New leaders, projects & more: What to know as Centre County students head back to school

With students returning to classrooms across Centre County this week, districts and administrators are preparing for the start of the year. Classes began Thursday in the Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District, but most other Centre County schools start on Tuesday.

The Centre Daily Times has rounded up some news you may have missed for each public school district.

Bald Eagle Area

Bald Eagle Area is beginning construction on its new forestry building , which will continue throughout the 2024-2025 school year. The $3.3 million project will include a new forestry building and convert the existing building into a new weight room. The former weight room will be renovated for special education offices.

Bald Eagle Area is also starting the year with a new superintendent, Chris Santini, who began in July after taking over for interim superintendent Joseph Clapper. Both a State High and Penn State graduate, he was director of pupil services at Central Cambria School District before moving to Bald Eagle Area.

James Orichosky, the principal of both Wingate and Mountaintop Elementary schools, was named president of the Pennsylvania Principals Association. He will serve a two-year term, ending in 2026. Before becoming president, Orichoksy served as a board member for the association from 2012-2023.

Bellefonte Area

Construction started in June for the district’s new $55.3 million Bellefonte Elementary building behind the high school. The 98,000-square-foot K-5 building is expected to be completed in summer 2026.

No plans have been made for the current Bellefonte Elementary, which was last renovated in the 1960s and no longer meets ADA standards or student needs.

In August, the board discussed possible dates for a Section 780 hearing, a public meeting to discuss the closing of school buildings, to discuss the future of Bellefonte Elementary.

Bellefonte Area also welcomed a new superintendent this summer, with Roy Rakszawski starting with the district in July. Rakszawski is a former music teacher and former superintendent of Edgewater Park School District, a K-8 school system in New Jersey consisting of an elementary and middle school. He takes over from Tammie Burnaford, who retired at the end of June.

Penns Valley Area

Construction on Penns Valley Area’s $8.5 million parking lot renovation will be completed just in time for the start of the year, superintendent Brian Griffith said. The Safe School Route 45 Corridor Improvement Project included a complete renovation of both the high school and intermediate/elementary school parking lots as well as safety improvements along state Route 45.

Superintendent Brian Griffith said parents and students should plan for some delays on the first day as people learn the new layout and routine. He said the district is awaiting signage to help direct people to the new entrances and will have helpers on the first day to direct traffic.

“We’re going to be doing some one-way traffic that will prevent parents from having to cross traffic or have students students walk through traffic,” Griffith said.

Philipsburg Osceola

Classes began Thursday for the Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District

In a letter to the school community, superintendent Daniel Potutschnig shared information about the high school’s school culture program, Mountie Pride.

“Over the course of the upcoming school year, students will engage in lessons that foster social and emotional competencies,” Potutschnig wrote. “Additionally, teachers will participate in ongoing professional development that will allow them to meet SEL standards while providing students with the skills necessary to develop healthy identities, manage emotions, show empathy for others, and make responsible and caring decisions.”

The district is also working to update its comprehensive plan to guide district improvement for the next three years.

State College Area

Two new elementary principals will welcome students at Ferguson Township and Mount Nittany Elementary on Tuesday. In May, the board approved Kara Treweek as the new principal of Ferguson Township and Beth Solensky as principal of Mount Nittany Elementary.

The former dean of students, Treweek replaced Shelly Buckholtz, who retired in June. Before becoming dean, Treweek taught kindergarten at Gray’s Woods Elementary and first grade at Bellefonte Area’s Pleasant Gap Elementary School.

Solensky took over in June after former principal Mark Feldman retired. After graduating from Penn State, Solensky taught in South Korea, Japan, Michigan and Minnesota. Before joining the district she was principal at Ridge Wood Elementary School in Northville, Michigan.

State College Area is also moving forward on two major construction projects, the new Park Forest Middle School building and the Mount Nittany Elementary renovations.

An Act 34 meeting has been scheduled on Sept. 30 for the public to see the proposal for the Mount Nittany additions. Following the planned project timeline, the board will accept bids in December.

Planning for the $89-$100.5 million Park Forest Middle School project is still ongoing, with plans expected to be presented to the board in the fall.

One of SCASD’s elementary schools will also have a unique partnership this school year. In August, the school board approved a yearlong partnership between Easterly Parkway Elementary and musician/educator Malik McPherson. McPherson’s program SEL Hip-Hop visited Easterly Parkway during the 2023-2024 school year.

His new partnership, “Creating a Culture of Belonging Within Our Schools,” will include student music workshops, teacher training and team-building activities for faculty.

“We thought about creating a yearlong partnership that not only had touch points with the students but also worked with educators as well and working with parents through community engagement events,” McPherson said during an Aug. 5 board meeting.