Mt. Lebanon School District
Encyclopedia
Mt. Lebanon School District is the public school system in Allegheny County for residents of Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania
, a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
.
Note: Keystone Oaks High School
is physically located in Mt. Lebanon, but it serves the youth of the adjacent communities of Greentree
, Dormont
and Castle Shannon
.
^Students in Markham have the option of choosing which middle school they want to go to.
s on: math, reading, writing and one year of science. The school district ranked 2nd out of 105 western Pennsylvania school districts and 3rd out of 498 Pennsylvania school districts in 2008 in the Pittsburgh Business Times rating. In 2007, the district ranked 3rd of 500 Pennsylvania school districts for student achievement.
The district has won multiple National Blue Ribbon School awards. The high school was rated as one of the Top 500 high schools in the United States by Newsweek Magazine in 2000 and rated #1 in Western Pennsylvania
by the Pittsburgh Business Times in 2005.
Graduation Rate
2009 - 99%
2008 - 99%
2007 - 100%
for grades 9–12. It is accredited by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools and Colleges. As of 2007, Dr. Ronald P. Davis is the head principal. Unit or assistant principals are: Alfred McGivern unit 1, Michelle Murray unit 2, and Lori Pavlik unit 3. Annual enrollment is approximately 2,000 students; it is 1,912 for the 2007-08 school year.
Mt. Lebanon High School has been named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education each of the three times it requested certification: 1983-84, 1990–91, and 1997-98.Newsweek Magazine (March 8, 2000) also rated the high school as one of the Top 500 high schools in the United States. It is one of only 24 non-Private secondary schools in the United States (and the only non-Private school in Pennsylvania) that is a member of the prestigious Cum Laude Society
.
The high school ranked second out of 123 western Pennsylvania high schools, by the Pittsburgh Business Times in 2009, for academic achievement as reflected by three years of 11th grade results on: math, reading, writing and one year of science PSSA
s.
PSSA Results
11th Grade Reading
2009 - 89% on grade level. In Pennsylvania, 65% of 11th graders on grade level.
2008 - 88%, State - 65%
2007 - 90%, State - 65%
11th Grade Math:
2009 - 81% on grade level. In Pennsylvania, 56% of 11th graders are on grade level.
2008 - 86%, State - 56%
2007 - 83%, State - 53%
11th Grade Science:
2009 - 69% on grade level. State: 40% of 11th graders were on grade level.
2008 - 71%
. Their cumulative mean score of 1168 is 147 points higher than the national mean and 175 points more than the Pennsylvania mean score. In the new writing assessment, the cumulative mean score of 573 was 76 points higher than the national mean and 90 points higher than the Pennsylvania mean score.
Based on national test results, Mt. Lebanon students rank among the highest achieving in the
nation. Students have consistently scored above the national mean average in both the
Critical Reading and Mathematics sections of the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT).
Mt. Lebanon students were top performers on the College Board SAT at the end of 2006. Of the 630 public schools in the state, Mt. Lebanon students posted a combined score of 1741 which ranks 4th in Pennsylvania and 1st in the county among public schools, catapulting Mt. Lebanon ahead of all public schools in Western Pennsylvania. In addition, the critical reading and math scores were the highest ever received by Mt. Lebanon students.
In 2007, the district employed 389 teachers and the average teacher salary in the district was $60,908 for 180 days worked. The district ranked eleventh in Allegheny County for average teacher salary in 2007. The average teacher salary in Pennsylvania was $54,977. As of 2007, Pennsylvania ranked in the top 10 states in average teacher salaries. When adjusted for cost of living Pennsylvania ranked fourth in the nation for teacher compensation. Additionally, the teachers receive a defined benefit pension
, health insurance
, professional development reimbursement, personal days, sick days, and other benefits.
As of the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year, the school employed 460 professionals. Teachers are paid on an 18-step schedule, from $39,955 (minimum with bachelor's degree) to $89,520 (maximum with master's degree plus credits). Currently 68% of teachers have a master's degree or higher.
