ParentSquareDr. Heather Short Approved as New Superintendent
In a special meeting held Tuesday, May 27, the Penn-Harris-Madison Board of School Trustees unanimously (7-0) approved the appointment of Dr. Heather Short as the district’s next superintendent effective July 1, 2025.
Nearly 50 P-H-M teachers, administrators, staff, family and friends showed up to express their overwhelming support of Dr. Short’s appointment.
Dr. Short, a lifelong educator who has dedicated her entire 31-year career to P-H-M, will succeed Dr. Jerry Thacker, who is retiring after 19 years of transformative leadership. Dr. Short has served as Assistant Superintendent for Instruction since 2017. During her tenure, P-H-M students have experienced consistent academic growth and achievement.
“I am deeply honored by the Board’s confidence and grateful to Dr. Thacker for his mentorship throughout my career,” said Dr. Short. “It has been the privilege of a lifetime to grow as a leader within this incredible district. I’m excited to continue working alongside our talented staff, dedicated families, and exceptional students to expand opportunities and ensure every child thrives.”
Under Dr. Short’s leadership, P-H-M ranks in the top 4% of Indiana districts based on ILEARN scores. The district also outpaces the state average by 20 percentage points in overall percent passing rates.
“There is no one better—or more qualified—to lead P-H-M’s continued path of academic excellence than Dr. Short,” said Chris Riley, President of the Board of School Trustees. “Her academic expertise and visionary leadership in developing rigorous, relevant curriculum have been key to our students’ success. Dr. Short was the Board’s clear and unanimous choice for superintendent.”
P-H-M is home to some of Indiana’s highest-performing public schools in both English/Language Arts and Math. Prairie Vista Elementary ranks #3 in the state, while Discovery Middle School ranks #2. In Spring 2024, P-H-M’s IREAD pass rate was 86.8%, surpassing the state average of 82.5%. Three P-H-M elementary schools—Prairie Vista (97.7%), Northpoint (95%), and Horizon (95.3%)—achieved pass rates above 90%.
Included in her district-wide academic strategy was a robust Response to Intervention (RtI) program and expanded summer offerings that support both enrichment and remediation.
Dr. Short’s leadership journey reflects deep roots and unwavering commitment to P-H-M. She began her career as a classroom teacher before serving as an Instructional Leader and High Ability Coordinator. Click here to learn how Dr. Short and Board Trustee Katie Bell’s paths crossed when Dr. Short was a 3rd grade teacher at Northpoint. In 2004, she became principal of Prairie Vista Elementary. Recognizing her talent for professional growth and instructional excellence, Dr. Thacker appointed her in 2007 as P-H-M’s first Director of Professional Development—a role she held for a decade before being named Assistant Superintendent.
Throughout her career, Dr. Short has been deeply committed to developing others. She co-created a nationally recognized leadership development program designed to build internal capacity among P-H-M educators and administrators. Her strategic focus on professional development has empowered teachers at every level—from new educators to veteran principals—through initiatives like the annual Literacy Summit and the New Teacher Series.
As Assistant Superintendent, Dr. Short has combined her instructional leadership with strong fiscal stewardship. She has overseen the management of multimillion-dollar budgets and successfully secured hundreds of thousands of dollars in state grants—investments that have directly enhanced classroom instruction, expanded student programs, and strengthened districtwide operations.
“Dr. Short possesses one of the most valuable qualities a leader can have: the ability to build genuine relationships,” said Dr. Thacker. “She makes personal connections with teachers, principals, staff, families—and most importantly, students. She understands the P-H-M culture because she helped build it. There is no one more fitting to serve as the next superintendent.”
After the Board approved Dr. Short as the district’s new leader, Board members shared well wishes and comments. Trustee Katie Bell (elected in November 2024) talked about how things have come full circle for her as a former student of Dr. Short’s when she taught 3rd grade gifted and talented students at Northpoint. The two were actually featured in an article that ran in the South Bend Tribune in March 2003. The article featured Dr. Short teaching her students how to use PowerPoint for their Geography reports on Asia. Click here to read the original story.
Fast forward to 2013 to when Dr. Short was P-H-M’s Director of Professional Development, she interviewed Bell for a teaching position. Bell was hired as a kindergarten teacher in 2016 at Prairie Vista Elementary School and Dr. Short led the professional development for all new teachers.
“Dr. Short and I are a testament that it’s never goodbye, it’s always see you later,” Bell said. “And I think that shows the true impact of a teacher, that they are in your lives forever, and that you will always remember them.”
Media Coverage
Kids Club Before & After School Care
2026 Spring Break Kids Club
- Location: Northpoint Elementary
- Dates: April 6th – April 10th
- Times: 6:30am- 6:00pm
- Cost: $40 per child, per day.
- If you are not currently enrolled in Kids Club, you must also pay the $35 registration fee per child
- Register Here For Spring Break Kids Club
2025-26 Kids Club School Year Registration
- Click Here to join the Kidsclub Waitlist for the 2025-26 School Year
- All families that sign up will be initially put on a waitlist until a spot for their student is confirmed
Kids Club is Hiring!
Do you want an opportunity to work with children in an award-winning school district? Kids Club is actively hiring numerous positions for schools across our district.
