Area schools begin without problems

The opening of the new Harding High School in Warren went smoothly.

Staff Report

The first day of school can also be a day of new challenges for school districts.

Poland Local schools, for example, started the academic year with an international flair.

“We have students from all over the globe,” said schools Superintendent Dr. Robert Zorn, listing the Czech Republic, China and Lebanon as examples. “It’s very unusual for Poland.”

The district will hire aides to help tutor the pupils with limited English proficiency.

Those pupils are among the 60 new to the Poland district this year, bringing enrollment to about 2,500, Zorn said.

He said the first day of classes went smoothly.

The Warren School District has a massive new high school, yet Tuesday experienced the “smoothest start” of classes in recent years, according to spokeswoman Dawn Marzano.

Transportation was right on time and the opening of the new Warren G. Harding High School went off without a hitch, she said. The new $44 million facility is home to about 1,700 students.

There was no confusion and, “Everybody was ready to learn,” Marzano said. “It was definitely a successful first day.”

The Warren district has 5,600 pupils this year.

Frank Lazzeri, Boardman superintendent, reported the same at that district.

“I visited all seven buildings,” he said. “There were no criers in kindergarten.”

This marks the second year the district has transitioned its kindergarten pupils into school.

“We have a rolling kindergarten,” Lazzeri said. “We have one-third come one day, one third the second day, and day three, we have one-third.”

That not only allows time for the children to adjust, but it also enables teachers and staff to screen the children and ascertain where they are developmentally.

The information is used to determine class composition.

“We want to make sure the classes are balanced,” Lazzeri said.

A number of Mahoning County schools started classes today, including Youngstown, Austintown, Jackson-Milton, West Branch, Western Reserve, South Range, Springfield and the Mollie Kessler School.