others. Michael’s parents opened a winery – Michael Charles Winery -- at their home near Blairsville, and donated profits to support the IOGA mission. As Michael grew, so did his medical complications. He underwent one surgery after another; hips, legs, bowels,

stomach, and more. “Through it all, he kept his smile and taught us all humility and compassion on a daily basis,” said his mother. “What is truly mystical to me,” commented Welch, “was that this boy did not eat by mouth, walk, or talk, and yet he loved life.” A smile seemed to be ever present.

When he was well enough, his parents kept him busy with activities such as riding roller coasters, floating in hot air balloons, swimming in the pool, and bouncing on trampolines. He traveled to Europe, swam with dolphins in the wild, and

(Continued on page 3)

Michael Charles Metil spent 15 years on this earth, much of the time battling a rare disorder known as Glutaric Acidemia-Type 1 (GA-1). His classmates and teachers at Clairview School mourned when Michael died in his sleep, at home, on June 27, 2009. However, the youth’s legacy lives on with the January dedication of the “Michael C. Metil Adaptive Technology Lending Library,” housed at Clairview.

Two months after his death, Michael’s parents, Cay Welch and Michael Metil, donated their son’s personal collection of assistive communication and therapeutic equipment to the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit Foundation (WIUF) for use at the Greensburg-based school. The gift was reportedly valued at well over $20,000 and included software, hardware, switches, CDs, environmental controls, books, DVDs, tapes, and more. A major component of the gift was a quadriciser, a large piece of equipment used for physical and occupational therapy.

The intention, according to Michael’s mother, is to give access to the adaptive items to students with poor or no communication capabilities. These devices, books, and programs were her son’s access to the world, explained Welch. “It would help to level the playing field of life.” Now, with the donation to bolster the school’s library, the family hopes others will strive to enable and empower those youth with similar situations. GA-1 struck Michael early in his life. An undetected genetic

disorder, the illness was dormant until activated by a crisis resulting from caloric insufficiency, dehydration, and an infection. His body could not break down protein, which normally converts to energy but instead became toxins in the bloodstream. The subsequent neurological damage was irreversible and life-threatening. Michael reverted to a “newborn stage,” according to Welch.

“Being unable to walk or talk or eat by mouth led to intensive therapies,” she noted, and his ability to “accomplish the most basic skills was a huge question mark.”

Once young Michael was stabilized, his parents became active with efforts to alleviate the suffering of children with the metabolic anomaly. They established a nonprofit agency, the International Organization of Glutaric Acidemia (IOGA), to advocate for children with GA-1 and their families, to seek expansion of newborn screening programs, to fund research, to link affected families and serve as a resource, and to promote collaborations between parents, clinicians, researchers, and

Giving a voice to those children without one

Taking part in the recent unveiling of a memorial plaque

at the Michael C. Metil Adaptive Technology Library at

Clairview School were, from left: Dr. Luanne Matta, WIU

executive director/ WIU Foundation board member;

Clairview Principal Jeff Coover; Michael Metil, father of

former student Michael Charles Metil; and classroom

assistant, Beth McCabe. Absent is teacher Samantha

Fecich, who was instrumental in creating the library.

March 2010 Volume 9, Issue 1

Inside this issue:

Support for the WIU

Foundation

2

Staff transitions at

the WIU

3

National recognition

for IU specialist

4

Valley HS students

simulate “real life”

5

Clairview class

project takes flight

6

Outstanding Group

cited by WCFB

7

IU Board news 8

The Newsletter of the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit A fledgling music program for students with

special needs will be among the beneficiaries

of a recent contribution to the Westmoreland

Intermediate Unit Foundation by First Reformed

Church of the United Church of Christ. The 110-

year-old church in Vandergrift closed its doors

this past August 30, but its charitable works

continue to support causes in the community and

Westmoreland County. With the membership

dwindling, the congregation opted to cease

operations and sell the church building. Left with

a sizeable endowment, the Consistory (church

council) and membership decided to donate to

a variety of worthwhile causes.

Among their gifts was a $5,000 grant to the WIU

Foundation. One of the projects that will be

supported by the donation will be the music

program at Clairview School, Greensburg. “Music

in Motion” is now in its second year under the

direction of WIU teacher Marissa Rega. Both

vocal and instrumental

groups have performed

at in-school events

such as Veterans Day,

graduation, and more.

