Students and staff at the Panther Valley School District got off to a successful start of a new school year, administrators told the board Wednesday night.

Superintendent Dave McAndrew thanked staff and administrators for a great start to the year and recognized those staff members coordinating transportation.

“It’s not easy rostering over 1,900 students to their buses,” he said.

Enrollment is up, with the district seeing an additional 39 students over the end of last year, McAndrew said, adding they are also seeing a growing number of English as a Second Language students.

Enrollment is at 1,866, which does not include cyber school students, and the intermediate school alone has seen an increase of 50 students this year, McAndrew said.

Other administrators reported benchmarking tests have been completed, and teachers are adapting well to new changes, such as grading and discipline. Students are also accepting new rules regarding earbuds and cellphone usage, they said.

The board also heard from resident Jill Hibbler thanking McAndrew and the district for creating an opportunity for before and after school care at the Narrow Valley Sportsplex, which keeps students in kindergarten through eighth grade active and engaged with sports activities, team building and homework help. She suggested the district put information on the Parent Square platform to let more people know about this program.

Other business:

In other business, the board approved:

• The financial reports and bills of $984,635 from the general fund and $335,868 in the cafeteria fund;

• A writ of execution on a property in Coaldale with the amount owed of $4,628;

• Homebound instruction for a ninth-grade student effective Aug. 25 through June 1, 2026, and also for a 12th-grade student retroactive to Sept. 15 and continuing until further evaluation;

• A list of volunteers for the 2025-26 school year;

• The Panther Valley Elementary CSI School Improvement Plan and the Panther Valley Junior-Senior High School A-TSI Plan;

• The Panther Valley Intermediate School School-Wide Title I plan;

• First reading of board policies on academic standards, curriculum, extracurricular activities, non-school-sponsored student groups, interscholastic athletics, diabetes management, and;

• The substitute rates for the 2025-26 as follows: full day regular substitute, $120 a day; full day long-term, $150 a day, and full day, retired substitute, $150 a day.