week: 

• Monday, October 3rd - Friday, October 7th - Scholastic Book Fair.  Students will report during their regularly scheduled English Language Arts Class on the following days:
• Monday, October 3 - Mrs. Plazio/Mrs. Feudale
• Tuesday, October 4 - Mrs. Hummel/Mrs. Curry/Mrs. Brunner
• Wednesday, October 5 - Mr. Quinton/Mrs. Daymont
• Thursday morning, October 6 - Make-up day for all students
• Tuesday, October 4th - 6th Grade Resilience Team to attend Flight 93 Memorial (Field Trip)
• Wednesday, October 5th - 6th Grade Commitment and Accountability Teams to attend Flight 93 Memorial (Field Trip)
• Wednesday, October 5th - Mrs. Brunner’s class to attend Twin Lakes Park Field Trip
• Friday, October 7th - “Get Fresh Friday” schedule - Clubs to meet.

Thank you all for another positive week at KAUE, and as always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out by email or contact our main office at 724-727-3421. We hope that you have a safe and enjoyable weekend, and we look forward to kicking off the month of October on Monday!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

The KAUE PTO will be holding our annual Fall Book Fair the week of Monday, October 3rd to Thursday, October 6th.  Students will attend the book fair during their scheduled ELA (English Language Arts) classes.  Below is the schedule based on teacher assignments:

Monday, October 3 - Mrs. Plazio/Mrs. Feudale

Tuesday, October 4 - Mrs. Hummel/Mrs. Curry

Wednesday, October 5 - Mr. Quinton/Mrs. Daymont

Thursday morning, October 6 - Make-up day for all students

More information on the book fair can be found here.

Mrs. Nicholas, Officer Hollis, and I met with all students over the past few weeks based on their bus assignments.  Busing is interesting at this level because students are similar in age and get to know each other very quickly.  For this reason, we want to be very clear with students about what the expectations are for them as they are transported to and from school.  Below are the main points of emphasis that were covered in our bus meetings:

1. All school rules apply on the school bus and at the school bus stop.
2. Students have assigned seats, which they were given the opportunity to select in our bus meetings.  Failure to comply with rules will result in loss of seating selection privileges, and seat assignments will be provided by the bus driver or school principal. 
3. The bus driver is in charge of the bus and should be treated as such.  All students are expected to comply with driver directives and limit driver distractions to the best of their ability.  Excessive noise is a common issue for bus drivers, requiring them to address the bus as a whole.  Students are permitted to talk, but yelling and screaming is unacceptable.
4. Students must remain seated at all times when the bus is in motion. 
5. Food and drinks should not be consumed on the bus.  These items should be kept in student backpacks while riding the bus.
6. Cell phones are not permitted to be used on the bus.  Pictures and/or videos taken on the bus can pose legal issues for students and families.
7. Students are not permitted to swear or use inappropriate language on the school bus.

All students are aware of these expectations, and because each item relates directly to student safety, failure to comply will result in disciplinary action.  We appreciate your support with this process and hope that strict adherence to these rules will ensure that all students have a safe and pleasant experience on the school bus each day.  

We apologize for the direct nature of this week’s correspondence, but we want to be as clear and transparent as possible when it comes to student expectations.  As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out by email or contact our main office at 724-727-3421. We hope that you have a safe and enjoyable weekend, and we look forward to another great week at KAUE starting on Monday!

KA ALL DAY!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Our first reminder this week is that picture day will take place on Wednesday of next week (9/21/22). Students will report to the gymnasium during their Science classes to have their pictures taken. If your child is absent on Wednesday, make-ups are scheduled for Wednesday, October 26th. For more detailed information, click here.

Next Friday, September 23, Washington Township first responders will be visiting our school for our annual safety day. So if you drive by our campus after 12:30 on Friday, don’t be alarmed by the number of safety vehicles on display. We typically have a fire truck, armored car, ambulance, and some other miscellaneous vehicles for students to experience. Unfortunately, due to time constraints each year, we are only able to accommodate our 6th-grade students for the presentation. I apologize to all 5th-grade families, but we will be sure to provide the same opportunity for next year’s 6th-grade class. 

Our last reminder this week is to make sure that you are checking up on your child’s progress periodically through skyward. It is hard to believe, but deficiencies will be posted on Monday, September 26th, and this marks the mid-point of our first grading quarter. Grades should begin to appear in the grade book tab by class, and you are always welcome to reach out to your child’s teacher(s) if you have any questions or concerns. Also, please remember that you can log in to your child’s school Gmail account at any time as well. You can log in from an external device (computer, laptop, etc.), and it does not interfere with their accessibility here at school. Active monitoring of technology is highly recommended, and we appreciate your help encouraging students to use their devices safely.   

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out by email or contact our main office at 724-727-3421. We hope that you have a safe and enjoyable weekend, and we look forward to another great week at KAUE starting on Monday!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Today all students were sent home with a packet outlining the KASD Technology Protection Plan. If you have a child in another building, you may have already received this. We apologize that this was not sent out sooner.  

The plan is managed by our IT Department and is optional; however, all students at Kiski Area Upper Elementary School qualify for the designated free/reduced rates within the document. Checks can be made payable to Kiski Area School District and can be turned in to our building’s main office.  

Mrs. Insko and Mr. Priore also asked that I share with you that they are accepting beginning band members for the 2022-2023 school year. We are very fortunate to have instrumental music teachers in our building that have the passion and expertise of these two individuals. If you would like more information on how your child can explore and discover their musical abilities, please access the following informational document: Welcome to Instrumental Music at the Upper Elementary.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out by email or contact our main office at 724-727-3421. We hope that you have a safe and enjoyable weekend, and we look forward to another great week at KAUE starting on Monday!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

I would like to start by thanking all of you for your patience and support over the past seven days. Our goal is always to provide students with the most positive experience possible at the start of a new school year, inclusive of transportation, classes, lunch, recess, and everything else that they encounter when you send them to us. Although we will always have some issues, your help this past week and a half allowed us to have the best start to the year that I have ever experienced as the KAUE Principal. We are off to a great start!

Mrs. Petrilla, our KAUE Administrative Assistant, will be out of the office all of next week. I share this with you because she is the backbone of our office team, and I get nervous when she is not here :). That being said, Mrs. Sherbondy is currently filling in for her and doing a fantastic job! Because many parents have emailed Mrs. Petrilla in the past if they have a late request for an early dismissal or student pick-up, please use the following address moving forward for such instances: [email protected]. This will ensure that your email does not go unread in the event of a staff absence.

Please remember that there is no school on Monday due to the Labor Day holiday. We will resume class on Tuesday, September 6th, and there are no major events next week. We hope that everyone has a safe and relaxing extended weekend, and please let us know if there is anything that you need.

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

It's hard to believe the 2022-2023 school year has officially begun. We've had a great first two days and look forward to all that is to come this school year! Throughout the first two days of school, teachers have had the opportunity to review various sections of the student handbook across each class period. Mr. Swartzlander and I led a virtual meeting this morning to go over the expectations of all students at KAUE. Click here to review our student handbook. If you have any questions or concerns about our student handbook, please contact the main office. 

Meet the Teacher Night at KAUE took place on Monday, August 22nd. If any parent or guardian did not have the opportunity to come to Meet the Teacher Night, there are videos posted on each teacher's google classroom you can watch to meet your child's teachers and learn a little bit of what the classes will be like for the year at KAUE.  

Transportation information and bus schedules can be found on the school district website at www.kiskiarea.com.  Click on “The Voice of Kiski Area - Fall 2022” news item and scroll down to page 18 for all busing details.  If you have any questions or concerns specific to this topic, please contact our central office at 724-845-2022 and choose the automated option for transportation.  Please be patient this coming week with transportation to and from school as buses are still getting into the routine of stops and routes for this school year. If there are any expected or anticipated delays, we will do our best to notify you in a timely manner. In addition to transportation, we also wanted to share that all students have been assigned a seat on their school buses. If you have any questions or concerns about this, please don't hesitate to call the main office. 

Students received their district-issued Chromebook on the first day of school (August 25th).  Several students have asked about using their own personal devices instead of district-issued Chromebooks. Students can always use their own personal devices at home. However, it is the district policy that all students are to use district-issued devices while in school.  There are specific settings on each device that allows them to work efficiently with the school network and bypass any issues with filters related to school-approved content. Attached to this email are our district's Chromebook Handbook and Chromebook Technology Protection Plan. If you have any questions or concerns about your child's Chromebook, please call the main office.

We also want to remind you if your child has an early dismissal, please send them to school with a note designating the time of pick-up.  This note can be given to the homeroom teacher and it will be updated in our Skyward attendance system.  We ask that all early dismissals follow this protocol, and if there is an unexpected need for early dismissal or end-of-the-day pick-up, that you contact our main office prior to 2:30 pm.  Also, all students received a district excuse blank to take home on the first day of school.  This can be used as a template/guide for parental excuses moving forward, and you are not required to use this exact form when submitting an absence excuse. When a student is absent, we request a written note with the date and reason for the absence along with a parent/guardian’s signature within 3 days of the last absence.  This can just be on a piece of paper.  You can also submit excuses online through Skyward Family Access.  Click here for instructions on how to submit an online excuse. Finally, we wanted to remind you that we are fully back to 100% in-person instruction at KAUE. If your child is absent, there is no virtual option to be considered present. Students all have the opportunity to review google classroom to see what is happening in class. However, there will be no virtual classes for students to attend while absent. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our KAUE main office at 724-727-3421.

Have a great weekend!

GO CAVALIERS!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Tomorrow, Thursday, August 25th, 2022 is the first day of school!  We are very excited to see the students return from their summer break and are as prepared as we can be to give them a positive first experience in the building.  

We will be running an extended homeroom tomorrow to give teachers the opportunity to explain schedules and expectations prior to beginning our first-period class.  All students will be assigned to a homeroom lunch table for the first week of school to ensure that everyone can find a seat and that no one is left sitting alone.  This can be a stressor for incoming 5th-grade students, so we want to make them feel as comfortable as possible before we allow them to select their own seats at lunch.

I want to remind everyone to make sure that you arrive at the bus stop early tomorrow in the event that your bus is running ahead of schedule.  That being said, please do not be surprised if the bus is running late.  This can be common on the first few days of school.  

At the end of our school day, all students report back to homeroom early so that their teachers can review bus assignments with them.  As we have done in the past, all students will be assigned a seat on the bus and these assignments will be communicated before students load up to go home.  It is also very common to have late buses coming home on the first day of school, so please do not panic if your child does not arrive at the scheduled time.  If there are any significantly late buses, I will do my best to provide an all-call through Skyward to those families affected.  

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our main office at 724-727-3421.  We hope that everyone has a restful evening and that tomorrow is a great experience for our kids!

GO CAVALIERS!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Meet the Teacher Night at KAUE will take place on Monday, August 22nd, and students and parents will have the opportunity to walk their formal schedules and meet their teachers before the first day of school on Thursday, August 25th.  All information related to this event can be found on our building website at https://upperelementary.kiskiarea.com/ under the Latest News section.

Transportation information and bus schedules can be found on the school district website at www.kiskiarea.com.  Click on “The Voice of Kiski Area - Fall 2022” news item and scroll down to page 18 for all busing details.  If you have any questions or concerns specific to this topic, please contact our central office at 724-845-2022 and choose the automated option for transportation.  

Students will receive their district-issued Chromebook on the first day of school (August 25th).  We have had some inquiries about this over the past few weeks, so I wanted to let you know to expect a device to come home with your child on the first day.  Homeroom teachers will issue the devices at the beginning of the day and review our district policies related to electronic devices and acceptable technology use.  

Mrs. Petrilla, our KAUE administrative assistant, asked that I share some information related to attendance prior to the first day of school.  If your child has an early dismissal, please send them with a note designating the time of pick-up.  This note can be given to the homeroom teacher and it will be updated in our Skyward attendance system.  We ask that all early dismissals follow this protocol, and if there is an unexpected need for an early dismissal or end-of-the-day pick-up, that you contact our main office prior to 2:30 pm.  Also, all students will receive a district excuse blank to take home on the first day of school.  This can be used as a template/guide for parental excuses moving forward, and you are not required to use this exact form when submitting an absence excuse. When a student is absent, we request a written note with the date and reason for the absence along with a parent/guardian’s signature within 3 days of the last absence.  This can just be on a piece of paper.  You can also submit excuses online through Skyward Family Access.  Click here for instructions on how to submit online excuses.  

We will be sending one more update next week prior to the first day of school.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our main office at 724-727-3421 or email me directly at [email protected].  

Have a great weekend!

GO CAVALIERS!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Meet the Teacher Night at KAUE will take place on Monday, August 22nd, and students and parents will have the opportunity to walk their formal schedules and meet their teachers before the first day of school on Thursday, August 25th.  

To make this event function as it should, we will divide the night into two separate sessions. Normally this evening is only for parents, but we want to take advantage of the opportunity for students to participate so that they feel more comfortable and confident on their first day in the building. Unfortunately, our parking lot and classrooms are not large enough to accommodate everyone at one time. Below is the schedule we will follow on Monday, August 22nd:

6:00 - 6:45 pm - Students with last names beginning with A-M 

7:15 - 8:00 pm - Students with last names beginning with N-Z

I apologize if this is an inconvenience for anyone; however, this is the only way we will be able to accommodate all families in the time period provided. Teachers will introduce themselves and provide a brief overview of their course and class-specific information in the time allotted. 

The formal schedule will run as follows:

As a reminder, all students and parents should now be able to access their schedules through Skyward Family Access. We ask that you bring your child’s physical schedule any time you visit the building so that you can have it for reference.  

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our main office at 724-727-3421 or email me directly at brian.swartzlander@kiskiarea.com.  

Have a great weekend!

GO CAVALIERS!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Again KAUE Families,

The Upper Elementary School will be open and available for all parents and students to visit and tour on the following days next week between the hours of 9:00 am - 11:00 am and 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm.

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

Wednesday, August 10, 2022

Thursday, August 11, 2022

There is no specific format, the building will just be open, and you can walk around at your leisure. If you cannot make it on any of the dates above, please contact our main office at 724-727-3421 to schedule an alternate date and time. 

Meet the Teacher Night at KAUE will take place on Monday, August 22nd, and students and parents will have the opportunity to walk their formal schedules and meet their teachers before the first day of school on Thursday, August 25th.  

To make this event function as it should, we will divide the night into two separate sessions. Normally this evening is only for parents, but we want to take advantage of the opportunity for students to participate so that they feel more comfortable and confident on their first day in the building. Unfortunately, our parking lot and classrooms are not large enough to accommodate everyone at one time. Below is the schedule we will follow on Monday, August 22nd:

6:00 - 6:45 pm - All students with a last name beginning with A-M

7:15 - 8:00 pm - All students with a last name beginning with N-Z

I apologize if this is an inconvenience for anyone; however, this is the only way we will be able to accommodate all families in the time period provided.

As a reminder, all students and parents should now be able to access their schedules through Skyward Family Access. We ask that you bring your child’s physical schedule any time you visit the building so that you can have it for reference.  

That’s it for now. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. Have a great weekend!

GO CAVALIERS!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

We are officially in the final countdown to the end of the 2021-2022 school year. It has been a great school year, and we have been so fortunate to get "back to normal" with so many of the school routines, clubs, learning experiences and extra-curricular activities back in full swing. We have had a fantastic week at KAUE and are looking forward to the exciting events the last two weeks have in store for us.

This past week, we held our ELA STEM Museum on Thursday May 12. Our 6th grade students fully embraced this amazing learning experience and did a fantastic job sharing their possible future careers with their peers and teachers! We want to especially thank our ELA 6 Teachers for organizing this special event. It truly was spectacular!

Today, Friday May 13, Swartzlander Racing and Coby Morrison Racing visited KAUE for our 6th grade science classes. Students were provided the opportunity to interact with Sprint and Modified Race Cars and learn about speed, acceleration and velocity!

Today, we also had a virtual 7th grade orientation presentation for our 6th grade students. Our students joined a google meet in their 2nd period classes with the KAIS Principals and Counselors. Mr. Cardamone, KAIS Head Principal, led the presentation to help prepare our students as they transition into KAIS next year.

Coming up...

1.  KAUE Art Show - Tuesday, May 17, 2022 (6:00-8:00 pm)

• 6th grade students and families - 6:00-7:00 pm.

