Not long ago, the sight of a police officer or vehicle at a school would have been a cause for alarm among staff and parents. Now, patrol vehicles are as routine as school buses outside District buildings, and officers can be seen high-fiving students as they arrive in the morning, participating in school activities, or walking hallways, cafeterias and playgrounds throughout the day.

What changed was an increased desire for a stronger law enforcement presence in schools resulting from a number of high-profile school shootings and other incidents across the nation over the past two decades. While the presence of police in a school certainly can help prevent such a crime in the future, there is much more that is gained by having a closer relationship between law enforcement and education.

Neshaminy currently supports three School Resource Officers. Detective Andrew Amoroso and Officer Melissa Robison come from the Middletown Township Police Department, while the most recent addition, Officer Joseph Zaffino, comes from the Lower Southampton Police Department. Though they are uniformed, fully connected with their police departments and drive fully-equipped police vehicles, they are based at their respective Neshaminy schools full-time each school day. The District pays a  flat yearly fee for each officer, which covers a portion of their salary and expenses. The Townships pay the balance of the costs.

The benefits of the School Resource Officer program reach far beyond patrols and emergency response. Each officer spends a major portion of his or her day working with administrators, students and families to identify and prevent problems areas before they turn into emergencies. Immersion in the school environment gives them the opportunity to build a positive relationship with the students, who might then be less afraid to seek help from somebody they know and trust. The officers also share vital information about bullying and substance abuse prevention by guest teaching health classes and increase awareness of how law enforcement works by speaking in classrooms and at career fairs. They frequently participate in co-curricular activities such as kickball, pickle ball and tag football games with students, and are often seen at Back-to-School Nights, PTO events and other community activities.

Their presence in the schools is one aspect of an ongoing effort to increase security throughout the District. This includes security vestibules in each school building, hundreds of new security cameras, new and updated emergency procedures, web and smart phone applications to identify and report threats quickly, and ongoing staff training.

Videos: Meet the School Resource Officers

   Neshaminy High School: Detective Andrew Amoroso
  Tawanka, Ferderbar & Poquessing: Officer Joseph Zaffino
   MP, Buck, Sandburg, Schweitzer Miller & Hoover: Officer Melissa Robison

  Neshaminy Alumni Achievers nomination information

A wet spring, dry summer and heavy usage have taken their toll on the athletic fields at Neshaminy High School this year. In an effort to assess field conditions and plan possible remediation, the School Board authorized a study to be conducted by ELA Sport of Lititz, PA at their September 24 meeting. The group will survey the fields and offer various solutions that could include anything from changes to maintenance procedures to complete field reconstruction or the addition of artificial turf fields. The survey is expected to take 4-6 months to complete, and will include input from a steering committee from the District to help guide the project.

The Neshaminy School District Board of School Directors and the Neshaminy Federation of Teachers have both approved a five-year contract. The Board approved the deal at their September 26 meeting by a vote of 8-0 (with one absence). The compensation related terms of the tentative agreement include:

  Text of tentative contract between the NSD Board & the NFT

On September 24, 2019 the Board agreed to extend the lease until 2029 and to also approve HVAC and other improvements to the building. These improvements are part of the final phase of the District-wide Guaranteed Energy Savings Act (GESA) project to improve HVAC, electrical, plumbing and insulation systems in multiple buildings. The financing  for the project will be the full responsibility of the tenant, the BCIU. There is no cost to Neshaminy School District for the upgrades.

Families that are eligible for the Neshaminy Free & Reduced Meal Program are invited to sign up for an additional free services -- the District can send your information to other agencies that offer assistance programs for qualifying families. Though acceptance is not guaranteed, this is a convenient way to find out about services that might be available to you. To participate, you must sign and return a permission form found at the website linked below.

  Neshaminy Free & Reduced Meal Program Information

  We Build Futures award winners

On September 21, each student who completed a summer reading packet was invited to a pirate-themed party in the cafetorium that included snacks, small treasures (pencil and bookmark), and group pictures with pirate decorations. In addition, there was a raffle for a $10 Barnes & Noble gift card for each grade level. Thanks to Reading Specialists Pam Haggerty and Jennifer Pinson for organizing this fun event!

In September students at Walter Miller assembled in the cafeteria for their Summer Reading Celebration. This celebration was a culmination of all the hard work they did over the summer months to prevent the “summer slide.” The invited students completed a summer packet filled with reading, writing, and comprehension activities. The literacy packet incorporated a Toy Story theme “Read to Infinity and Beyond” as did the celebration.

On September 5 the families of Schweitzer Elementary gathered for an after-school picnic. This is the first event of the year for the CARES (Cooperation, Attitude, Respect, Empathy & Safety) positive behavior program.

The entrance and playground at Schweitzer Elementary are much brighter thanks to two new additions over the summer. The fourth grade class from the 2018-2019 school year donated a new full-color carpet featuring the Schweitzer logo, and bright new stencils have been painted on the playground.

