The 2018-19 District Activities Calendar will be mailed around August 9 and 10 to all P-H-M families. 

It lists key school and district events throughout the year. 

To get a jump start on your planning and to know all your schools’ important Back-to-School dates, click here to download a pdf copy.

Want a quick one pager of the 2018-19 School Year or want to import P-H-M’s Google Calendar to yours? Click here for more calendar and scheduling resources.

If you are a hard worker, a team player, and want to get better at basketball, Penn Girls Basketball coach invites you to join the Penn Community Junior & Senior Girls Basketball family and be a part of a winning tradition.

This community-sponsored AAU league is developed for the Penn-Harris-Madison Communities and has been given permission to be named the Penn Community Girls Basketball League. 

The “Junior” League is open to girls in grades 3-6 . The “Senior” League is open to grades 7 & 8.

Sign-ups are Sunday, August 26 th in the Penn Arena from 12:00 – 2:00 p.m. Registering on time is essential to the organization of the league. A late fee of $10.00 will be assessed for signing up after August 26. No sign-ups will be accepted after Friday, August 31. No refunds will be given after league begins.

All practices and games will be held in school facilities within the Penn-Harris-Madison district. All games will be played on Sundays.

Game Times are:

• 3rd & 4th grade league: 12:00 – 2:00 p.m.
• 5th & 6th grade league: 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
• 7th & 8th grade league: 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. & 5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
   

The league will begin on September 9 th for ALL age groups. The “Junior” League will end on November 11 for grades 3- 6 and no tournament will take place.

The “Senior” League will end on November 18 th with an all day shootout.

Click to download information and sign-up forms for the “Junior” League (grades 3-6).

Click here to download information and sign-up forms for the “Senior” League (grades 7 & 8).

Campers will have the opportunity to learn from Kingsmen and University of Notre Dame alum Austin Torres at the upcoming Kingsmen Basektball Day Camp!  

After a great career at Notre Dame, Austin is giving back to Penn High School and Penn-Harris-Madison Schools by passing on his knowledge to younger players. Austin will be will be a lead instructor at the Kingsmen Day Camp June 11th -15th.

The camp is for boys currently in grades 4-8th grade. Registrations are still being accepted up until the first day of camp.  Click here to register online or to download and print a pdf flier.

Click to check out the full list of other Kingsmen Athletic Camps being offered this summer.

Penn High School was proud to have 17 students earn valedictorian honors and two students earn salutatorian honors for the Class of 2018 during Commencement held on Friday, May 25, 2018.

Of those 17 Valedictorians, two of them, Kendra Fuelling and Maheera Siddique, attended Mary Frank Elementary School.

Click to read more points of pride from the Class of 2018.

The Food Service Department of the Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation is participating in the Summer Food Service Program for Summer 2018.

FREE MEALS will be available to children 18 years of age and under, or persons more than 18 who are determined by a state or local public education agency to be mentally or physically disabled and who participate in a public or non-profit private school program established for the mentally or physically disabled. 

The program will operate Monday through Friday. All sites will be closed on Wednesday, July 4, 2018.

Please click here for more information and a complete list of sites and dates.

After 14 years with P-H-M, Principal Deb Hildreth will retire at the end of the 2017-18 school year. During Principal Hildreth’s time at Mary Frank Elementary, the school was a recipient of the Indiana Four Star School Award five times, most recently in 2015.

Principal Hildreth was honored at the P-H-M Employee & Retiree Recognition Dinner on Tuesday, May 15 for her years of faithful and dedicated service to the students and families of Mary Frank Elementary School. In her retiree comments, Principal Hildreth recounted one of her favorite Mary Frank moments, “My favorite memory was at an end-of a-year Positive Behavior Assembly when our staff took over the final assembly with a flash mob dance. The time spent with staff practicing, laughing at ourselves while learning the dance and just building comradery was such fun, and the look in our students’ faces made our effort so worth it!”

On April 18, P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker visited with Mary Frank staff to thank Principal Hildreth for years of service and to introduce them to Christie Heerschop, Mary Frank’s new principal.

Christie Heerschop, current Assistant Principal at Schmucker Middle School, has been appointed as Mary Frank’s new principal. Mrs. Heerschop joined the P-H-M administrative team last August, from Elkhart Community Schools, when she was appointed as one of Schmucker's two Assistant Principals. Mrs. Heerschop has 24 years of experience, spending 19 years in the classroom, both in special education and general education prior to moving into administration. She holds a B.S. in Elementary and Special Education from Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri and a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership from Indiana University at South Bend.

We thank Principal Hildreth for her year’s of service at Mary Frank and P-H-M and welcome our new principal Mrs. Heerschop this coming school year, 2018-19!

The annual P-H-M Employee & Retiree Recognition Dinner was held Tuesday, May 15. This year 47 faithful and dedicated P-H-M teachers and staff members retired, some of those from Mary Frank. Those that attended the dinner were recognized by Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker and School Board President Chris Riley.

