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East Penn SD highlights attendance push, arts award, mentoring and therapy-dog fundraiser
Summary
At its Sept. 23 meeting the East Penn School District announced an early student dismissal for Sept. 25, new attendance-postcard outreach, an Emmaus High mentoring program, recognition from the Pennsylvania Art Education Association, and an Oct. 12 fundraiser benefiting the district—s therapy-dog program.
Dr. Campbell told the East Penn School District board on Sept. 23 that the district will hold an early student dismissal on Wednesday, Sept. 25, with secondary students (including Emmaus High School) released at 11 a.m. and elementary students released at 12:30 p.m.
"This Wednesday, September 25th, we will have our 1st early student early dismissal," Dr. Campbell said, adding the schedule and details are posted on the district website.
The superintendent described a new attendance outreach effort that the district has begun: postcards sent home to families as part of an "attendance matters" campaign and school-based teams that work one-on-one with families when students struggle to attend regularly. "We hope that you recently received our new attendance postcards that were sent home with students last week," Dr. Campbell said, noting the postcards are intended as a visual reminder for families.
Dr. Campbell also announced that the Pennsylvania Art Education Association honored the East Penn School District with its outstanding visual-arts community award, calling the recognition "a celebration of the exceptional talent, dedication, and spirit of our students and faculty."
On student supports, the board heard that Emmaus High School launched a mentoring program this year, with "over 100 upperclassmen who volunteered" to help new students transition into the high-school community.
The district promoted a fundraising partnership with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for opening night on Oct. 12, with Dr. Campbell saying that "$5 per ticket will go to support the East Penn Therapy Dog Program" and noting ticket information is available on the district website and social media.
Dr. Campbell closed the update by announcing the district's employee-of-the-year recipient. "Our 2nd annual East Penn employee of the year ... was Christian Berghraf," Dr. Campbell said; the transcript identifies Berghraf as a student advisor at Eyer Middle School and one of several finalists.
In addition to the district update, Doctor Whitney reported on regional services provided by CLIU, noting a new early-learning center in the Whitehall-Copley area with 12 early-intervention classrooms and an on-site therapy dog. Whitney said about 405 students participated in last summer's extended-school-year programs across the IU and that roughly 130 of those students were from East Penn.
Why it matters: the announcements touch on routine operations (early dismissals and conferences) but also on student supports (mentoring and therapy dogs) and student engagement (recognition for arts). The district is emphasizing attendance monitoring and family outreach while highlighting extra supports meant to reduce summer learning loss and support student well-being.
The board did not take formal action on the policies presented for first reading; the administration said the proposed revisions respond to changes in the school code and to Act 55 of 2023, and reflect PSBA-recommended language. Tickets for the Oct. 12 fundraiser and additional program details are posted on the district website.
Next steps: the policies introduced at first reading will be available for a second reading at a subsequent meeting; the district will continue outreach on attendance and the therapy-dog fundraising event is scheduled for Oct. 12.