Mt Lebanon School District administrative costs per pupil were $782.18 in 2008. The lowest administrative cost per pupil in Pennsylvania was $398 per pupil. The Pennsylvania School Board Association tracks salaries for Pennsylvania public school employees. It reports that in 2008 the average superintendent salary in Pennsylvania was $122,165.
In 2005, Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wagner conducted an audit of the school district. The report faulted the school board for a confidentiality clause which held much of a termination agreement from public disclosure. Auditors found that the Mt Lebanon School District terminated Margery Sable, superintendent in October 2005 at 16 months into a five year contract with a payment of $500,000. The reason for the termination was not released to the public.
The district is funded by a combination of: a local earned income tax, a local real property tax, a real estate transfer tax, and a per capita tax, coupled with substantial funding from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government. Grants provide an opportunity to supplement school funding without raising local taxes. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pension income and Social Security income are exempted from state personal income tax and local earned income tax regardless of the income level.
received an 8.17% increase. In Pennsylvania, over 15 school districts received Basic Education Funding increases in excess of 10% in 2009. Muhlenberg School District
in Berks County received the highest with a 22.31% increase in funding. The state's Basic Education Funding to the North Allegheny School District in 2008-09 was $5,584,093.23. The amount of increase each school district receives is determined by the Governor and the Secretary of Education through the allocation set in the budget proposal made in February each year.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, 92 students received free or reduced lunches due to low family income in the 2007-2008 school year.
federal grant which would have brought the district hundreds of thousands of additional federal dollars for improving student academic achievement. Participation required the administration, the school board and the local teachers' union to sign an agreement to prioritize improving student academic success. In Pennsylvania, 120 public school districts and 56 charter schools agreed to participate. Pennsylvania was not approved in the first round of the grant. The failure of districts to agree to participate was cited as one reason that Pennsylvania was not approved. A second round of state RTTT application judging will occur in June 2010.
Former Governor Edward Rendell had proposed that consolidation with adjacent school districts, in each county, would achieve substantial cost savings. The savings could be redirected to improving lagging reading and science achievement, to enriching the academic programs or to reducing residents' property taxes.
Pennsylvania has one of the highest numbers of school districts in the nation. In Pennsylvania, 80% of the school districts serve student populations under 5,000, and 40% serve less than 2,000. Less than 95 of Pennsylvania's 501 school districts have enrollment below 1250 students, in 2007. This results in excessive school administration bureaucracy and not enough course diversity. In a survey of 88 superintendents of small districts, 42% of the respondents stated that they thought consolidation would save money without closing any schools.
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.
, and the WPIAL in 7 sports in 2005-2006 school year. They have also produced many professional athletes such as Kurt Angle
. School Colors are Royal Blue and Gold.
The Mount Lebanon Boys' Swimming team has won the PIAA State title four times. They have won the WPIAL Championship nine times. The Blue Devils' have back-to-back WPIAL Team Runner-Up in 2008 and 2009. They also won the section title in 2008 and 2009. The Blue Devils had a perfect 13-0 regular season record during the 2007-2008 season.
Since 1965 Mt. Lebanon has won 7 WPIAL Football championships and the last coming in 2000 with an offensive line that had every player go to a Division-1A school. Since 2000, Mt. Lebanon has made the playoffs in 2001-02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06 and 2009-10. Mt. Lebanon has had 2 losing seasons in the last 14 years (2006–07) and (2007–08).
The Mt. Lebanon Girls' Volleyball team has won the PIAA State Title in 1997 and 2000. They have won the WPIAL championship in 1997, 1999, 2000, 2007 and 2009.
The Mount Lebanon Boys Cross Country team was won 19 WPIAL titles and 11 PIAA State titles.
The Mount Lebanon Girls' Cross Country team has won 4 WPIAL titles.
The Mount Lebanon Boy's Basketball team has won two recent AAAA WPIAL basketball championships - in 2006 against the McKeesport
Tigers, and in 2010 against Gateway Gators. In 2011, the team made it to the PIAA AAAA Championship but lost in overtime to Eastern PA powerhouse Chester. The girls basketball team holds a record for being the first team (boys or girls) to win the Pennsylvania state AAAA basketball championship three years in a row under the head coach Dori Oldaker (2009, 2010, and 2011). They also won WPIAL AAAA championships in 2009 and 2010.