These are the names that retired from Mary Frank:

• Tonja D’Haenens, Media Aide, 25 years (click to read retirement reflection)
• Cathleen Gage, Teacher, 20 years
• Deb Hildreth, Principal, 14 years (click to read the story)
   

Service Awards were also given to employees who have dedicated 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 50 years of service to Penn-Harris-Madison. Click here for a full list of this year’s Service Award employees. Click here to view the full photo gallery of Service Award Winners and Retirees.

We thank all our employees for their years of faithful service to P-H-M students and families!

The P-H-M DVT & Planetarium is now proud to offer online ticket purchasing, seat reservation & online payment through the P-H-M RevTrak Web Store. 

Click here to pick your seats and purchase them online today!

There are three shows left for the rest of the 2017-18 school year, take advantage of this new online feature today to see these last three shows:

• Wed., May 9, 6:30 p.m.:  EGYPT: SECRETS OF THE MUMMIES
• Wed., May 16, 6:30 p.m.: SPACEPARK  360
• Wed., May 24, 6:30 p.m.: SUMMER NIGHT SKY

To get more details on the P-H-M DVT & Planetarium, please visit www.phmschools.org/dvt.

This inaugural year for the P-H-M Education Foundation’s Silver Mile new format … the Bubble Bash … was a huge success! Click here to see the full photo gallery below.

Hundreds of P-H-M students, family, teachers and staff turned out Saturday, May 5 at Penn High School for the morning non-timed 5K walk/run through the neighborhoods behind Penn. More than 1,500 enjoyed the gorgeous and warm weather and bubbles!

There was lots of pre-race activities to get the runners warmed up, including a School Spirit Contest and Zumba!

After the race, runners enjoyed post-race snacks donated by Whole Foods and Hacienda Restaurants and browsed through the Health & Fitness Expo in Penn’s Cafeteria. Free health screenings were offered by presenting sponsor Saint Joseph Health System, along with numerous businesses showcasing their health-related items.  More than 100 items were up for bid at the silent auction, including Penn High School parking spaces and front-row graduation seats. And families were treated to P-H-M’s talented students participating in the Silver Mile Talent Showcase inside the Main Arena. 

Thank you to all the sponsors including St. Joseph Health System, ABC 57, Sunny 101.5, Drive & Shine, and many others.

The Silver Mile Run for Education raises funds to provide innovative grants that fall outside the P-H-M school district’s budget. It remains the Foundation’s largest fundraiser in its 13th year.  We look forward to seeing you in May 2019!

*Please see the photo gallery below. To download a high resolution jpg file from the photo gallery, just simply click the “DOWNLOAD” button on the bottom right-hand corner of the photo while viewing it in the Photo Gallery function.

It was a gorgeous day for the 10^th annual “Running is Elementary.” Most years, 4^th and 5^th grade students from all 11 P-H-M elementary schools are fighting the elements of wind, rain, sleet or snow … but not this year!

Almost 700 students  participated in the 1 mile run on the Penn cross-country course located behind Elm Road School on Monday, April 30. Please click to see the photo gallery below.

The fun event encourages fitness and wellness. Fourth and fifth graders are encouraged to sign up for the free running club. Designated coaches at each school are then tasked with training the runners for the 6-week club which then culminates with the Running is Elementary Race. Cheered on by their families, principals, teachers and running coaches it’s amazing to see the dedication and hard work the students put in to complete the race. “Running Buddies” accompany those students who may need their extra assistance and/or encouragement.

Cindy Batalis (P-H-M’s 2009 Teacher of the Year and physical education teacher at Horizon Elementary) began the yearly tradition of Running Is Elementary back in 2008. Batalis’ own love for running and her desire to pass that love on to students is evident in the passion she puts into the Running is Elementary event each year. “This is a thrill! All the kids out here running today are out here making a positive step to healthy habits and we celebrate all of them. It's a true community event!"

The top times for the 2018 Running Is Elementary Race were as follows:

5^th grade Boys

BIB# 99
Elm Road School
Time: 5:59
 

5th grade Girls Winner

BIB# 190
Horizon
Time: 6:43 
 

4^th grade Boys

BIB# 429
Meadow's Edge
Time: 6:05
 

4^th grade Girls

BIB# 171
Elsie Rogers
Time: 6:51

It was particularly heartwarming when the whole crowd got behind one special runner to cheer him on 4th grade Horizon student Mikan Gensic, son of Penn Biology Teacher John Gensic. Mikan took everything in stride and didn't even seem to be tired when he was done. He even had to be talked into getting his complimentary bottle of water and frozen Urban Swirl cup!

All runners are to be congratulated for their efforts and hard work!!

A big thank you to the P-H-M Education Foundation and Corporations for Education for sponsoring the event!

Sponsors for the 2018 event:

Presenting sponsor – Corporations for Education

Royal Excursion and Gaylor Electric

After Race Snack Donations:

Urban Swirl and B&B Organics

Be sure to sign up to run in the P-H-M Education Foundation’s Silver Mile Bubble Bash this Saturday, May 5. Click to register online today!

Please see the photo gallery below. To download a high resolution jpg file from the photo gallery, just simply click the “DOWNLOAD” button on the bottom right-hand corner of the photo while viewing it in the Photo Gallery function.