By JASON MIGAS

Pennant Reporter

Penn High's Baseball Team expected to play a double-header at home against Lake Central on Saturday, April 20. Then the rains hit on the morning of Friday, April 19.

As field conditions worsened through the afternoon, Penn moved the home games to Lake Central, and the Penn Baseball Team went from a home doubleheader to a 90-minute (one-way) road trip.

On Saturday, March 23, the Penn Softball Team waited nearly three hours from the regularly scheduled start of a game against Fort Wayne Carroll for the JV field to be readied for play. The Varsity field was unplayable due to weather conditions.

Next season, Penn's Baseball and Softball Teams likely won't be dealing with those types of field headaches.

The Kingsmen Baseball and Softball fields have big changes coming this Summer. During the 2019 offseason, Baseball's Jordan Automotive Group Field and Softball's May Oberfell Lorber Field will have their natural grass fields replaced with Synthetic Turf.

The Synthetic Turf Baseball Field can also be used for football, soccer and lacrosse. Click to see a photo gallery of artist renderings posted below.

This change will be happening because the Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation Administration felt that improvements needed to be made.

Aaron Leniski, Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation's Chief Operating Officer, is overseeing the projects. He believes it is important to upgrade the athletic facilities because, "it will decrease annual maintenance, improve safety/security, increase aesthetics, expand use, and increase field performance."

Leniski feels that Synthetic Turf is the best choice for Penn's athletic fields. He emphasized that, "Turf provides the most consistent playing surface for our student-athletes." He proceeded to point out that, "grass fields are notorious for divots, imperfections, and fluctuation of shock-attenuation performance".

Penn Athletic Director Jeff Hart is excited about the installation of Synthetic Turf for the Baseball and Softball Fields.

"This upcoming project is extremely exciting for all of us charged with providing our student-athletes and students at large a positive experience at Penn,” Hart said. “The two new turfed fields will have a great benefit to our school community beyond the advantages of allowing us to play baseball and softball in less than ideal weather conditions.  

“They will also provide us greater flexibility in allowing our other athletic teams, clubs, P.E. classes, marching band, middle and elementary schools, etc. use of these facilities without numerous hours of field preparation required,” Hart continued. “I anticipate that both the Baseball and Softball complexes will get a great amount of use throughout the year, much like TCU Freed Field does now."

The No. 1-ranked Penn Baseball team is also very excited about getting a new field.

Kingsmen Baseball Head Coach Greg Dikos is a big fan of the new turf because of the reduced man hours.

"I'm excited because field maintenance will be reduced drastically," Dikos said. He also mentioned the convenience of playing through adverse weather.

One of the main advantages Dikos mentions is that the team will be able to get on the field earlier in the spring, and that, "Rainouts are a thing of the past."

Synthetic Turf fields will be an improvement from a player standpoint as well. As an infielder, Junior shortstop Kyle Kline can't wait for the turf.

Kline "loves playing on turf" because "there are no bad hops in the infield." He also added that there is "no bad flooding and games will be played more often."

The Penn Kingsmen Softball team is equally ready for the new turf for many of the same reasons. Sophomore Pitcher Addy Kois is a self-proclaimed "huge fan" of the turf.

"Turf is a lot easier to pitch on," Kois said.

Softball Head Coach Beth Zachary is also ready for this change. Since some of the teams they play against have turf fields, she believes, "the girls are ready to play on (turf)."

Zachary said that the turf will bring, "an advantage, because we will have more time to practice and prepare during the offseason." She continued to say that she believes it is, "a good move and the right move" for the future of Penn Athletics.

"We are all really excited about it," Zachary said of the move to Synthetic Turf.

The Summer of 2019 will be very important to the Baseball and Softball Teams of Penn High School, as the installation of Synthetic Turf will be a major step toward player safety and giving the Kingsmen a competitive edge.

Today (Friday, May 10) was a big day for Penn’s Early College Academy Class of 2019 … this morning the Academy hosted its first-ever College Signing Day for the graduating seniors; and this evening those students who earned enough college credits to receive their Associate of General Studies (AGS) degrees or Statewide Transfer General Education Core (STGEC) will have the opportunity to walk in Ivy Tech Community College’s Commencement Ceremonies at Notre Dame’s Purcell Pavilion.

At the time of Commencement (June 7, 2019) The ECA Class of 2019 is expected to include:

• 100 total students

• 50 earning AGS degrees thru Ivy Tech 

• an additional 34 earning STGECs

• 14 earning at least 15 college credits or more

• 2 will have earned less than 15 college credits

This was big cause for celebration! So the ECA faculty organized today’s College Signing Day not only to honor and recognize the accomplishments of the 2nd cohort’s, but also to show the freshman, sophomore and junior ECA students how all their hard work will eventually pay off and be worth it! P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker was also on hand to congratulate the students on their success.​ Click to see the full photo gallery below.