• 5th grade students and families - 7:00-8:00 pm. 

2.  6th Grade Dance (Luau Theme) - Friday, May 20, 2022 (6:00-8:00 pm)

• This is free to all interested 6th grade students

• Our PTO is still looking for volunteers to chaperone if you are interested

• Click here if you would like to help out!

3.  Fort Ligonier Field Trip (5th Grade)

• Group 1 (Lieberum, Hummel, Tutchstone, Palmiero, Maag, and J. Brunner Homerooms) - Monday, May 23, 2022

• Group 2 (M. Dunkel, Plazio, Holmes, Martinka, Arabia, Ackerman, Flemm Homerooms) - Wednesday, May 25, 2022

• Please make sure that your child dresses according to the weather forecast.  Much of the field trip will take place outdoors.  

4.  KAUE Field Day - Thursday, May 26, 2022 

• Half-day activities for all students

• PTO sponsored event

5.  Last Day of School (2-hour early dismissal) - Friday, May 27, 2022

As always, let us know if there is anything that you need.  Have a great weekend and…

Go Cavaliers!!!

• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

   

Hello KAUE Families,

We will keep it short and sweet this week with a few items from this week and some updates for next week.

Today students were treated to an ice cream snack by our KAUE PTO to celebrate the end of PSSA testing and the final day of Teacher Appreciation Week!  We also distributed yearbooks to all students that purchased them so that they could begin reflecting on the school year a little early!  Mrs. Petrilla acquired some additional yearbooks that are available in the main office on a first come first serve basis if anyone that did not purchase one would still like to do so.  The cost of the yearbook is $14. 

Next Week:

Thursday, May 12th - ELA 6th Grade STEM Museum (during ELA classes)

Thursday, May 12th - KAUE Title 1 Comprehensive Planning Committee Meeting (5:30 - 7:00 pm)

Friday, May 13th - Intermediate School Principals and Counselors will be visiting our 6th grade students to begin transition for the 2022-2023 school year (following the 6th grade lunch period)

We hope that you all have a safe and relaxing weekend, and please let us know if there is anything that you need.

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Good Afternoon Everyone,

As you are hopefully aware, Tuesday of next week starts our first round of PSSA testing.  Students will take ELA section 1 on Tuesday, April 26th, ELA section 2 on Wednesday, April 27th, and ELA section 3 on Thursday, April 28th.  All testing will take place approximately from 9:00 am to 11:00 am, and we will run an abbreviated schedule for the remainder of the day that will allow all students to attend their regularly scheduled classes.  Any student that is absent on a day of testing will be pulled to the Media Center in the afternoon for make-up sections.

Also on Tuesday next week, Mr. Priore and Mrs. Insko will be conducting our Elementary Band Concert from 7:00-8:00 pm in the High School Auditorium.  We are very excited to see the results of the hardwork and dedication our students put forth throughout the school year.

We would like to thank Mrs. Martinka and Mrs. Thomas for making Earth Day a special event here at the Upper Elementary.  Today we collected waste materials from students and families and worked with our High School to ensure these items were properly recycled.  This will continue on Monday and Tuesday of next week, so if you don’t have curbside recycling in your community, please support our cause by sending these items in with your children early next week.  For more information, click here.  Pictured below are some of our students that dedicated their time to help with the recycling effort.  

That’s it for this week!  If there is anything that you need, please do not hesitate to contact our main office.  We hope that everyone is able to enjoy the warmer weather this weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

If you were not already aware, schools are closed tomorrow, April 15th and Monday, April 18th for spring recess.  Classes will resume on Tuesday, April 19th at KAUE.

As mentioned in several other communications, PSSA testing will begin the week of April 25th with English Language Arts, and conclude the following week with Mathematics.  All formal testing will take place in the morning, and the building will operate on an abbreviated schedule for the remainder of the day so that all students have an opportunity to attend each of their classes.  Students that are participating in 100% online distance learning are required to attend the morning of each testing day.  For those that utilize the option to return home after testing, all online learning will be asynchronous for the remainder of the day.  Testing dates are listed below:

Tuesday, April 26th - English Language Arts

Wednesday, April 27th - English Language Arts

Thursday, April 28th - English Language Arts

Tuesday, May 3rd - Mathematics

Wednesday, May 4th - Mathematics

The KAUE Art Show is scheduled for Tuesday, May 17th from 6:00-8:00 pm.  All students and parents are welcome to attend this event, as it will be the first in-person Art Show at KAUE since 2019!  Some of you may be aware of this, but parking can be an issue at our building when building-wide events such as this occur.  To help alleviate this, we ask that all families adhere to the following schedule:

6th grade students and families - 6:00-7:00 pm.

5th grade students and families - 7:00-8:00 pm.  

It is my understanding that our PTO will be raffling off some gift baskets during the event, and Kona Ice will be on campus for optional refreshments.  Hope to see all of you there on May 17th!

And finally, in conjunction with our High School Science department, the KAUE Green Team will be collecting recyclable materials at our school to celebrate Earth Day on Friday, April 22nd, Monday, April 25th, Tuesday, April 26th, and Wednesday, April 27th.  Students are encouraged to bring in items from home that are in need of recycling.  For more information on this event, and a list of items that can be brought in, click here.  Thank you Mrs. Martinka and Mrs. Thomas for organizing this event!

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office.  

Have a great 4-day weekend, and we will reconvene on Tuesday, April 19th!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Again KAUE Families,

My apologies, but I left one very important date off of last week’s communication.  Below is the updated list with the new date highlighted.  

• April 15th - 18th - Spring Recess (Schools Closed)
• April 20th (Wednesday) - Junior Olympics (for those that qualified)
• April 26th (Tuesday) - 4th Quarter Deficiencies Issued

• April 26th (Tuesday) - Elementary Band Concert at High School Auditorium (7:00-8:00 pm)

• May 12th (Thursday) - KAUE Title 1 Comprehensive Planning Committee Meeting
• May 12th (Thursday) - ELA STEM Museum (during the school day at KAUE)
• May 17th (Tuesday) - KAUE Art Show (6:00-8:00 pm)
• May 20th (Friday) - 6th Grade Dance (Sponsored by KAUE PTO - 6:00-8:00 pm)
• May 23rd (Monday) - Fort Ligonier Field Trip (5th Grade Group 1)
• May 25th (Wednesday) - Fort Ligonier Field Trip (5th Grade Group 2)
• May 26th (Thursday) - KAUE Field Day (Sponsored by KAUE PTO)
• May 27th (Friday) - Last Day of School (2-Hour Early Dismissal)

Mrs. Petrilla asked that I inform everyone that our office Lost & Found is accumulating a large number of items.  If your child is missing an item, please encourage them to stop in our main office.  As we slowly approach the end of the year, our hopes are to get as many items returned to their rightful owners.  Usually a few weeks after the last day of school, these items either get moved to our KAUE closet, or they are disposed of.  

Some of you may be aware, but we at Kiski partner with many outside programs and agencies to assist our students.  Emilie Greiner, our KAUE Student Assistance Program Liaison through Westmoreland Case Management Supports, provided us with some excellent upcoming events within the community for students and families.  Please click here for more information.  Thank you Emilie!

One final reminder that next week we only have 4 days of school due to the upcoming holiday break.  So Friday, April 15th and Monday, April 18th will be two extra days for students to remain home and enjoy family and friends.  

We hope that everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend, and if there is anything that you need, please do not hesitate to reach out.

GO Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Again KAUE Families

As was mentioned in my previous email, we had a pretty standard week this week at KAUE.  Aside from mid-week report cards and a Thursday fire drill, students were in classes for a regular schedule each day.  That being said, there are a lot of events in the next two months before we end the 2021-2022 school year.

Yesterday, a formal letter was sent to families specific to PSSA Testing.  Our official schedule at KAUE is as follows:

• English Language Arts (Grades 5/6) - Tuesday, April 26th, Wednesday, April 27th, and Thursday, April 28th
• Mathematics (Grades 5/6) - Tuesday, May 3rd and Wednesday, May 4th

All testing will occur prior to lunch, and make-ups will be issued after lunch of testing days and for the remainder of the week on testing weeks.  If you have any questions or concerns about the testing information that was distributed yesterday, please let us know.  

Below are some of the other events that sit between us and the end of the school year:

• April 15th - 18th - Spring Recess (Schools Closed)
• April 20th (Wednesday) - Junior Olympics (for those that qualified)
• April 26th (Tuesday) - 4th Quarter Deficiencies Issued
• May 12th (Thursday) - KAUE Title 1 Comprehensive Planning Committee Meeting
• May 12th (Thursday) - ELA STEM Museum (during the school day at KAUE)
• May 17th (Tuesday) - KAUE Art Show (6:00-8:00 pm)
• May 20th (Friday) - 6th Grade Dance (Sponsored by KAUE PTO - 6:00-8:00 pm)
• May 23rd (Monday) - Fort Ligonier Field Trip (5th Grade Group 1)
• May 25th (Wednesday) - Fort Ligonier Field Trip (5th Grade Group 2)
• May 26th (Thursday) - KAUE Field Day (Sponsored by KAUE PTO)
• May 27th (Friday) - Last Day of School (2-Hour Early Dismissal)

If there are any additions or changes to the above schedule, we will let you know as soon as we know here at KAUE.  

One other item I would like to share with you before I leave you to your weekend is that we had several students from our school that represented Kiski Area at the WCMEA Honors Band event at Hempfield School District on Friday of last week.  These students were Dominic Cerminara, Kaylee Cline, Faith Harr-Krazel, Alicia Wagner, Jacob Tucker, Garrett Brothers, Sam Mullooly, Noella Shaffer, and Mario Crupie.  Congratulations to those students for their hard work and dedication.  Below are two pictures from the event.

We hope that you all have a nice and relaxing weekend, and…

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Everyone,

We hope that all of our students are enjoying the extra day off this weekend.  Today our teachers and staff participated in professional development and had an opportunity to reflect on the school year so far.  Although we are currently in the fourth grading quarter, now is an excellent time to hit the reset button and focus on the final two months of the school year.  

This past week students participated in an assembly highlighting some songs and performances by the cast of our high school musical “Shrek”.  I was utilizing my cell phone for the online broadcast for our distance learning students, so the picture below was the only one I was able to capture from the event.  Either way, I think our students really enjoyed the presentation, and hopefully it further shows them the possibilities that are available to them in the years ahead.  We would like to thank Mr. Capanna, Mrs. McMeans, and the cast that visited on Wednesday.  For more information on the musical, click here. 

This coming week is somewhat of an uneventful one.  We will be posting 3rd quarter report cards to Skyward on Wednesday, March 30th.  All teachers are in the process of finalizing grades, so if you have any questions or concerns specific to your child’s performance during the 3rd quarter, please do not hesitate to contact his/her assigned teacher(s).  

We would like to thank all of the parents and guardians that participated in our KAUE Family Survey that was issued last Friday.  We reviewed all of the responses as part of our KAUE Title 1 Comprehensive Planning Committee last evening, so if you completed it, your feedback will assist us in our mission of continuous improvement.  

We hope that you all have a safe and enjoyable weekend!  Do not hesitate to reach out if there is anything that you need.

KA All The Way!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

We would like to start off by thanking our PTO members that volunteered their time to run our spring Scholastic Book Fair this week.  It is always refreshing to see our students excited about reading, and I was glad to see that many students took advantage of the opportunity.  

This coming week marks the end of the 3rd grading quarter.  The 9-weeks officially ends on Tuesday, March 22nd, so we encourage all students and parents to review grades and progress in Skyward over the weekend, and utilize the Google Classroom if there are any outstanding assignments.  

On Wednesday, March 23rd, the cast of the High School Musical “Shrek” will be visiting Kiski Area Upper Elementary to put on a small performance for our students.  If you are interested in attending the musical that takes place at our High School Auditorium from April 6th - 9th, please click here for more information.  

Finally, we have a favor to ask…  Each year we like to reflect on our practices and operations at KAUE.  There is no one better to assist us in this process than the families that we serve.  Please take a few moments to complete the following survey.  It is completely anonymous, and the feedback you provide will help us to identify strengths and challenges as we begin planning for the 2022-2023 school year.  It is hard to believe, but it will be here before we know it. 

As always, thank you for your continued support, and please do not hesitate to reach out if there is anything that you need.

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

I know you are all bracing for what is hopefully the last snow of the season, so I will keep this brief. 

This past week our students had the opportunity to view a performance by our high school Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble. Current 6th grade band members then had the opportunity to sit in for a selected piece.  It is always exciting to witness the talent that our students possess and the things that they can achieve here at Kiski Area.  We would like to thank Mr. Pityk, Mr. Priore, Mrs. Insko, Mr. Pachesky, Mr. Sheller, and Mr. Lutz for organizing the event and explaining the opportunities that exist for our students.  Below are some pictures from the assembly.

For more information on our instrumental music program, click here. 

This coming week students will have the opportunity to purchase books and reading materials through our PTO’s Spring Scholastic Book Fair.  The event will run from Monday to Friday, and students will attend the book fair during their ELA class.  For online shopping information and a schedule of when your child will be attending, click here.  Thank you Mrs. Tucker, Mrs. Crider, and the rest of our PTO for your hard work in making this happen.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to call our main office or email me directly at [email protected].  Stay safe this weekend, and get ready for some warmer weather next week!

GO CAVS!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

KAUE Families,

Today we ran an abbreviated schedule to allow time for students and staff to celebrate diversity, and recognize important figures in history that have contributed to the progression of human rights.  We would like to thank all of the students that participated in this presentation and Ms. Deanna Maag for her hard work in putting it all together.  If you would like to view the presentation, click here.  

This week we also had the privilege of welcoming members of the High School Key Club to the  building to promote reading for Read Across America day.  Each homeroom read a book and participated in a related activity during the AM activity period.  Below are some pictures we captured during the event.  A special thank you to Mrs. Stankowski for organizing this for our building and welcoming our KAUE alumni!

We will be kicking off this coming week with a presentation by our KAHS Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble.  Mr. Pityk, Mrs. Insko, and Mr. Priore will lead the performance and share with students opportunities in our music program both within our building and when they enter the Intermediate School in 7th grade.  

Also next week, the KAUE PTO will begin setting up for the Spring Scholastic Book Fair.  Students will have the opportunity to view available items for purchase on Friday, March 11th, and will attend the book fair in their ELA classes the following week. For more specific information and a detailed schedule, click here.  Thank you Mrs. Tucker, Mrs. Monaco, Mrs. Crider, Mrs. Beach, and our entire PTO for organizing this event.  

If you have any questions, inquiries, or concerns, please do not hesitate to email or call our main office at 724-727-3421.

Enjoy the warm weather this weekend!

KA ALL DAY!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

We have several events planned for this upcoming week:

As always, thank you for your continued support in the education of our children.  We look forward to another great week at KAUE, and hope that you enjoy the last weekend in February!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Dear KAUE Families,

We have a few items that we would like to share with you from this past week at Upper Elementary.

1. February has been identified as “show your love” in the Kiski Area School District.  In the spirit of this theme, teachers and students came together to support a student and his family that is currently enrolled in another building in the district, but we were fortunate to have as part of our KAUE family from 2018-2019.  This student has had significant medical issues and has been in and out of the hospital many times requiring many surgeries along the way.  Under the leadership of Ms. Candice Roberts and Mrs. Rhiannon Ackerman, our building raised over $2,100 through the sale of candy grams that will be distributed to students on Valentine’s Day next week.  I can’t thank our students and families enough for your unwavering support no matter what the charitable cause. 
2. This past week was School Counselor Appreciation Week, and our students and staff took the opportunity to acknowledge our school counselor, Ms. Olivia Rizzo.  Ms. Rizzo is in her third year at KAUE, and believe me when I say that she will stop at nothing to do what is best to help our students be successful on a daily basis.  So thank you Ms. Rizzo for your service and dedication to our kiddos!
3. We had 8 students qualify to attend the WCMEA Honors Choir Festival at Greater Latrobe High School today.  Bria Bires, Brie Curry, Nathan Glass, Kyla Hutcherson, Peyton Rega, Farrah Schneider, Jacob Tucker, and Ben Vokes were afforded the opportunity to work with students and music educators across Westmoreland County to enrich their musical experience.  We would like to thank Mr. Priore and our music department for their continued commitment to providing these types of experiences for our students, and congratulate those students on a job well done.
4. 3rd Quarter deficiencies will be processed and posted to Skyward Family Access on Wednesday of next week (2/16).  A message will be posted to skyward and emailed through the system when these reports are available to parents.  Please remember to check grades in Skyward frequently and cross-reference classroom content in Google Classrooms.  All materials and assignments from daily lessons are available for students and parents to access as needed.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding your child’s performance, please do not hesitate to reach out to their assigned teacher in Skyward.  

