East Penn School District
Encyclopedia
The East Penn School District is a public school district
located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
, in the United States
. Originally known as the East Penn Union School District, the district was established in 1952. It currently serves the Boroughs
of Alburtis
, Emmaus
and Macungie
and Lower Macungie Township and Upper Milford Township in the Lehigh Valley
region of eastern Pennsylvania
.
The district operates one high school (Emmaus High School
), two middle schools (Eyer Middle School
and Lower Macungie Middle School
) and seven elementary schools.
East Penn School District also has one of the most developed advanced placement programs in eastern Pennsylvania. Thirteen advanced placement courses and 14 honors courses are offered at Emmaus High School. Also reflecting the quality of its academic programs and the intelligence of its students, Emmaus High School has won more Scholastic Scrimmage
championships than any Lehigh Valley
high school in the history of this popular academic quiz show.
Citing the academic excellence of East Penn School District, Money
magazine, in 2007, listed Emmaus as one the "Top 100 places to live" in the United States.
, which is renowned for the high quality of its athletic programs and has produced numerous professional and Olympic athletes. Emmaus High School fields teams in all of the conference's sports. Since Emmaus High School's founding in 1955, the school has won the Lehigh Valley Conference at least once in each of the conference's sports. Emmaus High School is also second in overall Lehigh Valley Conference championships, behind only Parkland High School
.
By Pennsylvania law, all K-12 students in the district, including those who attend a private nonpublic school, cyber charter school, charter school and those homeschooled, are eligible to participate in the extracurricular programs including all athletics. They must meet the same eligibility rules as the students enrolled in the district's schools.
*Willow Lane Elementary School
has been expanded. A new elementary school
will open in the Fall of 2010. By 2012, the plan calls for the construction of a second high school
, a third middle school
and two more elementary school
s in the district, but plans for these schools will depend on many factors. The addition of a another high school has faced many issues, especially involving the distribution of the Athletic Program. Willow Lane Elementary School is fully operational at this time.
. Articles appeared in hundreds of newspapers and television channels and their effort was the subject of numerous political cartoons. These articles were in response to East Penn School District's "fat letter" program, which began in November 2001. At the time, obesity was becoming a growing national health concern, especially due to its increasing prevalence in children. As a result, the school district took each student's body mass index
. For students who were found to be overweight or obese, letters were mailed to their parents. The letters informed the parents of the effects that being overweight have on one's health and requested that parents consult a family doctor or attend a free health session. Many parents reportedly were offended by the letters, especially their approach and language. Many parents responded by saying that the school was merely pointing blame without taking action. Partly in result to this criticism, Emmaus High School removed the schools soda and candy machines and replaced the cafeteria's whole milk with skim and non-fat milk. It continued its programs with the letters, and the school district since has realized a 2.86 percent drop in its obesity levels.
School district
School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...
located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
-Climate:Most of the county's climate is considered to fall in the humid continental climate zone. Summers are typically hot and muggy, fall and spring are generally mild, and winter is cold. Precipitation is almost uniformly distributed throughout the year....
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Originally known as the East Penn Union School District, the district was established in 1952. It currently serves the Boroughs
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
of Alburtis
Alburtis, Pennsylvania
Alburtis is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is a suburb of Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state.The population of Alburtis was 2,117 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
, Emmaus
Emmaus, Pennsylvania
Emmaus is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is located five miles southwest of Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state.The population of Emmaus was 11,313 at the 2000 census...
and Macungie
Macungie, Pennsylvania
Macungie is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is the second oldest borough in the county and a suburb of Allentown, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of the state.-History:...
and Lower Macungie Township and Upper Milford Township in the Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
region of eastern Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
The district operates one high school (Emmaus High School
Emmaus High School
Emmaus High School is a public high school located in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The school serves grades 9 through 12 in Pennsylvania's East Penn School District in the Lehigh Valley region of the state....
