CORRECTION: This story initially misstated one of the buildings being closed by the district. The school board will vote on closing the Franklin building. Northampton Borough kindergarten students would subsequently be moved into the Siegfried building.
NORTHAMPTON, Pa. — There's lots of facilities news in Northampton Area School District.
Superintendent Joseph Kovalchik provided an update on the district's many projects at Monday's school board meeting.
He said the new East Allen Elementary School being built at Route 329 and Seemsville Road is on schedule to be completed so it can open by the 2026-27 school year.
A new administration building is being built at the site, too.
“This is a really district changing event."Joseph Kovalchik, Northampton Area Superintendent
Kovalchik also said his team has worked on redistricting plans for the district’s elementary schools over the past several months.
That's after the school board decided to have four elementary schools instead of five for the time being.
“This is a really district-changing event,” Kovalchik said.
Moore Elementary will close during the 2026-27 school year, but the district will keep the property to potentially open a fifth elementary school in the future. A timeline for that has not been determined by the board.
Kovalchik said the district likely will need five elementary schools in the next five to 10 years as housing developments continue to pop up.
School directors recently considered renovating Moore next summer to have it ready for students by the 2028-29 academic year, but they changed course because of budgetary concerns.
Elementary school plans
Moore students and others from Lehigh, George Wolf and Northampton Borough elementary schools will be redistricted among the four open elementary schools.
Redistricting decisions will be based on each building’s capacity, the location of housing developments and transportation route times.
“I think a lot of folks were just under the impression that Moore Township students and staff were just going to go directly to East Allen, and that’s not the case,” Kovalchik said.
In 2026-27, the district’s elementary schools will be East Allen, Lehigh, George Wolf and Northampton Borough.
Families will be notified before Thanksgiving about which school their children will attend, Kovalchik said.
Additional facilities updates
At next month’s board meeting, school directors will vote on whether to close and sell three district buildings.
Those are the current administration building, the Washington technology center and the Franklin building, which currently serves as a kindergarten center at the Northampton Borough Elementary campus.
Northampton Borough kindergarten students would be moved into the school’s Siegried building, which currently houses first through fifth grades.
Additionally, Kovalchik said work is underway at George Wolf Elementary to replace its heating, ventilation and air conditioning system.
The $5.8 million project is slated to be completed by August.
