North Hills welcomes partnerships with local businesses as it prepares for first day of school

Students in grades 1-12 in the North Hills School District will begin the new school year on Aug. 20; kindergartners will start two days later.

With the students’ return comes an opportunity for the community to have a hand in their success.

The school board announced a fundraising opportunity to benefit the district’s philanthropic foundation during its July 31 meeting.

Three local businesses have agreed to sponsor the North Hills Foundation by serving as community partners: Frank’s Pizza & Chicken, 101 Rochester Road, Ross; West View Brew, 442 Perry Highway, West View; and Good L’Oven Cookie Shop, 322 Sewickley Oakmont Road, Ross. Each are offering special deals that will benefit the foundation.

The foundation offers scholarships and mini grants for students and teachers. It also stocks pantries at the middle and high schools and operates a Backpack Initiative, which started in 2012 and provides food assistance for students in need. The Backpack Initiative is made possible by community donations and a partnership with North Hills Christian Church.

“I’m really excited about this opportunity,” Superintendent Patrick Mannarino said. “We were given samples of the new pizza that Frank’s will be selling, and it seemed to be received very well by everyone who tried it.”

Frank’s Pizza & Chicken has created a specific pizza called the “The Scholar” for its Ross location. Its other locations are in Millvale and Shaler.

“The pizza is our white-based pizza with roasted red peppers and grilled chicken. We chose those toppings to make the colors red and white for the high school,” said Jim Farine, one of five owners of the restaurant.

Farine said he is happy to help the school and really hopes the new pie catches on.

“We are donating $2 for every pizza sold (at that location) — that could end up being a lot of money,” he said.

According to a release from the district, Frank’s also plans to sponsor a student reading incentive program, where elementary students can earn a free four-cut pizza by reaching designated reading goals. Those details will be shared after the school year begins.

Good L’Oven is developing a North Hills-themed cookie, and 50 cents of each purchase will be donated to the foundation. The bakery also plans to participate in several district events, including the popular cookie race at all home varsity football games.

West View Brew is hosting a weekly “Foundation Friday” fundraiser, featuring a specialty drink, food item or both. Twenty percent of each purchase will go toward the foundation.

School board President Allison Mathis thanked the businesses for their support.

“I just want to say thank-you to the local business owners who chose to support our cause. I’m excited to see and try the new cookie. I look forward to building long-lasting relationships with these businesses, and I hope it continues for many years,” Mathis said.

District families and residents are encouraged to visit the partnering businesses.

In other news

Other items on the agenda included two construction projects within the district and a reminder about an upcoming Stuff the Bus school supply drive:

• Work to shore up excavation and slop stabilization at Martorelli Stadium will move forward, as the board ratified a matching funds commitment of $104,816 from the district’s capital projects fund toward the nearly $350,000 cost.

• Penn Fencing was awarded the contract for the replacement fencing project at West View Elementary School. The company won the bid June 19, with an amount of $59,697.72. Only two companies submitted bids for the project.

• The Stuff the Bus collection will take place from 3 to 7 p.m. Aug. 21 at The Block Northway. An ABC Transit school bus will be on-site between DSW and Lands’ End to collect school supplies for students and families in need throughout the North Hills School District. People are encouraged to donate backpacks, notebooks, pencils, crayons, markers, folders, lunchboxes and more to “stuff” the vehicle. For details about the event, visit nhsd.info/stuffthebus2025. To view school supply lists for all grade levels, visit nhsd.net/backtoschool.