Early Learning Academy Preschool

Early Learning Academy is offered at these following locations:

Registration Information

Registration for the 2026 – 2027 school year opens January 20, 2026. 

  • Registration for the all locations will be open to PHM residents ONLY beginning January 20, 2026.  Beginning February 9, 2026, non-resident families may begin registering for any remaining spots available.
  • * If you do not live within PHM boundaries and are a non-resident family, please wait until February 9, 2026 to complete the registration form.  Any spots that remain at that time will be filled on a first come, first served basis. *
  • ONLINE applications will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis. 

Please review the following information before submitting a registration form.

The non-refundable registration fee of $60 is due before your child is officially registered into the Early Learning Academy.  The fee can be dropped off at the school office between 8:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

In addition to submitting the online registration form (linked at the bottom of the page), you will need to provide a copy of the child’s birth certificate, immunization records, and two proofs of residency (mortgage/lease/rental statement and a current utility bill). Instructions on where to send these documents are found on the electronic registration form.  School front office staff will be happy to help you with any questions you may have.

Registration links are at the bottom of this page . Please read all of the information on this page before clicking on the registration links. ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Who is eligible to apply? 
The child must be 4 years old on or before September 1, 2026 to attend during the 2026 – 2027 school year.  Youngsters who live in neighboring school districts are welcome to apply beginning February 9, 2026, if spots are available.  Please note – when non-resident preschool children are of age to attend Kindergarten, parents/guardians must apply for a spot during the P-H-M non-resident application process.  Attending the Early Learning Academy does not qualify non-resident students to automatically attend a P-H-M school.

F.A.Q.’s 

  • How many days a week does this program operate? 
    The program operates 5 days a week, Monday through Friday.
  • What are the hours of operation? 
    All ELA locations operate from 8:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. , Monday through Friday. We follow the established P-H-M school calendar, including school closings and delays that may occur due to weather. 
  • Click here for the district school year calendar 
  • How much does it cost? 
    In addition to the non-refundable registration fee of $60, the cost for the 2026 – 2027 school year is $35 a day.  Cost includes full-day programming, a daily lunch and a snack.
  • We do offer an option to pay fees online.
    Please click here for more details on how to pay Early Learning Academy fees online using e~Funds for Schools.
  • Are Transportation Service or Kids Club (Before and After School Care) available?
    We do not offer bus transportation to and from preschool. If it is necessary for your child to attend Kids Club (P-H-M’s child care services before and after school program), please indicate the need on the ELA application.
  • What is the curriculum for the program?
    Each location is served by a certified lead teacher, assisted by para-educators in the classroom setting. We use a research-based, early childhood program that builds strong foundations for school success focusing on each student’s social development and cognitive learning through a variety of tools. Our preschoolers spend time in role-play which has shown to lead to higher measures of creativity and cognition. Students are exposed to learning experiences that include literacy, mathematics, socialization, music, physical education, and the arts. Through fun, creative activities, we scaffold students through multiple levels of learning. 

Watch this video highlighting how our professionally-staffed, full-time programs promote learning while encouraging creativity and problem solving. 

Click here for the Horizon Early Learning Academy Registration Form for the 2026 – 2027 school year.

Click here for the Mary Frank Early Learning Academy Registration Form for the 2026 – 2027 school year.

Click here for the Northpoint Early Learning Academy Registration Form for the 2026 – 2027 school year.

Our Parent Handbooks cover many details and are available here:

 

Alternative Education

Alternative education provides options to students who are not successful in the traditional school setting. The Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation offers the following alternative programs.

Pennway Alternative Program

The purpose of the Pennway Alternative Program is to provide each student with the resources and support necessary to successfully complete a program of studies that will lead to a high school diploma as well as obtain marketable work skills.

Pennway Alternative Day School offers a program for 11th and 12th grade students. This program connects to the corporation program at Penn High School. If students are employed or volunteer, they may be eligible for additional credits. Pennway Alternative also houses the Penn High School Independent Study program. This is for Penn High School students in grades 9-12 who need to retake a course for credit.

For more information, contact the Penn High School Guidance office at 574-258-9502.

Listed below is the Student Alternative Education Application and the Pennway Student Handbook:
2024-2025 Penn High School Student Handbook

Pennway Night School

The Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation also offers a Pennway Night School program whose purpose is to provide coursework for a high school diploma. There is a comprehensive core curriculum of North Central Association and Indiana Department of Education-approved courses delivered through several software programs. Students are required to pass the Indiana End of Course Exams (ECA) in Language Arts 10 and Algebra 1 and take the Biology 1 ECA as a requirement of No Child Left Behind.

To qualify for the Pennway Night School you must be 18 years of age or older and need a high school diploma. Individuals who are currently enrolled in high school classes are not eligible to enroll as a full time night school student. Enrollment is quick and easy. You must be 18 years of age or older to enroll. A fee of $25 is required at the time of enrollment. You can register by appointment with Brad Boyd, Pennway Night School in the evenings Monday through Thursday (between the hours of 3:00 to 9:00 p.m.). Enrollees will need the following documents to enroll: government issued picture ID or birth certificate for proof of age. Only checks or money orders will be accepted. Penn-Harris-Madison reserves the right to determine appropriate academic placement for students.