Thank you all for another great week at KAUE!  Reach out if there is anything that you need, and…

GO Cavs!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Dear KAUE Families,

It’s hard to believe we are almost through the winter weather (according to Phil) after the crazy winter weather we’ve had the past two days. I want to sincerely thank all of our families for your cooperation and patience during our virtual learning days. Despite a few technology issues, these days have run smoothly with high levels of learning being able to occur. This can only happen because of the amazing work of our teachers and the amazing work of our students! 

A couple things to highlight…

1. Monday, February 7th - Friday, February 11th: School Counselor Appreciation Week. Miss Rizzo is a phenomenal school counselor, and we are very excited to celebrate this week how awesome she truly is! 

2. Friday, February 11th: WMEA County Chorus. Good luck to all of our students that are attending this!

3. Wednesday, February 16th: Mid-Quarter Deficiencies Posted. It’s hard to believe we are nearing the halfway point of Quarter 3. As we approach deficiencies, be sure to check your child’s grades on Skyward to see if there is any missing work needing turned in.

As always, thank you for your partnership in ensuring all of our students are succeeding here at KAUE. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office at 724-727-3421.

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

This week kicked off the 3rd grading quarter, and 2nd quarter report cards were posted to Skyward Family Access this afternoon.  To access this information, login to your Skyward account and click on “Portfolio” from the main menu.  The “Term 2 Report Card 2021-2022” should be available on the next screen. 

We would like to recognize our KAUE students for their amazing commitment to our annual Food Drive that benefits the Westmoreland County Food Bank.  Under the leadership of Mrs. Katey Hummel, our student council organized this event to help those in need during the cold winter months.  Pictured below are the items that we accumulated over the past 4 days.  We can’t thank our students and families enough for your continued support!

Finally, Mr. Talmage asked that I remind parents that Junior Olympics will take place this year on Wednesday, April 20th.  Students are tested on multiple fitness events to determine if they qualify for the event.  If any 100% online learning students are interested in qualifying for this event, you will need to schedule a time with Mr. Talmage to complete the testing during the month of March.   He will be available from 9:00 am - 10:20 am any Friday in March.   I know it is early, but it is always refreshing to start thinking about Spring events :) 

If you have any questions related to the items above or general inquiries about KAUE, please do not hesitate to contact our main office at 724-727-3421.  I can be reached by email at [email protected].

Stay warm and have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

Our previous two emails have been a bit lengthy, so I will do my best to keep this one short and sweet.

1. Schools are closed for students on Monday, January 17th for staff in-service.  Classes will resume on Tuesday, January 18th and this is the first day of the 3rd grading quarter.  
2. Our KAUE Student Council has organized a food drive that will take place next week in the building.  Students are encouraged to bring in any non-perishable food items to their homeroom during the week and these items will be donated to the Westmoreland County Food Bank.  To make this fun, the homeroom in each grade that donates the most will receive a first period breakfast at a later date.  I would like to thank Mrs. Hummel and our Student Council for sponsoring this yearly event. 
3. Report Cards will be posted to Skyward Family Access on Friday, January 21st.  A notification will be sent out through Skyward email to inform you when they are ready to view.  
4. Monday, January 17th is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  Although we will not be in school to celebrate Dr. King’s contributions to our country on this day, we encourage students and families to reflect on his impact during the American Civil Rights Movement and beyond.  We are proud to represent the principles and values instilled by Dr. King in our school each and every day.  Click here for a brief video tribute.     
5. Emergency Instructional Day Reminder - In the event that schools are closed due to inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances, please reference our “Emergency Instruction Day Schedule” that can be accessed on the KAUE homepage: https://upperelementary.kiskiarea.com/.  We will follow a 2-Hour Delay schedule and students will utilize their Skyward schedules and Google Classrooms to access live online instruction for the day.  Remember, all students will need to attend live sessions to be marked present for the day.  Please encourage your child/children to bring home their chromebooks daily so that they are prepared for such an occurrence.  It’s that time of year :).

As always, if you have any questions or need assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out to your child’s teachers or contact our main office at 724-727-3421.  I can also be reached by email at [email protected].

Have a wonderful weekend!

KA ALL DAY!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Margaret E. Nicholas, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Welcome back to the first week of the new year!  I always feel that the first week back to school after a long winter break is the most difficult, but we had a good transition, and the students seem to be back into the swing of high levels of learning.

1. 1. A parent note with the date(s) of absence, absence reason, and your signature.  This does not have to be on a formal excuse blank, it can just be on a piece of paper that is sent in with your child.  You can access our formal excuse blanks by clicking here.  (All students have up to 10 parental excuses before medical excuses are required.  Students have 3 days from their last absence to submit these excuses).
   2. A medical excuse from your family physician or a medical facility outlining the information in letter a above.  This can be sent in with your child or faxed directly to the Upper Elementary at 724-727-2861. (Approved medical excuses do not go into the count for truancy for the school year.  These excuses will be accepted at any time).
   3. A request for a “Student-Family Trip”.  The district will grant a request for a student-family trip as long as the request does not exceed 10 days or that the total excused absences at the point of the trip with the days requested does not exceed 10 days.  Click here to access the student-family trip form.  
   4. Quarantine - In the event that your child is a close contact of a Covid positive individual (either in school or at home), absences related to this quarantine will not count against a student.  Please communicate these scenarios with our school nurse either by phone or email at [email protected].  

Unexcused Absences - All student absences are coded as unexcused in our system until one of the above items has been submitted.  Truancy letters are generated in the Skyward system and sent when a student has 4 or more unexcused absences, and a warning letter is sent when a student reaches 7 total absences, and again when he/she reaches 10 total absences.  

As always, thank you for your continued support as we begin the second semester at KAUE.  If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to reach out to our main office clarification or guidance.  I can be reached directly at [email protected], and our new Assistant Principal, Mrs. Margaret Nicholas, can be reached at [email protected].

Have a great weekend, and…

Go Cavaliers!

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

We have a few items that we would like to share with you this week:

Thank you for your attention to this long email.  As always, if you have any questions or concerns about anything, please do not hesitate to give us a call or send us an email.

We hope everyone has a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Daniel C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

I hope everyone had a nice and relaxing Thanksgiving break, and that you are looking forward to the start of the Christmas season.  

I have a few items that I wanted to make you aware of this week as we head into our first full week of December.

Thank you for your attention to the items above, and if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our main office at 724-727-3421, or email me directly at [email protected].

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Everyone,

This past week, students at KAUE and across the district honored Veterans for their service to our great country.  Headed by our own Mr. Smith, Kiski Area created a virtual tribute to the men and women in our military.  Although it is significantly different from the annual Veterans Day assembly that was hosted by our building past, it allowed us to show our appreciation district-wide while keeping everyone safe.  The tribute is available through our district website for students, parents, and community members to view.  Click here for direct access.

Next week, students are encouraged to wear blue for child grief awareness on Thursday, November 18th, and red for child homeless awareness on Friday, November 19th.  We also have make-up pictures for students that were absent or unable to have their pictures taken back in October.  This will take place on Thursday, November 18th as well.

I would like to thank all parents involved in our KAUE Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO).  Because of this group, we were able to safely transport our 6th grade students to the Flight 93 memorial last week and provide them with a meaningful educational experience.  They also work very hard to support our students and staff throughout the school year so that they have access to additional resources and activities.   Please support their current spirit wear fundraiser that is posted on our website.  Click here for a list of Kiski gear and ordering information.  Forms will also be distributed by homeroom teachers for students to take home either today or Monday.  All orders are due by Monday, November 22nd.  These make great Christmas gifts!

So that is it for this week.  If you have any questions related to the items above or our building in general, please do not hesitate to call or email.  We hope that everyone has a great weekend, and....

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Again KAUE Families,

This week started the second grading quarter across the district.  Report cards for the first grading quarter will be run and posted to Skyward Family access by the afternoon of Monday, November 15th.  To view your child’s report card, log in to the Skyward website and select “Portfolio” from the main menu on the left hand side. Then click on “Term 1 Report Card 2021-2022.”

I can’t begin to tell you how proud I am of our 6th grade students for their excellent behavior and leadership as they visited the Flight 93 Memorial on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of this week.  I had the opportunity to attend on Thursday with our last group, and I was so impressed with the guidance provided by Friends of Flight 93, and how our students internalized the significance of the events that occurred on September 11, 2001.  Mrs. Stankowski (Social Studies 6) was instrumental in obtaining this grant for our school, and we hope that we can continue this field trip for our 6th grade students in the years to come.  Click here to access the article from the Trib that highlights this experience for our students and teachers.

Traditionally, KAUE has held an annual Veteran’s Day assembly for students to honor all of our local service men and women; however, due to restrictions related to the pandemic, our program was moved to a virtual setting last year.  We will again celebrate this event on Thursday, November 11th by publishing a video that shows our appreciation across all of the schools in the Kiski Area School District.  This will be published on our district website for all community members to access, and students will view the finalized presentation in their Social Studies classrooms on the 11th.  I would like to thank Mr. Smith, our KAUE Assistant Principal, for his leadership in continuing this important tradition at Kiski Area. 

Finally, we do have one reminder for the upcoming week.  Any student that missed pictures earlier in the school year, make-ups will be held at KAUE on Thursday, November 18th during the school day.  If your child still needs a school picture, please plan on having him/her ready to go on the 18th.

Thank you all for your continued support as we begin the second quarter of the year, and please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.

Have a nice weekend and…

Go Cavs!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Again KAUE Families,

Today we celebrated the end of October and the first grading period by allowing students to dress up in their Halloween Costumes.  We always enjoy giving our students the opportunity to just be kids and have a little fun with their peers when it is appropriate during the school day.  Click here to view some pictures that our morning announcements sponsor, Mrs. Feudale, provided and I thought you would enjoy.  We had so many creative costumes today, and I appreciate that everyone followed our stipulations when selecting an outfit for the day.

Today also wraps up Red Ribbon week in our building and across the district.  This is always one of my favorite weeks of the year because the students and staff go above and beyond to show their support for a drug free culture.  The Upper Elementary has been known over the years for the human red ribbon, so pictured below is what this looked like on Wednesday when students wore red in support of the cause.

We have two specific events coming up in the month of November that I would like to make everyone aware of.  Monday, November 18th is Child Grief Awareness Day.  This day is dedicated to students who have experienced loss in our school and letting them know that they are not alone. If your child has experienced the loss of a parent, sibling, household resident or another significant person and they would like to participate in a special observance in their memory, please contact Ms. Rizzo by email at [email protected].  We encourage all students to wear blue on this day to show their support for their fellow classmates that may be experiencing such a loss.  The second event is National Homeless Youth Awareness Day that will take place on Tuesday, November 19th.  Students will be asked to wear red in support of this reality that unfortunately affects young children in society.  

On Monday, November 1st, school will not be in session for students to accommodate parent-teacher conferences.  If you have requested to meet with any of your child’s teachers during the day, you can access these times by logging into your Skyward Family Access and clicking on the conference tab.  Since the meetings will all be virtual, teachers have created Google Calendar invites and sent them to the primary email address that you have on file in skyward.  Please check your email to access this invite, and use the link provided to attend the meeting at your scheduled time.  If you have any issues on Monday, please contact our main office at 724-727-3421 for assistance.  

Finally, our 6th grade students will be participating in the first field trip that we have experienced since the Covid pandemic hit our area in March of 2019.  Students will be visiting the Flight 93 Memorial thanks to Mrs. Rebekah’s Stankowski’s efforts in securing a grant for our school.  We hope that this will be something that all 6th grade students can experience moving forward as they come through our building.  For all 6th grade parents...please encourage your children to dress warm on their scheduled day, as it is supposed to be a bit brisk next week and we have heard that it can be rather windy at the memorial site.  Students are able to bring cameras and/or cell phones, but we have been reminding them that they are only to be used for pictures.  Please reinforce this with them if you can remember :).

I think that is it for this week, so I hope that everyone has a great Halloween weekend, and that the students enjoy their extra day out of the classroom.  As always, reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.

Go Cavaliers!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

The final week of the first quarter is upon us, and starting on Tuesday, November 2nd, students will be working on a clean academic slate.  I encourage all parents to log into skyward this week to review grades and cross-reference assignments in Google Classroom.  If there are any outstanding assignments that need to be completed, please have your child address those items and email their teachers when they are ready for review.  At the close of business on Friday, October 29th, all grades will be finalized so that report cards can be updated and posted to skyward on Monday, November 8th. 

As you all know, technology and chromebooks are an integral part of our academic process.  As the year progresses, our supplies of loaner devices and extra chargers are diminishing.  For this reason we are asking that you remind your child to take good care of their devices and have them prepared for school daily.  Below is a list of items that Mrs. Petrilla, our Administrative Assistant at KAUE, put together for you to share with your child.  We hope this will help us to stay ahead of technology needs moving forward:

1. Please make sure your chromebook is charged before coming to school each day.
2. Please make sure you don't leave your chromebook on the bus or at recess.
3. Please be sure when you leave a classrooms with a chromebook that it is yours
4. Please take good care of your chromebook.  Keep it in a safe place at home where it can charge and be out of the way of siblings, pets, and natural disasters (I added that last part).
5.  If you have any extra chargers or chromebooks at home, please return them to the office. (You should only have one device and one charger).
6. If you borrow a chromebook or charger from the office for the day, please return it before you get on the bus or get picked up to go home. 

Remember...although we did not require the purchase of insurance for devices again this year, it is the responsibility of students to take care of their devices.  Accidental damage can occur and will be covered by the school, but intentional damage and/or neglect is not.  For more detailed information on our district’s chromebook policy, click here.

Next week our building will be celebrating Red Ribbon Week.  I would like to thank Mrs. Hummel, our PTO, and our Student Council for all the work that has gone into preparing for this week’s events.  If you aren’t aware, Red Ribbon Week is a nation-wide campaign to prevent drug abuse.  Each day students can participate in themes to show their support.  Click here for a daily list of activities.  

As always, if you have any school-related questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to send me an email or call the main office directly at 724-727-3421.  I hope that everyone has a great weekend and…

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Last year we made it a point to share weekly attendance information with parents due to concerns surrounding the pandemic.  Although concerns have not diminished this year, I have neglected to include this information mostly because the majority of our students are attending daily in person.  That being said, I wanted to give everyone a relative update of the number of students that are in the building daily.  Below is our attendance data from this past week.  Currently we have a total of 271 students enrolled in 6th grade and 251 students enrolled in 5th grade.  We have been right around a 90% attendance rate every day.

Next week, please remember that there will be no school for students on Monday, October 11th.  This is a staff in-service day, so the students can enjoy an extended weekend at home with family and friends.  We are slowly approaching the end of the first quarter (October 29th), so please take a moment to check Skyward Family Access to see how your child is doing academically so far.  All dates in Skyward should align with assignments posted in Google Classroom.  If there is any work that is missing, please encourage your child to use the extra time to catch up or get back on pace. 

If you have any specific questions related to academics, please reach out to your child’s teacher(s) or Ms. Rizzo, our school counselor.  For any general questions or inquiries, don’t hesitate to email me or Mr. Smith, or call our main office directly at 724-727-3421.

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello Again KAUE Families,

Today we had some beautiful fall weather at KAUE and I had the opportunity to see our students enjoying the first day of October both in the classroom and outdoors during recess.  Each Friday we run an abbreviated daily schedule that adjusts our normal 61-minute periods down to 54-minute class periods.  The extra time in total is utilized at the beginning of the day as part of our “Fresh Friday” activity period.  Prior to the start of the day, grade-level teams collaborate to determine which students need additional support completing past assignments, or just need some extra time to get caught up.  For those students who are on pace academically, this provides them the opportunity to get involved in some of our extracurricular activities such as Student Council, Green Team, Instrumental Band, Announcements, and Kindness Club.  It is a nice way to end the long school week, and I enjoy watching our students have positive experiences throughout the building.

