Fox Chapel Area student achievements for the week of June 17, 2025

Five Fox Chapel Area School District students were named winners in the 2025 WQED Writers Contest. Fairview Elementary School second-grader Theresa Zigler was named a first-place winner for her story “The Case of the Missing Guitar.” Kerr Elementary School first-grader Ameena Searight won first place for her story “Ameena’s Silly Future in Paris.” Hartwood Elementary School kindergartner Laura Phillips won first place for her story “Doggy Dreams.”

The second place winner was Kerr Elementary first-grader Hansheng Peng for his story “In My Future,” and the third place winner was Fairview Elementary first-grader Talon Jacob Boyer for his story “My Future.”

Nearly 290 entries were submitted and the Fox Chapel Area winners were five of 16 students who won awards in this year’s contest. The students competed against others in their own grade levels, and the contest was open to students in kindergarten-grade three from throughout the country. The winning students were honored at an award ceremony held at WQED studios in Pittsburgh on May 17.

All the winners’ stories are available to read and listen to through WQED’s Writers Contest page at wqed.org.

Fox Chapel Area School District has been named among the 2025 Best Communities for Music Education for the 14th year. Fox Chapel Area is one of 131 in the state of Pennsylvania and one of 935 school districts in the nation chosen for the honor that recognizes districts that demonstrate outstanding music achievement and provide an exceptionally high commitment and access to all students to music education.

The districts were selected through a program sponsored by the NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Foundation, which recognizes and celebrates outstanding efforts by teachers, administrators, parents, students and community leaders who have made music education part of a well-rounded education for all students.

Fox Chapel Area School District won 11 awards in the 2025 National School Public Relations Association Publication and Digital Media Excellence Awards contest.

The district received top Awards of Excellence for the spring 2024, summer 2024, and winter 2024 issues of IN Fox Chapel Area magazine in the magazine category; Weekly Updates from the Superintendent in the newsletter category; and for the stories “First-Ever DMS Day of Service Boost for Organizations,” “Former Steelers Bring History to Life,” “Learning Opportunity Teaches Empathy, Understanding,” “Therapy Dog A Valuable Addition to Counseling Program,” and “Technology Keeps Holocaust Survivor’s Story Alive,” in the excellence in writing category. All of the stories appeared in the IN Fox Chapel Area magazine.

Fox Chapel Area won an Award of Merit for the “Fox Chapel Area School District 2023-2024 State of the Schools” in the annual report category.

The district won an Award of Honorable Mention for the Fox Chapel Area Safety, Health, and Wellness Fair in the marketing material category.

Entries in this year’s contest were given awards of Excellence, Merit, or Honorable Mention. The awards recognize outstanding education publications, including annual reports, newsletters, magazines, and videos, as well as excellence in writing. The entries were judged by experienced, award-winning professionals, and each was judged on its overall excellence and quality compared to other entries in the category.

Fox Chapel Area School District’s winning entries were coordinated by Jill Leonard, the district’s community engagement specialist, and Bonnie Berzonski, the district’s coordinator of communications.

Matvei Chesakov made the dean’s list at Missouri State University for the spring 2025 semester.

Claire Gallagher has been named to the dean’s list at James Madison University for the spring 2025 semester. Gallagher is majoring in psychology.

Nate Dufreshmany, Nate Kuhns and Britta Lagerquist made the dean’s list at Grove City College for the spring 2025 semester.

The following students made the dean’s list at Slippery Rock University for the spring 2025 semester: Alyssa Berardi, Mackenzie Borkovich, Jennifer Butler, Evan Kijowski, Roman Liberati, Christopher Mitchell, Robert Quillen, Cody Scarantine, Jillian Stahl, Eliott Stephany, Ciara Tivo and Ronald Walkowski.