Bethel Park Schools

While fourth graders at Ben Franklin Elementary School were incubating chickens in the classroom this year, one family took the project a step further by simultaneously hatching ducks and quail on their home farm.

Parent Lizzie Orris and the Foote family — Cheri, Reagan and Maddy — visited the fourth grade Tuesday to share their experience, bringing with them 5-day-old ducklings and a quail.

Students had the opportunity to interact with the animals and hear firsthand about the family’s egg sorting process and time caring for the hatchlings.

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The Bethel Park School District is seeking enthusiastic individuals for our Summer Help Maintenance/Custodial positions with day assignments, offering $14 an hour.

Key Details:
Position: Summer Help - Maintenance/Custodial
Pay Rate: $14 per hour
Application Deadline: June 5, 2026

Interested candidates are encouraged to apply through our website. The job description is available on the application page. You can also contact Dr. Mark Korcinsky at 412-854-8608.

Independence Middle School's National Junior Honor Society held its spring induction ceremony on June 1, welcoming 65 seventh-graders into the organization while recognizing eighth-grade members who collectively logged more than 1,000 hours of community service. Retiring Bethel Park School District Superintendent James Walsh delivered the keynote address, and eighth-graders Juliette Hall, Brielle Schafer, and Addisyn Voytko were honored as NJHS Outstanding Achievement Award winners.

Full Story:
https://www.bpsd.org/apps/news/article/2205200?categoryId=20490
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Four years ago, William Penn Elementary teacher Mrs. Lori Joseph conceived an idea that no Bethel Park elementary school had done before: to open the school’s doors to welcome its graduates home.

That first Clap-Out in 2022 planted a tradition — and today, the Class of 2026 walked through those same doors one last time to honor it.

They came back not just as seniors, but as proof of everything this building always believed possible.

There is a particular electricity in hallways like these — the kind built slowly, over years of small moments. A locker that sticks. A corner of the cafeteria that felt like yours. A teacher whose voice you still hear when you need steadying.

Today, those hallways were alive with recognition, with laughter, with the complicated joy of returning somewhere you once couldn't wait to leave.

Teachers who watched these students sound out their first words now watched them cross the threshold as nearly-graduates.

Rhythmic chants of “Will-iam Penn” roared through the hallways of the old school as familiar faces appeared around the bend. Some reunions lasted seconds and still somehow said it all.

This is what William Penn started in 2022 — not just an event, but an invitation: come back home, let us see you, let us celebrate how far you've come. The Class of 2026 answered that invitation with their whole hearts by bringing the largest delegation in school history back to their roots.

Before the ceremony, before the speeches, before the next chapter — there was this place. And today, one final time, it was all theirs.

William Penn will close its doors for the final time on Thursday. Starting next year, Bethel Park students In grades K-5 will attend Bethel Park Elementary School. However, for these students, and for those who love them, the memories forged there will never be replaced.

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The hallways of George Washington Elementary School carry the echoes of a thousand ordinary days — backpacks dropping by the door, friendships forged over lunch trays, the quiet pride of a child reading aloud for the very first time.

On Monday afternoon, those same hallways welcomed back the people those children became.

George Washington hosted the second Senior Clap-Out of the day for Bethel Park’s Class of 2026 — following Memorial’s earlier celebration — giving graduating seniors one final walk through the corridors of their earliest school days.

They came to revisit familiar corners, reconnect with the teachers who believed in them long before they believed in themselves, and soak up one last moment in the place where it all began.

Some paused at the sight of a familiar bulletin board or classroom door. Some arrived grinning and left wiping their eyes. And more than a few teachers found themselves quietly marveling at just how far these kids have come.

Before the cap and gown, before the handshake and the diploma, there was this building. On Monday, they came back one more time.

George Washington Elementary will also close permanently at the end of this school year, as Bethel Park transitions to the new Bethel Park Elementary School in September 2026 — where future generations will fill new hallways with memories of their own.

William Penn, Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln elementary schools will hold their Senior Clap-Out events later today.

Photos: John Allemang and Sunday Varley

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Seventh-grade students at Independence Middle School turned their math classroom into a carnival at the end of the school year, designing and building games to demonstrate their mastery of probability concepts.

Students in Josh Kicinski's seventh-grade math class spent approximately a week and a half brainstorming, constructing, and running the games for the 2026 IMS Probability Carnival.

The event featured a number of student-created attractions, each designed to challenge players to apply probability principles in a hands-on setting, giving students the opportunity to demonstrate classroom learning through real-world application.

The carnival offered students an engaging alternative to traditional assessments while reinforcing core mathematical concepts in a collaborative, interactive environment.

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Bethel Park Junior Football, a nonprofit organization with more than 60 years of youth football tradition, is seeking business sponsors for the upcoming season.

Sponsorship funds support league operations including officials, paramedics, insurance, uniforms, equipment and field lighting.

Platinum-level sponsorships are available and offer the highest level of marketing exposure for participating businesses.

The program is volunteer-led by coaches, parents and a dedicated board of directors. Its mission focuses on developing football skills while building character, community involvement and positive values in youth.

Businesses interested in sponsorship packages can review available options at the link below or contact the BPJF Board at [email protected].

For sponsorship information, visit:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1e4JVWjwntX0_nX4VR5_rfKvOK7U8Hfj4/view?usp=drivesdk

The hallways of Memorial Elementary School have seen a lot over the years — small sneakers squeaking on linoleum, crayon-stained fingers trailing along painted walls, the nervous tears of a Kindergartner on the very first day of school.

On Monday, those same hallways held the grown-up versions of those very same kids.

Memorial hosted the first of five Senior Clap-Out events for Bethel Park’s Class of 2026, giving graduating seniors one final walk through the halls before Thursday evening’s commencement ceremony. They came to reminisce, reconnect with old friends, and share a moment with the teachers and administrators who helped shape them.

Some walked slowly, holding onto every detail. Some laughed with old friends, memories rushing back the moment they stepped through the door. And more than a few — seniors and teachers alike — felt the quiet ache of a chapter coming to a close.

Before all the achievements, before the diploma, there was this hallway. On Monday, they got one last walk to remember.

Memorial Elementary will close its doors for the final time this week. Beginning in September 2026, Bethel Park’s elementary students will attend the new Bethel Park Elementary School — where a whole new generation will begin their journey and start making memories of their own.

George Washington Elementary also held its Senior Clap-Out today — those photos are coming soon. William Penn, Abraham Lincoln, and Ben Franklin elementary schools will host their senior salutes tomorrow afternoon.