2017

OUR
SHAPING FUTURE

Shaler Area School District Report to the Community

Shaping Our Future through
Human-Centered Design

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Administrators, district staff, school board members, teachers, parents, students, and community members met throughout the 2016-17 school year to participate in mul-tiple human-centered design activities to identify the needs and areas of focus within the district.

haler Area has been working to build a founda-tion to shape the school district’s future by uti-lizing a concept called human-centered design.
The human-centered design approach involves participation and input from various stakeholder groups throughout the problem-solving process.
Starting in the summer of 2016 and throughout the 2016-17 school year, administra-tors, district staff (including custodial, clerical, and paraprofessional staff), school board members, teachers, parents, students, and community mem-bers met and participated in multiple activities to identify the needs and areas of focus within the dis-trict. The activities included identifying strengths and areas for growth within the district and district needs as well as ideas to strengthen, improve, and grow in each of these areas.
Through the human-centered design pro-cess, Shaler Area has identified five areas of focus: organizational development, professional learning, community partnership, financial sustainability, and curriculum, instruction and assessment. Fur-

ther human-centered design work has helped to develop short-term and long-term goals aimed at addressing each of these areas. Short term goals were accomplished before the 2017-18 school year such as gathering feedback from staff through an employee engagement survey and creating a professional development committee to plan the
in-service days for the 2017-18 school year. The hu-man-centered design work also has led to the cre-ation of a new mission, vision, and core values for the district, which will guide plans for the future.
The human-centered design process creates a flat organizational concept where each voice is valued, regardless of status or position. To facilitate the approach, Shaler Area has used resources from the Luma Institute, the educational arm of a Pitts-burgh-based organization known as Maya Design and has partnered with a free, trained consultant. Utilizing the human-centered design strategies
has helped the district create a foundation of trust, transparency, collaboration, and innovation on which Shaler Area will build, develop, and grow.

MISSION
VALUES

Shaler Area School District is a collaborative, innovative, and creative learning environment for all.

To serve our Shaler Area com-munity and its children by pro-viding an education that fosters our youth to be contributing
VISION	members of society
To develop resiliency, empathy, creative thinking, critical think-ing, and problem solving in every student on their path to fulﬁlling their potential

• We VALUE the celebration and promotion of excellence in our community.
• We VALUE a culture where everyone has a voice and everyone is an owner.
• We VALUE and encour-age creative and innovative risk-taking.
• We VALUE our responsibili-ty to serve and educate our community.
• We VALUE an atmosphere of trust, transparency, and collaboration.

FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT

Dear Shaler Area families,

We have engaged in some very exciting work throughout the past school year to develop a path and plan for the future of Shaler Area School District. By using the human-centered design process, we have established a mission, vision, core values and goals that truly reflect input shared by the entire Shaler Area community. Our new mission, vision, and values — as you
can see displayed on this page — will guide us as we aim for excellence in all we do as a district. Throughout the 2016-17 school year, we began to implement these beliefs in our work to achieve many successes. I am so excited to see how we will continue to use the human-centered design model and the work already accomplished in “Shaping Our Future.”

Sincerely,

Mr.Sean Aiken
Shaler Area Superintendent

Shaping Our Future
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through Innovation

haler Area’s commitment to providing students with the skills and knowledge to be college and
career ready by the time they graduate begins as soon as students enter the school system. Through the district’s initiatives and innovation, students are given the tools and opportunities to succeed at Shaler Area and beyond.

Project ENGIN/Project
Primary school students attach a marker to a Finch Robot and then program
learned in math class.
Caboose develops young	it to draw different lengths and shapes to reinforce measurement concepts engineers
Students as young as 5 years old are	Intermediate Unit’s Center for Creativity. learning computer coding and engineering skills                         Cari Kelm, STEAM coordinator for Project
through Shaler Area’s commitment to science,	ENGIN, works with the grade-level teachers to align technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM)	the STEAM curriculum to help reinforce the core programming.	concepts students are learning in other classes. Ms.
In one new program, kindergarten students	Kelm worked with Shaler Area teachers to create to explore how building blocks fit together or gears	a project in which students attached a marker to rotate. Students work together in small groups	a Finch Robot and then programmed it to draw to build the tallest tower possible or interlock	different line lengths and shapes to support the
the gears in a way that will allow them to rotate	measurement concepts they were learning in math together. By the following year, the same students	classes. Teachers infused stop motion technology will take these cooperative and problem-solving	in their art classes, and students even created a skills to create basic circuits to turn on a light or	sculpture using Squishy Circuits that reflected a program a robot to complete a task.	poem in their English classes.
The school district launched Project ENGIN	“The computational thinking students are in the 2015-16 school year to allow students in              using when doing things like computer coding is the primary buildings to Engage, Network, Grow,           proven to increase performance in math, English Inspire, and Navigate through STEAM subjects. In          language arts, and writing,” Ms. Kelm said. “It
the 2016-17 school year,	promotes 21st century
who can problem solve
Then when they are
with Project Caboose
same curriculum into
their feet.”
the program expanded	“It promotes 21st century	skills and creates kids which brought the                        skills and creates kids who can	and think on their feet. the kindergarten and                       problem solve and think on	taking any test or facing
first-grade classrooms.	a task, they will have the
Both programs were	-Cari Kelm, STEAM coordinator for	skills to think through a created using two                                    Project ENGIN, on the eﬀect of	problem and persevere. $20,000 grants awarded                                 teaching STEAM skills	We’re teaching kids how
through the Allegheny	to think.”

