October 2012

2 Named Merit Semi-Finalists, 3 Earn Letters of Commendation

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

Two York Suburban High Schools students have been notified they are National Merit Semi-Finalists.

They are:

Laura Blouse, daughter of Alan and Susan Blouse, Springettsbury Township.

Margaret Sullivan, daughter of Gregory and Rowena Sullivan, Spring Garden Township.

National Merit Semi-Finalists are Laura Blouse (left) and Margaret Sullivan.

In addition, three other students received National Merit Letters of Commendation.

They are:

Alicia Baker, daughter of James and Amie Baker, Spring Garden Township.

Thomas Garncarz, son of John and Anne Marie Garncarz, Spring Garden Township.

John Gurnavage, son of Mark and Angela Gurnavage, Springettsbury Township.

A fourth student, Emma Matcham, also received a Letter of Commendation. She is currently attending school in Ohio.

Filed Under: Feature, October 2012

Communications a Key Effort

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

Dear York Suburban Community:

I am pleased to report the opening of school was relatively smooth. Students and staff are well on their way to another successful school year.

KEY COMMUNICATORS

In an ongoing effort to improve school-community communication (one of my goals!), I invite anyone who is interested to request to be a Key Communicator. A network of staff, students, parents, retirees and community members who have a strong interest in the York Suburban School District, Key Communicators serve to receive accurate, candid, and timely information which they may then communicate to their neighbors, friends, and others.

In addition, the Key Communicators inform the Superintendent about community questions, concerns, or rumors. Most information is communicated via e-mail and there are no meetings other than an orientation meeting for new Key Communicators. If you are willing to serve please contact Wendy Erwine at werwine@yssd.org.

If you are interested in a complete list of my goals and performance indicators, I encourage you to visit the district website. On the Our District tab, click on Superintendent’s message and from there you will be directed to a link.

SUPERINTENDENT’S SURVEY

Each year, I survey various constituencies regarding my performance as your Superintendent. From November 1-15 the Superintendent’s Survey will be open. Questions related to all areas of my performance as well as an opportunity to provide your feedback on any topic are features of this anonymous survey.

Watch the website for the link to the Superintendent’s Survey when the link is open. It is important to have as many respondents as possible. The information from the survey is compiled and reported to the Board of School Directors at a regular meeting in January. I find the survey enlightening and use it to help formulate my goals.

As always, I thank you for your support of the York Suburban School District — where we are Building Our Future…One Student at a Time.

Dr. Kate Orban

Filed Under: Issue Left, October 2012

Suburban Students Shine on PSSAs

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

York Suburban School District performed exceptionally well on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) tests.

The students exceeded the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) level, and were above both the York County and state averages on the tests.

More than that, York Suburban’s scores continued to be higher than those for the district in 2011 and 2010.

For all the grades tested in the York Suburban School District, 90 percent of the students were proficient in math, 88 percent in reading, 78 percent in science, and 83 percent in writing.

The chart below demonstrates district-wide achievement:

Percentage of Students Proficient and Advanced
	2012		2011		2010
All Students	Math	Reading	Math	Reading	Math	Reading
York Suburban	90	88	88	86	86	84
AYP Target %	78	81	67	73	56	64
York Co. Average	81	76	80	77	79	75
PA Average	76	72	77	74	76	72

The state targets have risen significantly in recent years, climbing from 56 percent proficiency in math and 63 percent in reading in 2010 to 89 percent in math and 91 percent in reading in 2013. The target for 2014 is 100 percent proficiency for all students on the state assessments.

Dr. Patricia Maloney, York Suburban School District Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, stated that while a subgroup at the high school level did not meet AYP proficiency levels, the overall student performance in math and reading has shown a steady increase over the past three years. “We are very proud of that and our students and staff should be commended for their accomplishments”.

Dr. Maloney cautioned that proficiency on the PSSA represents just one measurement of student achievement and that it is important to look at multiple sources of data to truly evaluate the effectiveness of a school or district.

KEYSTONE EXAMS

Another set of tests is on tap for York Suburban students: the Keystone Exams, which will be administered this school year.

Dr. Maloney noted the Keystone Exams will test students “statewide on algebra I, biology, and literature.” The tests will be given to 11^th grade students this year for the purpose of AYP. Because class members may have taken the courses a year or two ago, there is a plan to provide a review for students.

