District News Fall 2015 Fall 2015

Conewago Valley School District| 130 Berlin Road| New Oxford, PA 17350 Volume 39, Issue 1

Message from the Superintendent

I hope that you have had an enjoyable summer, and I want to per-

sonally welcome you back to a new school year, which is always a

very exciting time for students, parents and educators.

As we begin the 2015-2016 school year, I encourage every student

and parent to embrace the opportunity to make this a great school

year. Take time to enjoy the excitement that surrounds the start of

a new year.

Parents, please pay close attention to the information that your

child brings home for your review. Complete and sign all forms

that ask for a parent’s signature and promptly return them to the

school.

The summer has been a busy time for all CVSD staff who have

worked hard to prepare for this exciting new school year. Teachers

and administrators have been attending instructional workshops

and training during the summer months, working hard to meet the

diverse educational needs of all our students.

Starting a new year takes a phenomenal amount of work on the

part of all CVSD departments and employees. In the weeks prior

to the school doors opening, teachers are busy setting up their

classrooms, while principals and assistant principals focus on all

the details involved in beginning a new year.

I appreciate and recognize that it is the hard work and dedication

of every CVSD employee that makes Conewago Valley Schools a

school district in which we can all be proud.

My request to the community is to first of all ensure every stu-

dent’s regular attendance and, secondly, be supportive of our

schools. Become involved in the education of our students

throughout the school year.

If we all work together, we can make this a successful year of

learning, further helping us to accomplish the CVSD mission of

promoting individual and collaborative excellence enabling stu-

dents to become competent, confident, and creative builders of the

future.

Please accept my best wishes for this new school year.

Sincerely,

Dr. Russell Greenholt

Superintendent of Schools

Board President, Keith Mummert, presented a com-

memorative plate to Jane Bean and Deb Wolf in honor

of their years of service with the District.

CVSD Honors Retirees

New Faces at CVSD A reception to officially welcome new staff and thank retirees

for their service to the District was held prior to the September

meeting of the Conewago Valley School District school board.

Dr. Christopher Rudisill introduced the following new teachers:

Amanda Horick, Jordin Hinkle, Courtney Weaver, Kim

Gray, Michelle Hull, Anne Roche, Emily Kress, Nichole

Behegann, David Tolar, Julie Wilson, and Kirsten Long.

Page 2 District News Fall 2015 District News Fall 2015

The New Oxford Cheerleaders raised money during the month of September for Childhood Cancer Awareness

Month. They presented a check to Four Diamonds for $12,036.63 during halftime of the football game on Friday, Sep-

tember 25th. The cheerleaders would like to thank the community and organizations within the school for their support

and donations for this worthy cause!

New Oxford Cheerleaders

Many students and teachers of New Oxford Elementary School spent

time together this summer as part of the Summer Mentor Program.

Teachers volunteered to mentor students over the summer months to

keep in contact with them. Teachers stayed in touch with the students

several times throughout the summer via email, phone calls and visits.

In the picture, Mrs. Stutz and Mrs. Hall’s mentees shared in a day of fun

at Kid's Kingdom in Hanover, PA. Many students involved in the pro-

gram said this helped them to be more excited about the return to school

in August!

NOE Summer Mentor Program

Health News Attention parents of 10th and 11th graders: The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Health Public School

Code Regulations require that a physical examination be completed on 11th grade students. The medical examination

may date back to the first day of 10th grade. Please submit the completed physical examination form to the school nurse.

If the physical examination is not completed and returned to the school nurse, your child will be scheduled to see the

school physician later in the school year. Thank you, High School Nurse.

Page 3 District News Fall 2015

CVSD Budget The Conewago Valley School District’s

tentative budget for 2015/2016 school year

is set at $52,144,028. This represents a

growth in the budget of 4.91%. Major are-

as of expense that are driving the budget

this year are pensions and Charter Schools.

Cuts were made in property and supplies,

general supplies, books, and staffing.

To finance the budget real estate tax rate

was set at 11.6253 mills. In addition to the

real estate tax, other taxes are : a $10 or $52

occupancy tax dependent on municipality

of residence, $10 per capita tax, 1% real

estate transfer tax, 5% amusement tax, and

a earned income tax of 1.5% (school district

share of 1%).

Over 66.7% of the revenue support the

school district comes from these local

sources with about an anticipated 33%

coming from the state and 1% from federal

government. Unfortunately, the state con-

tinues to fund school district without a fair,

equitable and predictable funding formula.

The district continues to provide a quality

education to its students, despite being un-

der funded by the state.

For every dollar of revenue, the following

amounts are spent. (See next column)

The Conewago Valley School Dis-

trict promotes individual and col-

laborative excellence enabling stu-

dents to become competent, confi-

dent, and creative builders of the

future.