“I see a lot more buy-in to what we’re
doing in class.”

-Dennis Reagle, middle school teacher, on ﬁnding creative ways to use the iPads in the classroom

homework assignment by the deadline, his character loses health points — if a character runs out of health points, the computer assigns a random classroom
student performs well on a quiz or
The 1:1 iPad Initiative allows middle school science teacher Dennis Reagle	consequence. On the other hand, if a
chooses to complete a more difficult
to implement a “ﬂipped classroom” model. Students are able to view short video lessons on topics at home on their iPads, which makes in-class time
available to complete projects, labs, and group discussions.	version of a task, he earns experience

1:1 iPad Initiative opens up
points. The more experience points, the more abilities the character is able to use.
classroom options
The introduction and expansion of the
Project ACE (Advancing Classroom Education)
“I feel you’re interacting more and want to interact more because there are rewards for participating in class,” said eighth-grader Emily
experience points you can get to level-up your
character.”
1:1 iPad Initiative, which provides every student	Peterson. “The more you succeed in class, the more in seventh through 12th grade with a district-
The Project ACE 1:1 iPad Initiative allows
Mr. Reagle to implement a “flipped classroom”
issued iPad mini device, has expanded educational opportunities across the district. Teachers are
resources and engage students.
For middle school students in Dennis
Reagle’s science courses, it means going to class
is an adventure with the integration of Classcraft,
using the devices to provide additional educational	model and better utilize Classcraft. Because each student is given a district-issued iPad mini device, the students are able to view short video lessons on topics at home, which makes in-class time available
a classroom management tool that turns the	to complete projects, labs, and group discussions. classroom into a role-playing game.
In Classcraft, students choose from character options at the beginning of the year. Each character comes with its own set of unique abilities, which students can use to their advantage as they complete class assignments. Students and their characters are grouped into teams that must work
together and utilize each character’s abilities for the benefit of the entire team.
Each character functions through health, action, and experience points. The choices students make during the course
For example, if a student doesn’t turn in a
of the science class can affect those points.	Students in Shaler Area Elementary School use an iPad to create a video to share the biography of famous individuals with their classmates.

Mr. Reagle has found that using Classcraft has created more peer engagement, increased cooperative learning, and gives the students a platform where they can practice important life skills like budgeting and planning ahead.
“I see a lot more buy-in to what we’re doing in class,” Mr. Reagle said. “The kids genuinely seem to care about their character. It gives them more to work for than a grade.”

STEAM Competition encourages creative problem solving
concepts into every lesson. A group of high
Shaler Area teachers across the district challenge students by incorporating science, technology, engineering, art, and math
the annual Shaler Area STEAM Competition.
Shaler Area High School students use teamwork to compete against 11 school teachers put many of these innovative	teams from 10 school districts in Allegheny and Washington counties in

lessons together to challenge students by
Competition.
The STEAM Competition attracts schools
launching the annual Shaler Area STEAM		“When our team sits down to come up with activities, we try to think of tasks that have an
art, and math This year, 11 teams from 10 scho
but have a high ceiling that they can challenge
High School math teacher and one of the event
organizers.
from across the region and challenges students’	obtainable entry point for participants of all levels, knowledge in. science, technology, engineering, ol	themselves,” said Paul Stadelman, a Shaler Area districts in Allegheny and Washington counties
“Each task attempts to incorporate a team
aspect so that no one student can accomplish
— including Shaler Area — competed in a series of four on-site challenges, which students learn on the
Shaler Area High School teachers
design each challenge to incorporate multiple
day of the competition, and one off-site challenge.	any of them on their own. Students work on their communication skills as well as problem-solving
succeed.
have fun doing it.”
aspects of STEAM that require students to work	and critical-thinking skills throughout the day and collaboratively in their teams of five in order to                            For the 2017 competition, students were
tasked with creating a red-light intersection/ train-crossing model out of provided materials and a Hummingbird Robotics Kit, designing and building a personal flotation device to keep a 1kg mass afloat, completing a solubility puzzle, and creating a Keith Haring-inspired thermography portrait.
The off-site project was inspired by recent advancements in driverless car
technology and challenged students to build a vehicle that would be controlled by a driver who cannot see when maneuvering through an obstacle course that included stopping
for road hazards, moving in reverse, parallel
parking, and maneuvering through a specific
turning radius.
Shaler Area High School students designed and built a “driverless vehicle” that could navigate through an obstacle course in the annual Shaler Area STEAM Competition.