Pennway Night School is located at 55985 Bittersweet Road across from Penn High School and north of the Paul H. Schmucker Middle School. For more information, contact the Guidance Office at Penn High School at (574) 258-9502 or Pennway Night School Director Brad Boyd by telephone at (574) 254-2895.

English as a New Language (ENL)

P-H-M’s English as a New Language (ENL) program serves all students whose first language is not English.

Upon enrollment in U.S. schools, all students complete a Home Language Survey to indicate the student’s native language.  If English is not the student’s native language, an English language assessment is completed. Indiana utilizes the WIDA Screener to determine the student’s English language fluency. If a student has obtained a fluent score (from a WIDA assessment of 5.0 or higher) from a previous school, it is helpful to present this at the time of registration. 

ENL services are provided in all P-H-M schools. An Individual Learning Plan (ILP) is developed for each “limited English proficient” (LEP) student.  This document outlines specific modifications appropriate for all classroom instruction and state testing accommodations. 

Elementary students are serviced by a licensed English language teacher and through small groups or individual in class assistance by an ENL aide. These services are presented according to the language level of the student in conjunction with Indiana Department of Education standards as well as WIDA’s English Language Development (ELD) Standards. Collaboration occurs between the mainstream teacher and EL staff to address areas of focus. 

Middle and high school students are enrolled in English Language Development (ELD) and/or Language Lab. Both courses provide opportunities to develop skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. WIDA’s English Language Development (ELD) Standards are also addressed.

Additional information can be found at the Indiana Department of Education’s website for English Learning and Migrant Education. 

CONTACT

  • For district related questions, please contact the Director of Alternative Education and Special Projects, Robert Thompson, phone (574) 254-2857 extension 20617. Email him at rthompson@phm.k12.in.us 
  • At the elementary level (grades K-5), please contact the Elementary EL Coordinator, Nicole Parker, phone (574) 259-2486, extension 53261. Email her at nparker@phm.k12.in.us​
  • At the middle school level (grades 6-8), please contact the Middle School EL Coordinator, Rylee Jacobson, phone (574) 674-7375, extension 49245, Email her at rjacobson@phm.k12.in.us
  • At the high school level (grades 9–12), please contact the High School EL Coordinator, Lauren Tarbet, phone (574) 258-9543, extension 20461. Email her at ltarbet@phm.k12.in.us

 

High Ability

How We Identify High Ability Students

In Indiana, students can be identified as High Ability based on either achievement or aptitude. We are required to administer nationally normed tests to assess High Ability. We use the NWEA assessment and ILEARN checkpoints to measure achievement and the CogAT assessment to measure aptitude.

Selection committees use data and adopted criteria to identify High Ability students. Students may be identified in math, reading, or both. The formal identification process takes place in Kindergarten, 2nd grade and 5th grade, but students may be identified based on a combination of recommendation and achievement in all grade levels.

High Ability Identification Criteria by Grade Level — ELA & Math
Grade Level Aptitude Measure (CogAT) Achievement Measure (NWEA & Checkpoints — First and second attempts are included. We will use the higher score from each checkpoint attempt.) Additional Measure for Scores within 1 Percentile of Qualifying Score (SIGS-2)
Kindergarten 97th percentile NWEA 97th percentile SIGS
1st Grade Recommendation or Watchlist (must have achieved 90th percentile or higher on Kindergarten CogAT) and NWEA 97th percentile
2nd Grade 97th percentile NWEA 97th percentile SIGS
3rd Grade Recommendation or Watchlist (must have achieved 90th percentile or higher on 2nd Grade CogAT) AND checkpoint score of 97th percentile on one of three assessments. Must score in the 80th percentile or higher on both of the other two checkpoint assessments in the same subject area.
4th Grade Recommendation AND checkpoint score of 97th percentile on one of three assessments. Must score in the 80th percentile or higher on both of the other two checkpoint assessments in the same subject area.
5th Grade 97th percentile CogAT 90th percentile or higher AND checkpoint score of 97th percentile on one of three assessments. Must score in the 80th percentile or higher on both of the other two checkpoint assessments in the same subject area. SIGS
Grades 9, 10, & 11 PSAT/NMSQT (Cut score determined by College Board — 90th percentile or higher)

Formal High Ability Identification Years

Because young students change and grow, we formally identify students with high abilities three times during their elementary experience: kindergarten, second grade, and fifth grade.
The following documents outline the process:

Informal High Ability Identification Years

Grades 1, 3, and 4 – These are informal years for High Ability identification. Students participate in achievement testing only if nominated by a teacher. Nominated 1st graders will take the NWEA test(s) in January. Nominated 3rd and 4th graders do not take additional tests; however, their ILEARN Checkpoint scores will be reviewed to determine if they meet the 97th percentile criteria in math and/or reading.

