The Penn High School Band has been named as one of just two bands nationally to receive the prestigious Earl Irons Program of Distinction Award from the Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity. The award is designed to recognize band programs that excel in the areas of Concert Band, Marching Band and Jazz Ensemble.

The awards ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, December 15 in Chicago, as part of the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic.

In March, Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation was awarded the “Best Communities for Music Education” designation from the NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education. P-H-M was just one of 13 Indiana school districts and 476 districts across the country to receive this award.

P-H-M’s 3-tiered security design for Penn High School (as well as for the 11 elementary and three middle schools) were featured in the “The August Educational Interiors Showcase” issue published last week and is being sent to 56,000+American School & University magazine subscribers.

The article features not only the architectural design of Penn High School’s entry, but also explains how the design plays an important factor in keeping our students safe.

The safety and the security of our students is a top priority for Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation. Director of Safety and Security Mike Seger recently wrote a guest blog on SecurityToday.com about the beginning steps school districts can take to implement district wide safety initiatives.

In the first three days of school, Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker and members of the Board of School Trustees have travelled around the District visiting students, teachers and staff at all 15 fo the District’s schools.

For grades 1-12, school started Wednesday, Aug. 23^rd; kindergarten started Thursday, Aug. 25^th.

This year P-H-M has approximately 10,800 students enrolled in it’s 11 elementary and three middle schools and Penn High School. It was important for Dr. Thacker and the School Board to visit each school to personally wish as many students as possible a good start to the new school year.

Scroll through the photo gallery below to see some of the pictures of those school visits. You can also view the photo galleries of students’ first day of school and kindergarten at some of our schools.

Today (Thursday, Aug. 25) was the first day of school for P-H-M’s littlest students … kindergarteners!

This year there are nearly 800 kindergartners in P-H-M’s 11 elementary schools.

 Yesterday was the first day of school for grades 1-12.

Click here or the picture below to see a slide show of some kindergartners first day of school at Prairie Vista Elementary, Northpoint Elementary and Mary Frank Elementary Schools.

Today was the first day of school for Penn-Harris-Madison students grades 1-12.

This year, approximately 10,800 students will be attending P-H-M’s 11 elementary and three middle schools and Penn High School.

Tomorrow, Thursday, Aug. 25 is the first day of school for Kindergarten.

Click here or the picture below to see the slide show and videos from Wednesday, Aug. 24.

Grissom Middle School has a new assistant principal … Mr. Seth Molnar! Penn-Harris-Madison Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker recommended Mr. Molnar for the position at the August 22^nd Board Meeting. Mr. Molnar will start Monday, August 29^th.

Mr. Molnar comes to P-H-M from Concord Community High School (Elkhart, Ind.), where he had been serving as assistant principal since January 2016. Mr. Molnar also served as Dean of Students at Concord High from 2015-2016. Before moving into administration, Mr. Molnar taught social studies and served as the head wrestling coach for eight years. He was the head freshmen football coach and assistant varsity football coach from 2002-2013.

Mr. Molnar is excited to join the P-H-M family and become a Guardsman: “Being an assistant principal gives me the opportunity to build valuable relationships with students and staff to promote positive changes in the building. My main responsibility of student discipline allows me to impact students on a personal level, while teaching them valuable life skills.”

Grissom’s previous Assistant Principal Mrs. Lavon Dean-Null was recently named as Walt Disney Elementary School’s principal when Mr. Randy Williams became associate principal at Penn High School.

As part of the celebration for Indiana’s bicentennial, the Indiana Department of Education has recognized P-H-M’s Visual Arts Academy as one of 200 promising practices from school districts from all over the state to commemorate our 200 years of Statehood.

The Visual Arts Academy was selected as an exemplary student-centered program. The DOE’s categories of Promising Practices were:

• Family & Community Engagement
• Counseling
• Research-Based Practices
• Student-centered Programs
• School Safety
• Data-driven Decision Making
• Wrap-around Services
• Climate and Culture

By highlighting these practices, the DOE hopes to create an opportunity for educators to network with one another will be created – allowing districts to learn about best practices from each other.

The Visual Arts Academy represents an innovative partnership developed by Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation and the Snite Museum of Art at the University of Notre Dame. The Academy features art creation and writing through the examination of original works of art from both the Snite Museum and museums around the world.

The Academy is a summer program comprised of six one-week sessions. Each week students from a different grade level experience a diversely rich curriculum that focuses upon the creation of an identity as an artist with words as well as images.

Each day students work with the visiting artists and art teachers, elementary writing teachers for writing workshop and visual thinking strategies, multi-media experience to learn about art mediums such as glass blowing or architecture. Students also spend one day at the Snite Museum.

Since its inception, the vision and mission of the Visual Arts Academy has been shared by a core group of teachers and administrators at P-H-M and Notre Dame. Under the leadership of Assistant Superintendent Dr. Kay Antonelli, the group created the curricula “from the ground up” and provided the professional development for all teachers who participate during the Academy.

