Students sing along as the Seneca Valley Intermediate High School choir sings “God Bless The USA” during a ceremony June 7 renaming the middle school in honor of Sgt. 1st Class Ryan Gloyer, who died in action in Afghanistan.

JACKSON TWP — Seneca Valley School District seventh- and eighth-graders coming back from holiday break today will attend Ryan Gloyer Middle School, the first school building named after an individual in school district history.

The school at 122 Seneca School Road, was officially renamed in June during an emotional ceremony honoring Seneca Valley alumnus Sgt. 1st Class Ryan Gloyer, a Green Beret.

Gloyer was killed Nov. 3, 2016, while fighting enemy forces in Kunduz, Afghanistan. He was a 2000 Seneca Valley High School graduate.

The school board voted unanimously to rename the school in February and additionally directed the school administration to develop an educational program covering Gloyer's life and create a memorial in the school to honor him and any other Seneca Valley graduate who makes the ultimate sacrifice.

A video shown during the ceremony highlighted various facets of Gloyer's personality: photos of him as a bearded soldier in military fatigues, a photo of him reading a book to a child and photos of him grinning ear to ear with friends and family.

It also included a video recorded in 2005 for Dayna Buckley's class of fourth-grade students at the Greenville Elementary that Gloyer student-taught while he was at Thiel College. After graduating from Thiel in 2004 with degrees in psychology and early education, he enlisted in the Army.

The students had written letters to Gloyer while he was in basic training, so he recorded a video to thank them and give words of encouragement.

Members of the Gloyer family also spoke during the June ceremony.

School district officials said the hope in renaming the school is not only to honor Gloyer's life that was cut short but also to have the preteen and teenage students learn from his legacy as a soldier, a teacher and as a student.