Bethel Park School District pushes back start day for upcoming school year

The Bethel Park School District is pushing back the first day of classes for students for the upcoming school year.

The delay comes as the district needs more time to get its new elementary school ready.

The brand-new Bethel Park Elementary School for now sits empty, but soon will be home to K-5 students from five former different elementary schools. For taxpayers, they are happy to see money being poured into education.

"I think that's the best place to put tax dollars, that's our future," said Jack Brandl.

The first day of school will now be Thursday, September 3. 

It's a delay of only two days, but it'll be useful time to get things running smoothly and safely.  

The district says it'll allow for faculty and staff to review emergency procedures, verify safety equipment and finalize arrival and dismissal routines.

The extra days will also allow high traffic back-to-school events, like "walk your schedule" and orientation to run smoothly for families. 

"Think about it, we have a snow day no one thinks about a snow day being a problem," George Yurick said. "So, what's going to be for two days? Not only that but to increase security and you can't do security with kids running back and forth to school, so do it before they open. It's a good thing."

To accommodate the change without reducing instructional time, the district made the following calendar adjustments:

• Sept. 1: Inservice Day (moved from March 8, 2027)
• Sept. 2: Act 80 Day for staff development and setup
• March 8: Now a regular instructional day for students
• June 10 and 11: Graduation and the final day of school remain unchanged

With the delay in place, the Bethel Park School District says it won't have an impact on breaks or the end of the school year.