Pennridge School Board approves new middle school STEM curriculum
The Pennridge School Board Wednesday, February 25 approved a new 7th grade STEM+M curriculum, becoming one of just four participating districts in the state.
The U.S. Navy-funded initiative focuses on expanding middle school STEM and manufacturing experiences with hands-on instruction and a fully-equipped instructional lab. Learning areas include engineering and design, manufacturing, robotics automation and electronics and material science and structural concepts.
“This is a unique opportunity to expand meaningful future-ready learning to our students, and we’re excited to bring this to our district,” said school board president Carolyn Sciarrino.
The curriculum is almost entirely funded by a $1.5 million grant, with the district responsible for electrical upgrades. Implementation is planned for the 2026-2027 school year.
Elementary rezoning update
The board and administration discussed public feedback to a proposed elementary school redistricting plan aimed at balancing enrollment. The first in over 20 years, the redistricting plan follows an enrollment study finding uneven enrollment changes across the district’s seven elementary schools, with increasing enrollment at Bedminster, Sellersville and Seyler and decreasing enrollment at Deibler, Grasse, Guth and West Rockhill.
At a Feb. 3 committee meeting, the administration presented two redistricting options, with one balancing students by school capacity and the second balancing students by socioeconomic status. Following the meeting, the district sent out community surveys to solicit feedback.
At Wednesday’s meeting, Palmer said that the district received significant public feedback, including nearly 200 survey responses as well as numerous emails and phone calls. He noted that many responses raised concerns about the plan’s emotional impact on students.
Palmer stressed that maintaining the current boundaries would lead to increased class sizes, lost instructional spaces, costly building addition construction and the relocation of specialized programs like emotional and autistic support. He added that grandfathering in students would preserve capacity imbalances and cause long-term transportation and staffing challenges.
“We’re gonna be reviewing each [response] very carefully. The FAQ document is being updated to reflect community concerns,” said Palmer. “Our top priorities are ensuring long-term stability, preserving school culture, minimizing disruptions, maintaining class sizes and keeping siblings together.”
“We recognize that these changes will impact our students and families, and we will continue to be thoughtful in the process and communicate clearly what the next steps are and the reasoning behind all of our decisions,” added Sciarrino.
The administration’s recommendations will be presented at the March 2 student services committee. The final plan will incorporate feedback from the community as well as school principals and the district’s transportation team, said Palmer. Families will be informed of the changes in April, with the ability to apply for exemptions. Implementation is planned for the 2026-2027 school year.
‘Phones, Focus and the Future’
The board also highlighted an upcoming event titled, “Phones, Focus and the Future.” The event will provide families with research-based insights and practical strategies to support healthy technology habits, said Superintendent Dr. Angelo Berrios. The initiative follows regional and national discourse on the restriction of cell phone usage in schools.
The event will be held at the Pennridge High School green gym on March 4 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The next Pennridge School Board meeting is on March 23 at 6:30 p.m. For more information, visit pennridge.org.
John Worthington writes for The Reporter.
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