Mt. Lebanon's Mens soccer team has won 10 WPIAL championships including their latest in 2009 against rival Upper St. Clair High School on a double overtime freekick goal.
The Mount Lebanon Girls' Swimming team has won the PIAA State title once. They have won the WPIAL Championship three times.
The hockey team won the State Championship in 1976 and 2006. A few Blue Devil players were selected by Division I collegiate and professional teams throughout North America (Shane Ferguson, pro debut: October 2009, Matt Bartkowski pro debut: September 2010, Tyler Murovich pro debut: March 2009, and Jesse Root (taft prep school) ). Mount Lebanon was the 2005-2006 State Champions setting both scoring records and defensive records.
The Blue Devils have won 7 boys' lacrosse WPSLA Championships since 2000 and are nationally known for their excellence. The boys' lacrosse team advanced to the Pennsylvania state championship 3 times since the late 90's, most recently in the 2008 season.
The Baseball team has won the section title dozens of times, WPIAL 5 times, and States once in 1998. Their most recent championship came in 2006.
The Mt. Lebanon rifle team won the WPIAL Championship for the 2006-07 year, and tied for first place in WPIAL Section One with their team record. They went on to place third in the state-level competition. They have also won the WPIAL Championship in: 2003, 1987, 1971, as well as the state shoot in 1958.
The Mt. Lebanon Ultimate Frisbee team was established in the spring of 2001, when Mt. Lebanon sophomores Steve Hall and Mark Harris along with freshman David Vatz established the team to compete in the first season of PHUL. During the first season, the team competed in a total of 7 games with a final record of 4-3, taking home the first ever PHUL Championship over Fox Chapel. Over the 2001-2002 fall/spring season and the fall of 2002, Mt. Lebanon has competed in many tournaments from Cincinnati to New Jersey. The teams best finishes included a first place at the Midwest Ultimate Tournament in the fall of 2001, a second place finish at Kat in the Hat-Division 1 and a first place finish at Ninjafest, both during the fall of 2002, in which they compiled a 24-7 record. So far Mt. Lebanon has taken 2 PHUL championships out of the 7 Finals appearances, and has been a dominant team in the Pittsburgh region for many years. Also, the team has had two national appearances at the USA Ultimate/UPA High School Easterns tournament and is expecting more major accomplishments in the following season.
The Mount Lebanon wrestling team has won a total of 23 section championships, from 1963-1985. They have also won WPIAL championships in 1965, 1968, 1969, 1971–1975, 1978, 1980, and 1981 for a total of 11 titles. The Blue Devils captured their only state team championship in 1965. The program has 27 individual WPIAL champions, 16 state placewinners, and 13 state champions.
, highlighted by spirited taunts about the communities rather than individual athletes. This rivalry goes back to the days before the establishment of Upper St. Clair High School, when St. Clair students enrolled at Mt. Lebanon High School following ninth grade. When in 1957, Mt. Lebanon schools decided not to admit Upper St. Clair students, and Upper St. Clair then created its own high school, the rivalry further intensified. It is among WPIAL's most natural rivalries due to the close proximity of the two communities, which are adjacent.
Other less notable rivalries include nearby towns Bethel Park, North Hills and Baldwin.
. The school's theater program began in 1930, and has produced a number of notable actors.
Mount Lebanon Percussion ensemble has been selected to perform at the Pennsylvania Music Educators Conference 4 times(2002, 2005, 2008, 2010), the National Music Educators National Conference (MENC) in Salt Lake City in 2006, the 2009 and 2011 National Percussion Festival, as well as the 2010 National Conference on Percussion Pedagogy in Oklahoma. Most recently they were invited by the NHL to perform at the 2011 NHL WInter Classic on live TV for the country.
The high school's chamber string
orchestra, string
orchestra and symphony orchestra, all under the direction of Robert J. Vogel, have played twice at the prestigious Carnegie Hall
in New York City
, in 1998 and 2004. They also comprised three of only six ensembles chosen nationwide for the 2006 Orchestra America
National Festival.
is the coach of the team and has been since the late 90's. During Savarese's tenure Mt. Lebanon has become the dominant school in Western Pennsylvania winning the district championship five of the last six years, and in 2003, 2004, and 2005 sending record numbers of students to National Forensic League
national tournament.
