As soon as Penn High School broadcast instructor Kevin McNulty heard that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was going to make a campaign appearance at the AM General Commercial Assembly plant in Mishawaka on Tuesday, April 26, he quickly turned it into a learning experience for three Penn High School students.

McNulty was able to send a crew of Penn News Network students to AM General to cover Clinton’s appearance there. Click here to see the students coverage on PNN.

The students were also profiled by WSBT-TV and ABC 57:

“The minute I heard the news report, I started emailing and calling,” McNulty said of trying to arrange Clinton campaign appearance credentials for student reporters Emily Vetne, Cameron Carpenter, and Tyler Clifton of Penn Network News.

“In hearing my students talk to local media about the experience today (CBS, ABC, NBC affiliates), I know that they got a real-world, hands-on experience,” McNulty said. “They worked side-by-side in the press corps with professionals who do this for a living. Prior to that, the students only knew what we do by doing it in school, more of an assignment than a job.

“Now that they have seen the pros do it (repeatedly), they get it,” McNulty continued. “It's the First Amendment freedom, freedom of the press, and engaging in it is good work. I certainly selected the right kids too; they absorbed it all like sponges!”

Penn’s student reporters met Clinton, and also did interviews with Indiana Senator Joe Donnelly, and South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg. Pictured above is PNN student reporter Emily Vetne interviewing Donnelly.

McNulty said that the learning moment made a significant impact on his students.

“Though they enjoyed all of it (including the secret service sweep, the conversations with local reporters, the introductions to state senators and state governors), I think those tete-a-tetes on camera proved to be the richest experiences,” McNulty said.

On Thursday, April 28, Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz will hold a rally at the Century Center in downtown South Bend. The PNN students plan on covering that event as well.

Penn-Harris-Madison School Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker announced that Penn Biology teacher John Gensic has won P-H-M Teacher of the Year.

Mr. Gensic learned of the honor in a surprise announcement Tuesday (April 26, 2016) when he was called to a “meeting” in Principal Steve Hope’s office. Instead, Mr. Gensic found a group of fellow Penn teachers, Penn-Harris-Madison District Administration and Penn staff waiting for him. Dr. Thacker broke the news telling Mr. Gensic, “What you don’t know and everyone else here does … is that you are P-H-M’s Teacher of the Year!” Click here to see the video of the surprise announcement.

Also on hand for the surprise announcement was the person who nominated him for the District honor, STEM Academy Leader Ms. Rachel Fry … “Mr. Gensic goes above and beyond to arrange authentic and eye-opening experiences for his students to interact with Biology outside the school walls.” One example of how Mr. Gensic utilizes project-based learning is his latest program, “Giving Trees.” Penn students will work with Horizon Elementary School students to plant 25-30 dwarf fruit trees in the elementary school’s garden. “Giving Trees” just received a P-H-M Education Foundation Grant during the Spring 2016 grant cycle, which will help fund Phase I of the project.

In early April, John was selected as a finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST), the nation's highest honor math, science and computer science teachers!  Later this summer, he will find out if he has been chosen as the science teacher winner representing Indiana. Each awardee receives a certificate signed by the President of the United States and a $10,000 award from NSF.

Mr. Gensic has been teaching for 11 years, coming to Penn High School in 2013. Mr. Gensic is a leader in his field presenting at the National Science Teachers Association on the topics of socio-scientific inquiry, biology modeling and free technology. He has also presented at TED, the University of Notre Dame, Purdue University as well as many other state and national conferences.

Last summer (2015), Mr. Gensic worked alongside EPA scientists on the "Lake Michigan Shipboard Science Workshop." John and other scientists evaluated the presence of microplastics and assessed the impact of aquatic invasive species—particularly zebra and quagga mussels—on Lake Michigan’s ecosystem.

“John's passion for science in and out of the classroom has made him an exemplary teacher providing the best education possible to our students,” said Penn Principal Steve Hope.

As P-H-M’s District Teacher of the year, Mr. Gensic will participate in the Indiana Teacher of the Year. That decision from the state DOE comes in fall of 2016. “I know John will be Indiana's next Teacher of the Year come this fall,” Dr. Thacker said confidently!

Mr. Gensic will receive his official award at the Penn-Harris-Madison Employee Recognition Dinner on May 11, along with P-H-M’s Classified Employee of the Year, 2016 retirees, and the 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40-year service award winners. 

The Gala took place Saturday, April 23, 2016 at the Palais Royale Ballroom and PHMEF Executive Director Mari Linn Wise reports, “It was a smashing success!”

Friends of the school district gathered to celebrate the P-H-M Education Foundation’s two decades of accomplishments—having a great time and raising even more funds while they were at it!

The evening’s Roaring 20’s theme came through with plenty of glitz and glam. There were “flappers” in headbands and feather boas, and “dappers” in hats and spats. Chairperson Christine Rutherford and her staff of volunteers saw to the many details that made the evening memorable, including black and gold art deco touches, vintage costumes, designer cupcakes, and jazz music provided by Penn High students.

View the full photo gallery here.