The year’s highlight is

expected to be

Clairview’s participation

in this spring’s “Night

of the Stars,” which

annually brings some

of the best high school

talent from throughout

the county to the Palace

Theatre in Greensburg.

The church’s grant

will enable the music

program to purchase

choir robes, instruments, and music.

Additionally, some of the funding may be used

to support other WIU Foundation-sponsored

programs such as the purchase of assistive

technology, the therapeutic horseback riding for

preschoolers, or a hearing aid loan program for

youth with hearing challenges. The WIU’s human

resources director, James Summerville, who was

a member of the First Reformed Church, played

an instrumental role in securing the donation.

The WIU Foundation coffers were also bolstered

by several other gifts. The “Now & Forever Fund”

of the Community Foundation of Westmoreland

County awarded an $8,930 grant to the Foundation

to again support the Therapeutic Horseback Riding

program. It is the second year the CFWC has

targeted its support for the riding program for

three-to-five year-olds with Autism.

Also earmarked for the riding program for two Early

Intervention classes was a $3,500 contribution from

the McCain Foundation plus another $1,000 gift

from Ductmate Industries. Support also came from

a $541 donation from Central Westmoreland Career

and Technology Center and the CWCTC SkillsUSA

organization. Funds were raised by CWCTC students

participating in a pumpkin decorating contest.

Additional Support

The WIUF continued to receive backing from

McDowell Associates, Greensburg, with a $1,000

donation, which again resulted in a matching grant

of $500 from the

Selective Group

Foundation.

Contributions

designated for

WIU’s Homeless

Children’s Initiative

were received from:

Westinghouse

Specialty Metals

of Blairsville ($50);

Rostraver Township

Sportsmen’s

Association ($100);

and Westmoreland

County Park Police

Association ($300).

WIU’s Resolve West program at Belle Vernon Area

High School was the cause earmarked for a $1,500

gift from the “Vitasta Bazaz and Sheen Sehgal Fund

in Memory of Dr. Kuldeep Sehgal” of The Pittsburgh

Foundation. The funds were utilized to provide

winter clothing and support the nutritional needs of

students, ages 12-18, in the Resolve West program.

This is the second contribution from the donor

designated fund, following a prior $500 grant

through The Pittsburgh Foundation.

(Continued on page 4)

Support received for WIU Foundation & grant-related projects

Page 2

The “Music in

Motion,”

therapeutic

horseback

riding, hearing

aid loan, and

assistive

technology

programs are

among the IU

activities which

benefit from

support of the

WIU Foundation.

The IU Insider is

produced by the

Westmoreland

Intermediate Unit,

102 Equity Drive,

Greensburg PA

15601.

Inquiries or

submissions

related to the

newsletter should

be made to

Gregg Kretchun

at the IU offices,

by phone at

724.836.2460

or via e-mail to kretchun@wiu.k12.pa.us.

Barb Griffith (pictured at left), the Consistory vice president for the

First Reformed Church of the United Church of Christ, Vandergrift,

presents a $5,000 check to Beth Alwine, WIU Foundation President.

The IU Insider

(Continued from front page)

enjoyed snow tubing, skiing, and sledding with adaptive equipment.

Attending Clairview from 2000 until his death in 2009, Michael Metil participated in a classroom for students with multiple disabilities, where he was “under the guidance of many wonderful teachers.” Being nonverbal, Michael utilized the assistive equipment to communicate and learn. “Such devices were the window to the world,” said his mother, “and his format to reach out to his fellow students and friends.

“To communicate and relate to the world around him was important,” she continued. “We understood the expense, time, training, and hardship involved in providing communication devices for our special needs child.” Michael persevered, at times flourishing and other times

floundering. His efforts were an inspiration to many others, spurring his cousin to become a special education teacher, his sitter to pursue nursing, and his grandmother to be an activist. Added Welch, “In all of my travels in this world – of all my schooling, classes, and colleges – I will never have had a greater teacher or hero than Michael Charles Metil.”