Mission Statement

Direct Instruction 66.7 cents Instruction includes expenditures for salaries and fringe benefits of teachers and

aides in the classroom, textbooks, teaching supplies, audio visual materials, special

programs, conference expenses, classroom instruction equipment and repair. Also

included are costs of tuition at special schools, and the Vo-Tech program.

Pupil Personnel Services 2.5 cents In this category are activities designed to assess and improve the well-being of stu-

dents to supplement the teaching process. Included are salaries and fringe benefits of

school counselors and psychologists, their secretaries, supplies and expenses of the

guidance department, and the cost of testing and evaluation of students.

School Support Services 3.5 cents

This category includes the salaries and fringe benefits of librarians, their secretaries

and aides, library books, supplies, and equipment. It also includes all audio visual

services (materials and equipment) used by the District. Curriculum development

services are also included in this category.

Administrative Services 5.9 cents

The administration of educational programs includes all school board expenses, the

salaries and fringe benefits, supplies, and expenses of the central and building admin-

istration staff, and their secretaries. The salaries and expenses of tax collectors, the

cost of legal services, and community relations are included.

Health Services 1.2 cents

Activities are designed to provide physical and mental health services, which are not

direct instruction. Included are salaries and fringe benefits of nurses, salaries of

school doctors, and material used in the operation of health services for public and

parochial schools.

Business Services 0.8 cents

The business services include the directing of fiscal services of budget planning, for-

mulation, control and analysis, as well as payroll purchasing, business computer op-

erations, and duplication services.

Operation and Maintenance 6.1 cents

The activities concerned with keeping the physical plant open, comfortable, safe for

use, and keeping grounds, building and equipment in effective working condition

and state of repair. Included are the salaries and fringe benefits of custodians and

their supervisors.

Transportation 5.9 cents

Pupil Transportation expenses include the cost of transporting students to and from

public, non-public, and special education schools. Field trip expense is also included

in this item.

Student Activities 1.5 cents

Includes salaries and materials expended in the operation of co-curricular activities

such as athletics, music programs, dramatics, etc.

Debt Service 5.7 cents

Included in this category are principal and interest payments on bond issues for

school building construction.

Other Services 0.2 cents

Includes District support of the Lincoln Intermediate Unit General Operating Budget.

Total $1.00

Operating Budget for 2015-2016

Page 4 Volume 39, Issue 1

Dollars of Revenue

THE USE: THE SOURCE:

Federal, State, Local

The New Oxford Middle School Teens Need Teens (TNT) student organization is off to a wonderful start! Thirty-

seven 7th and 8th grade students completed Peer Mentoring training in June. TNT was responsible for assisting parents

and students at the NOMS Back to School night held August 13th. TNT students prepared over six hundred orientation

folders for that event. In addition, they delivered school supplies to the NOMS staff before the start of the school year.

TNT members are an invaluable asset to the school community. They serve as student ambassadors, and they help

mentor students throughout the year. TNT members also assist with peer tutoring, parent – teacher conferences, the

annual toy drive, the Pennies for Patients charity, serve as staff helpers, and help to sustain a positive and efficient

school environment.

TNT applications are submitted in May of each year. TNT students are chosen based on their ability to commit time

and energy to making a positive impact in the program.

Teens Need Teens (TNT) at NOMS

INSTRUCTION:

Regular Programs 25,126149

Special Education 6,836,266

Vocational Education 1,884,410

Other 914,367

Total Instruction (66.7%) 34,761,192

Pupil Personnel Services (2.5%) 1,316,366

School Support Services (3.5%) 1,840,203

Administrative Services (5.9%) 3,089,755

Health Services (1.2%) 634,865

Business Services (.8%) 393,818

Operation and Maintenance

(6.1%)

3,164,930

Transportation (5.9%) 3,080,899

Student Activities (.5%) 807,420

Debt Service (5.7%) 2,955,080

Other Services (.2%) 84,500

Community Services 15,000

TOTAL EXPENSES:(100%) 52,144,028

LOCAL:

Real Estate (11.6253 mills) 24,132,225

Public Utility Realty 34,344

Current Per Capita 159,495

Occupation Privilege 54,054

Earned Income (1.0%) 5,650,000

Real Estate Transfer (1%) 319,536

Amusement Tax (5%) 39,380

Delinquencies 716,083

Earnings from Investments 11,435

IDEA/ACCESS 570,632

Miscellaneous 1,498,038

Fund Balance 1,168,114

TOTAL LOCAL REVENUE: 34,353,336

REVENUE FROM STATE

SOURCES: 17,118,003

REVENUE FROM FEDERAL

SOURCES: 672,689

TOTAL REVENUE: 52,144,028

Page 5 Volume 39, Issue 1

Brain Boosters is a CVIS program that encourages students to engage in reading, math and writing activities during the summer

months. In May, we send home letters of participation to all 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade families, since these students will be CVIS

students in the fall. Those who bring back the forms re-

cording what they did get to participate in what we call

“The Brain Booster Bash”.

