Many of Penn’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) classes got Spring rolling by competing in the Egg Drop Competition on Thursday, March 29. Click here for a photo gallery of the event.

This event is considered a classic engineering and design competition. The goal is for students to construct a device that will support and prevent a raw egg from breaking when dropped from a height of about five meters (about 16 feet). 

Participating classes prepare for the competition by spending a class or two designing their egg- supporting apparatus.

The designing, building and scoring was based on a scoring system for the materials used. The materials students can use range from masking tape, string, popsicle sticks, clay to cotton balls and more. Each material has a specific point value assigned to it that must be taken into consideration when building since each team is allowed a maximum of 50 points. The reason for this is to limit the number of supplies that can be used by the students. So, students must be very creative choosing their effective materials within the 50-point allotment.

The two restrictions for the devices were that they had to fit into a 30cm x 30cm x 30cm box, and only materials from the list could be used. Any deviation from these two rules results in disqualification.

Scoring for the competition was based on performance, the mass of the device and use of special structures such as a parachute, wings, etc. In the case of a tie, the winner was determined by the lowest mass.

Please see a 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.

Erin Ludwig has made an impact at Penn High School in earning a Top 10 Academic ranking in the Class of 2018, playing on two State Championship Girls Soccer Teams, and leading an effort to raise more than $40,000 to resurface the tennis courts at Prairie Vista School.

Ludwig’s impact was honored by the Indiana High School Athletic Association, which awarded the Penn student-athlete with a C. Eugene Cato Memorial Scholarship.

Ludwig, who is also a member of Penn’s state-power Tennis team, is only the second student-athlete from Penn to earn a Cato Scholarship. Jaclyn Kondratko of Penn earned a Cato Scholarship in 2006.

A total of 13 student-athletes in Indiana earned a Cato Scholarship in 2018. The Scholarship rewards the efforts of Indiana’s complete student‐athletes. These well‐rounded, positive role models have demonstrated excellence in academics, school and community involvement, character, sportsmanship and citizenship.

Each Cato Scholarship winner will receive a $2,500 scholarship for their prep accomplishments and be recognized on Thursday, April 19, 2018 at the Indiana Roof Ballroom in downtown Indianapolis as part of the Thomas A. Brady Sports Achievement Awards established by Methodist Sports Medicine. Methodist Sports Medicine, Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, Indianapolis Colts, Indiana Fever, Indiana Pacers, Sport Graphics, Inc., and WTHR‐13 have partnered with the IHSAA to sponsor the program.

“Winning the Cato Scholarship is a great honor and it means a lot to me to be honored among student-athletes throughout Indiana,” Ludwig said. 

Ludwig said that athletics have been an important part of her experience at Penn. This past season, the Kingsmen were named National Champions.

“I appreciate so much about my Penn Soccer experience,” Ludwig said. “I appreciate the lifelong friendships I have made with my teammates and all the time I got to spend with my team and the great coaches. I appreciate how hardworking my team is. They all inspire me to be the best player and person I can be every day. 

“Participating in high school athletics has prepared me for life after high school, because it has taught me to be determined and never give up.” 

Penn Girls soccer coach Jeff Hart said that he has known Ludwig for a number of years as a travel soccer and high school soccer coach.

“As a classmate and longtime friend of my own daughter, Regan, I've been privileged to interact with (Erin) away from the field many times as well. 

“Erin is a high character, focused, caring young person,” Hart said. “Her GPA speaks for itself. Being ranked eighth in a class with over 800 kids confirms her drive, her quiet competitiveness and her intellect.  As a two-sport athlete at Penn, she was a member of back-to-back state champions on the soccer team.  She's also found time to play tennis and not only participate in so many other activities, but take on a leadership role. “

Hart said that Ludwig has carved out an inspiring legacy at Penn.

“(Erin) is an example of what Penn High School and the IHSAA hope all our young student-athletes strive to be,” Hart said. “She's worked consistently hard during four years at Penn and she's pushed herself while always being a great teammate with a team-first attitude.  We will miss her a great deal in the (Penn Girls Soccer) program but I'm excited to see where her combination of intellect, work ethic, and sense of service to others takes her."

Excellence at Penn High School was in the spotlight today (Thursday, March 22, 2018) for a visit from Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Jennifer McCormick.

Escorted by Penn students Rebecca Luzney, Charles Lane, Italia Fields and Johnathon Laatz, Dr. McCormick got an up close and personal tour of our award winning, Four Star high school. Dr. McCormick’s tour of Penn included the innovative Early College Academy and the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) Academy. 

