Kid’s Zone

HPCC KID’S EVENTS
The Highland Park kids committee is organized and staffed by volunteers. We rely on community members to keep fun kids activities happening in our neighborhood. Over the past few years, we’ve followed the following three-season schedule:

• Bryant St. Festival (June):  We provide a kids’ craft table at the Bryant St. festival. Last June we made crowns to wear during the festival. We also give out books to kids during the festival.
• 4^th of July bike decorating and parade:  We hold a big afternoon July 4^th party where kids bring their bikes, tricycles, wagons, and choose from a multitude of red white & blue decorations to decorate their bikes. Last July we also made personalized decorated sun visors to wear. We then ride our vehicles around the fountain in different age groups for safety and have snacks and lemonade.
• Reservoir of Jazz (August):  The HPCC kids committee provides activities every Sunday in August during the Reservoir of Jazz concerts. Look out for our kids tent, where your kids can join us in a variety of activities, including: a nature scavenger hunt, making mosaic plaques, making a plaster/sand mini-beach, relay races, obstacle courses, and more!
• Halloween parade (October): This annual HPCC even features ghouls, goblins, snacks and lots of spooky fun.

PUBLIC SCHOOL OPTIONS IN PITTSBURGH

Are you confused about public school options in Pittsburgh? If so, you are not alone. While the process of finding a school in the City can be complicated, it’s helpful to know that there are four types of public schools: neighborhood, partial magnet, full magnet and charter.

Every student is assigned to a neighborhood school by the student’s address. Neighborhood schools are also referred to as “feeder” schools. Addresses in the same area are grouped into a “feeder patterns” and assigned to the same neighborhood school. Students in Highland Park living east of Negley are assigned to Fulton K-5; students to the west of Negley are assigned to Sunnyside K-8 in Stanton Heights.

Magnet schools feature programs which allow students to pursue special interests, and they are open to students throughout the City. Students must apply to the school and are chosen through a weighted lottery system that includes factors such as sibling preference, geography, income and program continuity.

Partial magnet schools serve students in their feeder pattern but also offer special programming. At third grade, classrooms are organized by magnet or feeder enrollment. Partial magnets include Fulton (French) and Woolslair (STEAM). At full magnet schools like Dilworth K-5 and Obama 6-12, all students must apply to the school for admission. Other full magnet schools in the East End include Montessori K-5, Liberty K-5 (Spanish) and Linden K-5 (German/Mandarin).

While neighborhoods and magnet schools are managed by the School District, charter schools are run independently. They are funded through tax dollars and open to all City residents. The Environmental Charter School and the Urban Academy are popular options with their own application processes.

Visit discoverpps.org for a dashboard providing information on Pittsburgh Public Schools. A+ Schools publishes its ‘Report to the Community’ which provides a wealth of data on every public school in the City. While City residents have ample information available, the best way to learn about a school is to visit it. All the schools mentioned above offer tours, and the HPCC periodically organizes tours to neighborhood schools.