School bells are ringing throughout the South Hills and, along with new backpacks and school clothes, the new year brings new administrators and teachers to many districts, new sports facilities to some districts and new opportunities for online learning in others.

Cafeteria food and snacks served at school parties will be healthier under the new wellness policies that districts must enact as part of a federal mandate aimed at fighting childhood obesity.

Several districts will join others in allowing parents to track their children's grades, attendance and disciplinary records online through a service called Edline.

	Bob Donaldson, Post-Gazette Principal George Fitch greets pupils arriving Monday for the first day of the school year at the Propel Charter School in Homestead. Click photo for larger image.

And two districts, Baldwin-Whitehall and McKeesport Area, will use the Freshman Academy approach in ninth grade, a program designed to provide additional support and individualized attention to ninth-grade students as they transition into high school.

Here's a list of what's new in each of the 18 districts in the southern suburbs:

Baldwin-Whitehall

Phase two of the $64 million renovation and construction project is under way and students will return to the high school to find the entire south wing has been demolished over the summer.

That two-story wing included computer labs, the guidance suite and social studies and foreign language classrooms, Superintendent Donna Milanovich said.

To replace the lost classrooms, the old gymnasium has been partitioned into 10 classrooms. Physical education classes for the fall will be held outdoors on the fields or in the weight room at the stadium.

The computer labs have been put into two trailers and will remain there for the duration of the construction project, which is "right on track and doing really well," Dr. Milanovich said.

The district also has some administrative changes for the fall. Paynter Elementary School Principal Betty Taiclet will become the principal of McAnulty Elementary School and Darlene DeFilippo, who was principal of Whitehall Elementary School, will become principal of Paynter.

Patricia Fusco, a literacy coach from the Pittsburgh Public Schools, has been named vice principal of Paynter.

At Whitehall Elementary, Daniel Emanuelson, has been promoted from vice principal to principal. Jennifer Marsteller, who had been a math coach at Whitehall, will become the school's vice principal.

Also, at the elementary level, a literacy coach has been hired and the district received money through the Science is Elementary program to provide hands-on science lessons.

At Harrison Middle School, social studies teacher Jay Johnson has been promoted to vice principal.

The Freshman Academy approach will be applied for ninth grade students.

Bethel Park

The district is getting a new track, turf football field and scoreboard at the high school stadium. The turf is expected to be ready for the first home football game Sept. 1. But it will be several more weeks before the track surface can be laid, district spokeswoman Vicki Flotta said.

A community open house and pep rally will be held at the stadium from 7 to 8:30 p.m. next Thursday.

The district will implement the Edline program, which will allow parents to check their children's grades and other records online.

Students may notice some changes in the lunch menu as the district has switched food service providers from The Nutrition Group to Metz and Associates.

The district's new athletic director is Amy Williams.

The district has a new sign-in procedure for visitors to the schools. Visitors must report directly to the school office, sign a log sheet that states the reason for their visit and leave a photo identification card with a secretary for the duration of the visit. Visitors will be issued visitor tags to wear and, when the tag is returned at the end of the visit, the photo ID will be returned.

Brentwood

New faces in the administrative and teaching ranks will be apparent to students. The new high school principal is Jason Olexa, who had been an assistant high school principal in the Peters Township School District. He replaces Ronald Dufalla, who was promoted to superintendent.

The new principal of Elroy Elementary School is Brian Lydon, who was a teacher at Brentwood. In addition, 12 of the 98 teachers in the district will be new because of retirements.

Chartiers Valley

Students will return to construction projects in full swing, but none will affect the areas where they attend classes. Ground was broken at the end of the school year on a nearly $30 million renovation and building project that will provide additions to the primary, intermediate, middle and high schools, but none of the work is expected to disrupt classes.

The primary school, which houses grades K-2, will get 12 new classrooms and a gymnasium and performing and stage area, district spokesman Charles McCartney said.

