STATE COLLEGE — The State College Area School Board announced the appointment of two new principals in the school district at a meeting on Monday, May 6. The appointed principals will fulfill the role of two principals retiring in June.
Kara Treweek will replace Shelly Buckholtz at Ferguson Township Elementary School. Treweek has served as an educator in the State College Area School District since 2018. She has been the dean of students at Ferguson Township Elementary School for the past year, making her one of only two elementary deans of students in the district.
Before that, Treweek taught first grade at Pleasant Gap Elementary School in the Bellefonte Area School District from 2005 until she joined SCASD in 2018. In 2018, she taught kindergarten at Gray’s Woods Elementary before becoming the dean of students at Ferguson in 2023.
Treweek received a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Lock Haven University in 2005, a master’s degree in education focusing on curriculum and instruction from Wilkes University in 2010 and her principal certification from Shippensburg University in 2023.
According to the human resources recommendations given at the school board meeting, Treweek will earn a yearly salary of $125,000 and will begin transitioning into the position as the school year winds down.
“I could not be more excited to begin the journey of being the principal of Ferguson Township Elementary,” Treweek said in a statement on SCASD’s website. “As a lifetime resident of Centre County and an alumni of State College Area School District, I am proud to have the opportunity to lead a school within my hometown. I am looking forward to forming strong relationships with students, families, community members, and faculty and staff centered on belonging. I look forward to leaning into the collaborative spirit and instructional strengths that exist within the amazing Ferguson community to continue the drive for all students to succeed.”
A Penn State alumnus, Beth Solensky will join SCASD as the new principal of Mount Nittany Elementary School. Solensky will replace Mark Feldman, who will also retire in June.
Solensky graduated from Penn State in 1999 with a degree in elementary education. Her more than 20-year elementary career began in South Korea and Japan, where she taught English as a Fullbright Scholar and Fullbright Master Teacher.
After her time abroad, Solensky went to the Midwest to teach in both Minnesota and Michigan. During this time, she received her master’s degree in reading and language arts from Oakland University in Michigan, as well as her elementary and secondary administrative certification from Michigan State in 2015. Most recently, Solensky has been the principal at Ridge Wood Elementary School in Michigan since 2018.
She will start on Monday, July 1. However, she shared she is looking to spend time at Mount Nittany Elementary School before officially starting. According to the same human resources recommendations, Solensky will make an annual salary of $137,305.
“I am thrilled to be joining the Mount Nittany Elementary team,” Solensky said in a statement on SCASD’s website. “I am deeply passionate about fostering a positive and inclusive learning environment where every student will thrive. I look forward to serving alongside my SCASD colleagues and learning from them.”