), two middle schools (Eyer Middle School
Eyer Middle School
Eyer Middle School is a public middle school located in Macungie, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is located at 5616 Buckeye Road, on the Macungie side of Buckeye Road, which connects Macungie with west-side Emmaus.The school is part of the East...
and Lower Macungie Middle School
Lower Macungie Middle School
Lower Macungie Middle School is a public middle school located in Macungie, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is located at 6299 Lower Macungie Road in Macungie....
) and seven elementary schools.
Academics
East Penn School District is noted for its academic excellence as measured by post-graduate collegiate admissions. As of the Class of 1999, 68% of Emmaus High School graduates attended four-year colleges or universities, 9% attended two-year colleges and 5% entered business, nursing or technical schools for a total of 82 percent pursuing higher education following graduation.East Penn School District also has one of the most developed advanced placement programs in eastern Pennsylvania. Thirteen advanced placement courses and 14 honors courses are offered at Emmaus High School. Also reflecting the quality of its academic programs and the intelligence of its students, Emmaus High School has won more Scholastic Scrimmage
Scholastic Scrimmage
Scholastic Scrimmage is a high school quiz bowl game show airing on WLVT-TV and WPSU-TV , and is hosted by Karen Walton and David Price respectively....
championships than any Lehigh Valley
Lehigh Valley
The Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
high school in the history of this popular academic quiz show.
Citing the academic excellence of East Penn School District, Money
Money (magazine)
Money is published by Time Inc. Its first issue was published in October 1972. Its articles cover the gamut of personal finance topics ranging from investing, saving, retirement and taxes to family finance issues like paying for college, credit, career and home improvement...
magazine, in 2007, listed Emmaus as one the "Top 100 places to live" in the United States.
Athletics
Emmaus High School competes athletically in the Lehigh Valley ConferenceLehigh Valley Conference
The Lehigh Valley Interscholastic Athletic Conference is an athletic conference consisting of 12 large high schools from Lehigh and Northampton counties in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, which is renowned for the high quality of its athletic programs and has produced numerous professional and Olympic athletes. Emmaus High School fields teams in all of the conference's sports. Since Emmaus High School's founding in 1955, the school has won the Lehigh Valley Conference at least once in each of the conference's sports. Emmaus High School is also second in overall Lehigh Valley Conference championships, behind only Parkland High School
Parkland High School (Allentown, Pennsylvania)
Parkland High School, located near Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States, is a public high school serving students in grades 9 to 12. It is the only high school for the Parkland School District....
.
By Pennsylvania law, all K-12 students in the district, including those who attend a private nonpublic school, cyber charter school, charter school and those homeschooled, are eligible to participate in the extracurricular programs including all athletics. They must meet the same eligibility rules as the students enrolled in the district's schools.
Schools
- Emmaus High SchoolEmmaus High SchoolEmmaus High School is a public high school located in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The school serves grades 9 through 12 in Pennsylvania's East Penn School District in the Lehigh Valley region of the state....
- Eyer Middle SchoolEyer Middle SchoolEyer Middle School is a public middle school located in Macungie, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is located at 5616 Buckeye Road, on the Macungie side of Buckeye Road, which connects Macungie with west-side Emmaus.The school is part of the East...
- Lower Macungie Middle SchoolLower Macungie Middle SchoolLower Macungie Middle School is a public middle school located in Macungie, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is located at 6299 Lower Macungie Road in Macungie....
- Alburtis Elementary School
- Jefferson Elementary School
- Lincoln Elementary School
- Macungie Elementary School
- Shoemaker Elementary School
- Wescosville Elementary School
*Willow Lane Elementary School
Future development
On March 27, 2006, the East Penn School District board issued a strategic growth plan to meet the district's rapid growth in its student population. Eyer Middle SchoolEyer Middle School
Eyer Middle School is a public middle school located in Macungie, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is located at 5616 Buckeye Road, on the Macungie side of Buckeye Road, which connects Macungie with west-side Emmaus.The school is part of the East...
has been expanded. A new elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
will open in the Fall of 2010. By 2012, the plan calls for the construction of a second high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, a third middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
and two more elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s in the district, but plans for these schools will depend on many factors. The addition of a another high school has faced many issues, especially involving the distribution of the Athletic Program. Willow Lane Elementary School is fully operational at this time.