Since 2012, CVIS has encouraged students to be mentally

active during the summer months. It is our goal to help

prevent “The Summer Slide.” This is when students lose

some academic learning over the summer months. Over

the years, this lack of summer activity can lead to a big

gap between student’s achievement when compared to

their peers.

This year we recognized the participants with a pizza

lunch in the cafeteria. It was a huge success. We are

hoping that by making this celebration more visible to all

students it will encourage more to take part this coming

summer.

Brain Boosters

PLEASE…have your child wear sneakers as often as

possible. Sneakers are the safest and best thing to

wear every day in elementary school.

Please Wear Sneakers!!

Dedication Page:

“For the Students of

New Oxford Middle

School: Be Curious and

Make Discoveries!”

(July 2015)

Christine Liu-Perkins donated a copy of her first

book, At Home in Her Tomb: Lady Dai and the An-

cient Chinese Treasures of Mawangdui to the New

Oxford Middle School library. She located Mrs.

Foreman’s “Wish List” of books featured in the

PTO Newsletter. Christine Liu-Perkins periodically

performs a Google search on the book’s title, which

is how she found our wish for her book.

At Home in Her Tomb: Lady Dai and the Ancient

Chinese Treasures of Mawangdui has won numer-

ous awards such as Best Children’s Book of the

Year, 2015, Outstanding Science Trade Book for

Students K-12: 2015, and Notable Social Studies

Trade Book for Young People, 2015.

NOMS Library News

Page 6 District News Fall 2015

25 Years of Camp C.A.R.E.S.

In 1992, a group of sixth-grade teachers, led by Dottie Trostle, started Camp C.A.R.E.S., an outdoor education

program. Camp C.A.R.E.S. stands for Conewago Area Resource and Environmental Studies. If you have had a

sixth-grader in the district over the past 24 years, then you have certainly heard about Camp C.A.R.E.S. Hope-

fully, you and your children have fond memories of the overnight camp experience.

Every May, sixth-grade students attend Camp Nawakwa for three days and two nights. Students stay in cabins

of 8-10 campers. High school students also attend the

camp and serve as counselors. Sixth-grade staff members

teach outdoor education lessons on such topics as soil, ori-

enteering, environmental problem solving, and dream

catchers. Parents of sixth-grade students volunteer their

time to provide campers with three hot meals and one

snack every day. In the evening, students perform skits

with their cabin groups, watch “America’s Got Talent—

Teacher Edition,” and attend a campfire and a dance.

Many students enjoy the time bonding with friends, high

school counselors, and teachers.

Current sixth-grade teachers (Mrs. Warner, Engelhardt,

Banda, and Long) attended Camp C.A.R.E.S as sixth-grade students and as high school counselors. They have

very fond memories of camp and believe that it is a valuable experience for all who attend.

For the past four years, the sixth-grade teachers and students have held fundraisers to help continue Camp

C.A.R.E.S.—this after funding for fieldtrips was removed from the budget. To help raise money, students col-

lect Box Tops and aluminum cans, sell subs and t-shirts, and hold school spirit days and fun nights. Local

businesses and high school organizations have also donated money for the cause. Since 2012, sixth graders

have successfully raised over $20,000 each year to

attend camp. The current sixth graders are begin-

ning their fundraising efforts to attend camp in May

2016, which will be the 25th year of Camp

C.A.R.E.S.

The sixth-grade staff, as well as parents and other

members of the community, have contributed

countless hours of work to provide the Camp

C.A.R.E.S. experience for all current and future

generations of Colonials.

If you have a favorite memory from your time at

Camp C.A.R.E.S., please send it to Chelsey Banda at bandac@cvcolonials.org. We would like to share your

thoughts and memories at a special 25th anniversary presentation at Camp C.A.R.E.S. this May.

Volume 39, Issue 1 Page 7

Mock Interviews On September 29th and 30th, the senior students participated in a mock interview. Many of our

students dressed to impress and were able to practice communication skills important in an in-

terview setting. We want to thank the many local businesses who sent representatives to aid in

helping our students have a meaningful educational experience.

Adams Electric – Lisa Willet

AgCom – Joe Rickrode

Conewago Contractors - Chris Livelsberger

Conewago Valley School District – Kimberly

Hilfrank

Elsner Engineering - Lynn Danner

Elsner Engineering - Sherry Wherley

Family Physician - Alison McMaster

HACC - Sara Maines

Hanover Toyota - Jim Hall

Hanover Toyota - Jim Tavenner

KLK Welding - Ken Kirkpatrick

Liberty Mountain Resort - Ken Myers

McCann Business - Mischelle Moyer

Members' 1st Credit Union - Rebecca Prehoda

Members' 1st Credit Union - Barbara Shoemaker

PA National Guard - Wesley Haroldson

Pella Windows - Tabetha Miller

PSU York – Terri VanSlyke

Starbucks of Frederick, MD - Jenny Puente

The Performance Group - Jeanne Hare

Utz Quality Foods - Bev Carpenter

Utz Quality Foods - Cynthia Simpson

Wyndham - Gianni Antonaccio

Wyndham - Peter Doggett

Wyndham - Florence Heuer

York College - Leroy Keeney

Page 8 District News Fall 2015

Keeping Our History Alive!