The intermediate school will get 12 new classrooms, an addition to the cafeteria and updates in mechanical equipment.

An addition will be built to the back of the gymnasium at the middle school/high school complex that will house six locker rooms for outdoor activity, offices, classrooms for family and consumer science courses and a large group instruction area that also will be used for public meetings.

The districtwide construction project is expected to be finished by the beginning of the 2007-08 school year.

Also, the district revised the science curriculum at the intermediate school, will have new social studies textbooks at the high school and will pilot an online text in the 10th grade American Cultures classes. A new curriculum has been added to 10th grade Spanish.

Clairton

The district will start an after-school and Saturday tutoring program for any students who do not score proficient or above on their Pennsylvania System of School Assessment tests, Superintendent Robert David said.

The after-school program will operate for one hour after dismissal on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The schedule for the Saturday program has not been set.

Any student involved in extracurricular activities who does not score at the proficient level or above will be required to attend the tutoring sessions. As a result, all after-school practices will start at 4:15 p.m. to allow students time to attend the sessions, Dr. David said.

The new middle school principal is Dan Stephens, who comes from nearby Duquesne City School District.

To improve security, the district has installed cameras inside and outside the school building.

Duquesne City

Students will return to changes at the top in the Duquesne City School District. Gone are most of the district's administrators from last year, including Superintendent Jacqueline Webb and high school Principal Dan Stephens.

	Martha Rial, Post-Gazette Joseph Brown talks with his daughter, Daisha Brown, before her first day of kindergarten Monday at Duquesne City Elementary School. Click photo for larger image.

Under an agreement with the state Department of Education, the district is under the supervision of the Pittsburgh Public Schools and its superintendent, Mark Roosevelt, for this school year.

The district's new executive director is Vernon Tipton, a former principal in the McKeesport and Wilkinsburg school districts and the developer of the Career Literacy for African American Youth program.

The district, which is housed in one building, the Duquesne Education Center, will be divided into an elementary program, which will include pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The second day program will cover grades 6-12.

The elementary principal will be Barbara McDonnell, who will be a familiar face to pupils because she served as elementary principal during the past year. The secondary principal will be Robert Bischoff, a teacher from Oliver High School.

Elizabeth Forward

The district will have a number of new faces in its administration this fall.

The new athletic director is Kerry Hetrick. He comes to Elizabeth Forward from Community College of Allegheny County. Michele Dowell, a former administrator at the charter high school Career Connections, is the new assistant principal at the high school.

Michael Routh, acting assistant principal at the high school, is principal of Central Elementary School, and Brad Simala, principal of William Penn Elementary, will also become principal of Elizabeth Elementary School.

Mary C. DiFrancesco, a former administrator at the K.D. Tillotson School, will fill the newly created post of supervisor of student attendance. The position was created to "decrease absences and increase the number of students who are coming to school on a regular basis," high school Principal David Bowlin said.

Also helping with that effort is a new automated phone system that will notify parents when their children are tardy or absent.

High school and middle school students will get new math textbooks and a new science program will be piloted in the middle school. The high school also will get new chemistry and environmental science textbooks.

Keystone Oaks

The most noticeable change in the district this year will be the new track, new tennis courts and newly graded practice football and softball fields at the high school. The $760,000 project brings to an end the district's longtime effort to replace or renovate all of its schools and facilities, spokesman Jim Cromie said.

The new quarter-mile, six-lane track will have a synthetic surface that is expected to repel more heat than the old surface and to last for 10 years. The project includes moving the areas used for long jump, triple jump, high jump and pole vault to the end zones of the practice field. Permanent bleachers for 200 people will be added to the school side of the facility.

The track is expected to be finished by early October. The tennis courts are slated for early September.

In staffing changes, the district promoted high school Assistant Principal Matthew Friedman to a districtwide post of director of curriculum, The district also hired literacy and math coaches for the elementary schools and is in the process of hiring mental health liaisons, a position similar to school psychologists, for the elementary and secondary schools.