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Shaping Our Future Staff Success

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Mr. Greg Mason, a science teacher at Shaler Area High School, is one of 12 ﬁnalists for the 2018 state Teacher of the Year award.

haler Area School District is proud to recog-nize Greg Mason, a Shaler Area High School science teacher, who was named one of 12 fi-
nalists for the 2018 state Teacher of the Year award. “I am surrounded by so many great edu-
cators here at Shaler Area, that I am honored to be recognized as a finalist in the entire state,” Mr. Mason said.
Mr. Mason was nominated for the award and completed an extensive application to advance to the semifinalist round in February. All 12 finalists must prepare and submit for review a video of a lesson. The scores from the video and application packets will be combined to form a composite score. The Pennsylvania Department of Education will announce the 2018 Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year during a special awards ceremony in De-cember.
Mr. Mason has been an educator for 11 years, with the past six years at Shaler Area High School. He currently teaches physics and works with a team of teachers to host the annual Shaler Area STEAM Competition.
Mr. Mason has a Bachelor of Science degree in secondary education from Penn State University and a Masters in Education with School Leadership degree with principal certification from the Univer-sity of Pittsburgh.

TITAN FACT

Since 2013, Shaler Area has had 11 individual teachers recognized as state Teacher of
the Year semifinalists, with some being recognized as semifinalists multiple years. Mr. Mason is the second Shaler Area teacher to be named a finalist. Ms. Jade Leung was named a Teacher of the Year finalist in 2016.

Semi�inalists Peter Brough (2015)
Dennis Dudley (2013, 2014) Nicole Kutzner (2015)
Jade Leung (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 -Finalist)
Greg Mason (2018 - Finalist) Adam Rosenwald (2015) Deb Svach (2014)
Paul Stadelman (2014, 2015, 2016) Tim Taylor (2013, 2015)
George Tepshich (2013) Kristin Tepshich (2018)

Shaping Our Future
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Student Success

Kiersten Bork, 2017 Distinguished Student

Academics
•	Jeffery Primary School third-grader Kiersten Bork was recognized as a Distinguished Stu-dent at the annual Pennsylvania Association of Federal Programs Coordinators (PAFPC) Con-ference and was one of three students in the state chosen to speak at the conference.

•	Shaler Area High School was one of seven area schools chosen to participate in Green City Remix, the first youth-designed exhibit at the Heinz History Center, which opened May 2017. Shaler Area students spent several months exploring the 1940s Smoke Control Cam-paign, current air quality concerns, and social change strategies. Working with a local artist, the students designed three installations that explore ways in which Pittsburgh can continue to improve on its legacy as a smoky city. The exhibit featured archival sources remixed by
the students to make a statement about change and the future of Pittsburgh.

•	Junior Mariah Malloy placed 2nd in the ninth-12th grade category of the 2016 Pittsburgh sec-tion of the American Chemical Society’s Nation-al Chemistry Week Illustrated Poetry contest.

•	 Senior Ashley Bozzo earned a silver award for her Chapter Service Project Display at the Fam-ily, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) National Leadership Conference in Atlanta, Ga.

•	29 high school students were recognized for their artwork in the Pittsburgh Arts Region of the 2017 Scholastic Art Awards. A panel of judg-es selected the regional award winners from more than 2,000 applications. Students award-ed a Gold Key advanced to have their artwork judged in the national adjudication including Jamie Handyside and Julie Lignoski.

16 Burchﬁeld Primary students placed in local Garden Club Federation of Pennsylvania contests.

•	16 Burchfield Primary students in kindergarten to third grade placed in the local competition of the Garden Club Federation of Pennsylvania’s Smokey Bear/Woodsy Owl poster contest and poetry contest through the Ingomar Garden Club, District 9. At the state level, Melina Poliz-iani placed 1st, Gabby Alcalde placed 2nd, and Giada Grimm placed 4th in the Woodsy Owl Poster Contest for second grade. Melina Poli-ziani also placed 1st in the poetry contest for second grade, and in grade 3, Carter McKissick placed 2nd and Isabella Hoffman placed 3rd.

Music
•	Shaler Area student musicians earned a place in more than 12 district, regional, and honors music ensembles and festivals in the 2016-17 school year.