Today I would like to highlight two specific events that took place over the past two weeks.  The first was a bus driver appreciation day that occurred last Friday under the leadership of Mrs. Katey Hummel and our student council membership.  This resulted in our entire student body creating thank you notes for our drivers to acknowledge their role in the educational process.  As you may have heard, the state of PA is experiencing a major shortage of bus drivers, and it has certainly impacted our district among others.  I personally work with our bus company and drivers on a daily basis, and I know that this can be a thankless job.  The end result of our bus driver appreciation day was a thank you booklet that was presented to each of our drivers along with a sweet treat for them to eat.  We also had students that ride bus 45 (usually our last bus to arrive in the pm) hold signs and cheer on our drivers as they entered the pick-up point at the end of the day.  Below are some pictures of the event, and I am so proud of our kiddos for making their bus drivers feel special last Friday.

The second event took place today in a similar fashion.  Again, our student council organized and led a building-wide appreciation day for our evening sweepers and custodians.  Signs were created and posted in our cafeteria to show our maintenance staff how much we value their service and appreciate learning in a clean and beautiful building every day.  As I mentioned in an email earlier this year, KAUE staff and students truly embrace the teamwork approach, and we are grateful to have such dedicated individuals on our educational team.  Below is a picture from today’s celebration.

One final item that I almost forgot to mention this week was our annual safety day for 6th grade students that also occurred last Friday.  Washington Township Police, Fire Department, and EMS were on campus to show students some of their equipment and discuss safety in the school and the community.  This is always a fun day for all involved, and I would like to thank Dorothy Lees for her efforts in organizing this again for our students. 

Thank you all for your continued support as we head into the month of October.  As always, do not hesitate to reach out to any teachers/staff or the main office if you have any questions or concerns.  I can be emailed directly at [email protected].  

Have a great weekend and…

GO CAVS!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

I would like to devote this week's communication to some items that you may already be aware of, but we want to make sure that we clarify for future reference.

If you have any questions related to the items above, or if there is anything else that you need, please do not hesitate to contact our main office at 724-727-3421, or email me directly at [email protected].  

I hope everyone has a nice Fall weekend, and as always, Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

There are a few updates that we would like to share to close the week.  

I know I say this every week, but thank you all for your patience and support over the past 16 days.  It has certainly been a unique start to the school year on many levels, and I can’t begin to tell you how great it has been to see our students back in the building and enjoying their time with teachers and friends.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to us in the main office at 724-727-3421, or you can email me directly at [email protected].

Have a fantastic weekend, and Go Cavs!  Beat Connellsville!

Hello KAUE Families,

At the beginning of the week, Dr. Lohr issued a letter thanking parents and students for their support as the district adhered to new health and safety guidelines issued by the State of Pennsylvania.  I too would like to extend my appreciation to all of the families that have worked with our school to ensure that learning can continue despite changing guidelines.  I absolutely understand the frustration that comes with inconsistency, and hope that we can move forward with the shared vision of providing our students with high quality educational experiences.

As we progress into the month of September, there are several items that I would like to bring to your attention.

Lastly, I would like all parents to take 10 minutes to view the following video: https://youtu.be/jWAh0pIPz2w.  Due to the geographic size of our district and a regional shortage of drivers, students spend a significant amount of time on the school bus each day. I am asking for your help to reinforce our bus rules and expectations with your children so that we can limit bus misconduct moving forward.  I had several conversations with concerned parents this week regarding this issue, and I am fully committed to making the bus ride a better experience for all of our students.  This presentation was delivered to students at the end of our school day today, and the items referenced will be strictly enforced throughout the year. 

As always, if you have any questions or concerns related to the items above, please feel free to contact our main office or reach out to me by email at [email protected].

Have a great weekend, and Go Cavaliers!  

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Upcoming Events:

Saturday, September 11th - Remember and honor those who died on 9/11/01

Friday, September 24th - Washington Township Safety Day (6th Grade Students)

Monday, September 27th - Deficiencies Issued

Monday, September 27th-Thursday, September 30th - Scholastic Online Book Fair

Hello KAUE Families,

I want to start by thanking everyone for their patience and support during this first full week of the school year.  I know that it can be frustrating when things do not work out as anticipated, but I am greatly appreciative to everyone who has worked with me and the staff here at Kiski Area to iron out the initial kinks that come with the start of any new year.   Dr. Joshua Weaver, current Assistant Superintendent at Grove City School District and former Principal at KAUE, opened our building in 2013 with the theme “Teamwork Makes the Dreamwork”.  This resonated with me today as I reflected on all of the events of this past week...because all of us contribute to the experiences our children have in the school setting each day.  

That being said, next week will certainly bring about new challenges as we navigate additional state mandates and expectations for our students as they enter the building.  Please know that we understand the impact that this fluctuating environment has on you and your children, and we will continue to work to the best of our ability to provide a safe and comfortable atmosphere for everyone that walks through our doors.  If you have not done so, please refer to the district communication that was issued by Dr. Lohr earlier this week.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding our current district and building expectations, please do not hesitate to reach out to me for clarification or support.    

If you don’t have plans for this evening, I hope you can join our KA Family in support of our football team as they take on the Franklin Regional Panthers.

Go Cavaliers!

Upcoming Events:

Monday, September 6th - Labor Day - Schools Closed

Sincerely,

Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal 

KAUE Families,

We have officially completed the first two days of the 2021-2022 school year.  I wish I could say that everything went 100% as planned, but unfortunately that was not the case.  To any students and families that had issues with bus pick-ups/drop-offs or got home much later than planned, I sincerely apologize on behalf of our district.  Unfortunately it takes us a few days to iron out transportation schedules because of the geographic size of our district and overall logistics of our bus schedules, but I promise that it will become more consistent moving forward.

In an effort to keep this correspondence as brief and relevant to you as possible, I will provide a list of items below with necessary descriptions so that you can navigate easily.  

If you have any questions related to the items above, please do not hesitate to reach out to our main office.  I want to thank all of you for your patience and flexibility over the past two days, and we look forward to getting back at it on Monday of next week!

Have a great weekend!  Go Cavaliers!

• Brain W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Dear KAUE Families, 

On behalf of the staff at Kiski Area Elementary School, I am happy to welcome you to the 2021-2022 school year! We are excited to begin a productive school year with you and your child/children, and we are eagerly anticipating the start of the new year.  

I’d like to take this opportunity to remind you that the first day of school will take place tomorrow, Thursday, August 26, 2021.  If you have not already done so, please visit our district website for bus assignments and estimated pickup/drop off times.  For parents that plan to drive their child/children to school, drop-off is in front of the building’s main entrance, and students should not be dropped off any earlier than 8:38 am.  Pick-up can occur any time after 3:20 pm.  Please remember that although masks are optional within the school building, they are required for all on the school bus. 

Schedules were mailed to families on Friday, August 6, 2021, and these assignments are also available through Skyward Student or Skyward Family Access. 

All students attending school in-person will receive Google Classroom codes from their classroom teachers over the next two days; however, if you would like your child to have access to these classrooms ahead of time, click here for a list of content codes.  Please be sure to select the code that corresponds with your child’s current grade level and subject, as there is a set of codes for 5th graders that is different from 6th graders. (Any student attending school virtually through our Distance Learning model should refer to the classroom codes sent earlier this week)

If you were unable to participate in yesterday’s Meet the Teacher virtual event, a recording of each teacher’s presentation is now available for you to view.  The video links have replaced the meeting codes in our original document, and can be accessed by clicking here. 

As always, if you have any questions regarding the start of school tomorrow, please contact our main office at 724-727-3421.  Again, welcome back for a new year at Kiski Area Upper Elementary.  Our staff is looking forward to working with you to ensure that your children can achieve their highest potential.

Sincerely,

Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

I will try to be brief today, but I wanted to send out a few updates and reminders for the upcoming week.

You will likely hear from me again prior to the 26th, but if you have any questions or concerns leading up to the start of school, please do not hesitate to reach out by calling the main office or emailing me directly at [email protected].

We hope you enjoy the last days of summer break, and we look forward to kicking things off next week!

Go Cavaliers!!!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

We are T minus 13 days until the first student day of school at KAUE.  I would like to use this communication to review all of the information that is finalized for the upcoming school year:

1. In-Person vs. Online Learning - All parents have the option to choose 100% in-person learning or 100% online learning for the 2021-2022 school year.  We ask that whichever method of instruction that you choose for your child, that it be a 9-week (45 day) commitment.  Schedules were mailed at the end of last week and you should have received a letter and an attached schedule for your child.  If the schedule was on blue paper, your child is scheduled for online learning.  If the schedule was on white paper, your child is scheduled for in-person learning.  If there are any changes to your desired method of instruction prior to August 26th, please contact our main office at 724-727-3421.
2. KAUE Open House - The building will be open to parents and students to tour utilizing their current schedules from 9:00-11:30 and 1:00-3:30 on Tuesday, August 17th, and again on Thursday, August 19th at the same times.  You should have received your child’s schedule in the mail this past week, but if you did not, you can access it live through Skyward Family Access by logging on here and clicking on the “Schedule” tab.    
3. Transportation - Please continue to check the district website at www.kiskiarea.com for updates regarding transportation.  This information usually becomes available the week prior to the start of school when all busing routes have been finalized.
4. Meet the Teacher Night - This event will be virtual again this year and it will take place on Tuesday, August 24th from 6:00-8:00 pm.  I apologize, but I referenced in my previous letter that this is for parents only.  This was in error, and I want to formally welcome all parents and students to attend this event.  Our teachers will introduce themselves in 20 minute sessions and do their best to provide you with all the necessary information for your child to be ready for the first day of school. To view our schedule for the evening of the 24th and watch a brief tutorial of how the sessions will work, click here.
5. Chromebooks - Students will be utilizing their district issued chromebooks each day at KAUE.  These devices were sent home with your children at the end of the school year.  Please make sure that these are with them as they enter the building on the 26th.  If there are any issues with devices, we will handle them at the building level.  Our district board of directors voted to waive the insurance fee for devices again this year, so any accidental damage will be covered as outlined in our KASD Chromebook Handbook.  All 5th grade students will receive a new replacement chromebook within the first few weeks of school. 
6. Materials for School - Other than their district issued chromebook, there is not much else that students need to bring to school.  Some teachers do recommend that students have a notebook or folder and obviously a writing utensil, but these are items we can provide if students need them.  Each student will be assigned a locker that does not have a lock built in.  We do recommend that students bring their own lock if they plan on keeping valuable items in their lockers, but this is not a requirement.  Additionally, students are permitted to bring book bags to school, but they are only permitted to carry them throughout the day if they are clear or mesh.  Otherwise, we would ask that they keep their backpacks in their lockers once they arrive in the morning. 
7. Medications - If your child is in need of medication throughout the day, or if you would like to have our school nurse have medication on hand in the event of an emergency, please contact Mrs. Perroz prior to the start of the school year and she can assist you with this process.  As per our student handbook and district policy, students are not permitted to carry their own medications and/or self-administer without supervision by the nurse or trained member of our building health team.  

I apologize for the long email, but wanted to provide as much information as possible since we are quickly approaching the start of school. If there is anything that I missed or if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to our main office or email me directly at [email protected].

I hope you all enjoy your final days of summer break, and I look forward to working with you and your children this year!

Go Cavaliers!!!

• Brain W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

August 6, 2021

Dear Kiski Area Upper Elementary School Family,

It is hard to believe that the summer is nearly over and the 2021-2022 school year is right around the corner.  I hope that you and your family are enjoying the last few weeks before we begin the new academic year.  The purpose of this communication is to remind you of the two academic options for students this year, and to provide you with as much information as possible so that you and your child feel prepared as we approach the first day of school.

Preliminary class schedules are included with this letter so that we can open our building for students to visit with their schedules in hand prior to the first day of school (dates below).  The term “preliminary” is used because schedules may change up to the first day of class (August 26).  We will work hard to keep changes to a minimum, and we will not accommodate specific schedule requests related to classes and/or teachers.  If any change is necessary to your child’s schedule, you will be notified of the change prior to the start of school.

If the schedule you received is printed on a white sheet of paper, your child is scheduled for in-person learning for the 2021-2022 school year.  If the schedule you received is printed on a blue sheet of paper, your child is scheduled for 100% online (distance learning) for the first quarter of the school year.  If at any point between now and August 26th you would like to make a change to your child’s method of instruction (online or in-person), please contact our main office at 724-727-3421.  

Important dates/information:

Building Open for Student Visits: Tuesday, August 17 (9:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m.; 1:00 p.m.-3:30 p.m.) 

Thursday, August 19 (9:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m.; 1:00 p.m.-3:30 p.m.) 

Meet Teacher Night (parents only): Tuesday, August 24 (6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.)

First Day of School for Students:   Thursday, August 26

Bus route/time information:  Please continue to reference the Kiski Area School District Homepage (www.kiskiarea.com) for this information.  Busing information will be posted as soon as it is finalized by our transportation department.  Facial coverings will be required on school buses.

Backpacks:  Only clear or mesh, see-through backpacks can be carried throughout the day.  Regular backpacks may be used to carry items to and from school but must be kept in lockers throughout the school day.

Chromebooks:  Students are to bring their district issued device to school each day.  In the event that a device becomes accidentally damaged or is no longer in working order, they are to bring the device to our main office for a loaner/replacement.  Please view the updated KASD Chromebook Handbook at https://bit.ly/kasdcbhandbook.

We hope the information contained in this letter is helpful and look forward to a new and exciting school year!

Sincerely,

Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr.                                                 Daniel C. Smith

Hello KAUE Families,

We hope that you are enjoying the summer break and getting excited to return for the 2021-2022 school year.  As we prepare for the upcoming school year, our goal is to create a sense of normalcy and begin returning to regular school routines.  With that in mind, we are offering two options for students this year:  In-person instruction five days a week or distance learning five days a week.  Please contact the Upper Elementary School office (724-727-3421) if your child intends to participate in our 100% distance learning program and you have not indicated so on the district survey that was issued earlier this summer.  If we do not hear from you, your child will be scheduled for in-person instruction.  Keep in mind, we are asking students and parents to make nine week commitments to their chosen method of instruction.

There have been some inquiries regarding facial coverings for the 2021-2022 school year.  At this point in time, facial covering will be optional in the building.  As federal order mandates, students will be required to wear masks on school buses.  Furthermore, students will be socially distanced to the greatest extent possible in classrooms and in the cafeteria with regular disinfection and sanitization occurring throughout the day.  Adjustments to these protocols may be made as needed based on health guidelines and advice provided by the PA Department of Health and the PA Department of Education. Our revised Health and Safety Plan can be found on the district website.  Click here to access this directly. 

Specifically at KAUE, we are currently working to finalize student schedules for the upcoming year.  Once this is complete, a physical printout of your child’s schedule will be mailed to you along with a list of dates that the Upper Elementary will be open for you to visit. Tentatively we are looking at the week of August 16th for this “open house” opportunity.  If all goes as planned, schedules will be mailed before the end of next week.  These will also be available through student and family access on Skyward.  I will let you know as soon as this is accessible. 

So please enjoy your last weekend of July and know that I will be in touch next week with more updated information.  If there is anything that you need or would like to discuss, you can reach me directly at 724-727-3421 or by email at [email protected].

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal 

Hello Kiski Area Upper Elementary Families!

We are currently 3 weeks away from the start of the 2020-2021 school year, and if you are nervous and/or apprehensive about your child returning to school, you are not alone.  It is certainly a very unique and uncertain time in all of our lives, but rest assured that we are doing our best at KAUE and as a district to prepare for this transition. 

As communicated from a district level, all students will begin school in a distance learning format for the first two weeks of school.  From my perspective, this will allow our students to become comfortable with our updated online platform, and prepare all families for remote learning moving forward.  Additionally, it will give teachers much needed time to prepare their classrooms, and staff additional time to prepare buildings for the safe return of students on September 14th.  

As I write this email, a letter is being mailed to you that outlines the start of the school year and includes a brick and mortar schedule for your child.  You should receive this over the next several days.  Although online learning schedules may differ slightly, every student will have a concrete schedule to follow when they enter the building.  We intend to implement a daily plan when students return that will allow them to transition between classes, participate in itinerant courses (Phys. Edu., Art, Fundamentals of Engineering, and Music), and interact with their peers at lunch and recess, while at the same time, ensuring student safety and proper social distancing that are in-line with current CDC guidelines.  