As a tribute to Michael and all children with similar disabilities, the family endowed all of his personal collection of equipment to establish the new adaptive technology library at Clairview School. The donation was channeled through the WIU Foundation, which has a mission to enrich the education of students with special needs from across Westmoreland County. The Michael Metil Library was established with the understanding that these tools will further empower

children to learn and articulate for themselves in school and in life.

In a 1985 article in the Wall Street Journal, Christopher de Vinck wrote of his experience growing up with a blind, mute brother who “was on his back in his bed for almost 33 years…he didn’t have the strength to lift his head nor the intelligence to learn anything.” His brother Oliver was, according to Mr. de Vinck, the “weakest, most helpless human being I ever met, and yet he was one of the most powerful human beings I ever met.” The author commented, “He could do absolutely nothing except breathe, sleep, eat, and yet he was responsible for action, love, courage, insight. We were blessed with his presence, a true presence of peace.” The power of the powerless.

Michael Charles Metil had it.

Giving a voice to those children without one

Technology Specialist — John

Lohr;

Mental Health Associate —

Heather Trettel (Resolve West);

Employment Specialist — Mary

Petrina;

Nurse — Roma Jo Cochenour;

Physical Therapist — Kiersten

Shevchik;

Certified Occupational

Therapist — Krista Merrill;

Certified Occupational Therapy

Assistant — Sherry Goldman.

Recalled

(from Furlough)

Classroom Assistant — Chrystie

Hertzog, Nita Moore, Genevieve

Summerhill.

The staff at Westmoreland

IU continues to change and

shift. Since this past June,

there have been a number

of new arrivals, while others

have moved on.

Employed

Clairview Principal — Jeffrey

Coover;

Teacher — Kelly Altemose,

Francine Brown, Kelley

Dalfonso, Kelli Gorecki-Pastore,

Melissa Moorhead, Zachary

Pityk, Dawn Ritchie, Angela

Shupe, Nicholas Tinkey;

Speech/Language Teacher —

Marissa Cottrell, Sharon

Fedorski, Kristen Tachoir;

Retired

Supervisor — Todd Moses;

Teacher — Shirley Bishop,

Frank Flori, Donna Forys, Mary

Ann Grimes-Essay, *Sandy

Kutz, Barbara Medvec, Denise

Seich, Theresa Stitt, *Mallory

Stoneking, *Michael Yanarella;

Classroom Assistant — Brenda

Jackson, *Tanya Kraft;

Personal Care Assistant — Karin

Kalp;

Utility Worker — Michael Kern.

Resigned

Teacher — Jared Crossland,

Brianne Iezzi, Mark Long,

Angela Shupe, Lauren

Taormina;

Transitions announced for Westmoreland Intermediate Unit personnel

Volume 9, Issue 1

“Through it all, he

kept his smile and

taught us all humility

and compassion on a

daily basis.”

— Cay Welch

Brandon uses the quadriciser

donated in memory of former

student, Michael Charles

Metil, who passed away in

June.

Page 3

Classroom Assistant — Daniel

DiSalvo, Nancy Frydrych, Terry

Kepchia, Elizabeth Jamison;

Personal Care Assistant —

Russell Wilson.

Changed

Angela Vaslavsky — from

Mental Health Associate to

Mental Health Technician for

Resolve West;

Delphine Hagerman — named

lead teacher at Clairview.

(* Asterik preceding the name

indicates a “Retirement for

Disability.”)

Apologies to anyone who may have

been inadvertently missed.

WIU Curriculum Specialist Cindy

Shaffer has been recognized as

the Verizon Thinkfinity National

―Field Trainer of the Month‖ for

December 2009.

Thinkfinity.org is an online

resource that offers free

lesson plans, educational

games, video and podcasts,

and a wide range of other

resources for educators,

students, and parents.

Thinkfinity Trainers are honored

for demonstrating outstanding

efforts in sharing the Verizon

Thinkfinity program with others

through both training sessions

and outreach. Those honored

are selected

based on the

number of

educators

they have

trained

and their

attendees‘

survey

responses regarding trainer

and training effectiveness.

According to the Trainer

Recognition page on the

Thinkfinity.org site, Shaffer

trained 72 educators during

this past December. She had

a mean survey score of 4.6

out of a possible 5.0 on the

evaluation form submitted by

training participants.

