ChatGPT (AI)
Click on the link below for information about an emerging technology called ChatGPT and its potential impact on education. In Centennial School District, we are committed to integrating technology to enhance the learning experience and provide valuable resources for students and educators. If technology will be a part of our students' lives, we must teach them how to use it appropriately and responsibly.
Look Out for the New AI Chatbot "Pilot" On Our Website
Centennial School District will partner with AlwaysOn to "pilot" an AI Chatbot on the school district’s website after the Labor Day break. AlwaysOn is an educational-focused, user-friendly tool focused on helping school districts improve their communication, customer service, and website engagement by:
- Allowing our stakeholders to get instant answers to questions, reducing inbound calls and emails to save response time.
- Allowing stakeholders to search for information on our website using questions and phrases. AI search will return the most relevant text and pages.
- Providing the recommendation and information to contact the school district for additional assistance if the chatbot can’t find the information on the website or doesn’t know how to respond.
While the responses generated by ChatGPT are often well-written and structured, we want to remind our stakeholders that the responses are only sometimes perfect and can be susceptible to certain limitations. The chatbots use analytics and machine learning to train on each question asked, which will help them get better over time. The following list of considerations can help you source more nuanced responses from generative AI, like our website ChatBot:
Objective: State the goal or purpose of the response (e.g. bus schedule, lunch menu)
Context: Provide background information (e.g. at Klinger, McDonald, WTHS, etc.)
Language: You have the ability to toggle the ChatBot to your preferred language.
Safety & Security Reminders
Last year, the administration developed, and the board approved, new Job Descriptions for the Supervisor of School Safety and Security and the Security Guards. We also set staffing plans and expectations to transition from a decentralized model to a centralized model, with the newly created position of Supervisor of School Safety and Security who serves as the supervisor of all safety and security for the school district.
Mr. Kevin Burns, who formerly worked for one of our neighboring school districts, has joined CSD as the Supervisor of Safety and Security. The Supervisor of Safety and Security (who will be credentialed as a School Police Officer & armed once PDE paperwork is completed) oversees Security across the District, which includes but is not limited to:
- Serving as the Act 44 Safety and Security Coordinator for the District
- Supervision of School Security Personnel to include: Managing / Training / Compliance / Staffing
- Managing 3rd party safety & security contracts
- Managing Fire and Security Planning (planning, drills, etc.)
- Coordinating training (staff, teachers & substitutes)
- Building Relationships with local Police and First Responders
- Monitoring along with School Administrators' Safe2Say and Gaggle activity
- Maintaining up-to-date security equipment and plans across the District
- Oversight of safety and Security for School Security Extracurricular activities.
Other Safety and Security Measures
- CSD completed the Safety and Security facilities assessment in collaboration with the PA State Police.
- The new Safety and Security staffing plan for Security Guards added five additional positions to the current staffing model.
- The total safety and security staff is approximately 15 members; they now work 190 days per year versus 180 days per year.
- The additional ten days allow them to mirror the teacher work year schedule as well as provide days for continued training/professional development.
Additional work is ongoing to improve school district safety and security measures related but not limited to emergency preparedness and communication capabilities across the school district and on our school buses.
Free School Breakfast Program Continues for 2023-2024
In cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Centennial School District will be offering free school breakfasts to all students in the 2023-2024 school year.
The universal school lunch program was made possible due to a $46.5 million funding increase in the budget signed by Gov. Shapiro this month.
What constitutes a free school breakfast?
One requirement of the program is that it operates on an offer vs. serve basis - this means Centennial must "offer" all 4 breakfast components to children on a daily basis which are:
- Fruit/Vegetable
- Milk
- Protein
- Grain
Like last year, in order for the meal to count as a claimed/reimbursable meal the child must take at least three (3) of the components above and one (1) of the components must be a fruit/vegetable. Students can take 2 fruits and a milk and that counts as a meal.
Mrs. Sara Calabrese
William Tennent is excited to welcome the new 10th grade house principal, Mrs. Sara Calabrese. Mrs Calabrese is an experienced teacher and educational leader with 18 years of service to students and families. William Tennent is excited to have her join them on September 6th. She will be very impressed with the students and families at WTHS.
Mr. Nick Seifert
In July, a new band director was named at William Tennent High School. Nick Seifert, of Bridgewater N.J., was hired after previously serving as band director at Immaculata High School in Somerville, N.J.