McKeesport Area

The district is opening its own cyber school in a renovated area of Francis McClure Intermediate School. Cyber school students will receive an education similar to students at McKeesport Area High School, and will be permitted to participate in athletics and in the college dual enrollment program. Cyber students will graduate with diplomas from the McKeesport Area School District.

This program is available for students who are currently enrolled in the district's alternative education cyber program and those who already are enrolled in outside cyber schools, District Spokeswoman Robyn Tedesco said.

In a collaboration with the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, the district will open Head Start programs at Centennial and George Washington elementary schools.

A $94,000 grant from the Pittsburgh Foundation will pay for a new physics lab at the high school, and the laboratory preschool at the high school and technology center will be renovated and an outdoor play area will be created with $65,000 in grant money the district recently received from various sources.

The Freshman Academy approach will be applied to the freshman class at the high school.

The district's new buildings and grounds director is Ed Fagan

School speed zones, limiting the speed limit to 15 mph, have been established on the roads to the high school and Founders' Hall. They will be in effect during the times students are arriving and departing from school Monday through Friday.

Mt. Lebanon

The beginning phases of planning for a new high school take place this fall as community members, parents, students and staff are invited to participate in the planning process through meetings and committees.

At Mellon Middle School, Brian McFeely will be the new principal, replacing Vincent Barone, who has joined the teaching faculty at Jefferson Middle School. Mr. McFeely was a unit principal at the high school and previously a math teacher.

The elementary foreign language program will expand into grade 4. The program was taught in grades 1-3 last year.

The district's swimming pool will get an ultraviolet filter that is expected to reduce the allergens in the pool area which swimmers' parents said had been causing severe asthma attacks among some swimmers,

The purchase of the $31,500 filter was approved by the school board last week and is expected to be installed this fall.

Peters Township

The district has two construction projects on its agenda this year.

A $2.58 million expansion that started at Bower Hill Elementary School in July will include eight new classrooms and is expected to be finished by July. A $11.3 million expansion at Peters Township Middle School will provide 12 additional classrooms. It will begin in October and is expected to be finished in May 2008.

New faces will abound in the district's administrative offices. Timm A. Mackley was appointed the district's superintendent last month, replacing Diane Kirk, who retired. Dr. Mackley had been the superintendent of the Groveport-Madison School District in Ohio.

Other new administrators include Elizabeth Somerville, special education supervisor; Richard Relich, director of sports programs and activities; Donna Frederick, administrative assistant to the superintendent; Charles Kreinbucher, assistant principal of Bower Hill and Pleasant Valley elementary schools; and Nancy Hobbs, assistant principal of McMurray Elementary.

Two mobile computer labs will be available at McMurray Elementary for pupils to learn keyboarding skills in their classrooms.

An ultraviolet filtering system is being installed at the high school pool and is expected to be in place by the end of the month.

South Allegheny

Students and staff will notice that they can move about the Internet more quickly this year because the district's file server was replaced by a fiber-optic line. Superintendent Elaine Brown said the new setup works "10-times faster."

Two administrative positions have been created, director of elementary education and director of secondary education. Wayne Gdovic, principal of Hyde Elementary School in Moon, has been named director of elementary education. Richard Fine, a middle school principal in the Ringgold School District, will be director of secondary education. Both men had been principals in South Allegheny.

District teachers will use a new data analysis system to interpret test scores and student learning. The new system, called On-Hands Learning, will provide results more swiftly, is easier to use and will allow teachers to adjust their teaching methods and schedules more promptly, Dr. Brown said.

The district has installed an automated system to communicate with parents and staff. Called Connect-Ed, the system will hold up to six phone numbers for each party and will allow the district to send messages out en masse to large groups of parents or staff. It will be used to notify parents of snow days or other school cancellations and can be used to remind smaller groups of parents about school events such as PT meetings, Dr. Brown said.

