Water Pressure Problems Cause Early Dismissal at Salisbury Schools

Emergency bottled water has been provided at Salisbury Middle School and Western Salisbury Elementary School because of a problem with the municipal water supply.

The Salisbury Township School District issued the following alert: "At this time, Salisbury Middle School and Western Salisbury Elementary School are experiencing periods of low or no water pressure in the building as result of what appears to be a larger issue in terms of municipal water supply. Salisbury Middle School students will be dismissed today, January 14, at 12:15 pm. Lunches will be served prior to dismissal, and arrangements for bottled emergency water have been made. Western Salisbury Elementary students will be dismissed today at 1:00 pm. Lunches will be served prior to dismissal, and arrangements for bottled emergency water have been made. There will be no PM Kindergarten; AM Kindergarten will be dismissed at the regular …

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Harvest Fest Today at Western Salisbury Elementary School

Bring the family to Western Salisbury Elementary School on Saturday to enjoy a crisp autumn day full of fun activities sponsored by the PTA.

Local Whooping Cough Cases on the Rise

Salisbury elementary school students were some of many local whooping cough patients.

Earlier this year, students at Salisbury Township's two elementary schools, Harry S. Truman and Western Salisbury, were diagnosed with whooping cough. Whooping cough cases were also reported in in Saucon Valley School District and Easton Area School District. Those cases appear to have been among a rising number of cases of pertussis, also known as whooping cough, in the Lehigh Valley and nationally. Local health officials say the number of whooping cough cases in the Lehigh Valley this year is higher than it's been in years, according to WFMZ.  "For every confirmed case, we probably have boatload more that haven't been detected yet," the Allentown Health Bureau's Vicky Kistler told the TV station. Whooping cough is a contagious bacterial…

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Declining Enrollment Poses Challenges for Salisbury Schools

Western Salisbury Elementary and Salisbury Middle School face steepest declines as enrollment continues to drop in Salisbury Township School District.

As enrollment continues to decline throughout Salisbury Township School District, particularly in its elementary and middle schools in the west, school officials are grappling with how to allocate resources. The declines affect everything from staffing levels levels to course offerings. "There comes a time when we don't have children in front of the teachers," said Assistant Superintendent Louise Beauchemin at Monday's school board meeting on the proposed 2012-2013 budget.  The elementary schools have reduced the number of classes per grade level over the last three years, Beauchemin said. "We used to have four of every grade at Harry S. Truman and three at Western Salisbury. We now have one less of each," she said. The reductions save the…

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Second Whooping Cough Case at Western Salisbury Elementary

Salisbury School District has fourth whooping cough outbreak this year in its elementary schools.

Salisbury Township School District is reporting another outbreak of whooping cough, or pertussis, at Western Salisbury Elementary School for the second time this year. Harry S. Truman Elementary School had two outbreaks earlier this year. The district posted the following notice on its Web site: It has just come to our attention on March 22, that children may have been exposed to a person who has pertussis (whooping cough) over the past few days while at Western Salisbury Elementary School. Pertussis is a highly contagious disease that is spread through the air when an infected person sneezes or coughs. Pertussis begins with cold symptoms and a cough, which becomes much worse over 1-2 weeks. Symptoms usually include a long series of coughs…

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Pick Up a Book, Pass It Around

Celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday March 2 by joining book lovers and your local school or public library for Read Across America day.

Western Salisbury and Harry S. Truman elementary school will join schools and libraries across the country today for Read Across America Day with special events to promote reading. This year, the National Education Association, a group of more than 3.2 million educators who work to improve public schools, and several literacy and youth groups are calling on book lovers around the nation to take up The Lorax, the popular Dr. Seuss children's book published in 1971 about a lovable creature who fights to save the environment. Share your plans for celebrating Read Across America Day with Patch or on the Read Across America pledge site.  NEA and Lorax' publisher, Random House, also have lesson plans and lots of other materials, resources and …

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Western Salisbury Elementary Students Exposed to Whooping Cough

For the second time this month, Salisbury schools report that children may have been exposed to whooping cough.

Students at Western Salisbury Elementary School may have been exposed to a person with pertussis, also known as whooping cough. It is the second time this month Salisbury Township School District has reported possible whooping cough exposure at one of its schools. Students at Harry S Truman Elementary School may have been exposed to a person with whooping cough the first week of January. Pertussis is a highly contagious disease that is spread through the air when an infected person sneezes or coughs. The following information was posted on the district's Web site: It has just come to our attention on January 26, that children may have been exposed to a person who has pertussis (whooping cough) over the past few days while at Western …

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Salisbury Girl Helps Kids With Cancer

Proud moms share story of local kids' altruism.

Sien Bauman of Salisbury Township and Hannah Schurman of Emmaus, both age 9, recently did their part to raise money to help kids with cancer, after seeing some Penn State students collecting money for cancer research. “Without any prompting from their parents,” Bauman’s mother, Lee Leckey, wrote in an email message to Patch, “they made signs and hit the streets with cups. They collected $35 pretty quickly.” Bauman is a fourth-grader at Western Salisbury Elementary School and Schurman is in the fourth grade at Seven Generations Charter School in Emmaus. The Penn State THON is a yearlong effort to raise funds and awareness for the fight against pediatric cancer. Since 1977, THON has raised more than $78 million for The Four Diamonds Fund at …

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