In an attempt to give you as much information as I can, below is a list of items related to our educational processes and building-level procedures for the upcoming year.

Distance Learning:

1. All students will be issued a Chromebook that will be used at home and in school to access Google Classroom content.  Information is provided in the above mentioned mailing that details when 5th grade students can come to the building to pick up their school issued devices.
2. All students will receive direction (via email) from their assigned classroom teachers on how to join specific Google Classrooms in preparation for the beginning of instruction on Monday, August 31st.  This information may also be posted on the district website to avoid any confusion, and it will be available no later than Friday, August 28th.
3. Learning in the online format will be both Asynchronous and Synchronous.  This is a change compared to how things were presented in the Spring of 2020.  All asynchronous content (lesson plans, instructions, videos, readings, etc.) will be posted in all classrooms at the beginning of the school day.  These will remain available for students to access at any time.  Students will then be required to attend a 30 minute synchronous (live/online) lesson that will be led by their classroom teacher in a Google Meeting.  
4. The Online/Distance Learning Synchronous sessions will be the same for all students.  The schedule is as follows:
1. 8:30 - 9:00 - Itinerant Classes (Art, Music, Phys. Edu., Fundamentals of Engineering)
2. 9:00 - 9:30 - English Language Arts (ELA)
3. 10:02 - 10:32 - Science
4. 10:32 - 12:10 - Lunch/Recess for Brick and Mortar Students
5. 12:10 - 12:40 - Math
6. 1:13 - 1:43 - Social Studies
5. Both distance learning (online) and in-class learning will be Parallel.  This means that regardless if a child attends school in the building or participates through the Google Classroom using the above schedule, the content and lessons presented will be the same.  This will allow students to participate in learning daily, regardless of whether or not they can attend school.

Brick/Mortar Learning

1. Students are designated as either A Group (A-K) or B Group (L-Z) based on their last name.  A Group students will report to KAUE on Mondays and Tuesdays, and B Group students will report on Thursdays and Fridays.  All students will participate in distance learning on Wednesdays.
2. All student traffic will be one directional in the KAUE building.  There will be arrows to show students which direction to follow and markers will be available on the floors to help with 6 ft. distancing.  Two stairwells will be designated for upward travel, and two stairwells will be designated for downward travel. 
3. Hand sanitizers will be available throughout the building and students will be encouraged to utilize them before entering a classroom and also when exiting the classroom. 
4. Students will travel from classroom to classroom for subject changes (including itinerant classes).  This will occur in 3 separate groups (2 minutes between groups).  Our schedule is organized to ensure that when students from one classroom are dismissed, they will be reporting to another classroom that has been vacated.  Sanitizing wipes will be available and students will be encouraged to wipe off their work areas prior to using a space and after they have utilized a space (gym/weight room style).
5. Breakfast and lunch is free for all students at KAUE.  Both will be served in a “grab and go” style so that students can get their food and report to their homerooms to eat.  Although the majority of students will eat lunch within their homeroom classrooms, we will be implementing a rotation throughout the building that allows students to utilize the cafeteria and eat with different students periodically.  We will also be using the KAUE courtyard when the weather is nice so that students can eat in a more relaxed fashion outdoors.
6. Each grade-level content area will have a designated outdoor area to take students for class if weather permits.  This will allow more opportunity for social distancing and give students the ability to remove face coverings when appropriate.  

Upcoming Events:

1. Due to restrictions and recommendations set forth by the state of PA and the CDC, we are unable to host a formal orientation for incoming students.  If you have not already done so, please view our “New Student Orientation” page on the KAUE website.  This information was originally shared on June 2, 2020.
2. Meet the Teacher Night - This will be scheduled for Thursday, August 27th from 6pm-7pm at the Upper Elementary.  All meetings will occur virtually through a Google Meeting, and a schedule will be made available for parents to follow prior to the event.  
3. Technology Help desk - If you have any issues or questions related to Chromebooks and general technology, our district help desk will be back up and running starting the week of August 17th.  You can access the KASD Help desk by calling 724-845-8181 and selecting option 8 during normal business hours. 

I apologize for the long email and abundance of information, but I wanted to make sure that everyone knows that we are making significant progress in preparation for the start of the new school year.  To keep everyone informed of new information and updates, I will be sending out a weekly email on Fridays from now until the start of school.  If you have any specific questions or concerns that you would like to discuss, please do not hesitate to call the main office at KAUE at 724-727-3421 or email me directly at [email protected].  

Thank you for your patience and understanding in this unique situation, and please enjoy the rest of your summer while we continue to iron out the details over the next few weeks.

Go Cavs!

Sincerely,

Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr.

Building Principal

Kiski Area Upper Elementary School 

KAUE Students and Parents,

This will be my final email correspondence prior to the start of Distance Learning on Monday, August 31st.  In order to provide clear direction and avoid any confusion, please view the items list below:

1. Meet the Teacher Night - I was very pleased with the participation of our families in this online event last evening.  Although it was not ideal and we had some technical issues on account of the bad weather, most parents and students were able to hear from their scheduled teachers and get to know them a little bit better before we begin online.  If you were unable to attend for any reason or if you had connectivity issues due to the weather, each teacher did a recording of one of their sessions that you can access at the following link:  http://bit.ly/kauemtns.  Just find your scheduled teacher’s name and click on the video link that is next to it.
2. Google Classroom Codes - On Wednesday of this week an email was sent to all students with information on joining their Google Classrooms for the first semester.  Click here to view a master list of these codes; however, students should only join the elective classes (Art and Music or Fundamentals of Engineering and Phys. Edu./Health) that they have on their physical schedule for the 1st semester.  In total, a student will have 6 Classrooms to navigate to on their Google Classroom Dashboard. (*Be sure to select the course that coincides with your child’s grade level*)
3. Distance Learning Schedule - It is important to know that the schedule students will follow for synchronous instruction during distance learning is not the same schedule they will follow when they are in the building.  I know this seems confusing, but there is a very good reason for this.  When students do return to the building we want to make sure that teachers can devote their entire attention to students online.  Because of this, teachers will be teaching their online schedule during their “off periods” when they do not have other students physically in their classrooms.  Click here to access the schedule all students will follow online for the next 2 weeks for synchronous (live) instruction.
4. Technology Issues - Our recommendation would be to check your connectivity and access to Google Classrooms prior to the start of Distance Learning on Monday, August 31st.  If you have any problems related to technology, please contact our KASD Technology Helpdesk at 724-845-8181, extension 8 between the hours of 7:30 am and 8:00 pm.  If you have not received a district-issued chromebook at this time, please contact the KAUE main office at 724-727-3421 to arrange a pick-up time. 
5. Return to School Plan - If you have any questions that have not been addressed in this email, please visit the Kiski Area Upper Elementary Webpage at https://upperelementary.kiskiarea.com/ and click on the “Return to School Plan” link that appears on the main page.  All previous communication is housed in this location for you to access.  As always, you are welcome to contact me directly through email at [email protected] or by calling the main office at 724-727-3421.

Finally, thank you for your patience and flexibility during this unprecedented time.  We understand that this is not how we all would like to kick off the new school year, but I can assure you that our teachers and staff are working diligently to provide students effective instruction and meaningful experiences regardless of any restrictions that are in place.  

I look forward to interacting with all of our students in some capacity over the next several weeks, and I wish everyone the best of luck as we start this new journey!  Here is a short video Mr. Smith, Ms. Rizzo, and I created to get the kids in the right mindset for Monday morning :).  Enjoy!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Attention Students and Parents:

An email was sent out this evening to students through their @kiskiarea.com accounts clarifying the start of the school day on Monday.  If your child has not done so, please encourage them to view this message prior to Monday morning.  Although the instructions are clear and specific to the individual students receiving the email, I wanted to make sure that I communicated with parents the reason for the email.  

All students will begin their day of synchronous instruction with an elective course.  It is important to note on the brick & mortar schedule that is present in skyward (and that was mailed earlier this summer) which two elective courses your child has scheduled for the 1st semester.  Once you have identified these two courses, please follow the instructions below:

5th Grade Students in Art and Music (1st Semester)

• All students that meet this criteria will begin with their Art synchronous session at 8:40 am on Monday (day A) prior to attending ELA 5 synchronous instruction at 9:30am.
• On Tuesday (day B) all 5th grade students that meet this same criteria will begin with Music synchronous instruction at 8:40 am, and again transition to ELA 5 at 9:30 am.
• This rotation (day A - Art, day B - Music) will continue until the end of the semester in January.  At that time, students will begin attending Fundamentals of Engineering and Physical Education/Health.

5th Grade Students in Fundamentals of Engineering and Phys.Edu/Health (1st Semester)

• All students that meet this criteria will begin with their Fundamentals of Engineering synchronous session at 8:40 am on Monday (day A) prior to attending ELA 5 synchronous instruction at 9:30am.
• On Tuesday (day B) all 5th grade students that meet this same criteria will begin with Phys. Edu/Health synchronous instruction at 8:40 am, and again transition to ELA 5 at 9:30 am.
• This rotation (day A - Fundamentals of Engineering, day B - Phys. Edu/Health) will continue until the end of the semester in January.  At that time, students will begin attending Art and Music.

6th Grade Students in Art and Music (1st Semester)

• All students that meet this criteria will begin with their Music synchronous session at 8:40 am on Monday (day A) prior to attending ELA 6 synchronous instruction at 9:30am.
• On Tuesday (day B) all 6th grade students that meet this same criteria will begin with At synchronous instruction at 8:40 am, and again transition to ELA 6 at 9:30 am.
• This rotation (day A - Music, day B - Art) will continue until the end of the semester in January.  At that time, students will begin attending Fundamentals of Engineering and Physical Education/Health.

6th Grade Students in Fundamentals of Engineering and Phys.Edu/Health (1st Semester)

• All students that meet this criteria will begin with their Phys. Edu/Health synchronous session at 8:40 am on Monday (day A) prior to attending ELA 6 synchronous instruction at 9:30am.
• On Tuesday (day B) all 6th grade students that meet this same criteria will begin with Fundamentals of Engineering synchronous instruction at 8:40 am, and again transition to ELA 6 at 9:30 am.
• This rotation (day A - Phys. Edu/Health, day B - Fundamentals of Engineering) will continue until the end of the semester in January.  At that time, students will begin attending Art and Music.

If there is any confusion on the first few days of school, our teachers will do their best to help students understand the elective schedule.  

Thank you for your attention to this information.  I hope you all have a great rest of your weekend!

Good Afternoon Students and Parents,

As you are probably aware, we had issues in some of our live instructional meetings today throughout the course of the day.  If for any reason your child was unable to attend a live meeting today, or if they encountered difficulty while in attendance, please check back into the classroom postings for today’s date and a recording will be available for them to view.  If they have any questions regarding class content for today, they are more than welcome to reach out to their teacher by email for clarification.  Please know that we are working to correct these issues so that all students can have meaningful instruction periods online daily.  

In an effort to ensure that live instruction operates effectively moving forward, we will be changing the way students enter their synchronous sessions (Google Meetings).

1. Students will enter their course at the assigned time as they have done up to this point.
2. After clicking on the assignment under the topic for the day, the live instruction link will direct students to the Google Meeting homepage (http://meet.google.com).  The teacher will also provide a unique nickname (code) next to the link that students will use to enter the live meeting.
3. From the Google Meet homepage, students will click on the option to “+ Join or start a meeting”.  This will then prompt them to enter the unique nickname provided by the teacher.
4. IMPORTANT - If the teacher is not yet in the meeting when a student attempts to enter using the unique nickname provided, a black box will appear that reads “You’re not allowed to start a meeting.”  This is completely normal.  
5. Students will receive the message “You’re not allowed to start a meeting” if they attempt to enter the meeting too early.  They should then wait until the official scheduled time, and attempt to join again and again until they are successful.  This method will ensure that students are supervised by an adult each time they enter an online meeting. 

Again, thank you all for your patience and understanding as we work out the kinks of our online system.  I have been very impressed with our students and teachers over the past 3 days, and I am confident that each day will be a positive experience for our kids!

Thank you and have a great evening!

Go Cavs!

Hello Again Students and Parents,

We have officially completed our first week of distance learning and I couldn’t be more proud of our students and our teachers here at KAUE!  Although it was far from perfect, and we had some significant issues early on, I was very impressed with the progress we made over the last two days.  

At the end of each day our staff meets formally to discuss what went well and what did not work so well. When I speak to the professionals in our building, I am always so encouraged by the passion and commitment they have to improve for the next day.  So please rest assured that we will continue to have these conversations and implement best practice each time we have the opportunity to work with your child.

Since I have sent several emails over the past few weeks that have been very lengthy, I will keep this one short and to the point.  Please view the list of items below that we believe will make online learning successful moving forward.

1. Log on to Skyward daily - Students can log on at any point during the day; however, to avoid a reminder phone call, please encourage your child to do this prior to 2:30 pm..  They can log in up to 11:59 pm and get credit for being present, but our system sends out automated phone calls based on the data present at 2:30.
2. Begin the School Day at 8:00 - All teachers have lesson material posted by 8:00 am daily.  Students can preview and interact with this material prior to attending live sessions.  Our first set of live sessions kicks off at 8:40 am.  Click here to view the recommended home schedule for distance learning.
3. Mute Camera and Microphone Before Entering Live Sessions - We have discovered that the number of students with their cameras on during a session affects the speed and functionality of the meeting itself.  The teacher in charge of the meeting will direct students to unmute when necessary, and the chat feature provided will allow students to ask questions and interact appropriately with limited distraction to the teacher and other students present. 
4. Access Recorded Lessons at the End of the School Day - All teachers are recording their live sessions and posting these videos as soon as they become available.  If your child misses a lesson or is unable to attend for any reason, they can watch the recorded video at their convenience, pausing and rewinding when necessary.  Asynchronous material is also provided to encourage students to become self-directed learners.
5. Ask Questions - Although our teachers are formally available during the scheduled live sessions, they are also available to help when your child needs them.  Please do not hesitate to reach out to our staff (email is most effective) if you or your child has any questions, and they will get back to you in a timely manner.
6. New Web Resource - A new resource has been added to the KASD Website to help students and parents navigate the 2020-2021 school year.  Click here to access the Kiski Area Families Guide directly, or visit our website at www.kiskiarea.com and click on the 2020-21 Learning Resources for Families Tab. 
7. Stay Positive - I have had the opportunity to attend several live classes throughout the week and I am very impressed with how well our students have responded.  That being said, I am not naive to assume that everyone is having the best experience.  In the event that you or your child has technical issues during one of the live sessions, please do not panic.  We understand.  Continue to access posted material and view recorded lessons, and we will do our best to be flexible as we continue in this online environment.  

Thank you all again for your patience and continued support during the first week of school.  I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend, and I look forward to seeing the students on the interwebs on Tuesday ;)

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

PS - My apologies.  This was not as short as I intended it to be.

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

I want to start by thanking all of you for your patience and flexibility these past two weeks with distance learning.  Overall I thought it was a positive experience for our students, and it helps us to have a system in place as we transition to our hybrid model.

On Monday, September 14th, we will begin the next phase of our plan.  Students with last names beginning with A-K will report to KAUE for face to face learning (Group A), while all other students will remain home for distance learning.  On Thursday, September 17th, students with last names beginning with L-Z (Group B) will report to the building while group A students remain at home.  All students will participate online on Wednesdays.

I speak for all teachers and staff at Kiski Area Upper Elementary when I say that we are very excited to see the kids when they return next week.  It has been more than 6 months since we have had the opportunity to interact with students in person, and it is long overdue.  I personally cannot wait to welcome our kids as they get off the buses and show them that we are going to give them the best experience they could possibly have in this new environment.   

If you or your child are anxious or nervous about this new environment, that is completely understandable.  Please rest assured that we have followed every recommendation by the department of health and the state of Pennsylvania, and worked with our staff on best practice for the past three weeks to ensure a safe educational environment for your children.  