Testing Windows 2025-2026

  • October: ILEARN Checkpoint 1 (Grades 3-5)
  • November: CogAT (Grades K, 2, and 5)
  • December: ILEARN Checkpoint 2 (Grades 3-5)
  • January: NWEA (select students in Grades K and 2)
  • February: ILEARN Checkpoint 3 (Grades 3-5)

Test Results

Beginning in late April, parents may request test reports/results by emailing your child’s building principal. Please include the child’s first name, last name, grade and school in the email.

Parent Letters

Letters for newly identified students will be sent during the week of April 27th. A small number of students will be tested after spring break. If any of these students qualify for High Ability, their parents will be notified by the end of May.

Appeals – Grades 2 and 5 only

Parents may request an appeal form by emailing their child’s building principal. Appeal forms should only be submitted if a student narrowly missed the required score and there is additional evidence that the student demonstrates characteristics of a High Ability learner. Appeals are due by May 8th; late submissions will not be accepted.

Identifying students who are new to the Corporation  

Please send recent achievement and aptitude test reports to your child’s school to ensure accurate placement. Principals are responsible for all student decisions and have final discretion in these matters. Only actively enrolled students are assessed for High Ability during the testing window each year.

If your child was identified as High Ability or gifted and talented in a different school corporation, please provide recent nationally normed test reports to your child’s principal. The High Ability/gifted and talented designation will continue only if the percentile scores meet our cutoff criteria using the same measures as noted in our identification process.

Placement of high ability students in elementary schools

High Ability Cluster Grouping Model with a Mixed Ability Class

Definition:  All High Ability students are grouped together in one classroom per grade, where subjects are differentiated. In some schools, cluster groups may be formed across two or more classes if the number of identified students is high.

Note: Our corporation does not have one specific way to manage High Ability cluster groups. Each school and teacher uses strategies that fit the number of identified students, their learning preferences, and the teacher’s instructional approach. Please contact your child’s principal if you have specific programming questions.

How We Serve High Ability Students in Elementary Grades

Language Arts

Writing

Writing instruction occurs both with the whole class and in small groups. It naturally differentiates according to each student’s individual strengths and needs with every writing assignment. 

Reading

MyView, Fundations, Heggerty, and the reading curriculum maps provide the framework for instruction. All grade-level standards and skills outlined in the curriculum maps should be taught or reviewed based on each student’s experience. This can be done with the whole class or in small groups. Instruction integrates principles from the science of reading to support effective literacy development.

Practice will be differentiated for students who have demonstrated mastery of on-grade-level standards. Differentiated practice is based on our approved curriculum. Below you will find resources that teachers may use to support differentiation.

Question Stems – These are higher-level questions aligned with the reading standards that can be used with texts at a student’s instructional level. They are suitable for small group discussions or individual assignments. Texts may come from MyView, building library collections, or other approved resources.

Off-Grade Level Magazines – Teachers have subscriptions to off-grade-level magazines for their identified High Ability Language Arts students. These magazines offer many engaging thinking activities based on articles and stories at higher reading levels.

Other resources that may be used by High Ability Language Arts Teachers:

  • Junior Great Books
  • Novel Studies
  • Other off grade level resources that are provided by the High Ability Coordinator

Math

Everyday Mathematics and the math curriculum maps provide the framework for instruction. All standards on the curriculum map should be taught and/or reviewed, either with the whole class or in small groups. The corporation expects High Ability students to master on-grade-level skills while being introduced to and practicing off-grade-level standards. Below is a list of resources provided to High Ability math teachers to support the instructional needs of our High Ability math students.

Unit DI Guides – Unit guides  provide guidance for differentiation. The first level references the on-grade level standards. The second level lists activities that are on grade level but at a higher DOK level. The third level lists off grade level standards that align to each on grade level standard. As High Ability students show mastery in on grade level standards, teachers use this guide to help them plan differentiated practice at a students’ instructional level.

Off grade level standard resources – Teachers are provided with additional resources that practice off grade level standards.

Questions?

Please contact your child’s principal for more information regarding High Ability programming.

P-H-M’s High Ability’s Coordinator is Dr. Franca Peluso Mulhern, she can be contacted at fpelusomulhern@phm.k12.in.us.

PHM High Ability Reports

Saturday Enrichment at Schmucker Middle School

During the 2026-2027 school year, we will offer a variety of Saturday Enrichment opportunities for our students. Invitations will include details about eligible grade levels and class offerings.

Fall 2026 Enrichment Dates: Saturdays, 8:00 – 11:00 a.m.

  • October 31
  • November 7
  • November 14

Winter 2027 Enrichment Dates: Saturdays, 8:00 – 11:00 a.m.

  • February 20
  • February 27
  • March 6

*Priority is given to students that were unable to attend Fall Saturday Enrichment.

Eligibility Requirements for participating in Saturday Enrichment (Grades 3-5)

Grade 3

  • Scored in at least the 90th percentile on a second grade NWEA test or CogAT test
  • Identified as High Ability

Grades 4 – 5

  • Scored an above proficiency on the Spring 2025 Language Arts or Math ILEARN
  • Identified as High Ability