Point Township, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania

Point Township, Pennsylvania
Township
Field and Montour Ridge in Point Township
Map of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania highlighting Point Township Map of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania highlighting Point Township
Map of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Northumberland
Settled	1756
Incorporated	1786
Government
• Type	Board of Supervisors
Area
• Total	27.4 sq mi (70.8 km2)
• Land	25.2 sq mi (65.2 km2)
• Water	2.2 sq mi (5.6 km2)
Population (2000)
• Total	3,722
• Density	148.0/sq mi (57.1/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Area code(s)	570

Point Township is a township in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,722 at the 2000 census.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 27.4 square miles (70.8 km²), of which, 25.2 square miles (65.2 km²) of it is land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²) of it (8.01%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,722 people, 1,443 households, and 1,057 families residing in the township. The population density was 148.0 people per square mile (57.1/km²). There were 1,523 housing units at an average density of 60.5/sq mi (23.4/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 98.55% White, 0.35% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.38% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 0.40% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.70% of the population.

There were 1,443 households out of which 27.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.4% were married couples living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.7% were non-families. 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the township the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $43,276, and the median income for a family was $49,211. Males had a median income of $34,054 versus $22,708 for females. The per capita income for the township was $20,251. About 4.2% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Map of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania Public School Districts

The local public school system is the Shikellamy School District. The administrative offices are located at Administration Center, 200 Island Blvd, Sunbury, Pennsylvania. Shikellamy High School has a 78% graduation rate according to the district report card 2005-2006. In 11th grade, 49% were proficient in math. For reading 62% were proficient in 2005-2006. The high school is ranked 384th out of 606 public high schools in Pennsylvania.

In 2007, the Pittsburgh Business Times ranked the Shikellamy School District 434th out of 499 Pennsylvania school districts based on three years of Pennsylvania System of Student Assessment test scores.

The Shikellamy School Board set the budget at $34.62 million for 2007-2008. The board levies a variety of taxes to support its programs. Taxes include 62.5 mills real estate tax in 2007. Per capita taxes are $5 per resident. An earned income taxes of one-half of 1 percent of income yields a revenue of approximately $1.8 million. Additionally, the real estate transfer tax of one-half percent (Northumberland Borough, Point Township, Rockefeller Township) and one percent (Snydertown borough) is levied on real estate transfers.

Voters rejected a tax referendum in May 2007 which would have increased local earned income tax by 0.5 percent to reduce property taxes for homeowners and farmers by $176.

SUN Area Career & Technology Center is a regional vocational school, offering adult education classes, vocational education, and technical career training. SUN Tech serves over 1500 people annually. ISO9001 and Middle States Accredited. SUN Tech was presented with the Significant Achievement Award in Education for raising its Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award score to 648 points, a 345-point increase from 303 points in August, 2000.

Residents also have a wide selection of alternative schools. By law, the local public school must provide transportation to schools within 10 miles of the borders of the school district at no charge to the student.

Parochial schools

Further information: parochial school

• St. Monica's School provides a parochial education program for kindergarten to 8th grades. The school is a member of the National Christian Schools Association. Noncatholics seek admission to this school.
• Sunbury Christian Academy offers pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The campus is located just north of the borough of Northumberland. The student population is nearing 160. Programs and student accomplishments are noted regularly in local media.
• Northumberland Christian School was founded in 1972 and is a ministry of the First Regular Baptist Church of Northumberland, Pa. The school offers an educational program for students from preschool through high school.

Charter Public Schools

Further information: Charter school

• Connections Academy provides a form of public school that students can attend from home. This is a unique program that combines strong parental involvement, the expertise and accountability of publicly funded education, and the flexibility of online classes. Centered on meeting students needs and goals. Has a K-11th program. Students are required to take all state mandated, standardized tests in person at locations designated by the school.
• SusQ-Cyber Charter School provides students in grades 9-12 with an electronically delivered accredited high school curriculum.
• 21st Century Cyber Charter School is a state accredited, diploma granting school serving Pennsylvania students in grades 6 through 12. Modifications are made to suit individual student learning styles, varying academic levels and scheduling needs. Most classes are offered in honors, college prep, and career paths. All of the classes are designed to prepare the student for standardized tests such as the PSSAs.
• Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School provides a structured yet flexible, interactive environment in a program for Kindergarten through 10th grade. The rigorous instruction, high standards, informed guidance, and individual attention provide each student with the opportunity to be highly successful. Teachers interact with students via email. Additionally the Elluminate classroom gives the student access to their teachers during the teacher’s office hours to ask questions related to content of a subject. "An independent audit of cyber-charter schools by KPMG Consulting, which was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, praised PAVCS for offering a well-researched program and an appropriate assessment plan."