In 2006, the team captured the Pennsylvania High School Speech League
championship, Events included extemp, dramatic interpretation, humorous interpretation, duo, and original oratory.
of, among others:
Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Mt. Lebanon is a home rule municipality, formerly a township, in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 33,137 at the 2010 census....
, a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
.
Mission statement
The school district's mission is, "To provide the best education possible for each and every student." The district explains this mission with the following statement:Schools
All enrollment figures are for the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year.- High schoolHigh schoolHigh 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....
: Mt. Lebanon High School - 1,912
- Middle schoolMiddle schoolMiddle 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...
s:- Andrew W. MellonAndrew W. MellonAndrew William Mellon was an American banker, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector and Secretary of the Treasury from March 4, 1921 until February 12, 1932.-Early life:...
Middle School (Students from the Foster, Markham^, Washington and Howe Elementary School districts) - 700 - Thomas JeffersonThomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
Middle School (Students from the Jefferson, Lincoln, Markham^ and Hoover districts) - 565
- Andrew W. Mellon
- Elementary schoolElementary schoolAn 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:- Stephen C. Foster Elementary School - 296
- Herbert HooverHerbert HooverHerbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
Elementary School - 256 - Julia Ward HoweJulia Ward HoweJulia Ward Howe was a prominent American abolitionist, social activist, and poet, most famous as the author of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic".-Biography:...
Elementary School - 334 - Thomas JeffersonThomas JeffersonThomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
Elementary School - 240 - Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
Elementary School - 413 - Edwin MarkhamEdwin MarkhamCharles Edwin Anson Markham was an American poet. From 1923 to 1931 he was Poet Laureate of Oregon.-Life:Edwin Markham was born in Oregon City, Oregon and was the youngest of 10 children; his parents divorced shortly after his birth...
Elementary School - 350 - George WashingtonGeorge WashingtonGeorge Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
Elementary School - 350
Note: Keystone Oaks High School
Keystone Oaks High School
Keystone Oaks High School, built in 1969, is a public high school in the South Hills suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is the only high school in the Keystone Oaks School District...
is physically located in Mt. Lebanon, but it serves the youth of the adjacent communities of Greentree
Green Tree, Pennsylvania
Green Tree is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and a suburb of Pittsburgh. The population was 4,432 at the 2010 census.The town is the birthplace of U.S...
, Dormont
Dormont, Pennsylvania
Dormont is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 8,593 at the 2010 census and is the most densely populated municipality in Allegheny County. Dormont is a home to a diverse population including young professionals,...
and Castle Shannon
Castle Shannon, Pennsylvania
Castle Shannon is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 8,316 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...
.
^Students in Markham have the option of choosing which middle school they want to go to.
Academic achievement
Mt. Lebanon School District was ranked 2nd out of 105 western Pennsylvania school districts in 2009 by the Pittsburgh Business Times. The ranking was based on three years of student academic performance on the PSSAPennsylvania System of School Assessment
The Pennsylvania System of School Assessment is a standardized test administered to public schools in the state of Pennsylvania. Students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 11 are assessed in reading skills and mathematics. Students in grades 5, 8, and 11 are assessed in writing skills...
s on: math, reading, writing and one year of science. The school district ranked 2nd out of 105 western Pennsylvania school districts and 3rd out of 498 Pennsylvania school districts in 2008 in the Pittsburgh Business Times rating. In 2007, the district ranked 3rd of 500 Pennsylvania school districts for student achievement.
The district has won multiple National Blue Ribbon School awards. The high school was rated as one of the Top 500 high schools in the United States by Newsweek Magazine in 2000 and rated #1 in Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania
Western Pennsylvania consists of the western third of the state of Pennsylvania in the United States. Pittsburgh is the largest city in the region, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic and cultural center. Erie, Altoona, and Johnstown are its...
by the Pittsburgh Business Times in 2005.