For questions about potential employment, email kids-club-office-grp@phm.k12.in.us
Kids Club During the School Year
The Kids Club program provides school-based before and after school childcare for Penn-Harris-Madison students in grades K-5 (Four-year-olds enrolled in the ELA preschool program at a P-H-M school are also eligible to attend).
The program is offered before school, operating from 6:30 a.m. until the start of classes, and again after school, operating from the time of school dismissal until 6:00 p.m.
We offer a variety of activities for a fun time after school. The students get an opportunity to engage with their school buddies in a safe and known environment. They get a chance to participate in art and craft projects, LEGO and Stem Clubs, Homework time opportunities, organized group games, outdoor recess time, movie time and more.
This program caters to our 11 elementary schools. Madison students are offered this program at Elm Road Elementary and are bussed to the school.
Each school plans different activities and clubs throughout the year where students can choose from a variety of recreational, social and enrichment activities. Each location is managed by the site coordinator and Assistant site coordinator and supervised by program coordinators and the before and after school director.
This is an optional, parent funded program. A parent or authorized adult must provide transportation to the program in the morning and a parent or authorized adult can pick the child up any time during afternoon or all-day care.
Registration
- Registration is required for every student.
- A $35 one time registration fee is due at time of registration. This is non-refundable and non-transferable.
- Kids Club Online payments are made through www.myprocare.com
- Kids Club Parent Handbook
Parents must complete a registration form and submit it with an annual non-refundable registration fee for each child enrolled.
To be eligible to register for the program, a child must be in grades K-5 and attend or have transportation to a school where Kids Club is available. Students are expected to have basic essential independent bathroom skills. Kids Club does not offer diaper changing or help with bathroom skills. Four-year-olds enrolled in the ELA preschool program at a P-H-M school are also eligible to attend.
A child may be enrolled in the program at any time throughout the year during open enrollment weeks. Parents wishing to withdraw a child from the program must provide written notice to the site coordinator two weeks in advance. If the parent decides to re-enroll the child they will pay a re-registration fee of $75 per child.
Kids Club will accept drop-ins if Kids Club has the space. An online form has to be submitted prior to the drop-in. The drop-in rate is $20 per day.
P-H-M Kids Club offers before- and after-school childcare at ten locations:
- Bittersweet Elementary School, 55860 Bittersweet Road, Mishawaka, IN 46545
- Elm Road Elementary School, 59400 Elm Road, Mishawaka, IN 46544
- Elsie Rogers Elementary School, 56219 Currant Road, Mishawaka, IN 46545
- Horizon Elementary School, 10060 Brummitt Road, Granger, IN 46530
- Mary Frank Elementary School, 13111 Adams Road, Granger, IN 46530
- Meadow’s Edge Elementary School, 16333 Kern Road, Mishawaka, IN 46544
- Moran Elementary School, 305 N. Beech Road, Osceola, IN 46561
- Northpoint Elementary School, 50800 Cherry Road, Granger, IN 46530
- Prairie Vista Elementary School, 15400 Brick Road, Granger, IN 46530
- Walt Disney Elementary School, 4015 N. Filbert Road, Mishawaka, IN 46545
- Madison families electing to send their child to Elm Road for after school care will need to pick up their child by 6:00 p.m. at Elm Road
Kids Club Operations on P-H-M 2-hour delay or eLearning days
When the start of school is delayed (a 2-hour fog delay, for example) Kids Club will not operate that morning. Kids Club is closed on P-H-M eLearning days.
Parents must have an emergency care plan in place in the event of an unanticipated emergency closure of Kids Club. If school is dismissed early due to bad weather or a building emergency, Kids Club will be closed.
Kids Club is also closed on the following holidays: Labor Day, Fall and Spring Election Days, Thanksgiving Day, Day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve Day, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve Day, New Years Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, and the Fourth of July, first 2 days and last 2 days of Summer break.
Outside the school year
Full-day childcare is available for an additional fee during fall, winter, spring and summer breaks, to those who sign up and pay for those days before the stated deadline. The hours of operation are 6:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Kids Club staff cell phone numbers during hours of operation:
- Bittersweet Elementary, (574) 299-3976
- Elm Road Elementary, (574) 261-9969
- Elsie Rogers Elementary, (574) 299-3827
- Horizon Elementary, (574) 299-3830
- Mary Frank Elementary, (574) 261-9981
- Meadow’s Edge, (574) 274-8864
- Moran Elementary, (574) 299-3970
- Northpoint Elementary, (574) 261-9974
- Prairie Vista Elementary, (574) 299-3971
- Walt Disney Elementary, (574) 299-3829
Meals and Snacks
During the school year, Penn-Harris-Madison food service provides a light breakfast for all morning Kids Club participants and a snack is offered in the afternoon. The cost of meals is included in the fee. On full days of childcare, Kids Club will offer a morning snack around 10:00 a.m. and an afternoon snack around 3 p.m. Children must bring a brown bag lunch on full days of childcare.\
Questions?
Kids Club site coordinators at each of the ten schools are happy to talk with parents, and the Kids Club Director and Assistant Program Coordinators are also glad to answer your questions. We look forward to serving you!
Ashley Stoffl, Kids Club Co-Director, 574-258-9587
Diane Dyer, Kids Club Co-Director, 574-367- 3445