Allie Graf, Cory Nasiadka, Michael Bagwell,Taylor Jones, and Michael Dunn placed 3rd in the 2017 Shaler Area STEAM Com-petition.

•	Shaler Area High School’s team, which included Michael Dunn, Taylor Jones, Cory Nasiadka, Michael Bagwell, and Allie Graf, placed 3rd in Shaler Area’s annual STEAM Competition, which attracted 11 teams from 10 school districts in Allegheny and Washington counties to compete in a series of four on-site challenges and one
off-site challenge.

•	The Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) named junior Emily Yuretich as one of the top 36 Soprano II high school singers, which earned her a place in the All-State Chorus.

•	Shaler Area Titan	Emily Yuretich Marching Band was named the Thermo Twin
Windows Band of the Week on Sept. 2 through WPXI. The band and its halftime performance were featured on WPXI Skylights and on news-casts covering high school sports.

•	The Shaler Area High School team placed 1st overall in the high school category in the Fair-child Challenge at Phipps, a yearlong environ-mental challenge that consisted of five different challenges. The students competed against 17 regional schools. Shaler Area students earned
a perfect score for Challenge #1 for which they wrote and illustrated a children’s book. Students also placed 3rd for Challenge #2 for which students designed an app where users could grow a tree from a virtual seed. The art-work students created for Challenge #3 “Com-panion Plants” was chosen to go on display as
part of a larger exhibit in the Center for Sustain-able Landscapes.

TITAN FACT

Shaler Area High School has been awarded 1st place in 5 of the 7 years students have competed in the Fairchild Challenge at Phipps.

Shaler Area Titan Marching Band won 18 top awards in the Festi-vals of Music competition.

•	Shaler Area Titan Marching Band earned 17 top awards as well as the Dr. Tim Lautzenhaus-er’s Esprit de Corps award presented for the students’ exemplary attitude of positive sup-port and outstanding personal behavior at the Festivals of Music competition in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Shaler Area Concert Band received an Excellent Rating and came in 1st place Wind Ensemble received a Superior Rating and came in 1st place. It also was named Best Overall Concert Band. The Jazz Band received a Superi-or Rating and placed 1st. Sophomore Michael

Shaler Area Titan Marching Band won 18 awards in the Festivals of Music competition.

Zang, who plays the trumpet, was named Out-standing Jazz Soloist. The Marching Band, Dance Team, Drum Line, Silk Line, and Majorettes
all received a Superior Rating and came in 1st place in their respective categories. The Cham-ber Choir, Women’s Choir, and Concert Choir all received a Superior Rating. Chamber Choir and Women’s Choir came in 1st place in their re-spective categories, and Concert Choir came in 2nd place. The Chamber Choir also received the Best Overall Concert Choir award. Additionally, senior Paige Milavec was named Outstanding Vocalist in Chamber Choir, and freshman Made-line Bartosh was named Outstanding Accom-panist in Concert Choir. The String Orchestra
received a Superior Rating and came in 1st place.

•	Marissa Fukas, a sophomore who plays viola, and Sage Wilson, a senior who plays cello, both earned a seat in the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) All-State Or-chestra. The orchestra only accepts 18 violas
Sage Wilson & Marissa Fukas	and 16 cello musicians.

World Language
•	Shaler Area students participated in and re-ceived recognition for their performance on the National Latin Exam, which tests their knowledge of Latin vocabulary, Roman culture

and mythology, and their translation skills. The National Latin Exam is a test given ev-ery year to students in Latin I-V. At the Latin I level, Outstanding Achievement awards went to Kassidy Steinmetz, Kelsey Marshall, Ol-ivia Jarzynka, Lydia Nebiolo, Owen Berret, Brindle Walzer, Sonny Demasi, Gabriella Greco, Dylan Matthews, Dylan Sarnowski, Samuel Baird, Jonathan Schimmel, Anjolie
Girton, Caitlin Fedorek, Emilee Miller, Chloe McHale, Abby Harangozo, Alec Battaglia, Anna Grzegorczyk, Julia Falgione, Autumn Roney, and Samuel Heim. At the Latin II level, Elisa Gabriel earned Silver Maxima Cum Laude, James Engel earned Magna Cum Laude, and Mara Gillespie earned Cum Laude. At the Latin III level, Alyssa Krause earned Gold Summa Cum Laude, Adam Seibert, Emily Kelly, Al-exandra Evans, and Justin DeSabato earned Magna Cum Laude, and Alyssa Ferianc earned Cum Laude. At the Latin IV level, Rosalia Paras earned Cum Laude.

Kylie Dougherty, Evan Lysko, and Alexis Finney took top places in the annual Japanese Speech Contest.