Graduation Rate
2009 - 99%
2008 - 99%
2007 - 100%
Mt. Lebanon High School
Mt. Lebanon High School is the public secondary schoolSecondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
for grades 9–12. It is accredited by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools and Colleges. As of 2007, Dr. Ronald P. Davis is the head principal. Unit or assistant principals are: Alfred McGivern unit 1, Michelle Murray unit 2, and Lori Pavlik unit 3. Annual enrollment is approximately 2,000 students; it is 1,912 for the 2007-08 school year.
Mt. Lebanon High School has been named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education each of the three times it requested certification: 1983-84, 1990–91, and 1997-98.Newsweek Magazine (March 8, 2000) also rated the high school as one of the Top 500 high schools in the United States. It is one of only 24 non-Private secondary schools in the United States (and the only non-Private school in Pennsylvania) that is a member of the prestigious Cum Laude Society
Cum Laude Society
The Cum Laude Society is an organization that honors scholastic achievement at secondary institutions, similar to the Phi Beta Kappa Society, which honors scholastic achievements at the university level. It was founded in 1906 as the Alpha Delta Tau fraternity and changed its name in the 1950s...
.
The high school ranked second out of 123 western Pennsylvania high schools, by the Pittsburgh Business Times in 2009, for academic achievement as reflected by three years of 11th grade results on: math, reading, writing and one year of science PSSA
Pennsylvania System of School Assessment
The Pennsylvania System of School Assessment is a standardized test administered to public schools in the state of Pennsylvania. Students in grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 11 are assessed in reading skills and mathematics. Students in grades 5, 8, and 11 are assessed in writing skills...
s.
PSSA Results
11th Grade Reading
2009 - 89% on grade level. In Pennsylvania, 65% of 11th graders on grade level.
2008 - 88%, State - 65%
2007 - 90%, State - 65%
11th Grade Math:
2009 - 81% on grade level. In Pennsylvania, 56% of 11th graders are on grade level.
2008 - 86%, State - 56%
2007 - 83%, State - 53%
11th Grade Science:
2009 - 69% on grade level. State: 40% of 11th graders were on grade level.
2008 - 71%
Graduates
The Class of 2007 graduated 411 students, 96% of whom went on to pursue a full-time or Armed-Service education. Similarly, the Class of 2006 graduated 461 students, 96% of whom went on to some form of full-time college or armed services education (89% four-year college or higher) and 93% of whom took the SATSAT
The SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States. The SAT is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, a nonprofit organization in the United States. It was formerly developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service which still...
. Their cumulative mean score of 1168 is 147 points higher than the national mean and 175 points more than the Pennsylvania mean score. In the new writing assessment, the cumulative mean score of 573 was 76 points higher than the national mean and 90 points higher than the Pennsylvania mean score.
Based on national test results, Mt. Lebanon students rank among the highest achieving in the
nation. Students have consistently scored above the national mean average in both the
Critical Reading and Mathematics sections of the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT).
Mt. Lebanon students were top performers on the College Board SAT at the end of 2006. Of the 630 public schools in the state, Mt. Lebanon students posted a combined score of 1741 which ranks 4th in Pennsylvania and 1st in the county among public schools, catapulting Mt. Lebanon ahead of all public schools in Western Pennsylvania. In addition, the critical reading and math scores were the highest ever received by Mt. Lebanon students.
Budget
The school district reports spending $7,669/student, about 25% over the national average of $6,058/student.In 2007, the district employed 389 teachers and the average teacher salary in the district was $60,908 for 180 days worked. The district ranked eleventh in Allegheny County for average teacher salary in 2007. The average teacher salary in Pennsylvania was $54,977. As of 2007, Pennsylvania ranked in the top 10 states in average teacher salaries. When adjusted for cost of living Pennsylvania ranked fourth in the nation for teacher compensation. Additionally, the teachers receive a defined benefit pension
Pension
In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...
, health insurance
Health insurance
Health insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses among individuals. By estimating the overall risk of health care expenses among a targeted group, an insurer can develop a routine finance structure, such as a monthly premium or payroll tax, to ensure that money is...
, professional development reimbursement, personal days, sick days, and other benefits.