In addition to being featured

on the website, the top trainers

receive a certificate, letter of

recognition and a ―token of

appreciation.‖

Of the 12 monthly recipients of

the recognition, four came from

Pennsylvania. The quartet,

including Cindy, were also

recognized by the PAIU Tech

Integration Mentor (TIM) group

and each was presented with a

Netbook, speakers and DVD

player.

Shaffer has served the WIU as

a curriculum specialist since

being hired in July 2008.

Thinkfinity honors IU specialist for outstanding efforts in training

Rohlfing have been recognized

as Westmoreland County

winners in the Pet Poster

Contest sponsored by the

Pennsylvania Veterinary

Medical Association.

The posters were created

under the direction of their

teachers, Paulette Glover and

Jeanne Kiss, in May 2009,

following specific contest

guidelines set by officials at

A trio of Learning Support stu-

dents from the

Nicely Elementary

School in the

Greensburg–Salem

School District are

winners in an area

poster contest.

Three young ladies,

Katrina Bumosky,

Ashley Livengood-

Porter and Cassidy

the Pittsburgh Zoo. The local

winners‘ posters were chosen

out of hundreds of submissions

from throughout the Pittsburgh

area.

On September 13, the three

girls and their families were

invited to an awards luncheon

at the Pittsburgh Zoo. Each

received a medal, cash award,

and free passes to the zoo.

Westmoreland County‟s „Pet Poster‟ Contest winners

Page 4

TRANSITION GRANT

In June, the WIU Board

of Directors formally

accepted a $27,287

―Transition from School

to Community-Based

Employment‖ Grant

from the Westmoreland-

Fayette Workforce

Investment Board

(WIB). The grant will

assist with the

continuation of the

Work Discovery

program operated by

the WIU in collaboration

with the Kiski Area

School District.

Transition Coordinator

Christine Fiorina and

Special Education

Supervisor Sharon

Rupert oversee the

transition program at

Kiski Area.

Displaying their medals are, from left: Cassidy Rohlfing,

Katrina Bumosky, and Ashley Livengood-Porter.

Cynthia Shaffer

The IU Insider

Support received for WIU Foundation & grant-related projects

Memorial gifts were made in

honor of: Betty Slifkey, from

Susan Kellinger and Joni Hunt;

Thomas Rice, from Janet Boris

and Terri Pajak; Heather

Schwartz from the Clairview

School staff; Mary Kontros

(mother of Robert Kontros) and

Gladys Mough (mother of

Sherry Miller), both from Mary

Veazey Clark.

Bohince); Helen Seich (mother-

in-law of Denise Seich); and

Frances Leskosek (grandmother

of Barb Ford).

Memorials through the WIU

Activities Committee came for

Catherine Demangone (sister of

Dom Demangone), Anthony

Demangone (father of Karen

Williams), and Virgil Tomlinson

(father of Donna Silvis).

(Continued from page 2)

Memorial Remembrances

Memorial donations were made

by WIU7 Education Association

in memory of: the sister of

Roberta Borgo; Julius DiCesare

(father of Denise Fischer); Mel

Paterline (father of Kathy

Paterline); Heather Schwartz

(Clairview student); Gerry

Bohince (father of Joanne

Each day during the school year, students in Mrs. Amanda Johns’ classroom at Valley High School visit a grocery store, restaurant, candy store, and a job services site – all without leaving their classroom! Mrs. Johns and her assistant, Ms. Diane Donati, provide instruction in the newly-opened Life Skills Support classroom in the New Kensington-Arnold School District. The educators have transformed the classroom into a variety of real-life settings that enable the students to practice skills they will use after graduation. The self-contained classroom, formerly the Guidance Suite at Valley, offers the spaciousness to allow for student mobility during the teaching of daily living skills, including socialization skills and life skills such as cooking, cleaning, sweeping, and cleaning windows. The students also take academic courses -- language arts (reading), math (including money management), spelling, health, history, and arts and crafts -- as well as swimming and adaptive gym classes offered at the local YMCA. The real-life settings and role playing offer a taste of what students may be dealing with once they leave school. A simulated grocery store is housed on three eight-foot shelves in Johns’ classroom. Students practice their shopping skills by using a list to purchase empty containers of cleaning, food, health and beauty, and automotive products. One classmate gets the opportunity to hone money skills by using the fully functional cash register to ring up items. Students are given a budget and utilize actual local grocery advertisements to create their

