Springfield School District (SSD) is a midsized, suburban, (K–12th) public school district located in
Springfield Township, Delaware County,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. It also serves the neighboring
Morton Borough. The district is one of the 500
public school districts of Pennsylvania. Springfield School District encompasses just . According to 2000 federal census data, it served a resident population of 26,392. By 2010, the district's population increased to 27,515 people. The educational attainment levels for the Springfield School District population (25 years old and over) were 95.1% high school graduates and 38.6% college graduates. In the 2010 census, the median household income was $87,878 compared to $52,267 in Pennsylvania. The percent of families in poverty was 3.0; the percent of all people in poverty was 3.9; the percent of people under 18 years in poverty was 6.0.
Springfield School District operates two
elementary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
s (2–5), Scenic Hills Elementary School and Harvey C. Sabold Elementary School.
Junior high
A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...
students (6–8) attend E.T. Richardson Middle School, and
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
students (9–12) attend
Springfield High School. Students in (K-1) attend the Springfield Literacy Center that opened for the 2010 school year. The district's administration office as connected to the high school building.
Springfield High School students may choose to attend Delaware County Technical High School for training in the construction and mechanical trades. The Delaware County Intermediate Unit IU25 provides the district with a wide variety of services like specialized education for disabled students and hearing, speech and visual disability services and professional development for staff and faculty.
History
Families in
Springfield Township could choose to send their children to
Swarthmore High School
Swarthmore High School was a four-year public high school in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania serving the Boroughs of Swarthmore and Rutledge.
History
Swarthmore established its own independent school district when Swarthmore Borough incorporated in 18 ...
,
Lansdowne High School, and/or
Media High School prior to the 1931 establishment of Springfield High School.
Extracurriculars
Springfield School District offers a wide variety of clubs, activities and an extensive, publicly funded sports program.
Athletics
The Springfield Cougars compete in many varsity and Junior varsity sports each participating in the Central League.
;Varsity:
;Boys:
*
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
- AAAA
*
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
- AAAAA
*
Cross country - AAA
*
Football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
- AAAAA
*
Golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
- AAA
*Indoor track and field - AAAA
*
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...
- AAAA
*
Soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
- AAA
*
Swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
and
diving
Diving most often refers to:
* Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water
* Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes
Diving or Dive may also refer to:
Sports
* Dive (American football), a ...
- AAA
*
Tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
- AAA
*
Track and field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...
- AAA
*
Wrestling
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
- AAA
;Girls:
*Basketball - AAAA
*Cross country - AAA
*Indoor track and field - AAAA
*
Field hockey
Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...
- AAA
*Lacrosse - AAAA
*Soccer - AAA
*
Softball
Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
- AAAA
*Swimming and diving - AAA
*Tennis - AAA
*Track and field - AAA
*
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
- AAA
*
Cheerleading
Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...
;Middle school sports:
;Boys:
*Baseball
*Basketball
*Football
*Lacrosse
*Soccer
*Track and field
*Wrestling
;Girls:
*Basketball
*Field hockey
*Lacrosse
*Soccer
*Softball
*Track and field
*Volleyball
Football
The Springfield Cougars Football Program which started in 1932 has seen four Central league championships in 1962, 1963, 1989, 1994, 2014, 2016, 2017. In 2008 The Cougars hired ex
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
Quarterback and Downingtown East and West Chester Rustin Offensive Coordinator Dan Ellis as Head Coach in 2008 who replaced Head Coach Chris Bell who went only 5–25 in 3 seasons. Coach Ellis lead the team to a 7-3 regular season record and a state playoff victory over Bishop Shanahan. To fill Ellis' place, Springfield promoted lineman coach Tom Kline, a longtime colleague of Ellis', to Head Coach in 2011 who lead the Cougars to an 8-2 regular season record only to lose in their first home playoff game to Academy Park. In 2012 The Cougars went 7-4 under Kline, including a win over Garnet Valley which was a rematch from the previous season's loss. The Cougars lost to West Chester Henderson in the first round of the playoffs. In 2013 the Cougars went 6–5, among the wins was a 45–6 victory over Strath Haven. This marked the first time that Springfield defeated Strath haven since 1994. In December 2013 Tom Kline stepped down as head coach for personal reasons. In early February 2014, long time Assistant Coach, and colleague of Tom Kline, Chris Britton who's been with the team since 2002 was promoted to head coach for Springfield. Coach Britton led the Cougars to an undefeated 10–0 season to win the 2014 Central League for the 1st time since 1994 only to lose in the District 1 championship to
Great Valley High School
Great Valley High School is a comprehensive, college preparatory, public high school located in eastern Chester County.
It is located in East Whiteland Township, near Malvern, Pennsylvania. Located on the same campus as Great Valley Middle School ...
after beating
Interboro High School and
Pottsgrove High School to finish 12-1 overall. The 2014-15 Cougar Football Season was the most successful team in high school history. The Cougars Varsity football in the 2016–17 season after a rivalry showdown victory in OT. over the
Ridley High School
Ridley High School serves the Ridley School District. It is located in Folsom, Pennsylvania, United States. The new high school opened in September 2001. In the 2017–2018 school year, Ridley High School had 1,787 students.
History
The origina ...