As of the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year, the school employed 460 professionals. Teachers are paid on an 18-step schedule, from $39,955 (minimum with bachelor's degree) to $89,520 (maximum with master's degree plus credits). Currently 68% of teachers have a master's degree or higher.
Mt Lebanon School District administrative costs per pupil were $782.18 in 2008. The lowest administrative cost per pupil in Pennsylvania was $398 per pupil. The Pennsylvania School Board Association tracks salaries for Pennsylvania public school employees. It reports that in 2008 the average superintendent salary in Pennsylvania was $122,165.
In 2005, Pennsylvania Auditor General Jack Wagner conducted an audit of the school district. The report faulted the school board for a confidentiality clause which held much of a termination agreement from public disclosure. Auditors found that the Mt Lebanon School District terminated Margery Sable, superintendent in October 2005 at 16 months into a five year contract with a payment of $500,000. The reason for the termination was not released to the public.
The district is funded by a combination of: a local earned income tax, a local real property tax, a real estate transfer tax, and a per capita tax, coupled with substantial funding from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government. Grants provide an opportunity to supplement school funding without raising local taxes. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pension income and Social Security income are exempted from state personal income tax and local earned income tax regardless of the income level.
State basic education funding
In the 2009-2010 budget year the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania provided a 2% increase in Basic Education funding for a total of $5,695,775. This was the lowest percentage point increase, in Basic Education Funding, for the school districts in Allegheny County and in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Four county school districts received increases of over 6% in Basic Education Funding in 2008-10. Chartiers Valley School DistrictChartiers Valley School District
-Schools:Chartiers Valley School District operates four schools. They are:*Chartiers Valley Primary school - serving approximately 750 students in kindergarten through 2nd grade....
received an 8.17% increase. In Pennsylvania, over 15 school districts received Basic Education Funding increases in excess of 10% in 2009. Muhlenberg School District
Muhlenberg School District
The Muhlenberg Area School District is a public school district serving parts of Berks County, Pennsylvania, USA. It encompasses the borough of Laureldale and the Muhlenberg Township. The district encompasses approximately 13 square miles. Per the 2000 federal census data it serves a resident...
in Berks County received the highest with a 22.31% increase in funding. The state's Basic Education Funding to the North Allegheny School District in 2008-09 was $5,584,093.23. The amount of increase each school district receives is determined by the Governor and the Secretary of Education through the allocation set in the budget proposal made in February each year.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, 92 students received free or reduced lunches due to low family income in the 2007-2008 school year.
Race to the Top
School district officials did not apply for the Race to the TopRace to the Top
Race to the Top, abbreviated R2T, RTTT or RTT, is a $4.35 billion United States Department of Education competition designed to spur innovation and reforms in state and local district K-12 education...
federal grant which would have brought the district hundreds of thousands of additional federal dollars for improving student academic achievement. Participation required the administration, the school board and the local teachers' union to sign an agreement to prioritize improving student academic success. In Pennsylvania, 120 public school districts and 56 charter schools agreed to participate. Pennsylvania was not approved in the first round of the grant. The failure of districts to agree to participate was cited as one reason that Pennsylvania was not approved. A second round of state RTTT application judging will occur in June 2010.
Former Governor Edward Rendell had proposed that consolidation with adjacent school districts, in each county, would achieve substantial cost savings. The savings could be redirected to improving lagging reading and science achievement, to enriching the academic programs or to reducing residents' property taxes.
Pennsylvania has one of the highest numbers of school districts in the nation. In Pennsylvania, 80% of the school districts serve student populations under 5,000, and 40% serve less than 2,000. Less than 95 of Pennsylvania's 501 school districts have enrollment below 1250 students, in 2007. This results in excessive school administration bureaucracy and not enough course diversity. In a survey of 88 superintendents of small districts, 42% of the respondents stated that they thought consolidation would save money without closing any schools.
Extracurriculars
The district offers a variety of clubs, activities and sports.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.
Athletics
Mt. Lebanon has won numerous titles in many sports, such as States in HockeyHockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
, and the WPIAL in 7 sports in 2005-2006 school year. They have also produced many professional athletes such as Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
. School Colors are Royal Blue and Gold.
