Restore the Historic Foltz Schoolhouse!

The Moraine, McConnells Mill and Jennings Commission (also known as 3MJC) is a non-profit organization which partners with our namesake state parks in Western Pennsylvania. Part of our mission is to sponsor projects which help to sustain and increase biodiversity as well as assist in conserving significant aspects of the parks’ history and buildings.  

Our current project is completing the renovations of the Foltz School House which sits on the park property of the Jennings Environmental Education Center. It was built in the late 1870’s to 1880’s and operated as a one-room school house from 1880 to 1963, teaching children from the first to the eighth grades. However, since its closure in 1963, it has fallen into disrepair.  Several years ago the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) invested in the school house to stabilize the foundation, replace the floor, roof and chimney, build a cupola, and repaint the building.  However, DCNR funds are no longer available and much work is still needed to make the building suitable for visitation and educational purposes.

Current tasks to be completed include: repairing the ceiling, installing electricity and insulation, replacing and installing glass windows, repainting and hanging the shutters, building a coal storage house, building a composting bathroom facility, creating educational panels for outside the building, landscaping and creating a parking area for school buses and cars.  So far we’ve replaced the front door, repaired the fence, and installed a wheelchair accessible ramp to the front door.

As this was the longest attended one-room school house on public lands, it has great historical significance.  The completion of the Foltz School House will introduce children and the public to the history of the school house, explain the significance of the educational system of that era, compare and contrast the past and present educational systems, relate the period living conditions and clarify the impact of the Brydon Coal Mine which sat above the school.  With the help of the knowledgeable educators at Jennings EEC, the Foltz School House will become a teaching tool and an asset to the community.

To make this vision a reality, we need your help! Please help fund this project.