Long retiring; Frank appointed

Kevin Long, the current Liberty High School Grenadier Band director, will be retiring at the end of this school year. LHS’s assistant band director for eight years, Allen Frank, has been appointed as the fifth LHS Grenadiers band director.

He was in the U.S. Marine Corps Band for four years. He was the band director for Wilson Area School District. He taught at Pleasant Valley and Jim Thorpe school districts. He earned a bachelor of arts in music and Pennsylvania certification from Moravian College. He is currently an adjunct teacher at Moravian College.

Retiring administrators recognized

The Bethlehem Area School District recognized five administrators who are retiring from the district. All of these administrators have served the district in a variety of leadership roles and have performed their duties with great commitment and a strong devotion to the service of our students. Thank you to Michael LaPorta, Freedom HS principal; Deborah Roeder, Miller Heights ES principal; Jill Moran, James Buchanan ES principal; Joseph Rahs, Northeast MS principal; and Carole Schachter, supervisor of ESOL.

Administrative changes announced

The Bethlehem Area School Board approved several principal and administrative nominations at its May 24 regular meeting.

The Governor Wolf ES principal vacancy will be filled by Rick Amato. He was the Broughal MS principal for the past five years. He was an assistant principal for two years at Broughal and in the Wilson Area School District. He taught at East Hills and Nitschmann MS. He earned a bachelor of science degree from East Stroudsburg University and a master of education degree from Wilkes University.

The new Broughal MS principal will be Brandon Horlick. He was the assistant principal of Nitschmann MS for the past three years. Prior to that, he was a special education learning support teacher at Liberty HS. He taught social studies at Norristown Area School District. He received both bachelor of science and master of education degrees from Kutztown University. He is certified in special education by Wilkes University and has an administrative certification from Moravian College.

The supervisor of social/emotional health services will be by Tracey Hirner, currently the principal of Thomas Jefferson ES for the past five years. She was an assistant principal at East Hills and was a guidance counselor at both Northeast and the BASD Career Academy. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Kutztown University and a master’s degree from Wilkes University.

The new Thomas Jefferson ES principal is Elizabeth Ramsey, the assistant principal at Liberty HS for the past five years. She was a guidance counselor at both Freedom and Liberty and was the department chair at Liberty. She has a bachelor of science degree from Lock Haven University and a master’s degree from Lehigh University.

Retiree video online

On behalf of Dr. Roy, the Board of School Directors, and the BASD Administration, the district thanks all BASD retirees for their years of service. In recognition of them, they put together a video of thanks to wish them many happy healthy retirement years. See the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WU0PYy75feI

Sanchez appointed English Learner supervisor

The Bethlehem Area School District announces the appointment of Jose M. Sanchez as the supervisor of English Learner Services.

Sanchez served as the assistant principal of Broughal MS for the past year. He came to BASD in 2013, teaching fourth and fifth grade ESOL at Donegan ES. Other roles in BASD included dean of students and assistant principal, both at Fountain Hill ES.

Sanchez received master’s degrees from Lehigh University and from DeSales University and his bachelor’s degree from DeSales University. He attended Northampton Community College. Sanchez is a graduate of Liberty HS.

Sanchez takes over for Carole Schachter, who recently retired.

District thanks Giant markets

Thanks to Giant for supporting the Bethlehem Area School District food programs fundraising. BASD received $50,373.57 to support school food programs at the May 24, school board meeting. For information, visit #BASDproud #GiantFoodStores #bethlehempa @giantfoodstores