The Mount Lebanon Boys' Swimming team has won the PIAA State title four times. They have won the WPIAL Championship nine times. The Blue Devils' have back-to-back WPIAL Team Runner-Up in 2008 and 2009. They also won the section title in 2008 and 2009. The Blue Devils had a perfect 13-0 regular season record during the 2007-2008 season.
Since 1965 Mt. Lebanon has won 7 WPIAL Football championships and the last coming in 2000 with an offensive line that had every player go to a Division-1A school. Since 2000, Mt. Lebanon has made the playoffs in 2001-02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06 and 2009-10. Mt. Lebanon has had 2 losing seasons in the last 14 years (2006–07) and (2007–08).
The Mt. Lebanon Girls' Volleyball team has won the PIAA State Title in 1997 and 2000. They have won the WPIAL championship in 1997, 1999, 2000, 2007 and 2009.
The Mount Lebanon Boys Cross Country team was won 19 WPIAL titles and 11 PIAA State titles.
The Mount Lebanon Girls' Cross Country team has won 4 WPIAL titles.
The Mount Lebanon Boy's Basketball team has won two recent AAAA WPIAL basketball championships - in 2006 against the McKeesport
McKeesport, Pennsylvania
McKeesport is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in the United States; it is located at the confluence of the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 19,731 at the 2010 census...
Tigers, and in 2010 against Gateway Gators. In 2011, the team made it to the PIAA AAAA Championship but lost in overtime to Eastern PA powerhouse Chester. The girls basketball team holds a record for being the first team (boys or girls) to win the Pennsylvania state AAAA basketball championship three years in a row under the head coach Dori Oldaker (2009, 2010, and 2011). They also won WPIAL AAAA championships in 2009 and 2010.
Mt. Lebanon's Mens soccer team has won 10 WPIAL championships including their latest in 2009 against rival Upper St. Clair High School on a double overtime freekick goal.
The Mount Lebanon Girls' Swimming team has won the PIAA State title once. They have won the WPIAL Championship three times.
The hockey team won the State Championship in 1976 and 2006. A few Blue Devil players were selected by Division I collegiate and professional teams throughout North America (Shane Ferguson, pro debut: October 2009, Matt Bartkowski pro debut: September 2010, Tyler Murovich pro debut: March 2009, and Jesse Root (taft prep school) ). Mount Lebanon was the 2005-2006 State Champions setting both scoring records and defensive records.
The Blue Devils have won 7 boys' lacrosse WPSLA Championships since 2000 and are nationally known for their excellence. The boys' lacrosse team advanced to the Pennsylvania state championship 3 times since the late 90's, most recently in the 2008 season.
The Baseball team has won the section title dozens of times, WPIAL 5 times, and States once in 1998. Their most recent championship came in 2006.
The Mt. Lebanon rifle team won the WPIAL Championship for the 2006-07 year, and tied for first place in WPIAL Section One with their team record. They went on to place third in the state-level competition. They have also won the WPIAL Championship in: 2003, 1987, 1971, as well as the state shoot in 1958.
The Mt. Lebanon Ultimate Frisbee team was established in the spring of 2001, when Mt. Lebanon sophomores Steve Hall and Mark Harris along with freshman David Vatz established the team to compete in the first season of PHUL. During the first season, the team competed in a total of 7 games with a final record of 4-3, taking home the first ever PHUL Championship over Fox Chapel. Over the 2001-2002 fall/spring season and the fall of 2002, Mt. Lebanon has competed in many tournaments from Cincinnati to New Jersey. The teams best finishes included a first place at the Midwest Ultimate Tournament in the fall of 2001, a second place finish at Kat in the Hat-Division 1 and a first place finish at Ninjafest, both during the fall of 2002, in which they compiled a 24-7 record. So far Mt. Lebanon has taken 2 PHUL championships out of the 7 Finals appearances, and has been a dominant team in the Pittsburgh region for many years. Also, the team has had two national appearances at the USA Ultimate/UPA High School Easterns tournament and is expecting more major accomplishments in the following season.