Penn-Harris-Madison Supt. Dr. Jerry Thacker, Penn Principal Sean Galiher and P-H-M Board of School Trustees Member Jim Garrett were also on hand to give Dr. McCormick and special guest Indiana State Senator Ryan Mishler (R, 9th District) details on how Penn has been able to achieve accomplishments such as being named the state’s first large comprehensive public high school to be STEM certified in 2016.

Early College students Rebecca Luzney and Charles Lane took Dr. McCormick and guests into Spanish and Biology classes to observe (please click here to see the photo gallery below of the tour). On this part of the tour, she learned from student guides about the Early College Academy concept.  Penn’s Early College Academy is at the forefront of dual-credit programs in Indiana, and is a contributing factor in Penn’s remarkable 97 percent graduation rate. 

Next up on the tour, STEM student tour guides Italia Fields and Johnathon Laatz took Dr. McCormick into STEM Architecture and Design Processes classrooms. Dr. McCormick was able to observe and speak to those students about their current projects and even got to see a 3-D printer in action. The tour then moved into the engineering shop area to observe the Precision Machine class. The student tour guides informed Dr. McCormick about Penn’s world-class Robotics Program and the different community projects they have done. The STEM Academy was honored earlier this month when the school was named one of five schools in Indiana to achieve Project Lead the Way Distinguished School Status. 

The final stop of the visit was in the PNN TV studio, where the PNN students conducted their own interview with Dr. McCormick. This was an opportunity for the students to not only meet her, but gain real journalism experience by conducting an interview. There was a small group of Penn students who sat in as a guest audience for the interview.

Penn High School Assistant Principal Rachel Fry, who oversees the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Academy at Penn High School, announced that Penn has earned Project Lead the Way Distinguished School status.

Penn is joined by Brownsburg, Noblesville, Westfield, and Homestead as the other schools in Indiana that were named a PLTW Distinguished School.

PLTW is an innovative program that encompasses computer science, engineering and biomedical science. The program engages students in hands-on activities and programs with the goal of empowering them to solve real-world challenges and inspire them to reimagine how they see themselves.

In order to earn PLTW Distinguished School status, a school must have offer a minimum of three PLTW courses from any pathway, have 25 percent or more students participate in PLTW courses or of those who participated, 33 percent or more take two or more PLTW courses during their high school tenure. A school must also have 70 percent or more of its students earn a Proficient or higher on the End-of-Course Assessment or have 10 percent of its students earn AP+PLTW Student Achievement.

“I am extremely proud that Penn High School has been recognized as a PLTW Distinguished School, evidencing that we prioritize quality curriculum in our classrooms,” Fry said. “PLTW provides students with hands-on and collaborative learning experiences, motivating and preparing them for futures in STEM.”

Penn offers PLTW curriculum through 10 different courses spanning the topics of Biomedical Science, Engineering, and Computer Science. There are 22 sections of students engaged in these learning opportunities this school year.

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, "The future of the economy is in STEM." 

“Penn continues work in preparing students for successful futures in these areas, and PLTW is a means by which that is accomplished,” Fry said. 

Penn Senior Abigail Smith earned a 2018 National Scholastic Art & Writing Award Gold Medal for her photo "Boys Just Being Boys?" (shown above). Smith also received a Silver Medal for her digital photography portfolio titled "Girl Code." As one of 30 to receive the Silver Medal with Distinction Portfolio Award, Smith will receive a $1,000 scholarship.

Penn Senior Jessie Buckey won a 2018 Gold Medal in Poetry for “Rain”.

Senior Eric McDonald also won a National Scholastic Art & Writing Award.

McDonald won a Silver Medal for his sculpture pictured above, “Grasping it All.” The sculpture won Gold at the Regional Scholastic Awards.

Between Smith and McDonald’s awards, that makes a total of three national awards that Penn’s Fine Arts Academy students won in this prestigious national competition. The students, teachers and their guests will be invited to attend a ceremony at the world-famous Carnegie Hall (New York, N.Y.) June 7, along with having their artwork on display in New York City. 

The students were selected by panels of creative professionals as one of the most talented young artists in the nation. This year, nearly 350,000 works of art and writing were submitted in the Scholastic Art & Writing Contest. Fewer than 1% of the competitors were recognized at the national level.

Saturday, May 5

8:30 a.m. – Noon

Penn High School

Register online today!

