Carnegie's 125th anniversary, Carlynton's superintendent hire among year's top stories

Carnegie Borough celebrated its quasquicentennial birthday in 2019 with a look back at the last 125 years that made the municipality great.

Carlynton School District ended a long search at the cap off the year with the hiring of a new superintendent and Chartiers Valley School District opened the doors to a new high school this past year.

A lot has happened across the region in 2019. As we enter a new decade, the Signal Item is looking back at the stories that made the year memorable.

Here’s a look at our picks for the top five stories.

Carlynton hires new superintendent

Carlynton School District found its next leader in 2019.

More than a year after Superintendent Gary Peiffer resigned to take a job in the Greensburg Salem School District, Carlynton board members in December hired North Allegheny Senior High School Principal John Kreider as the district’s next superintendent.

Kreider, who will start in Carlynton in February, was given a four-year contract with an annual salary of $150,000. He was one of 24 candidates to apply for the position.

Acting Superintendent Joseph Dimperio has been working in the district since September 2018 leading the charge. He will remain with the district to help Kreider transition into his new role.

Carnegie’s 125th anniversary

Carnegie Borough celebrated a momentous milestone in 2019.

Throughout the year, there were a number of events hosted in the borough and in classrooms in the Carlynton School District recognizing the borough’s 125th anniversary.

A three-day festivity celebrating the borough’s birthday was held in August that included a special 125-year themed Carnegie Crawl, a day of remembrance with hot dogs, music and proclamations. The weekend was capped off with a car cruise and special 125th edition of the Carnegie Farmers Market.

Also of note — the Carnegie Crawl went year-round and the Carnegie Farmers Market celebrated its second year in action.

Chartiers Valley opens new school

The new Chartiers Valley High School opened its doors to students at the start of 2019.

The four-story school, with a price tag of just above $51 million, features a main commons area and two classroom wings.

The classrooms are divided into eight learning communities, or interdepartmental houses. Each has a social studies, math, science and English classroom, a joint faculty office, a smaller commons space and an area for small group learning.

Each learning community also has an area for lockers and its own bathrooms, so students don’t need to wander the halls during class periods.

Construction on the entryway and staff offices continued throughout the year.

In December, the district held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of both the high school and middle school construction projects.

Chartiers Valley wins state championship

The Chartiers Valley girls’ basketball team went undefeated in 2019, ultimately securing a state title.

First-year coach Tim McConnell led the team to a 30-0 season.

In March, the team won the PIAA Class 5A girls championship at Giant Center in Hershey, besting Archbishop Carroll 53-40 to secure the title.

Carlynton restructures music program

Facing budgetary woes, Carlynton school board members in April made the decision to restructure the elementary music program.

A large number of parents, students and teachers pleaded with board members to keep the current elementary music structure, saying the program was important for student education.

But in April, board members voted to restructure, reducing the number of elementary music/chorus positions from three to two.

Additional reporting is by contributing writer Jim Spezialetti.