Penn High School Robotics Team 135 earned a No. 5 seed entering the finals in the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) State Championships at Kokomo on April 11-13, but did not earn a berth to the World Championships in Detroit on April 24-27.

The top 32 high school FRC teams in Indiana – including Penn – designed and constructed four-foot tall, 120-pound fully functional robots in a six-week period. The top 32 teams advanced to the State Championships through competition at Penn, and in Indianapolis and West Lafayette.

Each team competed through 64 qualifying matches, partnering with various alliances. Team 135 finished fourth overall winning in the qualifying matches with a 7-4-1 record. In the quarterfinals, Team 135 teamed up with Maverick Robotics Team 4272 and Red Alert Team 1741, but did not advance to the semifinals.

Penn defeated Northridge, 3-0, in high school softball action on Monday, April 8, 2019.

A Photo Gallery is posted below.

Tuesday, May 14

6:00 p.m.

Penn Cafeteria (enter through Door D)

Attention 8th grade boys interested in playing football at Penn High School in the fall 2019: there will be an informational meeting for both parents and 8th grade boys interested in being a part of the Penn Freshman football team in the fall.  

The meeting will take place Tuesday, May 14, 6:00 p.m. in Penn’s Cafeteria.

Please plan on attending.

Contact Coach O'Connell at koconnell@phm.k12.in.us for details.

The Penn Baseball Team, ranked No. 1 in Class 4-A, defeated Carmel, 8-4, on Saturday, April 6, 2019.

A Photo Gallery is posted below.

Saturday, May 4

8:30 a.m. – Noon

Penn High School

Register online today! Early Bird Registration is available until Sunday, April 21 ($20 for adults, $10 for students)!

Do you like bubbles? Well, if you do, you’ll enjoy the Silver Mile Bubble Bash!  

Highlighted changes for this year’s event:

• Earlier start time, 8:30 a.m.
• 1.5 mile and 5K route options
• Lower early bird prices:$20 for adults, $10 for students
• The school with the most participation will win a Gaga Ball Pit or 9 Disc Golf Baskets ($2,500 value)!
• And more bubbles!

Missed out on all the bubbly fun last year? Don't let it happen two years in a row! Watch the video and see how much fun you and your whole family will have …

The Student Talent Show starts at 9 a.m.

The Health & Fitness Expo will be in the cafeteria where everything from free health screenings by presenting sponsor Saint Joseph Health System to numerous businesses showcasing their health-related items will be offered.

And don’t forget about the Silent Auction!

The Silver Mile Run is the largest fundraiser for the P-H-M Education Foundation and all the proceeds go towards providing innovative P-H-M teaching grants, scholarships to students, staff development, and other corporation-wide initiatives.

Click here to take advantage of early bird registration and for more information on the Bubble Bash.

Penn’s For The Kids (FTK) Dance Marathon organization, sponsored by Michele Ball and Kate O’Brien, staged the annual Dodgeball Tournament on Thursday, March 28, 2019. The event raises funds for the Riley Children’s Hospital. Click to see the full Photo Gallery posted below.

Fundraising on Thursday through in-class collections and the Dodgeball Tournament raised $4,154.25 for Riley Children’s Hospital!

Click here to donate to FTK Riley Children’s Hospital.

A total of 38 teams participated in the 2019 Dodgeball Tournament.  Schmucker Middle School and Discovery Middle School each sent a team, in addition to the Penn teams.

Penn FTK’s next event is a Smash Bros tournament scheduled for Saturday, April 13, at Penn. Click here for details.

The FTK culminating event, the Dance Marathon is set for Saturday, April 20, from 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. in the cafeteria.  All are welcome!  
 

Last year, Penn’s FTK Dance Marathon raised $25,090.16, and the organization is seeking to break that record.

The 2019 Dodgeball Tournament was organized by Dominic Ball.

The winning student team, "Men in Black," was sponsored by Jen Dunderman and included:  Jeff Harper, Bryce Stone, Dorian Clayton, Jai Pant, Adam Berta, George Ohlson, Vince Sparrow and Trenton Horvath.

For the 4th year in a row a Schmucker team was the Champion for the Middle School division; "Big Boizz" was sponsored by Donna Hipsher. 

The overall team champion was “Staff Infection,” which included Penn teachers Kyle Berres, Jeremy Starkweather, Brian Nicholls, Kaitlin Dickman, Ashley Grant, Shane Varga and John Gensic.

To download high resolution jpg files from the photo gallery below, just simply click the “DOWNLOAD” button on the bottom right-hand corner of the photo while viewing it in the Photo Gallery function. We are happy to provide this service to you free of charge.

Penn High’s Baseball Team, ranked No. 1 in Class 4-A, opened the 2019 season with a 7-5 victory against Northridge on Wednesday, March 27.