•	Shaler Area High School students took top awards in the annual High School Japanese Speech Contest held at the University of Pitts-burgh. The Japan American Society of Penn-sylvania hosts the Japanese Speech Contest at Pitt’s Oakland Campus each year for Japanese learners of all levels. More than 100 students participate in the competition that includes four speech levels and a poster session. Senior Evan Lysko won 1st place in the Advanced Plus category, and in the Intermediate category,
sophomore Kylie Dougherty won 1st place and senior Alexis Finney won 2nd place.

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Shaler Area High School’s production of “Les Misérables” sold out.

TITAN FACT

Shaler Area High School’s musical theater department has staged sold out shows in two of the past three years’ performances.

Performing Arts
•	More than 250 students in fourth to 12th grade participated in a total of six Shaler Area theater productions in the 2016-17 school year
•	“Cyrano de Bergerac” Shaler Area High School fall play

•	“Les Misérables”
Shaler Area High School spring musical

•	“The Mystery Club”
Shaler Area Middle School fall play

•	“The Little Mermaid JR.”
Shaler Area Middle School spring musical

•	“The Most Amazing Christmas Play Series

in the Entire History of the World” Shaler Area Elementary School fall play

•	“Seussical Kids”
Shaler Area Elementary School spring musical

Shaler Area Middle School students staged “The Little Mermaid JR.” in the spring.

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Shaping Our Future

Learning Environments

haler Area recognizes that the spaces in which students learn and the resources they are pro-
vided play a role in their academic success. For that

reason, the district is committed to providing stu-dents with the best possible learning environment.
The district’s newest project is Scott Prima-ry School, the official name of the new school being built on Scott Avenue at the former Rogers Primary School site.
Scott Primary School will be a two-story, 82,279-square-foot structure that will accommo-date 460 to 600 students in kindergarten through third grade. The school is designed to house each grade level in its own neighborhood of classrooms and special education rooms and includes addi-tional parking capacity, enhanced security features, and a separate cafeteria, library, gymnasium, and STEAM room.

Shaping Our Future
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Athletic Accomplishments

•	Shaler Area Titan football team played the first game on the new turf Louis C. Martig Field at Titan Stadium on Sept. 30, 2016.

•	Boys Golf: Seniors Tanner Grze-gorczyk and Nick Cavacini, and junior Luke O’Donnell qualified for WPIALs and advanced to the second round. Tanner Grzegorczyk tied for 6th place at WPIALs to qualify for the PIAA State Championships.

•	Girls Golf: Senior Paige Gillespie
was selected as one of 50 golfers across the country to earn a trip to the John Deere Golf Facility in North Carolina.

Photo by: Matt Lienemann | Shaler Area Class of 2017

200 individual medley. She also set new school records in the 200 individual medley, 100 but-terfly, and 100 freestyle.

•	Wrestling: The team again advanced to play-offs, and two athletes advanced to the state tournament. Senior Ronnie D’Amico placed 6th in the 220-pound class and sophomore Ryan Sullivan placed 2nd at 106 pounds.

•	Bowling: Senior Noah Seelye was the first Shaler Area bowler to advance to the State Tournament.

•	Swimming: Senior Emily Schaefer advanced to the State Swimming Championships in the

•	Diving: Senior Evan Kelly set a new school diving record.

•	Swimming: Freshman Jenna Stanton, and se-niors Abby Banze, Emily Schaefer, and Claire Blaha set a new school record in the 200 med-ley relay.

•	Swimming: Freshmen Jenna Stanton and Oliv-ia DiBon, and seniors Sara Magoun and Claire Blaha set a new school record in the 100 free-style relay.

•	Track: Three athletes medaled at the WPIAL Championships: junior John Frank-

TITAN FACT

During the 2016-17 season, Emily Schaefer became the first
female swimmer in Shaler Area School District’s history to qualify for all 11 WPIAL events.

Photo by: Matt Lienemann | Shaler Area Class of 2017

at Titan Stadium
O
lin placed 7th in the 110 meter hurdles, junior Claire Schreiber placed 8th in the triple jump, and senior Michael
Bagwell placed 3rd in the triple jump.

•	Track: Michael Bag-well placed 6th in the triple jump at the PIAA Track Champi-onships.

•     Many spring sports teams advanced
Michael Bagwell
to WPIAL playoffs, including Baseball,
Softball, Boys Lacrosse, Girls Lacrosse, and Boys Volleyball.

Christian Henning committed to Alderson Broaddus University, to play football; Kara Jans committed to the University of Findlay to play lacrosse; Abigail Juzwick committed to Edin-boro University to play lacrosse; and Lyndsey Lakatos committed to Gannon University to play softball.