Poquessing Instructional Aides Margie McCurdy and Kim Hazley heard about a WWII veteran who lives in Texas, about to celebrate his 100th birthday. His only wish is to receive 100 birthday cards. So, they brought paper and crayons/colored pencils down to the Poquessing lunchroom and told the kids about the wish. In true Poquessing Spirit, the kids went to work making heartfelt birthday cards. They all thanked him for his service in the war and wished him the best birthday ever. Over 240 cards were mailed out. They are pretty sure his wish will come true many times over!

On Friday, August 30, students at Poquessing enjoyed three team-building activities in and outside the school to support the school's positive behavior SOAR program (Safe, Organized, Accountable, Respectable). It was a great way to end the first week of the new school year!

Maple Point Middle School once again celebrated the US Constitution by inviting guest speakers to talk with students in each grade about their involvement with our guiding document. Speakers this year included Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub (pictured above), State Representative Frank Farry; US Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, Middletown Police Chief Joseph Bartorilla and Officer Melissa Robison, Middletown Township Supervisor Amy Strouse and LevittownNow.com editor Tom Sofield. Pennsylvania District Attorney Josh Shapiro created a personalized video for the students of Maple Point.

Action News visited Maple Point Middle School on September 27 and aired the story linked below about the Maple Point Middle School 8th grade soccer team and one of their team managers, sixth-grader Anthony Lepre. Earlier in the month, his team helped Anthony, who uses a wheelchair, kick a goal so he could experience the joy of the sport.  A smart phone video of this kind gesture made its way around social media. Anthony is diagnosed with a genetic disorder called "Angelman Syndrome," but with help from his family and classmates at Maple Point, he enjoys a wide variety of activities in school and throughout the community. He attends each game and the team shares high-fives with him after each goal.

  Action News: Students help a teammate kick a goal

Students in each grade at Carl Sandburg Middle School celebrated Constitution Day by participating in a fun, energetic, live game show on September 20. Titled Are You Smarter than your Teacher and modeled after the popular TV game show Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader, the game pitted a randomly selected team of students against a panel of teachers in the school's auditorium. Each had to answer various questions about the US Constitution. Two sessions of the game were held - one for grades 5&6 and another for grades 7&8.

  Are you Smarter than Your Teacher at Sandburg MS

On September 6, the ninth-grade AVID classes at Neshaminy HS visited Harry E. Franks Stadium early in the morning to think ahead to the end of their senior year -- and about what they might accomplish to reach their dreams and goals at Neshaminy HS when they walk across that field one last time during their Commencement Ceremony. AVID is the District's college readiness and academic support program. This year the program continues to expand with the addition of more schools and grades.

  AVID graduation preview excercise

  Spooky Kooky preview at Back to School Night

On September 5, scores of elementary and middle school students and their families visited Neshaminy HS to attend the annual Music Discovery Night. The adults learned about the award-winning music program at Neshaminy, while the students got to try out various string, woodwind and brass instruments to help them find out which they might want to learn. NHS student musicians from the Band, Jazz Band and Symphony Orchestra were on hand to perform for them and assist the District music staff with instrument demonstrations.

The Neshaminy community once again honored our First Responders at the varsity football game on Friday, September 6. Local police officers, EMT's and firefighters were invited on to the field to be recognized for their service to our schools and the entire area.

Additional, special community events this season include Homecoming on Friday, October 4 and the Pink Out to benefit cancer victim support on Friday, October 11.

The inaugural class of the Neshaminy HS Tri-M Music Honor Society was inducted during a ceremony in Theodore Kloos Auditorium at Neshaminy HS on September 23. Tri-M is a national honor society for middle and high school musicians sponsored by the National Association for Music Education.

The inductees this year are (in alphabetical order): Kate Bilenko, Brianna Fallon, Victoria Fischer, Julia Khusidman, Cody Lewandowski, Erin McGinniss, Grace McKenna, Shannon Mohan, Madison Neiman, Benjamin Sacks, Carleigh Saxton, Samantha Antoian, Justice Balabuszko, Alison Cefalone, Molly Coughlin, Jacqueline Dyszel, Emily Krajnikovich, Elizabeth McGonagle, Stanley Omietanski, Sarah Omietanski, Julia Garibaldi, Rachel Myers, Ainsley Lederer and Serhiy Vereshchak.

The group also dropped off 3,000 "Peyton Heart Project Hearts," which contain positive messages that the Interact Club members will distribute around the area. This is part of a global project to help end suicide, bullying, and the stigma surrounding mental health issues.

Mrs. Dougherty taught at Neshaminy HS since 1999. She was a graduate of Penn State University with a degree in Business Administration. She received her teaching certification from Gwynedd-Mercy College, and a Masters Degree in Business Administration with a Finance concentration from La Salle University.

The Neshaminy HS Field Hockey team, their opponents from Truman HS, athletes from other NHS teams and other specators gather for a moment of silence before a game October 2 to honor Mrs. Dougherty.

Neshaminy School District 2250 Langhorne-Yardley Road Langhorne, PA 19047 Joseph Jones III Superintendent (215) 809-6000 www.neshaminy.org District calendar

Neshaminy School Board of Directors Marty Sullivan - President Stephen Pirritano - Vice President John Allen Cyndie Bowman Irene M. Boyle Bob Feather Tina Hollenbach Adam J. Kovitz David Marrington Contact information View upcoming meetings Meeting videos