2011 IPR and Report Card Removal"
In September 2011 the East Penn School District made paper report cards optional.The future of the Art and Music Department
Over the summer of 2011 funding cuts were made, resulting in the band not being able to rehearse for one week.2002 "fat letter" controversy
In March 2002, East Penn School District received national media attention for their attempts to battle obesityObesity in the United States
Obesity in the United States has been increasingly cited as a major health issue in recent decades. While many industrialized countries have experienced similar increases, obesity rates in the United States are among the highest in the world with 74.6% of Americans being overweight or obese...
. Articles appeared in hundreds of newspapers and television channels and their effort was the subject of numerous political cartoons. These articles were in response to East Penn School District's "fat letter" program, which began in November 2001. At the time, obesity was becoming a growing national health concern, especially due to its increasing prevalence in children. As a result, the school district took each student's body mass index
Body mass index
The body mass index , or Quetelet index, is a heuristic proxy for human body fat based on an individual's weight and height. BMI does not actually measure the percentage of body fat. It was invented between 1830 and 1850 by the Belgian polymath Adolphe Quetelet during the course of developing...
. For students who were found to be overweight or obese, letters were mailed to their parents. The letters informed the parents of the effects that being overweight have on one's health and requested that parents consult a family doctor or attend a free health session. Many parents reportedly were offended by the letters, especially their approach and language. Many parents responded by saying that the school was merely pointing blame without taking action. Partly in result to this criticism, Emmaus High School removed the schools soda and candy machines and replaced the cafeteria's whole milk with skim and non-fat milk. It continued its programs with the letters, and the school district since has realized a 2.86 percent drop in its obesity levels.
Prominent alumni
- Charles BierbauerCharles BierbauerCharles Bierbauer was for many years CNN’s senior Washington correspondent and a veteran reporter covering national and international affairs....
, former CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
correspondent. - Keith DorneyKeith DorneyKeith Robert Dorney is a former offensive lineman for the National Football League's Detroit Lions.-High school and college career:...
, former Detroit LionsDetroit LionsThe Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
professional football player. - Aaron GrayAaron GrayAaron Michael Gray is an American professional basketball player who last played for the New Orleans Hornets of the NBA.-High school career:...
, professional basketball player, Chicago BullsChicago BullsThe Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
. - Todd HowardTodd HowardTodd Howard is an American designer, director, and producer. He is currently Game Director and Executive Producer for Bethesda Game Studios, where he has led the creation of Fallout 3 and The Elder Scrolls video game series. GamePro magazine named him to the Top 20 Most Influential People in Gaming...
, game director on popular video games such Fallout 3Fallout 3Fallout 3 is an action role-playing game released by Bethesda Game Studios, and the third major installment in the Fallout series. The game was released in North America, Europe and Australia in October 2008, and in Japan in December 2008 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360...
. - Michael JohnsMichael Johns (executive)Michael Johns is an American health care executive, former federal government of the United States official and conservative policy analyst and writer.-Biography:...
, health care executive and former White HouseWhite HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
speechwriter. - Nicole ReinhartNicole ReinhartNicole Louise Reinhart was an American professional track and road racing cyclist who twice won gold medals in cycling at the Pan American Games.-Early life:...
, two-time Pan American GamesPan American GamesThe Pan-American or Pan American Games are a major event in the Americas featuring summer and formerly winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Pan American Games are the second largest multi-sport event after the Summer Olympics...
gold-medal winner, track cycling. - Marty NothsteinMarty NothsteinMartin "Marty" Wayne Nothstein is an American professional road bicycle racer and track cyclist. He is a 3-time world champion in track events and an Olympic gold and silver medalist.-Early life:...
, 2000 Olympic GamesOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold medal winner, track cycling. - Cindy WerleyCindy WerleyCindy Werley is a former Olympic field hockey forward from the United States, who made her international debut for the Women's National Team in 1994...
, 1996 Olympian, U.S. field hockeyField hockeyField Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
team.