In May of the 2014/2015 school year, the third grade seminar students at CTE read My Brother's Keeper dur-

ing their study of the civilian perspective of the Battle of Gettysburg. Since the students were unable to take a

field trip to the battlefields, Mrs. Brittany Moyer decided to bring Gettysburg to them!

Ben Neely, son of high school teacher Janice Neely, is the director at the Adams County Historical Society.

He volunteered his time to bring pieces of history to our students. Mr. Neely brought with him many different

artifacts from the battle, as well as an actual account of a 13-year-old from the three-day battle.

Mr. Neely kept the third graders on the edges of their seats! Students were making connections between the

presentation and the book, synthesizing the experience of the teen from Gettysburg and themselves, as well as

taking a closer look at the artifacts (wearing special gloves

from the Historical Society). Mrs. Moyer had each student

take notes and create questions during the presentation and

you wouldn't believe the thoughtful inquiries they had for

Mr. Neely at the end!

Mrs. Moyer hopes that this presentation will become an

annual event for the third grade seminar students. The stu-

dents were bubbling with amazement and wonder. Most of

them couldn't wait to go home and ask their parents to take

them to the battlefields. Keeping history relevant is not al-

ways easy, but with the help of experts from our communi-

ty who are motivated to spread their knowledge to our stu-

dents, we can succeed in keeping our past alive!

Mrs. Brittany Moyer

LibGuides: The CVSD librarians are excited to share a new library infor-

mation platform that provides students and teachers with one-stop collection of

resources for research or investigation. The librarians are working very hard to

constantly update library information and support the research aspect of class-

room learning. Check out the LibGuide site at http://conewago.libguides.com/

cvsdlibraries

Databases: Databases are the first place our students should access when doing research-based projects. Databases are

an organized system of research resources that are reputable. Students can access the school databases, Student Re-

sources in Context, Opposing Viewpoints and World Book Web, from home when doing research. Go to LibGuide

http://conewago.libguides.com/cvsdlibraries

Passwords for home use:

Worldbook Web ID – conewago

Password – cvlibrary

Gale (Student Resources in Context and Opposing Viewpoints)

Password - nohs

Library Corner

Volume 39, Issue 1 Page 9

Reading Assembly

New Oxford Elementary students who completed the recom-

mended summer reading activities were treated to a reward as-

sembly in September. Pictured below are students in grades K

– 3 who were entertained by storyteller Beth Rebert as she told

the story of The Wise Old Woman by Yoshiko Uchida. The

students enjoyed seeing the story come to life, while they

learned about respecting others in an entertaining way. The

comment, “I’m glad I did my summer reading!” was heard

many times after the assembly from the students who attended.

The New Oxford-Conewago Valley Rotary

Club recognizes seniors monthly from New

Oxford and Bermudian Springs high schools

based on academic achievement, school

leadership, extra-curricular involvement,

community service and character. The stu-

dent for September from NOHS was Joseph

Stiles.

Joe was presented Joel Brosius, Faculty

Sponsor. He is President of the National

Honor Society and Vice President of the Stu-

dent Council and has received Distinguished

Honors. He is captain of both the basketball

and tennis teams. Joseph is a member of the

Varsity Club and was president of ninth

grade mentoring. He is currently employed

at the Tropical Treat. He plans to attend

Grove City College following high school to

major in Secondary Education Biology in the

fall. He is the son of John and Aimee Stiles.

Rotary Student of the Month

New Oxford Elementary "Core Essentials" Values

130 Berlin Road

New Oxford, PA 17350

Phone: 717-624-2157

Conewago Va l l ey Schoo l D i s t r i c t Fall 2015

D i s t r i c t News

Website: www.conewago.k12.pa.us

The students of New Oxford Elementary

School have kicked off the school year

showing WISDOM and INITIA-

TIVE. These are the values that are being

emphasized during the months of August

and September. In assembly programs for

each grade, Ms. Wildasin and Dr. Watkins

used these values to teach the students the

importance of school rules. Ask your son

or daughter to tell you about the "words of

wisdom" that their teachers shared during

the assemblies. The values for the year are

listed below. You will hear a lot about

them throughout the school year. We will

continue to focus on their importance in

school with special announcements, pro-

grams and activities. Students will receive

pledge tickets when they are seen showing

characteristics of one of the values.