NEW BETHLEHEM, Pa. by: John Gerow (RVO) – State Representative Donna Oberlander paid a visit to the Redbank Valley School district yesterday, Novermber 26. This was Mrs. Oberlander’s first visit to the schools since July 20, as the flood waters were draining out of the Elementary school. Redbank Valley Schools took the opportunity to showcase the cleanup and restoration of the New Bethlehem Elementary school. Mrs. Oberlander tries to visit the schools in her district on an ongoing basis to keep in touch with the needs, concerns, and progress of the schools. Mr. Mark Ferrara of the Pennsylvania School Board Association joined Representative Oberlander for the Redbank tour.

Dr. John Mastillo (center) discusses school security with Rep. Donna Oberlander and Mr. Mark Ferrar PASB

Before touring the Elementary campus, Dr. Mastillo took a few minutes to share some of the security updates and plans for the high school building with Representative Oberlander. Dr. Mastillo explained the RAPTOR visitor tracking system that the school hopes to have installed soon. (See “RVS Board Purchases Visitor Tracking Computer Program” RVO) He also explained that there were plans for interior and exterior cameras and that Mrs. Rupp had acquired some grant money to begin security improvements. The Superintendent also explained that the quest for grant money was going to be an ongoing process at the Redbank Valley School District.

Moving on to the New Bethlehem Elementary School, Dr. Mastillo took a few minutes on the creek side of the building to talk about the flood and what he found when he arrived at the building the morning after. Mrs. Oberlander recounted how she had also come by that Saturday morning and how different things look 4 months later. Representative Oberlander and Mr. Ferrara were amazed at how crisp, clean, and bright the school looks considering how devastating the flooding was. ( See “Bright Clean Surroundings Greet Primary Students” RVO)

Dr. Mastillo continued explaining the clean up process inside the school. He showed off the Art and Music Room, which had significant damage and required some extra restoration effort. The Superintendent mentioned the excellent results of several air quality tests and Mrs. Oberlander commended the district for their openness with the community about damages and the cleanup process. He went on to explain that the district decided to replace the individual heating and cooling units in the classrooms rather than trying to clean and continue to use the existing units which the flood may have damaged. He explained that the units were do to arrive on December 9 and that work would begin immediately. Contractors will do the work “second shift”, after school hours and will finish during the Christmas break.

Primary/Intermediate Principal Cheryl McCauley welcomes Donna Oberlander to the Primary school

Primary and Intermediate Principal Cheryl McCauley joined the tour for the focus of Mrs. Oberlander’s visit – the initial Sensory Hall and Sensory Room that the elementary school has begun to develop this year. The Sensory Room (often called a “calming” room) is a designated room within the building with specially designed lighting, visual, auditory, and tactile stimulators to help children calm down from over stimulation in the classroom or the general school environment. Specifically designed for children on the Autism spectrum, sensory rooms can be beneficial for children with ADHA, cerebral palsy, Down Syndrome, and other children with developmental challenges with communication, movement and balance, and social skills.

The Sensory Hall is a slightly different twist to the Sensory Room. Little kids have a lot of energy and sometimes they need to physically vent – to burn off some of that excess energy. The Sensory Hall lets kids vent without becoming discipline problems in the classroom. The Hall is a pathway designed onto the floor that instructs children to jump, hop skip and spin. The path looks like a colorful, elongated hopscotch board with letters, numbers, colorful shapes and designs. Teachers may have their kids go through the Hall first thing in the morning and again at lunch time. Perceptive teachers might also send a child out into the hall to refocus if they are becoming fidgety in class.

Donna Oberlander experiments with water beads.

Kindergarten teacher Tammi Starcher brought her kindergarten class out and had them go through “the paces” for the visitors. She wrote the grant and procured the donation that the New Bethlehem Elementary School received to begin the Sensory Room projects. Ms. Starcher explained that she had gotten a donation from a group called “DonorsChoose”. DonorsChoose is a not-for-profit that help teachers and schools get funding for projects, supplies, and other things not included in school budgets. The Retired Teachers Association provided a grant for the reminder of the initial purchases.

Kindergartners using the “Sensory Hall”

Mrs. McCauley showed the Sensory Room to Mrs. Oberlander and Mr. Ferrara. The room is quiet, fitted with blue plastic over the lights to create a calming environment. One of the children’s favorites is the tub of water beads. These polymer beads float in a tub of water and provide calming stimulus and a “neat” feeling. The room is also fitted with a swing and a “rocking chair” both of which provide comforting motion. There is also a small set of fiber optic fibers, long gossamer like tubes that light up when they are handled. The school has also been able to acquire several more small hand held items that can help in the calming process. The sensory gives teachers and aides a tremendous boost in providing an educational experience to those students with special needs.

Representative Oberlander seemed please with the initiatives that Redbank Valley Schools are taking to expand their educational programs and to find out of budget funding. Mrs. Oberlander represents the 63rd Congressional District which includes Clarion County and parts of Northern Armstrong County.

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ABOUT:
Redbank Valley School District provides education services for the 165 square mile area of New Bethlehem and Hawthorn boroughs, and the townships of Mahoning, Madison, Porter, and Redbank of both Clarion and Armstrong counties.

MEETINGS:
The Redbank Valley School Board meetings the first Monday of every month at 7pm at the High School Library.

CONTACT:
For more information about the Redbank Valley School District, please call 814.275.2426 or visit RedbankValley.org/pg/biz/redbank-valley-school-district