Three elementary schools in the North Penn School District (NPSD) will proudly be “walking the walk” on Wednesday, in support of International Walk to School Day.
Students, staff and families at General Nash, Hatfield and York Avenue elementary schools will be joining thousands of schools across 40 countries in walking and riding their bikes to school along a designated route. Local police departments and NPSD security will also be lending support by supervising the day of the event.
Students at General Nash Elementary School will be joined by a few special visitors to join in the festivities including the Towamencin Police Department, Pennsylvania State Troopers and NPSD Board of School Director Edward Diasio. Buses will unload students at the corner of Liberty Bell Drive and Green Lane in Harleysville at 8:55 a.m. Parent volunteers and staff members will assist with the journey between Green Lane and Nash Elementary. All students will be assembled across the brick walk-way in front of Nash into the school. General Nash is located at 1560 Liberty Bell Dr. in Harleysville. Upon arrival to Nash, Diasio will help kick off the day by assisting with the morning Pledge of Allegiance and then visit classrooms to read to groups of students.
At York Avenue Elementary and led by teacher Ruth McDevitt, students and staff will meet at Pocket Park at 8:40 a.m. and head towards the building together. Pocket Park is tucked in behind the York Avenue Apartments and homes on both the 200 block of York Avenue and the 200 block of Susquehanna Avenue.
At Hatfield Elementary, busses will drop student bus riders off at the corner of Jean Drive and Fairgrounds Road, and they will walk on the sidewalk down the street to Hatfield Elementary’s main entrance. Students who normally get dropped off in a car to school are also encouraged to walk with the bus riders from Jean Drive. Staff members will be along the route to encourage students on their trek and ensure safety.
International Walk to School Day events are designed to raise awareness of the need to create safer routes for walking and bicycling while emphasizing the importance of issues such as increasing physical activity among children, pedestrian safety, traffic congestion and concern for the environment. The event builds connections between families, schools and the broader community.
Walk to School Day began in 1997 as a one-day event. Over time, this event has become part of a movement for year-round safe routes to school and a celebration—with record breaking participation—each October. Today, thousands of schools across America—from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico—participate every October.
For more information, visit
http://www.walkbiketoschool.org/learn-more/about-the-events/about-walk-to-school-day/.
