ABOUT OUR DISTRICT

Our District implemented Everyday Mathematics in Grades K-2 in 2008 and moved to Everyday Mathematics in grades 3 through 6 this year.  The positive results we saw from the program last year caused us to move ahead and change to the program in most elementary grades this year.  Thus far, the transition to Everyday Mathematics seems to be going pretty well.  We are thankful for the parent support we have received in this endeavor and the hard work and dedication our staff members have demonstrated while we are making this curricular change. 

A full-day kindergarten program provides a literacy intensive learning environment, and strong instructional elements such as Kid Writing and Imagination Station.  Beginning last year, in a partnership with Cen-Clear Child Services, with State funding, we now offer  Pre-K programs at Port Matilda and Wingate Elementary schools.

Another elementary initiative has been a science partnership with Lock Haven University (LHU).  Our school district has, via district funding and a science foundation grant with LHU, provided Full Option Science System (FOSS) kits and the professional staff development necessary to implement an inquiry-based science program in our K-6 classrooms.  K-2 students engage in active learning activities with three different FOSS units each year.  In grades 3-6, students are immersed in four FOSS learning modules.  This school year, the Bald Eagle Area Elementary Schools hosted their first Family Science Night at Wingate Elementary School.  It was a huge success, with over 750 students and their families attending the event.  Parents and students had the opportunity to participate in many science activities and to see a multitude of displays reflecting what our students and teachers are doing in science.  The event was sponsored by the BEA Elementary Science Committee, the Academic Space Alliance (Bellefonte, Bald Eagle and Penns Valley School Districts), Penn State University Outreach Program, PSU Astronomy Program, Juniata College, Kish Bank, and with help from a grant from NASA.

A balanced comprehensive reading and writing program has been implemented in the District since 1999.  The District has trained nearly all K-3 classroom teachers in the Reading Recovery method.  To prepare students for a constantly changing technological society, all children receive instruction in the computer labs located in each of the elementary schools. 

We partner with the YMCA to offer beginning swimming to 4th grade students.

At the secondary level, qualifying juniors and seniors have the opportunity to enroll in college credit courses at the Pennsylvania State University and the Lock Haven University, as a means of enriching and individualizing their education opportunities.  Students may also take online courses, if they desire.  The District Dual Enrollment Grant pays most of the expenses for students enrolled in post secondary courses.  Also, Bald Eagle Area held its first Middle/Senior High School Career/College Fair in 2008.  This career/college fair was designed to allow local employers and postsecondary training providers (colleges, universities, and the military) to provide information regarding staffing patterns, job demand, employer recruitments, postsecondary program availability and military opportunities to BEA students in grades 7-12

The District added Project Lead the Way engineering courses to its high school curriculum in 2002.  Project Lead the Way is a national program forming partnerships among public schools, higher education institutions, and the private sector to increase the quantity and quality of engineers and engineering-related vocations graduating from the educational system.  Project Lead the Way is designed to assist students in transitioning from high school into demanding post-secondary programs.  Courses in this series are Introduction to Engineering Design, Principles of Engineering, Digital Electronics, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, and Engineering Design and Development.

The District received a $215,494 Pennsylvania State Classrooms for the Future (CFF) grant in 2007, and a $45,000 grant in 2008.  CFF is a three-year investment to provide laptop computers, high-speed Internet access, and state-of-the-art software to high school classrooms across the state.  Two hundred seventy-five student laptop computers, and digital projectors, cameras, and video camcorders, wireless access points, and interactive smart boards (a very large computer screen visible to the entire classroom, where the instructor uses his/her finger as the mouse) were part of the grant.  Instructors from each of the four core areas - language arts, math, reading, and science - have volunteered to participate in this project. 

Our middle school initiative is now in its fifth year for the seventh and eighth graders.  This school-within-a-school is designed to more effectively address students' academic and social needs.  Each grade level has two teams that have flexibility to adapt their schedules to accommodate extended learning projects, presentations, and field trips.  New opportunities for seventh and eighth graders include girls and boys junior high soccer programs, which were initiated in 2008.

Our Cyber Academy, our recent Science, Math, and Reading initiatives, and even our synthetic turf high school athletic field demonstrates that the Bald Eagle Area School District practices wise fiscal management of its resources, yet continually updates and improves its facilities and services.  Currently BEA is in the design stages of renovating both our high school and largest elementary school facilities, scheduled to begin in 2009. 

The Bald Eagle Area School District, an AA school, is small enough to offer our students a personal, nurturing educational experience, under the direction of a dedicated Board of Education, administration, and professional and support staff.  Our District is proud to offer an academically-challenging educational experience that will prepare Bald Eagle Area students for any career they may wish to pursue.  In short, the District walks its talk in our guiding slogan, "We Teach for Success."