The current eighth grade – the class of 2017 – will be the first group to take the end-of-course examinations, which then will be required for graduation.

A Keystone Exam General Information link can be found on the front page of the York Suburban High School webpage.

Filed Under: Issue Right, October 2012

Night Homecoming Game a First for York Suburban

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

The 2012 York Suburban Homecoming Court: seated (left to right) Brittani Dalton, Alexis Gettle, Aubrey Waltersdorf, Karis Reiter; standing (left to right) Juliette Haumont, Erin Merkle, Sophia Cao, Olivia Mingora, Hannah Bosley.

York Suburban High School held its first Friday Night Homecoming football game on October 5. In the past, the game has been played on a Saturday afternoon.

Homecoming 2012 kicked off with a Powder Puff Football game on Thursday evening. That was followed by an all-district parade around the neighborhood and ended with a bonfire on the baseball field.

The new venue and warm weather attracted one of the largest crowds in recent memory.

On Friday evening, the Homecoming Court was introduced prior to the football game against Fairfield, which was won by York Suburban with a score of 37-20.

Olivia Mingora was crowned the Homecoming Queen.

The York Suburban Marching Knights performed during half-time.

A dance for students was held Saturday evening at the high school.

Members of the 2012 Homecoming Court are:

Hanna Bosley, daughter of Mark and Cortney Hendrickson.

Sophia Cao, residing with Dennis and Pauline Olsen.

Brittani Dalton, daughter of Larry Dalton and Stephanie MacKenzie.

Alexis Gettle, daughter of Greg and Felicia Gettle.

Juliette Haumont, a Foreign Exchange Student from Belgium, residing with Michael and Susan Peck.

Erin Merkle, daughter of Joe and Shelly Merkle.

Olivia Mingora, daughter of Tony and Wendy Mingora.

Karis Reiter, daughter of Vanessa Reiter and Dr. Joel Reiter.

Aubrey Waltersdorf, daughter of Brian Waltersdorf and Beth Miller.

The Homecoming Court Prince is James Wasilewski, son of John and Kristine Wasilewski. He is a third grade student at Indian Rock Elementary School.

The Homecoming Court Princess is Isabel Coy, daughter of Michael and Sarah Coy. She is in the third grade at East York Elementary School.

[Show picture list]

View the slideshow of Homecoming 2012 activities.

Filed Under: Issue Left, October 2012

Students Speaking 15 Languages Attending York Suburban Schools

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

The York Suburban School District has 64 students whose primary language is a language other than English.

The highest number of English language learners – 26 — speak Spanish. The next largest number of student – 11 – speak Vietnamese. Other languages include: Arabic, Bangla, Bengali, Chinese, Egyptian, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hindi, Khmer, Turkish, Ukranian, and Urdu.

East York Elementary School has the largest number of English language learners with 18 student. That is followed by 13 at Yorkshire Elementary, 12 at York Suburban High School, 10 at York Suburban Middle School, eight at Valley View Elementary, two at Indian Rock Elementary, and one student enrolled in the York County School of Technology.

Filed Under: Issue Right, October 2012

YS Students Win York Fair Ribbons

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

The following York Suburban School District students won ribbons at the York Fair. The awards, category, and names of the students are:

1st – Salsa, Riley Judge
1st – Jelly, Taylor Coppage
1st – Molded cookies, Sarah Cardone
1st – Fancy Muffins, Shannon Moats
2nd – Salsa, Justin Latchaw
2nd – Jelly, Emily Martin
2nd – Pickles, Katie Tierney
3rd – Pickles, Amber Torres
3rd – Jelly, Mariah Warner
3rd – Salsa, Shantel Reese

Filed Under: Issue Left, October 2012

Spirit Assembly at YSMS

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

York Suburban Middle School students showed their school spirit at an enthuiastic pep rally in the gymnasium.

York Suburban Middle School band provides the music for Spirit Assembly.

YSMS mascots get ready to make their entrance at Spirit Assembly.

Filed Under: Issue Right, October 2012

CTC Variety Show November 17

October 18, 2012 by G. Freireich

SAVE THE DATE – November 17, 2012

Mark your calendars! The Annual CTC Community Variety Show will take place on November 17 at 7 p.m., at York Suburban High School. Ticket information will be available at www.ysctc.org at the end of October.

Filed Under: Issue Left, October 2012