•	Shaler Area Varsity Competitive Cheerleading squad won a gold medal in the World School Cheerleading Championships and a silver medal in the National High School Cheerleading Cham-pionship.

•	29 student athletes were recognized for their skill in their respective sport by being named to all-section teams, as voted on by section coach-es.

•	17 athletes committed to continuing their athletic careers by playing on college or univer-sity teams including five athletes who signed
National Letters of Intent: Tim Newport and	Shaler Area Varsity Competitive Cheerleading squad

Louis C. Martig Field

n October 8, during the homecoming 2016 pre-game ceremonies, the Shaler Area School
District and community celebrated the improve-

ments at Titan Stadium, which included replacing the running track surface and installing artificial turf on the playing field, with a special ribbon cut-ting ceremony to dedicate the Louis C. Martig Field at Titan Stadium.
The field is named in honor of Lou Martig who was a star member of the football and basket-ball team at Millvale High School. After graduating from college he returned to Shaler Area as a teach-er and coach. In 1980, Mr. Martig was appointed Shaler Area Athletic Director, a position he held until his death on June 23, 1991. Mr. Martig is a member of the first class to be inducted into the Shaler Area Athletic Hall of Fame.
Taking the field for the ribbon cutting cer-emony were members of the Martig family, joined by members of the district administration, school board, and HHSDR Architects & Engineers, and students representing the varsity cheerleading, football, lacrosse, soccer, and track teams.

Shaping Our Future
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Alumni Success

haler Area is proud to honor Dr. Ryan Soose	honor society and was also awarded the Kenneth (Class of 1994) as the 2016 Distinguished                       Hinderer Award for the most outstanding stu-Alumnus for his contributions to the                                           dent in otolaryngology in 2001-2002. He
medical field.	currently practices at UPMC Mercy and “It’s a tremendous honor to                                                                 trains residents, medical students,
even be considered for this award	and international visiting scholars as with so many talented and suc-                                                                            a faculty member of the University cessful people to come out of Shal-                                                                      of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. er Area over the years,” Dr. Soose                                                                                   Dr. Soose’s research interests said.                                                                                                                                 center on the development of
Dr. Soose is the Director	novel therapeutic approaches for of the UPMC Division of Sleep                                                                                obstructive sleep apnea. He is an Surgery in the Department of                                                                                active investigator on multiple clin-Otolaryngology. As the region’s only                                                                 ical trials including the leading site otolaryngologist who is both fellow-                                                              in the multicenter Stimulation Ther-ship-trained and board-certified in                                                             apy for Apnea Reduction (STAR) trial sleep medicine, Dr. Soose has established                                             — an FDA-approved phase III trial evalu-one of the nation’s premier comprehensive                                  ating the safety and efficacy of an implantable sleep medicine and sleep surgery clinical practices.       device for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea.
A
Dr. Soose received a Bachelor of Science	He has published original research and co-authored degree in pre-professional studies from the Univer-	numerous peer-reviewed publications in medical sity of Notre Dame in 1998 and his medical degree	journals. His primary publication from the STAR from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medi-	trial earned the Clinical Research Forum Top 10 cine in 2002. While at the University of Pittsburgh,	Clinical Research Achievement Award in the U.S. in Dr. Soose was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha	2014.

fter graduating from Shaler Area High School in 2011, Liz Krotec joined the Air Force and has been serving her country with distinc-
tion ever since.
Ms. Krotec recently achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant and received the Air Force Special Operations Air Warfare Center Aerial Gunner of the Year award in February 2017.
Ms. Krotec started basic training February 2012 and spent an additional year and a half train-ing to be fully qualified as an aerial gunner on an AC-130W plane.
Ms. Krotec has been deployed twice as an aerial gunner as part of Operation Enduring Free-dom in Afghanistan in May 2014 and Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq and Syria in May 2015. After returning from her second deployment, Ms.

Krotec became the first female to be an aerial gunner instructor in the 551st Special Operation Squadron schoolhouse at Cannon Air Force Base, in New Mexico in December 2016.
In May 2017, Ms. Krotec started her training to be a flight engineer on a UH-1N helicopter. She will be
stationed in Washington
D.C. at the completion of her training and be responsible for transporting presidential or distin-guished visitors.

Shaping Our Future
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Community Support

Shaler Area Education Foundation hosts two main fundraising events each year, the SAEF Family Wellness 5K Run/Walk (above) and A Taste of Shal-er Area (right) to raise funds to beneﬁt students and academic programs at Shaler Area School District.