Green Raiders for the first time since 1994, and went on to make it to the district championship only to fall to Academy Park finishing with an overall record of 12–2, and winning a share of the Central League Title with Ridley, Garnet Valley, and Marple Newtown. The following season in 2017-18 campaign the Cougars won their 3rd Central League Championship title in 3 years only to lose to Unionville High School. The Cougars played their last home football game in 2018 against Unionville High School, to make way for a new turf field to be installed along with the new high school project, the Cougars football team played their home games at
Strath Haven High School
Strath Haven High School (also abbreviated as SHHS) is a four-year public high school in Wallingford, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, enrolling about 1,200 students. SHHS is the only high school in the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District. The ...
in Wallingford as their temporary site for the 2019 season.
Basketball
For the past few years the Cougars had success under head coach Kevin McCormick Sr who was hired in 2000, who led the men's basketball team to multiple championships. On December 28 the Cougars won the William Allen Holiday against William Allen HS in OT, after trailing 23–6 in the 1st quarter.
The Lady Cougars coached by Kimberly Smith finished their season with an overall record of 10-14 and defeated Marple Newtown 50–41, and lost in the second round to Villa Joseph Marie 43–30. In the 2019 season led by new head coach Meghan Dorrian led the girls basketball team to a 24–5 record only to Archbishop Wood in the first round of the state playoffs. On February 19 Jordan D'Ambrosio broke the school's all-time scoring record with 1195 total points.
Cheerleading
In February 2016 the Springfield Varsity Cheerleading Squad formerly coached by Kristen La'Barca and Molly Ries, traveled to
Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...
to compete in the annual
UCA
The fiddler crab or calling crab may be any of more than one hundred species of semiterrestrial marine crabs in the family Ocypodidae, well known for their sexually dimorphic claws; the males' major claw is much larger than the minor claw, whil ...
and went on to win the PIAA State title as well as being crowned National Cheerleading Champions. The team is currently coached by Maggie McCloskey, and former
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
cheerleader Kelly Yeager
Lacrosse
Springfield High School is also well known for their boys' lacrosse team. In the last few seasons the boys finished each season except for 2007–08 season at .500, with 10 wins or more. Springfield won the district 1 championship for lacrosse in 2015. On June 13 the 2016 boys lacrosse team defeated La Salle, 4–3 to win the PIAA State Championship.
Tennis
The boys' tennis team continued their upward surge in the 2016 season. They were led by singles players Tyler Stroyek, Michael Bonacquisti, and Jacinth Chikkala. Playing doubles was Joe Rice/ Ryan Busch, Joe Colgan/Chris Fleming, Justin Collins/ Adam Dickerson, and Ben Siti/ James Shickling. They were coached by Steve Fattori.
Softball
In the 2013–14 softball season, the girls' softball team went 23–4, and went on to defeat Bethlehem Catholic 3–0 to capture their first Class AAA PIAA District 1 State title.
Ice hockey
The Cougars Ice hockey program has seen a lot of success over the years under head coach Phil Eastman, winning the championship in 2007, 2011, 2013, and 2014. In 2014 In 2014 the Cougars Ice hockey team won their 2nd straight central league title.
Music programs
The high school has a band orchestra and choir.
Academics
The high school and middle school have one of the best Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science teams in the state. The current era of the team started in the 2006–2007 school year. Since then the team has grown to 32 members in the 2010–2011 school year. Approximately 85-90% of the students qualify for the state meet each year. This is much higher than the normal qualification rate of 65-70%. Students from Springfield have placed extremely well over the past few years and in that past two years 7 the 7 eligible students have won scholarships. The team has also accumulated over $100,000.00 in prizes and scholarships in the past 5 years.
Steve Stefani Dance Marathon
Steve Stefani Dance Marathon is an annual charity event held at Springfield High School each year; proceeds go to the
Four Diamonds Fund
Penn State Health Children's Hospital (PSCH) is a nationally ranked women's and pediatric acute care teaching hospital located in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The hospital has 134 pediatric beds. PSCH is affiliated with the Penn State College of Medici ...
to go towards fighting pediatric cancer for kids across Pennsylvania. Steve Stefani Dance Marathon was originally created by a teacher who works at Springfield High School to honor Steve Stefani, a beloved social studies teacher who worked at Sabold Elementary and Springfield High School, and died of cancer. In 2013 participants raised over $190,000 to go towards fighting pediatric cancer. In 2014 the Steve Stefani Dance Marathon raised $224,598,71 to go towards fighting pediatric cancer. To date the Steve Stefani Raised over $1 million in 11 years. In 2018 the participants raised $244,750,57.
Turkey Games
The Turkey Games is an annual
flag football
Flag football is a variant of American football where, instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier ("deflagging") to end a Down (gridiron football), down. The sport has a ...
tournament that began in 2015, that is held every 3rd Wednesday before
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden and ...
. The proceeds go to the Turkey fund for the homeless, and needy. In 2018 those who were involved were encouraged to donate winter clothing such is gloves, hats, and coats.
Brunner Bash
The Brunner Bash is a six-hour marathon similar to the Steve Stefani Dance Marathon that honors Sabold teacher Glen Brunner, who died of cancer. The bash occurs every year and students may not sit and be physically active for six hours at the middle school. The proceeds support the Steve Stefani Dance Marathon.
Future development
On June 10, 2015, Springfield School Board voted in an 8–1 decision to build a new high school. The construction of the new high school began in 2018 and was completed in early 2021. The old high school was demolished,to way for new playing fields and installation of the visiting teams bleachers which concluded in 2022.
Notable alumn
*
Robert Hazard, rock musician
References
External links
*
**
Springfield Area Educational FoundationSpringfield Football HomepageSpringfield Music Homepage
{{Delaware County, Pennsylvania School Districts
School districts in Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Springfield Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania