The North Hills School District is closed.

Virtual instruction will begin for all students on Wednesday, April 1 and continue through at least April 30 unless otherwise directed by President Trump or Governor Wolf. There is no instruction on Friday, April 10 or Monday, April 13.

All district buildings and facilities remain closed during this time. Transportation is suspended, and all athletics, activities and events are cancelled. There are no practices, games, rehearsals, etc. No outside organizations are permitted to use our facilities for practices or previously scheduled games and events. We will look to reschedule as many events as possible and communicate new dates as soon as they’re available.

Complete details about what our virtual instruction will look like for each student in each grade level can be found here.

Do you need a device?

NHSD has iPads and laptops available to students who need them in grades K-4 and 12 as these students do not have a district-issued iPad. Click here for more information and to request a device.

Options for Families Without Internet

Comcast is offering free internet for 60 days to families who cannot afford it. Complete details are availalbe here.

Some cellular providers are automatically providing expanded hotspot services to their customers as well:

• T-Mobile is giving an extra 20GB of hotspot for all T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile customers for the next two months.
• Sprint is providing all customers 60 days of unlimited data (a minimum of two bill cycles) for free and an extra 20GB of mobile hotspot data per month for 60 days (a minimum of two bill cycles) for free.

Breakfast and Lunch Program

On school days during the closure, all NHSD students who qualify for our free and reduced lunch program can pick up grab-and-go breakfast and lunch items between the hours of 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. from the rear cafeteria entrance of West View Elementary School. Please enter the parking lot from Bellevue Avenue.

Each student will receive a breakfast item (cereal, cereal bar, muffin), sandwich and/or yogurt/string cheese, fruit and veggie, treat or chips, juice and milk free of charge.

Allegheny County has created a searchable map of free food distribution sites across the county. Click here to view the map. Listings include available "grab and go" school sites, food pantries and other options.

The district will continue to follow the guidance from the Allegheny County Health Department, Pennsylvania Department of Health, Pennsylvania Department of Education and Centers for Disease Control during the closure, and reevaluate as necessary.

Additional information will be communicated via email, our website, district app and social media as it becomes available.

We recognize that this closure is a disruption to our students, staff and families. This is a challenging time, and we thank you for your cooperation and continued support as we make responsible decisions to keep our community safe and limit the spread of COVID-19.

There is currently no vaccine to prevent coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The best way to prevent illness is to avoid exposure. Follow these guidelines from the CDC to protect yourself and your family.

The North Hills School District encourages families to talk to their children about the virus.

Children need factual, age appropriate information about the potential seriousness of the disease, and concrete instruction about how to avoid its spread. Teaching children positive preventive measures, talking with them about their fears, and giving them a sense of some control over their risk can help reduce anxiety.

Parents should:

• Remain calm. If a parent seems overly worried, a child's anxiety may rise.
• Provide reassurance. Health and school officials are working hard to ensure that people throughout the country stay healthy. Children are not high-risk and the majority of people with COVID-19 experience mild symptoms and recover.
• Keep information simple and straightforward. Pittsburgh family physician and parenting expert Dr. Deborah Gilboa suggests asking the child what he/she has heard and believes. This animated video from BrainPOP is also a good place to start.
• Find opportunities to correct misinformation. It's okay if you don’t know all the answers. Information is constantly changing. Please keep the dialogue with your child open.
• Reinforce that not one group is to blame. No group should be stereotyped as responsible for the virus, and bullying or racial discrimination will not be tolerated in our schools. This virus can affect anybody. This comic created by NPR can be a helpful tool.