The highlight of the evening was the on-stage entertainment provided by teams of principals and assistant principals. Wise says, “PHMEF asked our principals and assistant principals to step outside their comfort zone to raise funds for our students by performing. P-H-M is so fortunate to have such caring administrators who want to raise funds for our students. Our winning Team Five closed out the night with a standing-ovation performance. Congratulations to all of the teams!”

Many parents, friends, staff members and community members who did not attend the Gala still supported it by casting $10 votes for their favorite teams of principals and assistant principals. On top of that giving, came a vote matching offer from Gary Fox for Crowe Horwath. He pledged to match each $10 vote, up to 100 votes for each team!

Here’s the final tally, including Mr. Fox’s generous support:

• Team 1 – 122 votes (Penn High)
• Team 2 – 217 votes (Horizon, Northpoint, P Vista)
• Team 3 – 437 votes (Elsie, W Disney, Meadow’s, Bittersweet, Madison)
• Team 4 – 223 votes (DMS, GMS, SMS)
• Team 5 – 451 votes (Mary Frank, Elm Road, Moran)
• Team 6 – 198 votes (Wildcard: Mr. Kauffman!)
• Total votes – 1,648

$16,480 was raised for P-H-M students and programs through votes alone!

Thousands of dollars in additional funds were raised through a silent auction conducted through online bidding, as well as live bidding to support the Summer Visual Arts Academy, and live bidding to underwrite PHMEF direct classroom grants. 

"I am overwhelmed by the support and generosity of the P-H-M community,” Wise states. “Our 20th Anniversary Gala was the first sit-down dinner in the Foundation’s history and it proved to be such a success. It was a night of fun and entertainment while raising much needed funds for our students.”

She continues, “Many thanks to the gala chair, Christine Rutherford, to the principals and assistant principals who showcased their talents, and to our families for their continued support.” 

The Foundation Board expresses special thanks to these five underwriters:  Gurley Leep Subaru, University of Notre Dame, Crowe Horwath, Jim and Julie Schwartz, and Gates Automotive Group.

Click here to view the Foundation’s timeline, charting 20 amazing years of contributions and growth. 

Indiana Association of School Principals, District 2 announced late yesterday afternoon (Monday, April 25, 2016) that Grissom Principal Mr. Nathan Boyd has been named District 2 “Middle School Principal of the Year.”

Boyd came to Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation in 2013 after being principal at South Bend’s LaSalle Intermediate Academy for four years. Boyd began his 11-year career in education as a teacher, quickly followed by Assistant Principal, a position he held for three years before coming principal at LaSalle in 2009.

“Since joining P-H-M, Mr. Boyd has worked tirelessly to make Grissom an "A-rated" school,” said P-H-M School Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker. “He has set up not only a great framework for academics, worked hard to bring up ISTEP+ test scores, but Mr. Boyd has also found innovative ways to connect the students in co-curricular activities.”

P-H-M’s philosophy is that the more active students are in extra and co-curricular activities, the more successful they will be in the classroom. To that end, Boyd has created such value add programs like Grissom's first-ever "Grissom Drum Brigade" and "Club Honors." The Drum Brigade is designed to provide students with academic help while building a sense of school belonging and confidence within their own abilities. Students learn good study skills and habits while practicing drums!

Club Honors is another unique program that encourages students to excel in their classwork. For students that earn Honor Roll, they earn a “pass” to enjoy the school’s game room. It was Boyd’s idea to take an empty classroom and with the help of donations from Mishawaka based Laidig Systems, Sony PlayStation, Archway and Sam’s Club furnish it with video gaming consoles (with school and age appropriate video games), air hockey tables, basketball arcade game, board games, etc. By earning good grades, students earn the privilege to “hang out” in Club Honors after lunch or before school. Cognizant of wanting Club Honors accessible to all students, Grissom offers free after-school tutoring three days a week.

Boyd will be eligible for the opportunity to be named as the "Principal of the Year" for the State of Indiana at the fall conference coming up this November. 

This is just the latest honor for Boyd; on March 31, the St. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce named Boyd a member of the 2016 Michiana “Forty under 40” class. Boyd and this year’s other nominees will be honored at a Recognition Luncheon which will take place Friday, May 6 at the Gillespie Conference Center.

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More About Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation
Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation serves approximately 10,700 students in 11 elementary schools, three middle schools and Penn High School. For the 2015 ISTEP+, P-H-M earned an 81.4% pass rate for ELA (English/Language Arts); 78.0% pass rate for Math; and an overall combined pass rate of 72.1% for both subjects areas. P-H-M now ranks 10th in the state among 293 public school districts. In 2015, P-H-M was rated an “A-rated” school district by the Indiana Department of Education for the 6^th year in a row. Penn High School's graduation rate exceeds the state’s with a 97% graduation rate and is rated a 90-25-90 school by the IDOE. 100% of P-H-M teachers rank either highly effective or effective. To learn more about P-H-M, please click here.

In two recent rankings released Spring 2016—the Washington Post’s “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” and U.S. News & World Report’s “Best High Schools”—Penn High School ranks high for college and career readiness.