The Mount Lebanon wrestling team has won a total of 23 section championships, from 1963-1985. They have also won WPIAL championships in 1965, 1968, 1969, 1971–1975, 1978, 1980, and 1981 for a total of 11 titles. The Blue Devils captured their only state team championship in 1965. The program has 27 individual WPIAL champions, 16 state placewinners, and 13 state champions.
Rivalries
Mt. Lebanon has an ongoing rivalry with Upper St. Clair High SchoolUpper St. Clair High School
Upper St. Clair High School is a public high school in Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania, USA, serving students in grades 9–12. The school is part of the Upper St. Clair School District. USCHS is one of three secondary schools in Pennsylvania to be recognized as a Blue Ribbon School three times...
, highlighted by spirited taunts about the communities rather than individual athletes. This rivalry goes back to the days before the establishment of Upper St. Clair High School, when St. Clair students enrolled at Mt. Lebanon High School following ninth grade. When in 1957, Mt. Lebanon schools decided not to admit Upper St. Clair students, and Upper St. Clair then created its own high school, the rivalry further intensified. It is among WPIAL's most natural rivalries due to the close proximity of the two communities, which are adjacent.
Other less notable rivalries include nearby towns Bethel Park, North Hills and Baldwin.
Fine arts
The Fine Arts Department was rated one of eight finest nation-wide by the United States Department of Education.Theater
In the 2002-03 school year, the high school received one of six Outstanding School Awards from the Educational Theatre AssociationEducational Theatre Association
The Educational Theatre Association , founded in 1929, is the professional association for theatre education. EdTA’s mission is to make theatre a part of lifelong learning...
. The school's theater program began in 1930, and has produced a number of notable actors.
Music
In 2007, the American Music Conference listed Mt. Lebanon High school as one of the "Best 100 Communities for Music Education."Mount Lebanon Percussion ensemble has been selected to perform at the Pennsylvania Music Educators Conference 4 times(2002, 2005, 2008, 2010), the National Music Educators National Conference (MENC) in Salt Lake City in 2006, the 2009 and 2011 National Percussion Festival, as well as the 2010 National Conference on Percussion Pedagogy in Oklahoma. Most recently they were invited by the NHL to perform at the 2011 NHL WInter Classic on live TV for the country.
The high school's chamber string
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
orchestra, string
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
orchestra and symphony orchestra, all under the direction of Robert J. Vogel, have played twice at the prestigious Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, in 1998 and 2004. They also comprised three of only six ensembles chosen nationwide for the 2006 Orchestra America
Orchestra America
Orchestra America is a nonprofit organization that promotes orchestral high school music education through positively life-changing events and workshops...
National Festival.
Forensics
The Mt. Lebanon Forensic Team won the Western Pennsylvania District Forensic Championship four years in a row (2001–2004). In 2004, the team won the state championship in dramatic interpretation and extemporaneous speaking and then earned a second-place title in extemporaneous speaking at the national competition in Salt Lake City. George SavareseGeorge Savarese
-Media career:George Savarese served as the longtime host of the [World Affairs Council]]'s "Global Press Conference," on KQV radio.. Savarese has also worked for AP Radio and National Public Radio. He currently covers Pittsburgh sports on a freelance basis for ESPN Radio and the NFL Radio...
is the coach of the team and has been since the late 90's. During Savarese's tenure Mt. Lebanon has become the dominant school in Western Pennsylvania winning the district championship five of the last six years, and in 2003, 2004, and 2005 sending record numbers of students to National Forensic League
National Forensic League
The National Forensic League is a non-partisan, non-profit educational honor society established to encourage and motivate American high school students to participate in and become proficient in the forensic arts: debate, public speaking and interpretation. NFL is the America's oldest and largest...
national tournament.
In 2006, the team captured the Pennsylvania High School Speech League
Pennsylvania High School Speech League
The Pennsylvania High School Speech League is a high school forensics league. The PHSSL state championship takes place yearly in March at Susquehanna University...
championship, Events included extemp, dramatic interpretation, humorous interpretation, duo, and original oratory.
Alumni
Mt. Lebanon is the Alma MaterAlma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
of, among others:
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