To make sure that we are all on the same page for next week, please review the list of items below so that we can ensure the smooth transition of students into the building:

1. The school day starts at 8:40.  If you are transporting your child to school, please drop them off in the middle of the front parking lot no earlier than 8:40.  In the past, students that arrived early were permitted to stand in our front entrance, but due to current restrictions, we cannot offer this as an option.
2. If you are utilizing our school transportation system, please be sure to access our website at www.kiskiarea.com for busing information.  Here is the direct link to the posted document online:  http://bit.ly/kasdtransportation2021
3. All students are required to bring and wear a face covering to school.  This should be worn on the bus and throughout the school day.  Teachers will provide “mask breaks” for students when appropriate, and when the weather cooperates, they will have the opportunity to take students outdoors for instruction.  
4. Students are encouraged to bring water bottles to school with them daily so that they can use the water-filling stations instead of drinking directly from the water fountain.  We believe this will help the students be more comfortable in the new environment.  Please do not send your child with any other liquid drink than water.  This can cause issues, especially if a spill occurs within the building or on the bus.
5. Students should bring their school-issued Chromebook with them to school.  These will be utilized in the classroom as well as online when students are distance learning.  Cases have been delivered to the school, and we will issue them to students when they arrive next week.  Please charge these devices each evening at home so that they are ready to go when you arrive for school. 
6. Distance Learning Students - starting next week, all Elective Course material (Art, Music, Fundamentals of Engineering, and Phys. Edu.) will be presented asynchronously.  This means that there will no longer be a live session at 8:40 with those teachers.  All materials, however, will continue to be posted by 8:00 am daily, and teachers will be available via email if there are any questions or problems.  All other live sessions (ELA, Math, Science, and Social Studies) will take place at their normally scheduled times.

Thank you all again for your support as we move to the next chapter at KAUE.  As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me directly at 724-727-3421 or by email at [email protected]. 

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

I would like to start by thanking all of our students, families, teachers, and staff members for their efforts and support this past week.  I could not be happier with how well our transition from online learning to hybrid learning played out.  The students seemed to really enjoy being back in the building, and we had zero issues with compliance to the regulations and guidelines that we are required to maintain.  

I personally loved having students back in the building.  It was so refreshing to interact with our kids, and even though it was not the “normal” environment we are all used to, I was able to get to know many of them over the short two-day period.  I received similar feedback from the teachers and staff members in the building, and this will certainly be a week that we will never forget.  

So we are all looking forward to another positive experience next week.  To ensure smooth operations moving forward, please review the following items:

As I always say, please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.  My email address is [email protected], and you can reach me directly at 724-727-3421.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Go Cavs!

Good Afternoon Students and Parents,

At the conclusion of the day today we will have completed four weeks (2 distance/2 hybrid) of learning at Kiski Area Upper Elementary School.  Overall I feel that our students are progressively acclimating to the new environment and doing extremely well; however, you may notice a few changes moving forward:

How can you help as a parent?

1. 1. Ask them to show you each of their Google Classrooms and how they access assignments daily.  
   2. Access their calendar for upcoming assignments and tests/quizzes.
   3. Monitor their email conversations
   4. Check out what they are being asked to do on a daily basis.
   5. Stop in to one of their live sessions

Upcoming Events:

1. 1. Hybrid A - Monday, October 5th
   2. Hybrid B - Friday, October 9th
   3. Distance Learners - Afternoons (October 5th or 9th) - please call the main office to make arrangements (724) 727-3421
   4. Retakes/Make-ups - Thursday, November 12th

I hope that everyone has had a positive experience over the past few weeks, as always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me by email at [email protected] or directly at 724-727-3421.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Good Afternoon,

Starting tomorrow, October 1st, there will be a minor adjustment to live session times for all core classes (ELA, Math, Science, and Social Studies).  Please see the changes below:

1. ELA Synchronous (Live Online Session) - begins at 9:26 and ends at approximately 9:56.
2. Science Synchronous Session - begins at 10:29 and ends approximately at 10:59.
3. Math Synchronous Session - begins at 12:12 and ends approximately at 12:42.
4. Social Studies Synchronous Session - begins at 1:15 and ends approximately at 1:45.

These changes have been updated on the KAUE Recommended Home Schedule document.

Thank you for your attention to this update.  This minor adjustment will allow us to run a more equitable and efficient schedule within the building for those students who are attending in person.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the main office.

Happy Friday KAUE Families,

Previously I have sent updates that were meant to be brief with specific information, but tend to get detailed and lengthy in the spirit of full disclosure and transparency.

Today I will do my best to keep things simple so that everyone can get a jump start on their weekend plans.

Again, if you have any questions or concerns moving forward, please do not hesitate to email me at [email protected] or contact me directly at 724-727-3421.

Stay safe and have a great weekend!

Go Cavs!  Beat North Hills!

Hello Everyone,

As of today we have completed 4 weeks of hybrid learning along with 2 weeks of full distance learning.  Friday, October 30th marks the end of our first grading quarter and report cards will be available in Skyward on Monday, November 9th.  

Updates:

Upcoming Events:

1. Now - Friday, October 16th - Scholastic Book Fair (Online)
2. Wednesday, October 14th - Schools Closed
3. Monday, October 26th - Friday, October 30th - Red Ribbon Week
4. Friday, October 30th - End of 1st Grading Period
5. Monday, November 2nd - Beginning of 2nd Grading Period
6. Monday, November 9th - Report Cards Available on Skyward

If you have any questions or concerns related to the items above or if you need information or clarification on anything school related, please do not hesitate to call our main office at 724-727-3421.  You can also email me directly at [email protected].

Have a great weekend, and go Cavaliers!

Good Afternoon KAUE Students and Families,

The past week was a humbling reminder that our district and our school is not an exception when it comes to the current Covid pandemic.  That being said, I continue to feel extremely confident that policies and procedures currently in place have kept our staff and students safe to the greatest extent possible.   

Please know that if and when instances related to Covid-19 occur, we will follow specific guidelines outlined by the PA Department of Education and the Pennsylvania Department of Health.  Should any individual in our building be at an elevated risk, they will be notified immediately and the proper protocols will be followed to ensure the well-being of all.  

If you have any questions or concerns moving forward, please do not hesitate to contact me directly at 724-727-3421 or by email at [email protected].  

There are two additional items that I would like to share with you this week:

Upcoming Events:

Monday, October 26th-Friday, October 30th - Red Ribbon Week

Tuesday, October 27th - Halloween Dress-Up (Hybrid A)

Friday, October 30th - Halloween Dress-Up (Hybrid B)

Friday, October 30th - End of 1st Grading Period

Wednesday, November 4th - Parent Teacher Conferences (sign up through Skyward parent access)

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!!!

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

Next week is the final week of the 1st grading quarter.  It is also Red Ribbon week and we are going to do our best to provide a fun educational environment for the students throughout the week.  Due to our Hybrid A/Hybrid B schedules, students will be permitted to wear Halloween costumes on Tuesday, October 27th and also on Friday, October 30th.  Please note that costume masks are not permitted so that all students are easily recognizable, and so that we can be sure everyone in the building is wearing the proper protective face covering.  Click here for a full list of themes for Red Ribbon Week.

At 3:40 pm on Friday, October 30th, all grades in our Skyward system will become final; however, if your child has any outstanding work that he/she needs to complete from the first quarter, they have until this time to complete it.  All lessons and assignments remain available in Google Classroom, and you can cross-reference skyward dates with Google Classroom when making up work.  If you have any questions regarding a specific assignment or grading in general, please reach out to your child’s teacher(s).  The first day of the second quarter is Monday, November 2nd.  

Parent/Teacher conferences will take place virtually (through Google Meeting links) on Wednesday, November 4th.  If you are interested in scheduling a conference with any of your child’s teachers, please log into your Skyward parent account and access the “conference” tab in the left-hand column.  Once this tab is selected, choose a time for each teacher with whom you would like to meet.  If all conference slots are taken, contact your child’s teacher to schedule a conference at another agreed upon time.  Click here to access our formal letter related to this event.  

As always, we ask that parents remind their children to login to Skyward daily when participating in distance learning.  This is our primary method of attendance accounting, and it helps us tremendously in ensuring that students are engaged in online learning.  Additionally, we highly recommend that students participate in Live Synchronous Sessions at their scheduled times when learning from home.  This gives them the best opportunity to interact with teachers in real time and receive additional help if they are having difficulty.  Please access the recommended KAUE Home Schedule for live session times during distance learning.  

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the information provided, please do not hesitate to reach out to me by email at [email protected], or you can contact me directly by calling the main office at 724-727-3421.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Hello Again KAUE Families!

Sometimes in education we get wrapped up in  attendances, assignments and grades and lose sight of what is really most important...impacting the lives of our students and children in a positive way.  

This past week I took the time to really pay attention to the experience our students were having when they were present in the building.  There is no doubt that the noise and upbeat environment that we normally experience within the school is far from what we are used to, but the enthusiasm and excitement to be here hasn’t changed at all.  

In every situation we encounter in life, I believe it is more about how we respond than the events that actually occur.  For this reason, we as a staff at KAUE have been searching for and finding those silver linings that will ultimately make this current pandemic a meaningful experience for our students.  

As I watched our students transition this week from eating lunch in their homeroom classrooms to eating on socially distanced tables in the cafeteria and the gymnasium, my first reaction was that it felt like a maximum security correctional facility (and I think the kids felt this way too); however, when I observed more closely, I noticed the interactions that were taking place between students.  In a “normal” environment, most students would be sitting next to their friends from their primary schools and keeping the same small circle of friends that they have been comfortable with in the past.  But in this “new” environment students are encountering different individuals within the school and forming positive relationships with their peers that they may never have encountered in the past.  It is truly a sight to see.

To truly provide some perspective on what I am talking about, I have to share a specific example that occurred just yesterday.  For the first time in his life, a student entered KAUE after transferring from another school.  He was entering a school that he had never seen before and was faced with the reality of not knowing anyone within the school or what would be expected of him.  To make matters worse, this student did not make it to school on time and missed his homeroom period.  When I walked him to his first period class and introduced him to his teacher and his classmates, I was floored by the reception he received.  Not only did each student say hello and introduce themselves, the small group of students began a conversation with him that was facilitated by the teacher.   I could see immediately that this series of positive interactions made the new student feel welcome. 

Although we tend to focus on the negative effects of our current situation, we must not lose sight of the important lessons we can teach our children regardless of the circumstances.  I could not be more proud of our students and staff as we continue to navigate this unfortunate pandemic.  The faith and positivity of our kids has certainly given me some perspective over the past 45 days.  I am excited to see what we can do next.  

So now that I got that off my chest, I do have a few housekeeping items that I need to address:

Thank you again for your patience and continued support as we work through this unique time.  As you know, I am always available if you have any questions or need assistance moving forward.  You can reach me by email at [email protected] or directly by phone at 724-727-3421.   

Have a great weekend, and Happy Halloween!

KAUE Office Staff	KAUE 6th Grade Team

Hello Everyone,

I would like to start by thanking all of the parents that participated in our parent/teacher conferences on Wednesday of this week.  Not only did you take advantage of a great opportunity to speak with your child’s teachers about their progress up to this point, but you also showed how much you are willing to work with our school as a team for the betterment of our students.  

It was no secret that we had some significant technological issues at the beginning of our conference schedule, but I was so grateful for the patience and understanding demonstrated by everyone involved.  As you can imagine, as Mr. Smith and I worked frantically to fix the problem, we were taking several calls from parents and staff members that were trying to understand why things were not working.  Throughout that entire process, I did not speak to one parent or teacher that was angry or completely frustrated.  It was unbelievable.  I obviously am fully responsible for the mistakes that were made, but the willingness of our educational team (both teacher and parents) to work with me on the problem helped us to get things back on track quickly with limited disruptions.  Thank you all so much for this.  I am truly honored to be a part of such a positive educational team!

Upcoming Events:

On Monday, November 9th, report cards from the first grading quarter will be posted to skyward.  A separate notification will be sent when this is available.  To access this report, please login to your Skyward Parent Account and click on the “Portfolio” tab in the far left column.  As a reminder, all content and assignments from the first quarter are still available for students to view and reference; however, teachers have been instructed not to accept any previous work from this period.  The purpose of this is to encourage students to work in the current grading period so that they can stay on pace with the instruction that is happening in real time. 

Kiski Area School District will be celebrating Veteran’s Day virtually this year on Wednesday, November 11th.  A video compilation will be published and available to the public early Wednesday morning.  Students will be directed to view this presentation as part of their online lesson for the day.  For more information related to this event, please visit www.kiskiarea.com on the morning of November 11th.  You can also click here for a recent publication related to the event.  I would like to thank Mr. Smith and Mrs. Stankowski for their efforts in continuing this very important event.  

If any student was not present for our in-person pictures that were taken through Inter-State Studios on Monday, October 5th and/or Friday, October 9th, make-up pictures are scheduled in the building on Thursday, November 12th.  Please contact the main office if you are interested in having your child’s picture taken, and Mrs. Petrilla can set up a time for you to come in.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email me at [email protected] or call me directly at 724-727-3421.  

I hope you all enjoy the nice November weather this weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

Hello KAUE Students and Families,

On Monday, November 16th, we will begin the next phase of our school year by offering 4 days of in-person instruction to all students.  This learning will take place on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, with Wednesdays being full distance learning for all. 

As referenced by Dr. Scott in his letter to families on November 11th, it is essential for students and staff to self-screen for symptoms related to COVID-19 every day. If your child is symptomatic or has come into contact with someone that has a positive case, we ask that you contact your family physician for specific recommendations and notify our school nurse so that we are aware.  Our current system allows for students to participate remotely every day, and this flexibility should allow for us to maintain a safe and productive environment for all scenarios.  

We have spent much time over the past weeks preparing for this new phase.  In order to accommodate the larger number of students in the building, there are some specific items that we want to make sure everyone is aware of:

I know that this is a good bit of information to digest, but if you have any questions between now and Monday, please do not hesitate to email me at [email protected].  I will do my best to monitor my email over the weekend and get back to you as soon as I can.

Thank you for your support as we move forward with this next phase.  I look forward to seeing more students in the building on Monday morning!  Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

As you are aware, today completed our first full week of 4/1 Hybrid in the building.  Below is the raw attendance data for the week.  If all students referenced below were divided in class periods equally, each class would have 12-15 students present on average, allowing us to distance 6 feet apart. 

Although this provides an exact description of the total number of students in the building, I asked each teacher to describe their individual class sizes because not all students in attendance are balanced based on their individual schedules.  Here are those responses:

It is not a secret that cases in the state of Pennsylvania have been on the rise.  This may or may not have contributed to our lower numbers this week, and could potentially result in higher or lower numbers of students in attendance in coming weeks.  We will continue to provide data weekly so that each family can make a determination on what method of instruction is best for them.  If you would like to make a change at any point in time, please contact our main office (either by phone or email), and we can make the adjustment for you.  Transportation has been set up to accommodate all students moving forward.

As always, feel free to contact me directly (either by email or phone) if you have any questions.  Overall it has been a very positive week with the students in the building, and I look forward to potentially seeing more in the future :)

Finally, we have a few important announcements:

1. If any student participating online had their picture taken through Interstate Studios, those pictures are available for pick-up in the main office.  You can either stop in during normal school hours, or if your child is planning to attend school in person, they can pick them up when they are in the building. 
2. Next week is a shortened week due to the Thanksgiving holiday.  Students will be following an abbreviated schedule on Wednesday, November 25th to keep consistent with the district’s 2-hour early dismissal plan.  Please click here to access this adjusted schedule for the day.  Students will be completely finished with all online instruction by 12:00 pm, but teachers will be available for extra help until 12:30 pm.  Students and parents should reach out to teachers directly if they need assistance at this time.  Email will be the best form of communication since we are fully online on Wednesday. 
3. Please review the most recent updates from the PA Department of Health regarding masks and travel restrictions:

https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Guidance/Universal-Masking-FAQ.aspx

https://www.governor.pa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/20201117-SOH-Universal-Face-Coverings-Order-Update.pdf

https://www.governor.pa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/20201117-SOH-Travel-Mitigation-Order.pdf

Thank you for your attention to these items, and let me know if you need anything.

Have a great weekend!

