APC News

Avonworth Primary Center recently hosted its annual Fire Prevention Day, giving students an opportunity to learn important lessons about fire prevention, emergency safety and the role first responders play in keeping our community safe.

Throughout the day, students learned what to do in an emergency, explored emergency vehicles and equipment, and heard directly from local firefighters and EMS professionals about the important work they do each day.

A special thank you to the Ohio Township and Emsworth Volunteer Fire Departments and EMS teams for spending the day with our students and helping make Fire Prevention Day both educational and fun.

Avonworth School District is grateful for the continued partnership and dedication of our community’s first responders!

Avonworth School District will recognize Children’s Grief Awareness Day on Thursday, Nov. 19, helping students better understand grief and how they can support classmates and friends who have experienced the death of someone important in their lives.

Children’s Grief Awareness Day serves as a reminder that grief can affect children and teens in many different ways and that support, understanding and compassion can make a meaningful difference.

Representing Avonworth Middle School at the Children’s Grief Awareness Day Summit will be Anna Keiley, Olivia Mason and Katherine Vaughn, accompanied by Mrs. Megan Campedel. During Connections, middle school students will learn about Children’s Grief Awareness Day, hear Mrs. Potter-Paradise share her Caring Place story and color butterflies for a Builders Club mural. On Nov. 19, students wearing blue will gather in the gym during WIN to form the shape of a butterfly for a group photo.

Avonworth High School students Nina Babusci and Sydney Stahl will attend the summit with Mrs. Morgan Weyant and Mr. David Como. At AHS, students will color butterflies to display throughout the building and learn about the purpose of Children’s Grief Awareness Day and ways to support peers who are grieving.

Students, families and staff can also show their support by wearing blue, the official color of Children’s Grief Awareness Day. Special 2026 “Be a Champion of Hope” tie-dye shirts are available in youth and adult sizes. Orders are due Oct. 9 and will be delivered by Nov. 13. T-shirts can be ordered here.

The butterfly is a symbol of hope for Children’s Grief Awareness Day. Through these activities, Avonworth students are helping create a caring community where grieving children and teens know they are not alone.

Dear Avonworth Community Members,

As we continue the search for Avonworth School District's next Superintendent of Schools, we wanted to provide a brief update on the process.

The Board of School Directors is actively engaged in the interview process and has dedicated considerable time to evaluating candidates from a strong and highly qualified applicant pool. Through multiple rounds of interviews and discussion, Board members are carefully considering each candidate's experience, leadership approach, and alignment with the priorities identified through community feedback.

The search remains on schedule, with the goal of selecting a final candidate in October. Additional information will be shared as the process progresses.

Thank you for your continued interest, support, and partnership throughout this important endeavor.

 

Sincerely,

The Avonworth School District 
Board of School Directors   

John Brandt, President
Yu-Ling Cheng, Vice President
Danielle White, Treasurer
Adam Livingston
Jessica Opalko
Justin Panuski
Jenna Paulat
Nora Silvey
Amy Tokar

Second grade Student Ambassadors attended the Remake Learning Assembly at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh.

Students spent a morning exploring a variety of interactive booths, where they had opportunities to create, experiment and learn through hands-on activities. It was a fun and engaging morning filled with creativity, curiosity and new experiences!

A simple idea from two first-grade students at Avonworth Primary Center has grown into a powerful reminder that kindness can change a community.

Avonworth’s #BeTheKindKid initiative has been recognized by Remake Learning as one of 57 projects that have helped shape Pittsburgh’s learning landscape over nearly two decades. Featured in The 57: Remaking Learning in Pittsburgh and Beyond, the project joins a diverse collection of innovative learning experiences that have taken place in classrooms, libraries, museums, maker spaces, parks and community centers across the region.

The collection celebrates projects that challenge traditional ideas about where, when, how and why learning happens — and #BeTheKindKid is a great example. The initiative began when two first-grade girls had an idea: create an “incubator for kindness.” Rather than simply talking about kindness, they imagined a way to help others practice it, share it and spread it throughout their school community.

Their idea became #BeTheKindKid — a student-driven movement that encourages children to recognize opportunities to be kind and make a positive difference in the lives of others. This recognition highlights the power of giving young learners the opportunity to identify a need, develop an idea and turn that idea into something that benefits their entire community.

Remake Learning’s 57 featured projects are intended not only to celebrate the past, but to spark new ideas, inspire new connections and encourage educators and communities to imagine what learning can look like in the future.

We're proud to be a part of it. 

Learn more about the 57 projects. (Avonworth is featured on page 4.)