Dear Parents/Guardians:

On Thursday, February 2nd, Centerville Elementary will conduct a lockdown drill.  Just as we practice drills for weather and fire-related safety, we also practice how to respond in the event of an intruder. It is important for students and staff to be familiar with the process, procedures, and routines. With each drill, we learn ways to refine and improve our safety plans.

Each classroom teacher will talk with his/her class about the lockdown drill prior to it occurring. The teacher will emphasize that this is just a drill and that there is no reason for concern at this time. The teacher will also explain the importance of practicing these drills so we are prepared in the event of a real emergency. As we have done in the past, students in each classroom may be asked to place classroom items in front of the classroom door.  Also, the intruder alarm will be activated and an announcement will be made throughout our building. We want our students to understand our plan if we were to have an intruder in the building.  Please consider talking with your student at home about this drill so they feel comfortable and secure.

There is no topic more important than the safety and security of our students and the staff who work with them in our schools. While we do not share all of our emergency preparedness materials, we encourage you to visit our website to familiarize yourself with many of the ways we are committed to safety and security at Hempfield School District.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me, (717) 898-5575.

Sincerely,

Tom Kramer

Principal

The 13th Annual Hempfield Food Drive, presented by JK Mechanical, is in full swing! Each year, the food drive benefits the Hempfield Area Food Pantry.

Throughout the month of February, buildings across the district will be collecting non-perishable food items. Items can be dropped off at the main lobby of your school prior to Wednesday, March 1. All non-perishables will be appreciated & accepted, but please see the image below for specific items in need.

Between July and December, the Hempfield Area Food Pantry was visited 2,445 times by 228 local families. Help us restock the pantry to continue to benefit our community!

      (if unable to see photo, click "read in browser")

IU13 is coordinating a Navigating Social Media workshop for parents. The online workshop is hosted by Safe Communities and sponsored by the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office. This free workshop will cover what every parent needs to know about providing internet safety for their children. Click here for more information.

Date/Time: Tuesday, February 28, 6:30 – 7:45 p.m.

Held via Zoom. Sign up on www.safecommunitiespa.org to receive the workshop link.

Beginning this week, the Hempfield Foundation will hold a contest to design their 2023 Read Across America bookmark. The contest is open to all elementary and middle school students in the Hempfield School District. Students will receive a form to bring home that has a template they can use for this contest. Students are encouraged to create a design that shows why they love reading. The Foundation is looking for positive messages and artwork that's executed by hand. No computer-generated submissions, please! Submissions must be turned into the school office no later than February 13, 2023. Please don’t forget to have your child(ren) put their name on the back of their submission.

The Foundation board will select semifinalists from all the designs submitted. From there, one elementary and one middle school winner will be selected by a public vote on the Foundation’s Facebook page during Read Across America week (2/26-3/2/23). Winners will be announced on our Facebook and Instagram page on March 3, 2023. The winning elementary design will be printed and distributed to all elementary students and the winning middle school design will be handed out to all middle school students during Read Across America Week. In addition, the winners will each receive a $25 Barnes & Noble gift card.

Remember, today a reader, tomorrow a leader!

GIANT's Round Up Program will continue to run through February 28, but you can currently donate non-perishable goods as part of the Fill-a-Plate program, too!

The Fill-a-Plate portion of GIANT's partnership with HSD to help feed families will run from January 20-30, and you can participate by dropping your items into the collection bin at the front of the GIANT store at 550 Centerville Road. Items can be brought to the store or purchased while you do your regular shopping.

Also, don't forget... you can still “round up” your grocery purchase and donate the "round up" amount to Hempfield School District's efforts to help feed students. The GIANT Company will directly support customers’ generosity by matching all donations up to $250,000. These programs are only available at the GIANT store on Centerville Road.

Mr. Bromirski and Mr. Bill Gleason, District Safety & Security Supervisor, discuss the importance of prevention measures as a critical piece of the district's overall Safety & Security Plan in the January episode of Two Minute Talks.

Watch below or find all the archived 2 Minute Talks on this page or on HSD's YouTube channel.

2-Minute Talks is a monthly video series addressing the topical issues, concerns, or questions around our school district and community. To submit a topic for consideration, please email communications@hempfieldsd.org.