shopping list. The prepared list must fit their budget, or students have to modify the items to fall within the financial parameters. Mrs. Johns then teaches the children where they can find these items in a grocery store. The members of the Life Skills Support class also learn about eating out. They practice how to order, behave, and pay in a restaurant using real menus. Proper and improper table behavior, conversation, posture, ordering, paying, and tipping in a restaurant is also discussed. Along with the social behaviors, students also prepare for the workforce by performing timed tasks such as building, sorting, measuring, alphabetizing, and stuffing envelopes. Using a teacher-made checklist, they rehearse keeping an inventory of items, which are stored in shoeboxes. Students must keep track of the items and make sure nothing is missing in order to prepare for jobs in which such skills are necessary.

Job Seeking Skills In order to be able to put all of these skills to use in the near future, students practice filling in job applications with their name, age, telephone number, and education information. Additionally, Mrs. Johns has looked even farther into the future to provide these students with skills to balance their checkbooks when they obtain the job for which she has prepared them. They receive a weekly “paycheck” based on their behavior and have learned the parts of the check and how to fill them out. According to the teacher, the students’ work ethic has improved since they have been using a time clock

to punch in and out of class and have learned to help others by reminding them to record their times. Beyond the necessary life skills, the instructors have tried to inspire their charges to show compassion for others by making chocolate covered pretzels for their families for the holidays. Wrapping gifts and creating holiday gift tags for their families were also among the skills demonstrated for the students. According to her supervisor, Donna Johnson, Mrs. Johns has worked hard to create a curriculum that teaches core subjects that are adapted to the individual learning style of each student, as well as pertinent skills like socialization, competing in a job market, caring for others, and basic life skills.

Real-Life experiences simulated in Valley High School classroom

Volume 9, Issue 1

Students visit a

grocery store,

restaurant,

candy store,

and a job

services site —

all without

leaving their

classroom.

Page 5

Valley High students

in Amanda Johns’ Life

Skills Support class

simulate some real-

life experiences,

including creating a

budget and shopping

list to hone their skills

at shopping in the

classroom “grocery

store, “ shown at left.

Early last fall as Clairview

School Elementary Autistic

Classroom teacher Missy

Fayish was preparing her unit

on the life cycle of the butterfly,

Deb Schmider, a personal

care assistant in the class,

approached her with an idea.

What if the students raised,

tagged and released Monarch

butterflies while learning about

them? Instantly, they saw the

potential for a meaningful

hands-on science experience.

This project would be especially

meaningful for Deb who is also

known as ―The Bug Lady.‖ She

is an active teacher/leader in

the Westmoreland County

4H programs and teaches

Etomology to 4H Youth around

the region. Schmider already

had everything the class would

need to raise the butterflies

from tiny eggs. And, she knew

of a research and conservation

program called ―Monarch

Watch‖ which would provide

the Clairview classroom with

additional learning materials

for the science unit.

Headquartered at the University

of Kansas, ―Monarch Watch‖

is a cooperative network of

students, teachers, volunteers

and researchers dedicated

to the study of the Monarch

Butterfly. By participating in

the program, the students

would become part of long-term

project which monitors the

Monarch population and

migration, and promotes the

conservation of Monarchs and

their habitat. The students

would receive tags to be

attached to the butterflies.

When dead tagged Monarch

butterflies are found, the tags

are returned to the Monarch

project. The data collected

helps to calculate distance and

time of migration, determine

mortality during migration,

and estimate the number of

Monarchs who survive the

overwintering.

Cross-curriculum Project

Early in the fall, the students

received the tiny Monarch eggs.