Good Morning KAUE Families,

Today, November 25th, our students will be participating in an abbreviated distance learning schedule for the day.  Classes will begin at normal time, but they will be 20 minutes in length with 20 minutes in between for students to reflect and complete any assignments provided.  Teachers will be available to students for questions or scheduled meets from 11:40 - 12:30.  If you would like to schedule an individual meeting with one of your child’s teachers, please email them and they will do their best to accommodate your needs.  Here is the formal schedule for the day:  https://docs.google.com/document/d/16ih57BjrJsnzfj_vOvJLKjHGiAh_k6R4rWaokdVGbjo/edit

Although we only had two days of in-person instruction this week, I wanted to provide you with our attendance data from those days:

Last week our highest percentage of students in the building was 52.67%.  This week we had our lowest percentage so far on Monday at 43.7%.  As you know these numbers may change significantly moving forward; however, we will continue to provide as much information as we can so that you can make the best decision for your family.

As we know, the Thanksgiving holiday often results in a lot of travel to visit friends and family.  We want to remind everyone that the PA Department of Health has issued a travel order stating that anyone returning from out of state must have a negative COVID test within 72 hours or quarantine for 14 days prior to returning to mainstream activity.  This order will be honored by our school, and we require full compliance by our students if they are participating in interstate travel over Thanksgiving recess.  Your cooperation with this will help us to maintain a safe environment for our students when we return to the building on Tuesday, December 1st.   

Please remember that if your child is scheduled to be in the building on a specific day (whether it is 2/3 or 4/1 hybrid) and cannot attend school for any reason, they are permitted to participate online and receive full instruction for the day.  Please note that in order to receive formal attendance credit for the day, a student must login to their personal Skyward account between the hours of 8:00 am and 11:59 pm.  

Thank you all again for your help, patience, and support up to this point.  I hope that everyone has a relaxing and enjoyable Thanksgiving break, and please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.

Go Cavaliers!

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

Below is our building data for this week:

This has certainly been our lightest week so far, with our lowest percentage of students in the building on Tuesday at 40.27%.  Our assumption would be that this is due to the Thanksgiving break along with the heightened awareness of COVID infections across the county and state.  For this reason, we anticipate an increase in students attending school in the upcoming days.  Since we began the 4/1 hybrid schedule on November 16th, our highest percentage of students in the building was 52.67%, and our lowest is 40.27%.

Moving forward, we ask that all families be prepared for a transition to online virtual learning at any point in time.  We are utilizing specific metrics from the Department of Health and the State of Pennsylvania to determine when it is safe to continue with in-person instruction and when it is necessary to move to an online environment to ensure the safety of our students and staff.  Each day we receive updated information from families throughout the district, and based on direct guidance from the DOH, changes may need to be instituted for the benefit of all.  That being said, please do not hesitate to reach out to our school nurse (or me directly) if you have any updates, questions, or concerns related to the current pandemic.  Also, please make sure that your information is accurate and up to date in our Skyward system in the event that an automated message is sent to inform you of the closing of our school or other schools throughout the district.  This information would certainly be published to our website, but we want to ensure that our families receive these updates as soon as possible.  

On that note, we will remind students to take their Chromebooks home daily and to charge them overnight.  All learning in the building is “parallel” to our online Google classrooms, so students can cross-reference online assignments with learning activities that are happening in the school daily.  If you have any questions related to a specific subject or class, please click on your child’s teacher in skyward to obtain their direct email address for contact purposes.  Email is the best way to communicate in our current environment, and teachers will get back to you in a timely manner with all inquiries. 

Finally, I would like to thank our Administrative Assistant at KAUE, Mrs. Kelly Petrilla, for her work up to this point on our school yearbook.  She is in the process of organizing class photos and noticed that some of our students did not have their picture taken on the scheduled dates or the make up day provided.  If your child did not have their photo taken for any reason, she is asking that you email her an updated photo of him/her as soon as possible so that they can be included in the yearbook.  This is certainly not required, but we always like to see all of our students recognized in our yearly publication.  All personal photos can be emailed directly to Mrs. Petrilla at [email protected].

Thank you for taking the time to read this update.  If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me by phone at 724-727-3421, or by email at [email protected].

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!  Go Steelers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

Below are our weekly attendance numbers from 12/7 - 12/11:

Today marks the lowest total for each grade level and the lowest percentage of students participating in in-person learning since we began 4/1 hybrid on 11/16.  

A few reminders as we move closer to the holiday break:

1. If your child is experiencing 2 or more symptoms consistent with COVID-19, please keep them home for the day and consult your family physician if necessary.  All learning in the building and online is “parallel,” meaning students can receive the same lesson material and assignments regardless of their learning situation for the day.  Our recommended home learning schedule is still the same, and live synchronous instruction is available each day online.
2. Students should be sent to school with masks to wear at the bus stop, on the school bus, and throughout the school day.  Any student that arrives at school without a mask will be issued one to keep by the school, however, this does not protect that student or our other kiddos during the morning bus ride.  Since the students are in closer proximity on the bus, this could be considered a higher risk scenario.
3. All students have assigned seats on their busses as well as in their classrooms.  Students are reminded to sit in these assigned locations daily unless there is available space that allows them to distance to a greater extent (especially on the school bus when other students are absent/not present).  This is very helpful in general, but it also assists us greatly in the event that a positive student case requires us to complete the contact tracing process.
4. The Kiski Area School District website contains a “COVID-19 Case Tracker” that is updated any time a positive COVID case related to students or staff is reported to the district and verified by the PA Department of Health.  You can access this directly by clicking on the link above.  When positive cases are confirmed, procedures are followed to report any “close contacts” within the school to the DOH.  Our guidance identifies a close contact as any student or adult within six feet of an affected individual lasting 15 consecutive minutes (with or without a mask).  If you have any questions regarding this process in our building, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly by email at [email protected] or by phone at 724-727-3421.

Now that all of the technical stuff is out of the way, I would like to share with everyone a little video showing what our students are experiencing daily through online instruction.  I couldn’t be more proud of our students and teachers as they continue to navigate our current situation.  Through observation (and sometimes live participation), I continue to see high levels of teaching and learning regardless of environmental restrictions.  There is no doubt that in-person instruction is the best form of education for our kids, but I think our staff bridges the gap nicely!

A Sample of KAUE Distance Learning 

As always, thank you for your continued patience and support in these unique times.  I hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend as we kick off the holiday season!

Go Cavaliers!

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

Due to the remote instruction day yesterday, we only have 3 days of attendance data to report for the week.  

A few reminders for next week and beyond:

Thank you for another successful week at KAUE.  If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email or call.

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Good Afternoon,

We would like to remind you that we will be operating on a two-hour early dismissal schedule tomorrow, December 23rd.  All students will be participating in online instruction and should contact their teacher via email if they wish to set up an individual session between the hours of 12:00 and 12:30.  The Upper Elementary will be closed from Thursday, December 24th until Friday, January 1st.  In-person and distance learning will resume on Monday, January 4th.  All students are reminded to charge their Chromebooks over the holiday break and store them in a safe place.  

Below are our attendance numbers for this week:

On behalf of the teachers and staff at KAUE, we wish you a safe and enjoyable holiday with your friends and loved ones.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

 – Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

Our first week back to school after the holiday break was positive in many ways.  Students and teachers seemed genuinely excited to get back into the building and start learning in the new year.  I always feel that the first week back from a long break is the toughest to endure, but our team did an excellent job and we are wearing our black and gold today to push the Steelers to their first playoff victory on Sunday.

Our attendance per day has certainly increased compared to the days leading up to break.  It seems to be holding steady around 46-47% in-person per day when looking at our entire population of students (see data below).

Now that we have this first week in the books, our next major landmark is the end of the 2nd grading quarter.  We have 6 school days left until we make the transition to the 3rd quarter on Wednesday, January 20th.  Below are some items for consideration as we approach this date.

1. 2nd Quarter Material and Assignments Still Available - All lessons and assignments from the 2nd Nine Weeks are available online and students can complete them at any time.  If your child is behind in any class or is performing below expectations, he/she is still able to complete outstanding work for a formal grade.  The recommendation is to cross-reference Skyward grades with Google Classroom assignments to ensure that essential skills presented within the classroom are mastered before moving on.  Click here for a short tutorial on what this will look like from a parent perspective. 
2. 3rd Quarter Parameters - Starting Wednesday, January 20th, students will no longer have the ability to complete assignments from the 2nd quarter for a grade.  The material will still be there for them to access, but all assignments will be closed.  The reason for this is so that students focus on the current material being presented in real time, and do not fall behind attempting to complete old assignments from the quarter that is closed. 
3. Elective Course Transitions -  Students that had Fundamentals of Engineering and Physical Education during the 1st Semester will be transitioning to Art and Music.  Conversely, students that had Art and Music 1st Semester will be transitioning to FOE and PE.  Our elective teachers have requested that the first day of the 3rd quarter be a general meet the teacher Google Meeting that allows both students and parents to hear from them on the initial day of transition.  This meeting will be optional for parents, but will likely take place from 8:40 - 9:00 am on Wednesday, January 20th.  More information on this will be provided in next Friday’s email.

Another item that I wanted to mention in my communication this week is our automated attendance call that goes out every day.  For a period of time this was not happening due to a conflict in our system, but on December 22nd we were finally able to get things working again.  The purpose of this call is just to remind families that a daily log in to skyward is required by all online learners so that they are marked present for the day.  Students have until 11:59 pm to do this everyday, but the reminder call is set to run at 3:05 each day.  In the event that your child forgets to log in by 2:45, you will receive this call.  Please make sure that your child is using his/her student account to log in each day, and please contact us if there are any issues or concerns. 

Thank you all for your continued patience and understanding as we navigate this unique school year.  You can call or email me or Mr. Smith at any time if you need help or clarification on anything.  We look forward to a successful transition to the 2021 school year.

Have a great weekend, and Go Steelers!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

We have several important items to review for the upcoming week, so I will be short and to the point this week:

1. Staff Development - On Monday, January 18th schools will be closed for staff professional development.  There will be no online classes.  Students are encouraged to use this day to cross-reference Skyward grades with missing assignments in Google Classroom.  Click here for a brief tutorial on this process. 

1. 3rd Nine Weeks - Wednesday, January 20th is the first day of 3rd grading quarter.  
1. All grades for the 2nd quarter will be made final at the end of the school day on Tuesday, January 19th.  The purpose of this is to encourage students to work on current material so that they can be on solid ground for the start of the new grading period.

1. Students will switch their elective courses from Art/Music to Fundamentals of Engineering/Phys. Edu., or from Fundamentals of Engineering/Phys. Edu. to Art/Music.  All students will need to join their new elective classes for the 2nd semester. Click here for a list of classroom codes that students are welcome to use for access to those Google classrooms at this time.  All students should complete this process prior to the start of class on Wednesday, January 20th.  The first day of the 2nd semester (Wednesday) is a Day A, and the second day (Thursday) is a Day B.  This rotation will continue indefinitely.  

1. Meet Your Child’s New Elective Teachers - All students and parents are welcome to attend a live meeting with new elective teachers the morning of January 20th from 8:40 - 9:00.  Mr. Hepler and Mr. Talmage will be running a combined meeting for all students scheduled into Fundamentals of Engineering/Phys. Edu., and Mr. Priore, Mrs. Insko, and Mrs. Dewitt will be running a combined meeting for all students scheduled into Art/Music for the 2nd semester.  Please see meeting information below:
1. FOE/PE - 8:40 am - meet.google.com - Meeting Code/Nickname: physedfoe2
2. Art/Music - 8:40 am - meet.google.com - Meeting Code/Nickname: artmusic2

1. Change to Topics in Google Classroom - We recently discovered that there is a 100 topic limit in Google Classroom that will require us to change (slightly) how assignments are posted in Google Classroom.  Moving forward, when students (or parents) click on “Classwork” in Google Classroom, the far left column will have topics that are designated by grading period (1st Nine Weeks, 2nd Nine Weeks, etc.).  All assignments will be listed in the middle of the Classwork Page with the latest posting at the top.  Overall, we believe this will be a better method of posting assignments, but we just want everyone to be aware that things may look a little different starting on Wednesday of next week.  Click here for a brief tutorial on how this will look.  

Below is our attendance data from this past week:

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly at 724-727-3421, or by email at [email protected].  

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Go Cavs!

Hello Again KAUE Families,

I want to start by apologizing for any confusion around our semester switch of elective classes.  Even though we tried to communicate early on what needs to take place for a smooth transition, a small typo derailed our efforts.  That being said, all students should currently be enrolled in their new elective classes in Google Classroom, and if not, below are the accurate codes to use moving forward. We ask that students do not unenroll from the 1st Semester classes until report cards are posted on Wednesday, January 26th.  If your child already unenrolled, don’t worry.  We will take care of it on our end.  

As you know, the winter months bring the possibility of delays and school closings due to inclement weather and fierce traveling conditions.  I want to remind you that in the event of a school closure, students will participate online according to our normal Wednesday distance learning schedule.  If school should be delayed, our online schedule will be altered slightly for those students who participate online for the day.  Click here to access this 2-hour delay schedule.  We ask that all students take their devices home each night, charge them, and bring them to school the following day.  This will ensure that all students have accessibility to the needed technology regardless of the circumstances.  

Finally, below are our in-person numbers from this past week.  Thursday, January 21st was our highest total of students in the building to date at 280 students, which is 53.74% of our total population.  The second highest day to this point was our second day of full in-person instruction on November 17th with a percentage of 52.67% of our total enrollment.  Please know that as our numbers continue to increase, we will continue to space students in classrooms to the greatest extent possible.  6 feet will remain the absolute minimum while students are eating lunch, and all other building protocols will be reinforced with students as we continue daily learning. 

As always, thank you for your time and support, and please do not hesitate to contact me directly if you need anything. 

Stay warm this weekend, and Go Kiski!

Hello Again KAUE Families,

Today marked our 99th day of instruction for the school year and our 8th day of the 3rd grading quarter.  You will now begin to see grades populate in the 3rd quarter column when you reference the gradebook in Skyward.  Please remember that all corresponding dates with graded assignments in skyward line up with posted material and assignments in Google classroom.  If your child has any outstanding work that needs completed, he/she is able to do this for full credit at any point during the 3rd nine week period.  For your reference, all of our school and district grading guidelines can be found in our KAUE Student Handbook on pages 20-21.

We have several items to share with you today:

If there is anything that I missed or any questions/concerns that you may have, please reach out to me via email ([email protected]) or directly by phone at 724-727-3421.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

KA All Day!

Hello Again KAUE Families,

I would like to start by thanking you for your patience and flexibility this week as we experienced our first school closing and 2-hour delay since the fall.  Both days seemed to go off without much confusion, and at the end of the day, students were able to continue learning and stay safe.  For future reference, please access the recommended home schedule for any school closings, and the distance learning 2-hour delay schedule for delayed starts.  

Our attendance this week was all over the place most likely due to the weather and schedule changes.  We are, however, seeing a steady increase in in-person attendance each week, and I am taking more calls about students opting to return to school.  Please remember that although we would love to have all students back in school, it is completely up to you as a parent to make the best decision for your child and your family.  Since all of our distance learning is parallel to in-person instruction, you can change your mind at any point and opt in or out based on your current situation.  All that we ask is that you call or email if there are any long-term changes so that we can make the updates in our system.  Day to day changes do not need to be reported as we know this is likely to occur during this time of year. 

Here are our numbers from this week:

Due to our current environment and multiple ways for students to access their learning, we are constantly looking at different methods to gauge student learning and improve our processes.  This year, as in the past, students are completing STAR Diagnostic assessments that provide us with data on their grade-level knowledge of specific skills as well as their growth over time after instruction has been provided.  These tests usually take between 20-30 minutes to complete, and are given 3-4 times each year.  Most recently, our core content teams (Math, ELA, Science, and Social Studies) at KAUE made the commitment to administering quarterly benchmark assessments that will be given at the end of each 9-week grading period.  Like the STAR assessments in Math and ELA, this gives us data on each student, but it focuses primarily on what has been taught in class, and not necessarily on all of the state standards that would be assessed on Standardized State Assessments.  So basically, this is a way for us to gauge student retention of what we believe are the most essential concepts that they need to be successful in the future.  It then allows teachers to adjust instruction and/or work with individual students on areas where they may need some reinforcement.  I wanted to give everyone a heads up on this because if you hear your child talking about a 9-week’s or a semester exam, this is a good thing.  It is not something that will necessarily be graded, but it does impact how our teachers approach their craft.  I can’t express how proud I am of our staff at KAUE with their leadership during this pandemic.  Please know that they are doing everything within their power (and more) to ensure quality experiences and a commitment to student learning each and every day.  I am very proud of them and our students for how they have responded so far this year :)

Okay...as always, please reach out to me if there is anything that you need.  My phone number is 724-727-3421 and my email is [email protected].  If you leave me a message or an email, I will do my best to get back to you as soon as possible.  