ExcitED Summer Recap
The ExcitED Team would like share a recap of the second ExcitED summer. Please see the details below:
There were a total of 73 paid internship slots at 17 different host sites
Grew from 30 slots and 6 host sites
Students earned a total of $63,200;
Grew from $38,650
In addition to internships in the Biotechnology and Student Design fields, we added internships in business, marketing, and manufacturing
Student interns this year included students from the BCIT and Manufacturing programs.
The team is thrilled with the growth they saw this year as well as the quality of the internships and their interns' performance. ExcitED looks forward to improving and enhancing the program’s opportunities and experiences for Centennial students.
For a full recap of ExcitED's Summer of 2023 CLICK HERE.
A Fantastic Start at Klinger
The Klinger Klippers kicked off the year with a fantastic start! They welcomed the sixth graders and students who are new to Klinger with smiles and excitement. The returning seventh and eighth graders led the way, helping the newcomers and bringing them right into the Klinger family. Klinger Middle School is excited to host the Back to School Night on September 11th, followed by the Centennial Farmers Market at Klinger on September 14th. Feel the love at Klinger, where everyone belongs!
Open and Transparent Communication
In an effort for transparency and in response to the School Board's request for public-facing pages for Curriculum and Instruction, we have created sites for both Elementary Curriculum and Secondary Curriculum. The buttons below can be found under the Office of Teaching and Learning on our District Website. The sites contain curriculum and assessment information and resources related to Math, Reading English Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies, as well as our Social Emotional Academic Learning (SEAL) Curriculum, Technology Resources, and Student|Parent access.
2023-26 Comprehensive Planning Feedback
The Pennsylvania Department of Education requires school districts to complete a Comprehensive Plan. Elements of the Comprehensive plan include but are not limited to: District Profile, Planning Process/Committee, Mission, Vision and Values, Instructional Strategies, Safe and Supportive Schools, Special Education Assurances, Induction Plans, Needs Assessments, Action Plan and Goals, and Professional Development. There are also a series of other State Required Reports that are included: Academic Standards and Assessment Requirements (Chapter 4), Gifted Education Plan Assurances (Chapter 16), Induction Plan (Chapter 49), Professional Development Plan (Act 48), and Student Services Assurances (Chapter 12).
The Comprehensive Plan runs on a three-year cycle, and Centennial’s 2020-23 Comprehensive Plan is due for renewal this Fall, 2023. In June of 2022, Centennial put together a Comprehensive Planning Steering Committee comprised of faculty, staff, administration, students, parents, community members, and community partners, and began working on the plan. The main Steering Committee, as well as several subcommittees, worked throughout the Spring, Summer, and Fall of 2022 to complete the Comprehensive Plan and the Pennsylvania Department of Education State Required Reports due this Fall.
As part of the 28-day review requirement, embedded in this Thoughtexchange for feedback is a 1-page overview highlighting the key aspects of our Comprehensive Plan, a draft of our full Comprehensive Plan, a draft of our Induction Plan (Chapter 49), a draft of our Professional Development Plan (Act 48), and a draft of our Gifted Education Plan Assurances (Chapter 16).
In a continued effort to be transparent, inclusive, and informed, we are asking that you please take a few minutes and visit the following Thoughtexchange to provide your feedback on these documents.
https://tejoin.com/scroll/803182638
This exchange will be open until Monday, September 25 at 11:59 pm
Quick Tips:
This Exchange is confidential. Your thoughts will be shared with other participants, but not your identity.
Please be polite and respectful as you share and rate your thoughts.
If you see a thought that is rude, hurtful or identifies a person or group, you can report it by clicking in the upper right corner of the thought.
You will see and rate thoughts that others have shared. 5 stars = strongly agree, 1 star = strongly disagree.
You do not need to rate all thoughts, though it's recommended to rate at least 30.
Please note - participants needing this Exchange in a different language will have the ability to choose that language as a drop-down option once in the Exchange.
2023-24 Fall Diagnostic Assessments
The Office of Teaching and Learning is pleased to share information regarding the local diagnostic assessments that students will complete in both mathematics and reading three times this academic year (Fall/Winter/Spring):
DIBELS for students in grades Kindergarten through 2
i-Ready for students in grades Kindergarten through 8
IXL for students in grades 9-11 English and Algebra, Geometry, and Algebra II
The first assessment window for the Fall Diagnostic Assessments is September 5-22, 2023.
The full CSD K-12 Assessment Calendar and additional information about the individual
diagnostic assessments are located on the district Assessment and Data webpage. Thank you so much for your support!
Centennial School District
Email: info@centennialsd.org
Website: www.centennialsd.org
Location: 48 Swan Way, Warminster, PA, USA
Phone: (215) 441-6000
Facebook: facebook.com/centennialsd
Twitter: @Centennial_SD