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Shaler Area Education
Foundation presented four
haler Area Educa-	throughout the year, are tion Foundation has	distributed across the established itself as	district through a grant
grants to Shaler Area
teachers & students in its
a strong district partner	application process each through a series of suc-	year.
ﬁrst grant cycle
cessful events aimed at	In its first grant cycle, raising money to benefit                                                                                                             Shaler Area Education students and academic                                                                                                                Foundation proudly programs at Shaler Area.                                                                                                            supported the educational
The Shaler Area	opportunities for students Education Foundation is a nonprofit organization          by presenting a total of four grants.
dedicated to supporting the educational needs and	Grant Recipients

curricular advancement of Shaler Area students by	•	Team of 5 Shaler Area students — $66.35 to raising funds that can be used to purchase addi-                    purchase needed materials to participate in a tional resources to increase the educational oppor-              STEAM competition.
tunities for all students in the district.	•	Shaler Area Elementary School Million Word The foundation hosts two main fundraising               Reader Celebration — $660.72 to offset
events each year. In the fall, the SAEF Family Well-	the costs associated with the school’s reading ness 5K Run/Walk event kicks off the homecom-	incentive program.
ing festivities. The race occurs on the morning of	•	Junior Achievement program — $1,000 to homecoming before the parade. A Taste of Shaler                  support the Junior Achievement program for Area is held each spring at the Shaler Area High                     students in kindergarten through 6th grade. School and features food from local restaurants,	•	Shaler Area Elementary School Singers music, and a variety of silent auction items, includ-              program — $1,000 to support a traveling
ing student artwork.	choral group to represent the district and music The money raised from the foundation’s	program through performances at local schools
events, as well as individual donations received	and community events.

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Shaping Our Future

District Distinctions

Title I Distinguished Schools Shaler Area’s Jeffery Primary School and
Marzolf Primary School were two of only 168 Title I schools in Pennsylvania to be named a Title I Distinguished School for the 2016-17 school year by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Division of Federal Programs. Title I Distinguished Schools are selected based upon the highest 5% of Title I schools’ aggregate math and reading PSSA data.
“This honor reflects the hard work and dedication of our staff and students at these schools and our commitment to the education of all students,” said Superintendent Sean Aiken.

State Farm Neighborhood Assist grant winner
Shaler Area Backpack Initiative is able to make a bigger impact on students’ lives thanks to a $25,000 State Farm Neighborhood Assist grant.
The Shaler Area Backpack Initiative provides child-friendly, single-serving snacks and easily prepared meals to students each Friday, providing a more than 10,000 weekend bags of food each year to students in need.
The program is entirely volunteer run and

donation dependent. The $25,000 grant ensures the ability to provide food for the entire school year to all applicants, in lieu of having to cap the enrollment. It also is able to include healthier food items that were previously too expensive for the program’s budget.
“We are so appreciative for the entire community’s support of this program and everyone who voted for the Backpack Initiative,” said Sean Aiken, Shaler Area superintendent. “This money will help the volunteer teachers, students and community members who run the program reach so many more students in our district.”
The Backpack Initiative was one of 200 causes selected by the State Farm Youth Advisory Board to compete for the grant. The Backpack Initiative was one of the top 40 vote-getting causes — and only Pennsylvania winner — that received a Neighborhood Assist grant to improve their communities.

Live Well Allegheny School District Shaler Area was named a Live Well
Allegheny School District in 2017 for its commitment to the health and wellness of students, staff, and the community.
Live Well Allegheny was launched by the county in January 2014 as a comprehensive, innovative strategy on
wellness that embraces a broad concept of living well to include physical health, mental wellness, personal
and community safety, prevention and
preparedness, and much
more. The effort is being led by the Board of Health and Health Department Director Dr. Karen Hacker.

Being recognized as a Live Well Allegheny School District is a distinction for a school district that is taking steps to improve the health and wellness of its students and staff. Shaler Area is one of 13 Live Well Allegheny Schools in the county.

Wellness Champion
Shaler Area was recognized for its efforts to encourage health and wellness within the district by being named as a Wellness Champion during the Champions of Wellness Celebration and AIU Board Member Convention. Representatives from the District accepted a plaque and check for $4,000 presented by the Allegheny County Schools Health Insurance Consortium. Shaler Area earned the recognition for its commitment to employee wellness, for empowering employees to become individual wellness champions, and for attaining
at least 50 percent enrollment in the Champions of Wellness rewards program.
Shaler Area also was named 2nd runner-up in the “Best of the Best” ACSHIC Wellness Video Competition. The video highlighted the Shaler Area 10,000 Step Challenge program which invited all district employees to improve their health and wellness with the goal of each participant walking 10,000 steps per day.

Shaler Area School Board

Shaler Area School Board is made up of nine elected members who represent the communi-ty and play an integral role in making decisions for the future of Shaler Area.