They learned the importance of

the milkweed plant, which is

the only plant female Monarchs

lay eggs on (ecology). Once the

eggs hatched, the milkweed

plant provided all the food

needed for the larvae to grow

into healthy caterpillars. The

students then measured and

monitored the growth of the

caterpillars (measurement and

graphing), counting the days

until the caterpillars hung

upside down and began

making the beautiful jade

green chrysalis. Mrs. Fayish‘s

students continued checking

on their butterflies everyday as

the magic of turning from a

caterpillar to a butterfly was

happening. While they waited,

they learned about butterfly

habitat (plant science),

the path of migration of

the Monarch Butterfly

(geography), read

stories about Monarchs

(reading), and also

documented in

photographs and

drawing (visual arts)

the life cycle of the

butterfly.

Finally

the

day

came

when

the

students saw the first butterfly

had hatched. Soon, the other

butterflies were hatching and

fluttering their wings, anxious

to start their migration.

But, before the final release

day, the butterflies needed

to be tagged. This is a very

delicate process that required

the steady hand of an adult.

The students watched, holding

their breath while the tiny tags

were applied. This meant the

day to release the butterflies

had finally arrived

And so it was, on a beautiful

sunny fall day, the students,

classroom assistants, personal

care assistants and Mrs. Fayish

held the beautiful and fragile

Monarch butterflies they had so

diligently cared for in the palm

of their hands and watched as

they flew up and away on their

2.5-month-long, nearly 1,500

mile journey to central Mexico‘s

Transvolcanic Range. It was a

wonderful experience for all

and one that we hope can be

duplicated every year as the

students at Clairview School

help the Monarch Butterfly

population continue to grace

our gardens with their beauty.

—by Kate Zingarelli

School project helping to preserve beautiful Monarch Butterfly

Page 6 The IU Insider

Away they go as

students and

staff at Clairview

School watch the

release of the

tagged Monarch

butterflies. The

butterflies were

hatched in time

for the annual

migration toward

southern climes.

Deb Schmider (right) gets help tagging a Monarch

total of 258 incidents involving

homeless students. This year,

over the past five months, she

has already handled 183 such

incidents. Clark attributes the

rapidly increasing numbers not

only to the poor economy but

also because of more efficient

identification of homeless

students and improved service

by our school districts.

Clark and Rachel Barner again

organized the ―Angel Tree‖

during the December holidays,

and both expressed gratitude

to staff at the WIU offices for

their continued support. IU7

Westmoreland IU has received

a PDE grant of $72,000,

channeled through Allegheny

IU, the lead regional applicant,

to continue operation of the

Homeless Children‘s Initiative

(HCI) program in Westmoreland

County. The grant runs October

2009-July 2010, transitioning

from an October-September

program to a July-June grant

year beginning in 2010.

Mary Clark serves as HCI Site

Manager for the WIU. During

the last year, October 2008

through September 2009, Clark

reported servicing a 12-month

employees based at the

Administration Building

played Santa Claus, donating

toys, clothes, and gifts on

the ―wish lists‖ of 39

homeless students in the

county as well as 25 needy

children at Clairview.

Westmoreland is part of the

Pennsylvania HCI Region 4,

which includes the Allegheny,

Beaver, Bedford, Fayette,

Fulton, Greene, Somerset,

Washington and Westmoreland

counties. The WIU program

was initiated in October 2005.

HCI site serving growing number of homeless students over past four years

After learning about a drastic

shortage of food items at the

Westmoreland County Food

Bank, members of the Life

Skills class at Franklin Regional

High School decided to do

something about the problem.

Under the direction of WIU

teacher Judy Polczynski, the

10 students worked to focus

the attention of their school,

then their community on the

food bank‘s plight.

Class members convinced

the organizers of the school

district‘s annual telethon to

name the Delmont-based WC

Food Bank as the charity of

choice. The Franklin Regional

schools and community

responded to the pleas as the

district telethon raised $11,000

for the food bank along with

5,553 pounds of food.

―It has just overwhelmed me,‖

Polczynski was quoted in an

article in the local Murrysville

Star newspaper. The IU teacher

explained that her students

volunteer weekly at the food

bank, and were upset when

they were turned away since

there was no food to pack.