In Washington Post’s “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” ranking, Penn came in 16^th for the state of Indiana and in the top 9% for the nation (click here for details on Penn’s ranking). The Washington Post ranking is determined by taking the total number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge tests given at a school each year and divide by the number of seniors who graduated in May or June. They call the formula the “Challenge Index.” Public schools that achieved a ratio of at least 1.00, meaning they had as many tests in 2015 as they had graduates, were put on the national list. On the 2016 list, just more than 10% of the approximately 22,000 U.S. public high schools managed to reach that standard and earn placement on the Washington Post ranking. Penn High School earned a 1.937 “Challenge Index.” Penn’s offering of 21 Advanced Placement classes and 97% graduation rate are just some of the reasons for Penn’s ranking.

U.S. News & World Report ranked Penn 21^st in the state for college and career readiness (click here for details on Penn’s ranking). With a 46% student participation rate in Advanced Placement classes contributed to giving Penn a 33.2 College Readiness Index. Penn’s 22-1 student, teacher ratio along with the school’s high graduation rate earned Penn a “Silver” award on U.S. News & World Report’s 2016 national ranking.

Three Discovery Middle School students earned medals at MathCON, the prestigious national math competition that took place in Chicago on April 23, 2016. 

Seventh grader Grace Waddell earned a Bronze Medal. Grace finished in the top 20 among the thousands of students at her grade level. 

Eighth graders Seunghoon Sun and Lyvia LI each finished as a Silver Medalist. They placed in the Top Ten among all gold and silver medalists. 

Fourteen other Discovery students qualified to participate and traveled to the Chicago event.  They are: 

• 6th Grade: Eric Yun and Hunter Striegel

• 7th Grade: Peter Sullivan, Ethan Yoder, Reagan Hoke, Anya Tang, Camden Kaminsky and Shubham Lahane

• 8th Grade: Tara Devaraj, Andy Kaboski, Dustin Smith, Jeffrey Du, Rajeev Datta and Noah Lang

Mathcon is a popular math competition for students in grades 5-12. More than 45,000 students from 330 schools in 42 different states take the qualifying test. Based on those test results, only the top 100 students from each grade level compete at the national finals. 

Camden Kaminsky, Discovery 7th grader, reported that participating in the MathCON competition was a great experience for him.  All the students, coaches, and chaperones who were involved expressed their pride in the group’s effort and the individual outcomes!

Members of the Penn High School Academic Super Bowl Social Studies team proudly display their first-place ribbons, earned at the Mishawaka Regional meet on Tuesday, April 19, 2016. Students Emily Schlundt, Celine Wang, Keegan Palonis and Luke Jerzak are pictured here with Coach Pete DeKever. 

For the Social Studies team, this was the 22nd regional championship since 1992.  Penn Social Studies has gone on to win 12 state championships.

Penn High is one of three local high schools sending teams to the 30^th annual Academic Super Bowl (ASB) state finals. The competition will take place May 7 at Purdue University-West Lafayette’s Loeb Auditorium.  

In addition to the Social Studies team, the Kingsmen Math and English teams also qualified for the state finals. 

Qualifying from NorthWood High School are teams competing in Social Studies, Science and Math, and representing Northridge High School are the school's Fine Arts, Math and and Interdisciplinary teams.

Other teams qualifying for the state finals from area schools include Concord in Fine Arts, Jimtown in Social Studies and Interdisciplinary, LaPorte in Interdisciplinary, Elkhart Christian in Fine Arts and LaPorte LaLumiere in English and Wawasee in Social Studies.

Academic Super Bowl consists of 25 multiple choice questions per round with three students from each school competing at one time.  The team with the highest score becomes the state champion. 

This year's ASB topic is "Hoosier Heritage"  celebrating Indiana's 200th anniversary of statehood.

Submitted by Joe DeKever

P-H-M’s Food Service Department is accepting applications and interviewing for positions at several locations.

The current openings are part-time positions that offer the flexibility of working during the school day / the school year, and the benefit of paid holidays and paid sick days. New hires who start immediately will be trained this spring in order to be ready for the start of school in August. 

Additional openings at other locations may be expected in the course of the school year, so getting your application on file now is strongly encouraged!

To apply, please visit the Applitrack website or contact the Food Service Department directly at srach@phm.k12.in.us.  

Become a Bus Operator! P-H-M’s Transportation Department is hiring and training.

The safe transportation of our students to school and home again is crucial to the educational mission. P-H-M bus operators do this with enthusiasm and professionalism every day.

Join our team! You will receive extensive training and support, and have the opportunity to make a career of public service. Apply this spring and be ready for a fall bus route. The pay and benefits are competitive and the rewards of working with children are priceless.  

Click to visit the Applitrak website, or contact Transportation Services at 574-258-9534 to speak with Angela Neidlinger, or 574-254-2804 to speak with Anne-Marie Brow. 

School will be in session in all Penn-Harris-Madison schools on Friday, April 29, 2016.

This is the make-up day for the Feb. 25, 2016 snow day.