Standardized tests will be changed from the Iowa Test, which is given once a year, to the Scantron test, which is used up to four times a year.

South Fayette

The district's stadium will open this year. Though the field was used last year, parts of the stadium were still under construction, district spokeswoman Shelly Belcher said. It will be complete with a concession stand and press box for the first home football game Sept. 8.

South Park

Robert L. Furman will be the principal at the South Park Elementary Center. He comes from the Gateway School District, where he was an assistant middle school principal. He replaces Holly Miller, who moved out of state.

The district hired 12 teachers to teach the learning support classes, which the district is taking over from the Allegheny Intermediate Unit this year, said Jeanine Gregory, assistant to the superintendent. In addition, the district has hired four teachers this year, including a TV production/drama teacher, who will start the operation of the television station at the high school.

The district will operate the online Edline system.

The district is offering what it calls a "blended schools approach," which will allow students to take some classes in the school buildings and others online, Mrs. Gregory said.

Students who use the approach could be those who have exhausted the district's AP courses or students who want to fit an additional elective into their schedules or a level of a foreign language that the school doesn't offer.

It also will serve those who have attendance problems and want to work from home. The district will provide the computer.

South Park was one of several district that received a state Science is Elementary grant which will allow for more hands-on science to be taught at the elementary level.

Steel Valley

The district starts the new year with a new superintendent, William Kinavey, who was appointed last month. He replaces Alex Warren, who resigned. Dr. Kinavey had been the assistant superintendent and then acting superintendent at Steel Valley.

Dr. Kinavey eliminated his former post of assistant superintendent and, in its place, created the positions of director of elementary education and secondary education. Bethany Fenyus, a teacher in the district, has been promoted to director of secondary education.

The auditorium renovation at the middle school/high school complex is nearly finished and is expected to be ready for the first day of classes, and the new middle school gymnasium, made possible by a $1 million grant from alumnus and corporate software executive Bill Campbell, is expected to be finished in October. The gym will be named after Mr. Campbell's brother, James, who died in March of brain cancer.

The high school also will get a pinpad system for the cafeteria through which students will use either an ID number or a card to pay for their lunches. Parents will be asked to deposit money into lunch accounts for their children.

Telephones have been placed in every classroom of the district and will be preprogrammed for the nurse, school office and police department. The district also is working with Homestead and Munhall police to place security cameras in school buildings.

The district will have 37 teachers hired this year, making it the largest group of new teachers the district has seen in recent history. The hirings were necessitated by a large number of retirements.

Upper St. Clair

New high school Principal Michael Ghilani is a familiar face. Dr. Ghilani, a former assistant high school principal who left early in the summer to become principal at Cannon MacMillan High School, was rehired Monday as the Upper St. Clair High School principal. He replaces Timothy Steinhauer, who resigned to become assistant superintendent in the North Allegheny School District.

An Asian studies program, complete with a Mandarin Chinese course and a Thai student exchange, is being started at the high school.

Computers have been replaced in the classrooms of all three elementary schools and hardware and memory upgrades were done on all elementary classroom and lab computers. Software updates were done on all middle school computers. At the high school, a new graphics lab was installed.

The high school is ready to implement the Edline program.

There will be new textbooks for eighth-grade algebra and a new literacy program for kindergarten.

The district has purchased a subscription to World Book Online Reference Center and students will have access to it from school and home.

In addition, pupils in grades 2 to 4 who are having difficulty with reading will be enrolled in a pilot program called Read Naturally.

West Mifflin

The district will offer online advanced placement courses to high school students and a Middle School Academic College on Saturdays for eighth-grade pupils through a partnership with Community College of Allegheny County.

Computer labs at the high school will be equipped with flat screen monitors and computer stations will be added to the AP physics and AP chemistry classes. Two carts containing 16 laptops each will be available for students in science classes throughout the high school.

Reports will include percentage grades as well as letter grades in grades K-12.

Scott Stephenson has been hired as the district's activities director.