Polcyzynski told the reporter,

―One of the students looked at

me and said, ‗Does that mean

people are going to starve?‖

Thus began the students‘

campaign to restock the food

bank‘s pantry. Their successful

effort resulted in the class

receiving the ―Outstanding

Group Volunteer‖ Award from

the county food bank. Formal

recognition was held at an

awards luncheon. Joining the

members of the Life Skills

class at the awards event

were: the Pantry Award winner,

Cornerstone Ministries, a

Murrysville church that

operates its own pantry,

servicing 336 households

monthly; and Wal-Mart, which

earned the Business Award for

help with food bank programs

through its Murrysville store.

Marlene Kozak, chief executive

officer of the WC Food Bank,

heralded the Franklin Regional

classmates as friends of the

charity, noting their volunteer

efforts to pack food each week.

Polczynski told the Murrysville

Star that her

class started

volunteering

at the food

bank because

―it‘s a good

place to learn

job skills.‖

Guiding the

students are

Polczynski

and her two

classroom

assistants,

Lily Martz and

Genevieve

Summerhill. Their supervisor

is Colleen Suchko.

The class also planned to

participate in the 2009 Turkey

Cup Challenge, a yearly event

that challenges area schools to

raise funds for the food bank.

This was the fourth year of the

event, and Yough Middle

School successfully defended

its title, having won all four

times. Franklin Regional came

in third out of the 12 schools

that participated. Almost

$30,000 was raised for the WC

Food Bank.

Franklin Regional Life Skills class named “Outstanding Group” of volunteers

Volume 9, Issue 1

One of the

students

looked at me

and said,

“Does that

mean people

are going to

starve?”

Page 7

Members of award-winning Life Skills class at Franklin

Regional High School.

The Newsletter of the

Westmoreland Intermediate

Unit

The Westmoreland Intermediate Unit is a

regional educational service agency serving

the students, educators, and schools

of Westmoreland County.

The WIU’s mission is to provide resources,

education, assistance, and leadership

to our schools and community.

Co-Assistant Secretary (non-

voting) — Christie L. Ridenour,

Secretary to the WIU

Executive Director.

Bialon succeeded Dennis J.

Rittenhouse, of the Norwin

School District, as board vice

president, while the others

were incumbents.

John B. Henry replaced

Robert McDonald as IU Board

delegate from the Hempfield

Area School District.

In January, two new IU board

members were appointed to

fill vacancies after being

nominated by their districts.

Sherry L. Bolha will represent

Greater Latrobe SD and Sam

Accipiter will be the delegate

from Southmoreland SD.

At the June meeting of the

Westmoreland Intermediate

Unit Board of Directors, the

members re-elected Gary R.

Haag as board president.

Haag represents the Kiski

Area School District.

Also elected as WIU Board

officers for the 2009-2010

school year were:

Vice President — Aaron J.

Bialon, Belle Vernon Area

School District;

Treasurer — Ronald J. Slater,

Jr., Burrell School District;

Secretary — Robert M.

Gumbita, Mount Pleasant

Area School District;

Assistant Secretary —

Roberta Cook, Franklin

Regional School District;

In addition to the aforesaid,

IU directors include: Lucinda

Nicely (Derry Area SD),

Stephen D. Thomas

(Greensburg Salem SD),

Joseph L. Yorio (Jeannette

City SD), Irvin W. Tantlinger

(Ligonier Valley SD), Norbert

J. Veseley (Monessen City

SD), Beverly M. Meyer (New

Kensington-Arnold SD), Dr. P.

Jay Tray (Penn-Trafford SD),

and Ruth Bisko (Yough SD).

At its February 2010 session,

the IU Board elected Dr. Tray

to serve as the board‘s new

liaison to the WIU Foundation

Board of Directors. Tray will

initially serve the remainder

of the unexpired term of the

former delegate, Claude

Myers, who left the IU board.

Haag re-elected president of WIU Board

We’re on the web at www.wiu.k12.pa.us

Westmoreland

Intermediate Unit

102 Equity Drive

Greensburg PA 15601-7190

Phone: 724.836.2460

Fax: 724.836.2561

Email: info@wiu.k12.pa.us

Web: http://wiu.k12.pa.us

WIU 7 Management Team

Luanne Matta, D.Ed.

Executive Director

Christina Monroe

Assistant Executive Director

Mary Jane Betz

Director, Special Education

Dennis R. Holodnak

Director, Financial Services

James Summerville

Director, Human Resources

& Management Services