Do you like bubbles? Well, if you do, you’ll enjoy this fun change coming to the Silver Mile this year. The Silver Mile 5K Run/Walk will now be a Bubble Bash! 

What is a Bubble Bash, you ask? Watch the video below from P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker and then click here to register your family today!

The non-timed 5K Run/Walk will incorporate bubble stations along the route for participants to travel through during the event. The Fun Walk will now be incorporated into this event, and there will be an option to take a shorter loop for those not wanting to run/walk the 5K. This event will start at 9:00 a.m. on the TCU Freed Field Track.

After the Bubble Bash, runners and families are invited inside Penn High School’s cafeteria for the Education & Health and Fitness Fair complete with free health screenings provided by the St. Joseph Medical Center. The popular Silent Auction offers a chance to bid on prime Penn student parking spaces and new this year … Penn Commencement front row seat!!! Student works of art and other items from community businesses are also offered. And the Talent Showcase has been expanded to an hour this year.

All proceeds benefit the P-H-M Education Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support excellence in education in all 15 P-H-M schools by awarding innovative teaching grants, scholarships to students, staff development and other corporation-wide initiatives.

Click here for early bird registration and for more information on the Bubble Bash.

Competitors from more than 40 high schools in Indiana and Michigan, along with more than 5,000 fans and officials packed Penn High School’s Arena for the FIRST Robotics St. Joseph District Event on Saturday, March, 10, and Sunday, March 11.

And by the time that the last robot raced across the field laid out on the Arena floor, one team stood above the rest – Penn High School’s Robotics Team 135.

Coached by Jim Langfeldt, Josiah Parker and Evan White, Team 135 earned distinction at the event by winning the coveted Chairman’s Award.

Click here for a Photo Gallery of the Robotics Competition at Penn on March 10 and March 11.

The Chairman’s Award honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

By winning the Chairman’s Award, Penn’s Team 135 qualifies for the State Finals on Friday, April 13, and Saturday, April 14, at Kokomo.

Penn will compete against 23 of the top-ranked teams in the state for a chance to represent Indiana at the World Championships in Detroit

The Chairman's Award qualifies team 135 for state. Held April 13 and 14 at Kokomo's Memorial Gymnasium. We will compete against 23 of the top ranked teams for a chance to represent Indiana at the World Championships in Detroit on April 25-29.

"Winning the Chairman's Award puts Team 135 in a small group of very high achieving teams across the world,” Penn Robotics Instructor James Langfeldt said. “Everyone knows we build robots, but the mission of 135 is … to create a new generation of problem solvers and to inspire young minds through diverse experiences."

“When you look at our work on the team, you can quickly see how passionate we are to inspire the next generation of problem solvers,” Langfeldt said. “From summer camps to outreach events, Team 135 is out in front, inspiring people of all ages and interests!”

Langfeldt said that the signature project of Team 135 is Mission to Engineer.

“Mission to Engineer … is transforming the assistive technology community as we bridge teams like ours to people in need of solutions in local communities all over the world,” Landfeldt said. “From prosthetics to software controlled wheelchairs, Team 135 is on a mission to bring low cost solutions to people in need.”

Penn High School’s TSA (Technology Student Association) team dominated State TSA competition, earning first place in seven of the 10 events. The State competition was held at Indiana State University on March 9. Penn students placed second in the other two events in which they competed.

Penn results:

CAD 2D Architectural: 1st place – Daniel Nilov 

CAD 3D Engineering: 1st place – Alex Pippin 

Architectural Design (Team Event): 1st place – Allison Nguyen, Daniel Nilov, Celine Wang, and Karen Wang

Dragster Design: 1st place – Aaron Jackson

Coding: 1st place – Daniel Kline

Debating Technology Issues: 1st place – Arianna Hardy and Jackson Kirby

Essays on Technology: 1st place – Mia Schwartz

Structural Design and Engineering (Team event): 2nd place – Sharon Ni and Julia Son

Future Technology Teacher: 2nd place – Aaron Jackson

Mia Schwartz was also elected in as Indiana TSA Vice President of Operations.

Penn High School Robotics Team 135 hosted the FIRST Robotics St. Joseph District Event on Saturday, March 10.

A Photo Gallery is posted below.

Penn High’s Competition Poms Team placed fifth in the State Championships on Saturday, March 10.

Coach Cindi Minegar’s team also had two soloists place in the Top 15 in the state.

Kurumi Narasaki placed eighth in the state, and Rachel Wobbe placed 11^th in the state.