More than 25 elementary writing and secondary art teachers served in the Academy this past summer.

Thanks to the financial support of these contributors, the Visual Arts Academy is provided for all children free of charge.

• The Community Foundation of St. Joseph County ($50,000 grant)
•  The P-H-M Education Foundation
• Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation
• The Snite Museum of Art
• The Law Offices of May, Oberfell, Lorber
• And various other contributors

Next Wednesday, Aug. 24 is the first day for 1st – 12th grades (Aug. 25th for Kindergarten), but today P-H-M’s newest teachers went “Back to School!”

It was a busy New Teacher Orientation Day for this creative, talented and energetic group of 39 of P-H-M’s newest elementary, middle and high school teachers and Exceptional Education staff.

As an “A”-rated school district, only an excellent school system for our students, but it’s also a great place to work!

100% of P-H-M teachers are rated “Highly Effective” or “Effective” helping P-H-M to rank 10th in the state among 293 public school districts for the 2015 ISTEP+ results.

Browse the new faces below … your child may end up having them this year!

Group 1: Elementary

Pictured left to right, 1^st Row: Jodi Cramer, 4^th Grade Teacher, Walt Disney; Sarah Lerch, Psychologist; Haley Dotson, Kindergarten Teacher, Moran; Katherine Zielinski, Kindergarten Teacher, Northpoint; Wendy Okowinski, Speech Pathologist, Bittersweet; Rachel Kammer, Kindergarten Teacher, Mary Frank; Nicole Parker, ENL Teacher.

Pictured left to right, 2nd Row: Jared Melander, Kindergarten Teacher, Walt Disney; Katelyn Inabnit, Kindergarten Teacher, Prairie Vista; Aislin Jahnke, Resource Teacher, Walt Disney; Nicole Freeman, 5^th Grade Teacher, Elm Road; Carlye Bishopp, 3^rd Grade Teacher, Elsie Rogers; and Leah Philippsen, Speech Pathologist, Discovery, Horizon and Prairie Vista.

Group 2: Middle School

Pictured left to right, 1^st Row: April Oppenheim, Orchestra Teacher, Discovery; Maddie Smith, Language Arts Teacher, Schmucker; Rachel Marazzi, Social Studies Teacher, Schmucker; Brianna Burnett, Language Arts Teacher, Schmucker; Erica Briones, 6^th Grade Reading & Math Teacher, Schmucker; and Julie Turner, 6^th Grade Language Arts Teacher, Discovery.

Pictured left to right, 2nd Row: Sean Dillon, Part time Admin & 7^th Grade Social Studies Teacher, Grissom; Stephanie Freed, Science Teacher, Schmucker; Melissa Fiegel, Language Arts Teacher, Schmucker; Robert Gingrich, Language Arts Teacher, Grissom; Kristina Turpin, Language Arts Teacher, Schmucker; Tanner Givens, Social Studies Teacher, Discovery; and Julie Furois, Language Arts Teacher, Grissom.

Group 3: Penn High School

Pictured left to right, 1^st Row: Kyle Berres, Business Teacher; Annette Schimizzi, English Teacher; Kayla Peterson, English Teacher; Caitlin Callaghan, English Teacher; Kate O’Brien, English Teacher; Ashley Grant, Spanish Teacher; and Ashley Lutz, Math Teacher.

Pictured left to right, 2nd Row: Evan White, Technology Teacher; Tara Pieters, Technology Teacher; Jonathan Lockwood, Physics Teacher; Aaron Griesser, Band Teacher; Alan Psalidas, English Teacher; and John Vandygriff, Resource Teacher.

Penn High School’s state championship girls basketball program will conduct a community-sponsored girls basketball league for girls in Grades 3-8.

Sign-up is on Sunday, Aug. 28 in the Penn High School Arena from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. 

The Junior League is for girls in Grades 3-6, and the Senior League is for girls in Grades 7-8.

• Click here for the Junior League (Grades 3-6) schedule and registration information.

• Click here for the Senior League (Grades 7-8) schedule and registration information.

The league begins on Sunday, Sept. 11. 

Brats & sauerkraut! Dogs & chips! Great food will be served hot off the grills at P-H-M’s annual community football tailgate party! 

Join us on Friday, August 19, from 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. under the big tents behind the Educational Services Center (ESC) at 55900 Bittersweet Rd., Mishawaka. 

There’s plenty of time to grab dinner for the family, visit with friends and then get to your seats inside TCU Freed Field before the 7:30 p.m. kick-off. 

The Penn Kingsmen will take on the Valparaiso Vikings in the season home opener.

The P-H-M Community Tailgate, hosted by the district’s central office staff and administrators, is a tradition now in its 29th year. The event is open to the public and all are welcome. Tickets are $3.50 and are sold onsite, not in advance.

Dr. Jerry Thacker and P-H-M administrators look forward to meeting members of the community and visiting with P-H-M families.