Front Row (left to right): Suzanna Donahue, Eileen Phillips, School Board President Dr. April Kwiatkowski, Jeanne Petrovich

Back Row (left to right): Superintendent Sean Aiken, James Fisher, Jason Machajewski,
School Board Vice President James Tunstall, Tim Gapsky, Steve Romac, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Bryan O’Black

Shaler Area School Board of Directors meets most months on the second
and third Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. in the Barbara J. Duss Conference
Room of the Administration Building, 1800 Mt. Royal Blvd. December’s reorganization meeting is the first Wednesday of the month. A full schedule of meetings, meeting agendas, and minutes are available at www.sasd.k12. pa.us/SchoolBoard.aspx.

Shaping Our Future
through
T
Fiscal Responsibility

“We are committed to being
responsible to our taxpayers
while also providing Shaler
he Shaler Area School Board and district ad-ministrators have made budgeting a yearlong process to maximize fiscal responsibility.
Area students with the highest
quality of education...”
-Superintendent Sean Aiken
Throughout the year, central office admin-istrators, principals, department leaders, school board members, and staff worked to increase sav-ings in the 2016-17 budget and plan for the 2017-18 budget while maintaining the district’s commit-ment to its academic programming.
The district balanced the $83,836,735 bud-

get for 2017-18 through the minimal millage in-	with the highest quality of education in order to be crease — the 2017-18 millage rate is 23.2819 mills	competitive in a global economy,” said Superinten-— as well as using an allocation of the fund balance	dent Sean Aiken.
created as a result of more favorable returns as well	The district recognizes the burden of a tax as cost-cutting measures introduced in the 2016-17     increase on taxpayers and will continue to scruti-school year. Some of these cost cutting measures           nize each expenditure in order to ensure operation-include:                                                                                         al efficiency and fiscal responsibility for the school
•	An aggressive attrition model to reduce	district and community. Through the 2017-18 fiscal salaries and benefits	year and continuing into the future, the district
•	Reducing expenditures of supplies, books,	will continue to keep fiscal responsibility at the natural gas, and equipment	forefront and look for creative ways to utilize staff,
“We are committed to being responsible to our tax-	generate resources, and reduce spending while payers while also providing Shaler Area students	maintaining the academic programs.

T
2017-18 budget supports academics

he 2017-18 budget provides funds for the district to continue its commitment to ed-ucational initiatives that will benefit students
across all grade levels. Some of these initiatives include:
•	Changes to the English language arts cur-riculum at the middle school to provide students with the opportunity to learn new material and in more depth.
•	Changes to the math curriculum to maintain areas of strength and focus more attention on areas for growth.
•	Purchasing new science textbooks at the

middle school and high school level to main-tain students’ access to current materials, especially at the advanced high school levels.
•	Supporting the Project ACE (Advancing Classroom Education) 1:1 iPad initiative that provides iPad mini devices to all students in grades 7-12 and a 2:1 iPad to student ratio at the K-6 level.
•	Upgrading the technology infrastructure in all primary schools, concluding a 5-year
infrastructure replacement offset by federal funds, to ensure students do not experi-ence interruptions in Internet access.

A

WHERE OUR MONEY COMES FROM

Federal Funding & Other Sources—1.5%

State Funding—33%

Grants advance initiatives, save money

s part of Shaler Area’s commitment to fiscal responsibility, teachers and administrators
seek out grant opportunities each year to help cover the cost of academic initiatives, resources, and educational opportunities.

In the 2016-17 school year, Shaler Area received more than $140,000 in grant funds.

Local Funding—65.5%

WHERE OUR MONEY GOES

Equipment—0.4%

Books —0.7%
Electric, Water, Gas, Diesel—1.9%

Professional Fees—5.0%	Other—1.3%

Cyber/Charter School Tuition—5.4%

Debt Service—8.4%

Transportation—6.2%

Salaries & Beneﬁts—70.7%

In the 2016-17 school year, Shaler Area received more than $140,000 in grant funds. These grants provided students and teachers with additional opportunities without affecting the district budget. In the past, grants have funded the construction and development of the IKS Titan classroom simulator housed in the elementary school, the Project ENGIN and Project Caboose program, which introduces engineering skills in the primary grade levels, and the creation of a preschool Pre-K Counts program housed in two of the Shaler Area primary schools.
In the 2016-17 school year, grants received provided funding for the following:
•	Upgrades to the building access system at the elementary school
•	School Resource Officer
•	School Wide Positive Behavior, Interventions and Supports program at the high school
•	Shaler Area Backpack Initiative •	IKS Titan curriculum expansion •	Science and robotics equipment •	Wellness initiatives
•	Educational out-of-district trips

Shaler Area School District 1800 Mount Royal Blvd. Glenshaw, PA 15116

412-492-1200	www.sasd.k12.pa.us	@shalerarea