Mahanoy Area considers reconfiguration of district schools

KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SENTINEL PHOTO - Mahanoy Area Superintendent Dr. Joie Green presents the reconfiguration plan to the public during Tuesday Night's hearing, held at the Mahanoy Area School District Auditorium.

MAHANOY TOWNSHIP – Pending the school board’s decision on Thursday, February 23rd, the Mahanoy Area Middle School may be no more.

Mahanoy Area is looking at integrating the current middle school grades into the Elementary and High Schools as part of a reconfiguration, intended to better utilize facilities and deal with falling enrollment.

The current system Mahanoy Area has is unique for Schuylkill County’s smaller school districts, having grades K-4 in Elementary School, 5-8 in Middle School, and 9-12 in High School. Mahanoy Area is one of 6 school districts in Schuylkill County with a stand-alone middle school, and is the smallest of those six.

Under the proposed system, grades K-6 would be in the Elementary School, and grades 7-12 would be in the Mahanoy Area Junior/Senior High School, in a system similar to Shenandoah Valley and North Schuylkill.

The reconfiguration plan aims to avoid furloughs by moving current staff to new positions, although a High School Guidance Counselor position will not be replaced.

On Thursday, February 23rd, at 6:00pm, the Mahanoy Area School Board will decide whether they will accept, reject, or table the plan for a future meeting.

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