To download high resolution jpg files from the photo gallery below, just simply click the “DOWNLOAD” button on the bottom right-hand corner of the photo while viewing it in the Photo Gallery function. We are happy to provide this service to you free of charge.

Each Thursday for the month of March, Penn Child Development students went to Walt Disney Elementary School to teach hands-on STEM activities as part of an after-school club.

It gives these high schoolers, who are interested in working with children in their future careers, practice in the classroom. And the elementary students get more exposure to STEM. It's a win-win! That's #PHMExcellence!

Penn High School’s Viva Voce choir will perform performing a collaborative concert with the Penn Chamber Orchestra at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 28, 2019. The event will be held in Penn’s Center for Performing Arts. 

The concert should be less than an hour. Tickets are $5 if purchased online, and $6 at the door. Seating is general admission. 

The concert will begin with five choral pieces and then conclude with Franz Schubert's Mass in G, a 25-minute work for choir and orchestra featuring three soloists. The soloists are Carol Shamory (soprano – one of our voice teachers), Tom Coe (baritone – former Penn Choir director and Director of Choir at LaPorte High School), and Penn Director of Choir Andrew Nemeth singing tenor. Schubert wrote the piece in 1815 when he was only 18 years old.

Penn Orchestra Director Anne Tschetter will be conducting the Schubert Mass in G.

Years ago, the Penn Choir program had a concert series known as the "Sacred Concert," and it was later changed to the "Classic Concert." The Penn Fine Arts Academy is reviving this concert series known as the Classic Concert, wherein Viva Voce will be performing classic repertoire of both sacred and secular nature. One of the main reasons for reviving this series is because it allows Penn’s Viva Voce to collaborate with other musicians, both from within and outside of Penn. We have also collaborated with Penn Jazz Band in years past. 
 

With music education programs at all grade levels (K-12), Penn-Harris-Madison has been named  one of 2019 Best Communities for Music Education for its outstanding commitment to music education. P-H-M is one of only 623 districts nationwide and 12 in Indiana to receive the honor from The NAMM Foundation. 

The Best Communities for Music Education designation is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in efforts to provide music access and education to all students. The BCME award acknowledges the commitment of P-H-M’s music teachers and administrators in the District’s 11 elementary, three middle schools and Penn High School.

In our elementary schools, music class is part of the regular curriculum following state standards. Students are instructed in both vocal and instrument classes. Beginning in 6th grade, P-H-M students at our three middle schools (Discovery, Schmucker and Grissom) have the opportunity to choose choir, orchestra or band as their music elective. Students at Discovery also have the option of choosing Piano Lab. 

Penn High School offers the Fine Arts & Communication Academy as part of its unique academy structure. The seven academy design provides Penn students with relevant and meaningful coursework taught in smaller, supportive environments where each student is known well by his teacher and peers. Nearly a third of Penn’s total 3,500 students are enrolled in the Fine Arts Academy with the majority being involved with music programs, either Choir, Orchestra, Band or another music program.

To qualify for the Best Communities designation, P-H-M answered detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program, and community music-making programs. Responses were verified with school officials and reviewed by The Music Research Institute at the University of Kansas.

Research into music education continues to demonstrate educational/cognitive and social skill benefits for children who make music. In a series of landmark studies by scientists and researchers at Northwestern University a link was found between students in community music programs and life-long academic success, including higher high school graduation rates and college attendance. In another study from the University, it was discovered that the benefits of early exposure to music education improves how the brain processes and assimilates sounds, a trait that lasts well into adulthood.

Beyond the Northwestern research, other studies have indicated that music education lays the foundation for individual excellence in group settings, creative problem solving and flexibility in work situations, as well learning how to give and receive constructive criticism to excel.

Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation serves more than 11,100 students in 11 elementary schools, three middle schools and Penn High School. The School Corporation has consistently received an “A” rating from the Indiana Department of Education since 2011. With the release of the Spring 2018 ISTEP+ results, Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation ranks in the state’s Top 5% of public school districts for grade 10 ISTEP+ results and in the Top 6% for grades 3-8. Northpoint is Indiana’s #2 public elementary school and Discovery ranks #3 out of the state’s public middle schools. Penn High School ranks in the Top 5% of all Indiana public high schools and has a 98% graduation rate, exceeding the state’s graduation rate. P-H-M’s “Triangle of Success” connects students, teachers and parents for excellence in education. 

About The NAMM Foundation: The NAMM Foundation is a nonprofit supported in part by the National Association of Music Merchants and its approximately 10,300 members around the world. The foundation advances active participation in music making across the lifespan by supporting scientific research, philanthropic giving, and public service programs. For more information about the NAMM Foundation, please visit www.nammfoundation.org.