Have a great weekend, and please don’t forget to check out some of the upcoming events for our students below.

KA ALL DAY!

Upcoming Events:

Monday, February 15th - Schools Closed (Snow Make-Up Day)

Friday, February 19th - Deficiencies Issued (see Skyward Portfolio Tab)

Thursday, February 25th - Heinz History Center Assembly (Virtual) - “Pittsburgh and the Civil Rights Movement”

Hello Again KAUE Families,

Below are our daily attendance numbers for this past week:

As we progress into the 3rd grading quarter, student grades become more critical in terms of progression and retention.  Our teachers and office staff work diligently each week to reach out to families and address students that are in jeopardy of failure for the school year or need additional support.  Moving forward, if your child is in jeopardy of failure (below 60% for the final grade average) for a core content course (ELA, Math, Science, or Social Studies), his/her attendance will be monitored based on participation and engagement rather than a daily skyward log-in. Should this occur with your child, you will be notified by phone of the change.  Otherwise, the traditional skyward method for attendance will remain in place.  Please take this opportunity to log into your skyward parent account to check on your child’s overall progress to this point.  Should there be any academic concerns, we encourage you to reach out to your child’s teacher(s) for guidance and support.  We take pride in being able to address all students at any point in the school year, regardless of their current academic standing. 

Please do not forget that Monday, February 15th is Presidents Day and school will not be in session.  This includes all online learning for the day.  School will resume as scheduled on Tuesday, February 16th.  Deficiencies will be issued to those students who are failing at least one course for the 3rd quarter on Friday, February 19th, and these will be posted in skyward with a corresponding email notification that day.

One more thing...please remember to send your child/children to school with a mask for the day.  It is critical that these are worn on the busses as well as during the school day.  If you were not aware, we have specific seating arrangements on the school bus to distance students to the greatest extent possible.  We will be following up with drivers next week to make sure that students are adhering to these guidelines and reinforcing with students the importance of sitting in their assigned seats daily.  

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly.  My email is [email protected], and my phone number is 724-727-3421.  

Thank you for your time, and I hope you have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

P.S. -  I would like to extend my appreciation to Mrs. Feudale, our 6th grade ELA teacher, for her amazing work with our daily morning announcements.  If you are not aware, she has a group of students that create online video announcements for our student body daily, and they can be quite entertaining.  All students in the building and online have access to these via our KAUE Office google classroom.  Here is an example for you to view:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bAEHlPn9tMKbU5JpmarKuU0NAZYObnY1/view?usp=sharing

Hello KAUE Families,

In an effort to keep things interesting and different this week, I have created a short video outlining our building updates.  Please click on the link below to view this video:

KAUE Updates 2/19/2021

As always, if there is anything that you need, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone or email ([email protected]; 724-727-3421).

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavs!

Access to Slides from Video

KAUE Families,

Here are a few updates for you on our last Friday in February:

Thank you for your attention to our updates again this week.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if there is anything that you need.  ([email protected]; 724-727-3421)

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

KAUE Families,

Here are a few updates for you on our first Friday in March:

We were so impressed with all of the work that our students put into this project, and we couldn't be more proud :).  Below are the winning entries:

        Leah Traficante                                                      Emma Monaco

https://meet.google.com/drq-aaiz-swa

Thank you for your attention to our updates again this week.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if there is anything that you need.  ([email protected]; 724-727-3421)

Have a great weekend!

Go Cavaliers!

• Daniel C. Smith

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

Because of the recent schedule change I thought it would be best to kick out my weekly update a day early.  If you were not aware, the snow make-up day that was originally scheduled for tomorrow (3/12) has been moved to Monday, March 15th.  Therefore, school will be in session tomorrow, but no classes will take place on Monday.  We apologize for any confusion this may have caused, but the change benefited our staff who are now eligible for covid vaccinations through the state.  

If for any reason your child is unable to attend school tomorrow due to previously made plans, live sessions will still be available for online learning, and recorded lessons and materials will be posted and can be completed when it is convenient for your child.  We obviously hope that all students are able to attend tomorrow either in person or online, but if this is not possible, there are alternative options.

I think this week was rejuvenating for both our students and staff.  The warmer weather and sunshine that the first 3 days of the week provided brought some more positivity to the building.  Hopefully the time change this weekend will kick start things a bit more :).  Below are our attendance numbers from this week:

As you may have heard, the State of Pennsylvania will be moving forward with standardized testing this year.  Our original scheduled testing window for these tests was April 19th-30th.  Due to the pandemic and to accommodate schools across the commonwealth that encountered learning loss due to necessary closures, the window has been extended.  We have not yet determined the exact dates for the ELA and Math exams that will occur at KAUE, but when this information becomes available I will certainly share it with everyone.  

From my experience in education, standardized testing creates a higher level of anxiety for both students and staff members; however, I personally don’t feel that this is necessary.  Our teachers spend much time developing curriculum and providing quality instruction on a daily basis to give our children the best possible experience.  Because of this, the state tests should be an opportunity for students to show what they have learned and how they have grown.  If they show up (either in person or online) every day and do the best that they can, the scores will take care of themselves.  So please encourage your kiddos not to stress about the test, and just encourage them to do their best.  

Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or need clarification on anything related to our building.  My email is [email protected] and my phone number is 724-727-3421.  Have a great weekend, and don’t forget to turn your clocks ahead this Saturday.

Go Cavaliers!

Upcoming Dates:

Friday, March 12 - School in Session

Monday, March 15th - School Closed

Thursday, March 25th - End of 3rd Grading Period

KAUE Families,

We have several items to address in this weeks correspondence, so I will do my best to be brief and to the point:

1. Upper Elementary Yearbook Sales are now up and running.  The yearbook can be purchased online for a cost of $14.  To order a yearbook for your child, please visit www.inter-state.com/yearbook and enter the code 53378V.  These will be available for purchase from now until April 9, 2021.  When yearbooks are delivered to the school, you will be notified and students will be able to retrieve them in school or through pick-up.
2. Mrs. DeWitt has Art supplies available for pick-up for our 100% online students.  These can be retrieved in the main office any time throughout the week between the hours of 7:30am and 4:15pm.  If you have necessary supplies you do not need to pick them up, but if you would like them they are available for you.  The supplies will be needed for 4th 9 weeks lessons (about 2 weeks into the quarter).  Also, any online student from the 1st semester that would like his/her work to be photographed for our online Art Show, please make arrangements with Mrs. DeWitt so that she can take a high quality photo for our presentation ([email protected]). 
3. The end of the 3rd grading period (3rd 9-weeks) is Thursday, March 25th.  At that time, any missing assignments from the 3rd quarter will no longer be available for credit; however, all students have the ability to complete any outstanding assignments from the 3rd quarter between now and the 25th.  If you or your child have any questions regarding specific assignments or grades, please reach out to the specific subject teacher via email for assistance.  Report cards will be posted in Skyward parent access on Wednesday, April 7th. 
4. We have been hovering right around the mid 50% range for attendance the last several weeks.  Below is our most updated attendance numbers from this week:

If you have any questions or concerns related to the information above or anything else pertaining to your child here at KAUE, please do not hesitate to reach out to me directly.  My email is [email protected], and my phone number is 724-727-3421.

Have a great weekend and Go Kiski!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Hello Everyone,

I have some great news to share this week that some of you may already be aware of.  Mr. Smith, our KAUE Assistant Principal, was recently recognized by the PA Principals Association as the Pennsylvania Outstanding Elementary Assistant Principal of the Year.  From my perspective, this is a direct result of not only the hard work and dedication of Mr. Smith, but also the staff and students in our building.  Awards such as these are difficult to be considered for, let alone win.  We are very fortunate to have professionals in our building like Mr. Smith that commit themselves wholeheartedly to the development of our young citizens.  I am very proud of Mr. Smith and our building as a whole for this accomplishment.  For more information on this, please view the recent publication in the Tribune Review. 

Today is the first day of our 4th grading period.  Teachers will begin finalizing grades for the 3rd quarter and report cards will be posted in Skyward on Wednesday, April 7th.  From this point on, students should only work under the 4th 9-Weeks heading in Google Classroom.  It is important that students work in real time to get off on the right foot for the final quarter of instruction rather than working on old material and getting themselves behind on current instruction.  If you have any questions regarding your child’s performance in a specific class or subject, please reach out to his/her designated teacher in Skyward.  I always recommend email to start because many teachers are involved with instructional duties throughout the day.  

The final day of instruction before Spring break is Wednesday, March 31st.  As usual, students will participate virtually that day from home.  Schools will be closed across the district from Thursday, April 1st to Tuesday, April 6th.  This means that students will not physically return to the building until Thursday, April 8th.  If you need anything during the break, please email me directly and I will get back to you as soon as possible.  The building will be open on Wednesday, April 7th if you need to call directly.  

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, we are still in the process of finalizing our district plans for State Testing.  I do not have any new information to share at this time, but I will certainly let you know when I have more details.  Below are our numbers from this past week.  We had a record day for 5th grade on Thursday, but a slight decline today.  Numbers do continue to trend upward. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend, and let me know if there is anything that I can do for you!

Go Kiski!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal

Dear Families,

Now that spring break is behind us, we are now fully committed to the 4th quarter and the end of the 2020-2021 school year is in sight.  If you haven’t done so already, please log in to your Skyward Family Access account and view the 3rd quarter report card for your child.  This was posted on Wednesday of this week.  It can be found under the portfolio tab.

As we have done in each of the previous three quarters, all material and assignments posted in the 4th quarter will remain open and available for students to access.  It is good practice to periodically check your child’s skyward gradebook and cross reference graded assignments with the actual assignments in Google classroom.  If there are any questions or concerns, please reach out to your child’s classroom teacher via email and they will get back to you as soon as possible.  Any missing assignments (those with zeros or no grades) can be completed at any time for full credit.  I do encourage students to email their teachers when they complete an old assignment so that the update in a timely manner.

Yearbooks are currently on sale and can be purchased online from our website.  The direct link to do this is https://upperelementary.kiskiarea.com/apps/news/article/1394124.  The deadline for orders is Friday, April 16th, so be sure to order yours today!  When the yearbooks arrive, this will be posted on our website and I will notify everyone in my weekly correspondence.  Students attending school in-person will receive their books in homeroom, and online students will be able to schedule a time with the main office to pick up their copy.  

Ms. Olivia Rizzo, our wonderful KAUE School Counselor, will be leading an online session on Monday, April 6th for all interested parents from 7PM-8PM.  It is part of our district Parent Series and is titled “Managing Mental Health: Signs and Strategies”.  The link to attend is https://meet.google.com/uys-bzyv-asg and all are welcome.  

We are still in the process of finalizing plans for PSSAs.  The PA Department of Education is mandating testing for the 2020-2021 school year, and we are currently looking at dates in May to administer the exams.  When I have more information, I will certainly share this with you.  But I don’t want to provide any formal scenarios that may change in the interim.  

Finally, our attendance is holding steady right around the mid-50% range.  Below are our numbers from the two days prior to Spring break and our last two days of this week.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out.  I can be contacted by phone at 724-727-3421 or by email at [email protected].

Thank you and have a great weekend!

KA ALL DAY!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Good Afternoon KAUE Families,

As we complete another awesome week here at the UE we wanted to take a moment to share a few items related to this week with all of you:

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or Mr. Smith by phone or by email.

Thank you for your time, and have a great weekend!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal 

([email protected])

• Daniel C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal 

Dear Families,

A week from Monday we will begin the ELA portion of this year’s PSSA exams.  As previously outlined, testing will occur for ELA on Monday, May 10th, Tuesday, May 11th, and again on Thursday, May 13th.  Math testing will take place on Monday, May 17th and Tuesday May 18th.  As per state guidelines, all students are expected to attend school for testing on those days, and any student not present will be marked absent and need a parental excuse for the day.  Online synchronous instruction will not be available to students on testing days, however, review material will be posted for students to access on the Monday of each testing week.  Regular online instruction will continue as usual on non-testing days.  

Our PTO generously offered to provide snacks during the assessment again this year, however, due to mask restrictions and physical distancing limitations within testing locations, we will not be able to take advantage of this opportunity.  For this reason, we ask that all students eat a healthy breakfast each morning before coming to school.  Breakfast will also be available in the cafeteria free of charge to any student that would like to grab a bite before testing.  Mr. Smith, Ms. Rizzo, and I will be encouraging students to take advantage of this as they enter the building.  I may partake as well because our cafeteria staff makes some good stuff :)

On another note, yearbooks were distributed to students that purchased them last Friday at the end of the school day.  If your child is currently participating online and has not been in the building, please contact the main office and Mrs. Petrilla can verify that the book you purchased is ready to be picked up.  

Next week is the first week of May and Teacher Appreciation Week!  I am so proud of our staff here at KAUE and couldn’t be more honored to be a part of our educational team.  Please encourage your child to thank their teachers for their hard-work and dedication at some point next week.  They truly deserve it.

This week’s attendance numbers:

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me or Mr. Smith.

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Go Cavs!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Daniel C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Upcoming Events:

May 3rd-7th - Teacher Appreciation Week

Monday, May 3rd - 4th Quarter Deficiencies Issued (Skyward Family Access)

Thursday, May 6th - School Nurse’s Day

The time that we have all been anticipating is now upon us.  On Monday of next week we will begin the ELA portion of PSSAs.  There are three sections of English Language Arts, and those sessions will be held on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday of next week.  The Math portion consists of two sections and will take place on Monday, May 17th and Tuesday, May 18th.  All sessions will take place from 9:00 am to approximately 11:00 am.  If your child is absent or comes to school after a testing session, he/she will be required to complete testing during our make-up windows (PM sessions). Please reach out to myself, Mr. Smith, or Ms. Rizzo if there are any questions or concerns regarding the tests.

As I mentioned in a previous correspondence, I believe this is our time as a school to show how hard we have worked over the past 32 weeks.  I am very proud of our students and staff for how they have responded to adversity this year, and I am anxious to see the impact it will have on our standardized testing results.  

In other news we have a few things to share this week:

1. Yearbooks are in and have been distributed to all in-person learners.  If your child is participating 100% online, please contact Mrs. Petrilla in the main office to schedule a time to pick up your child’s commemorative book.
2. May is mental health awareness month.  If you are interested, the PA Parent and Family Alliance is offering a free presentation on May 20th to help parents assist their children during the global pandemic.  More information about the event and registration can be found here. 
3. As the weather gets warmer, we are starting to notice a change in student wardrobe throughout the school.  In the event that an article of clothing does not meet the criteria outlined in our student handbook, your child will be addressed by a teacher or a member of our office team.  Depending on the severity of the code violation and using our best judgement, you child may be asked to not wear the item in the future, or you may be contacted for an alternative option.  We generally have minimal issues with this and our staff is very understanding, but we ask that you work with us to ensure an appropriate environment for our students.  For more information on our school dress code, please access the school dress guidelines section of our handbook by clicking here.  
4. Today concludes teacher appreciation week, but we appreciate our teachers each and every day here at KAUE.  I would like to thank all of the parents and students that made their teachers feel special this week, and also express my gratitude to our teachers for their hard work and dedication to the students they service each day.  We have a wonderful staff at Kiski Area Upper Elementary School!

Finally, below are our attendance numbers for this past week.  I am hopeful that they will be much higher next week as we tackle the PSSAs :).

Call or email if you have any questions or concerns, and I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!

KA ALL DAY!

• Brian W. Swartzlander, Jr., KAUE Principal
• Dan C. Smith, KAUE Assistant Principal

Hello KAUE Families,

I would like to start today by thanking all of you for your support and patience during our PSSA testing.  As you can reference below with our attendance numbers, we significantly increased our attendance on testing days, and I truly appreciate your efforts to have your students attend so that we can get quality data for the upcoming school year.  I apologize for the issues with traffic entering and exiting the campus this week.  We have a plan for Monday that will hopefully alleviate some of the issues that create unsafe traffic conditions near route 66.