The Signing Day was the brainchild of Mrs. Sarah Dwigans, ECA English teacher, who wanted “to create a ‘positive defining moment’ that served as a rite of passage for the seniors, as well as one that planted a seed of inspiration in the underclassmen.” She got the idea from a book “The Power of Moments.” The result was a touching display of heartfelt thankfulness and gratitude and a tremendous sense of accomplishment. 

ECA English Teacher Mrs. Mary Nicolini served as the “emcee” injecting lots of humor and plenty of hugs! Eleven graduating seniors were invited to speak and share not only their college or career plans after Penn, but also answering the question “How did the Early College Academy help you get here today?” The featured students included those who earned college credit and are pursuing their higher education careers at colleges and universities such as Purdue University Fort Wayne, Ball State, Bethel University, Michigan State University, and Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

The other students who spoke included one going into the Marines, another who will be doing an apprenticeship with the Intl. Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and another who is going to work for the National Park Service in Yellowstone. Click to see a full listing of the Class of 2019 and their college and career plans after graduating from Penn.

The seniors who spoke shared their fond memories of ECA, gave shout-outs to their friends, thanked their teachers and of course gave the underclassmen some words of wisdom and advice about school … “stick with it, it’s all going to be worth it, and Early College got me where I am today!”

At the end all 91 members of the Class of 2019 got on stage to commemorate their achievement and to thank not only Mrs. Dwigans for organizing today’s “ceremony,” but to thank all of their ECA teachers!

It was clear that all the ECA students, and faculty alike, are truly a family!

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.

The Penn Boys Track Team won the Northern Indiana Conference Championship by winning the conference meet on Thursday, May 9, 2019.

A Photo Gallery is posted below.

Penn hosted its first ever Unified Track and Field Meet yesterday (Wednesday, May 8). Exceptional Education student-athletes and their partners from both Penn and Elkhart Central High School competed in various competitions such as long jump, shot put and track races.

The clouds and rain cleared out giving way to warm weather and sunny skies for the after school event hosted at Penn’s TCU Freed Field. Click to see the photo gallery below.

It was also a special night of recognition for these three seniors:

• Erin Darr
• Hunter Hines
• Andre Northern

P-H-M’s amazing Exceptional Education staff and teachers were also honored for their contributions to the “Triangle of Success.” P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker, Penn Principal Sean Galiher, Exceptional Education Director Gena Todd, Ex Ed Program Supervisor (Middle School) Rebecca Allen, Penn Athletic Director Jeff Hart, and Penn Asst. Principal Josiah Parker were on hand to say “Thank you!”

Many of Penn student-athletes from various Varsity teams came out to volunteer for the event as time keepers, measuring jumps and throws, etc.

Unified Track and Field is the newest Indiana High School Athletic Association sport in the Champions Together format. It is partnered with Special Olympics. Unified Track and Field pairs student-athletes with intellectual disabilities with partners without disabilities giving the student-athletes the opportunity to compete for a varsity sport. This is the first year for Penn’s Unified Track Team. Penn’s team this year had eight athletes and 14 partners. Click learn more. 

So far Penn’s Team has competed in three meets:  April 24 at Elkhart Memorial, May 3 at Goshen, and May 8 at Penn. The Kingsmen team will also participate in the IHSAA State Tournament, starting with the Sectional on Saturday, May 18, in Griffith at 11:00 a.m. EST.

Penn teacher Bennett Blazo is the head coach of Penn’s Unified Track Team. Pam Walters, Karen Tagliaferri, Noah Lipsky and Francisco Cardoza are assistant coaches.

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 Rugby won the Midwest Regional Championship on Sunday, May 5, 2019.

Penn rallied from a 12-0 deficit to defeat the Indianapolis Cathedral Royal Irish 21-17.

A Photo Gallery is posted below.

Penn High School will hold its 2019 Commencement ceremonies on Friday, June 7, at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center on the campus of the University of Notre Dame.

Parents and guests are to enter through the south main entrance of the Purcell Pavilion between Gates 8 and 10. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Handicapped facilities are available throughout the Joyce Center.

Tickets are not required.

GRADUATES: Report to Gate 10 of the Field House at the Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center (click here to view the ND campus map) no later than 4:45 p.m.! Doors for students to enter Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center will be open at 4:30 p.m. Seniors arriving after 5 p.m. will not be in alphabetical order and may be required to be seated at the end of the line or may even be excluded from Commencement.

Seniors are required to wear their caps and gowns and to have appropriate attire under their caps and gowns. Those who do not comply with the standard of dress that is outlined earlier in this letter will not be allowed to participate. Also, no decorations on the caps and gowns will be allowed. 

Click here for more graduate information in the Class of 2019 Senior Letter.

Students will be able to pick up their diplomas beginning Wednesday, June 19, from 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Pick-up will be outside the Main Office inside Door A.

HR Imaging Partners will be positioned to take individual pictures of seniors with their diplomas. Every student will be photographed and all photographs will be available for purchase on a protected website. The website is http://shop.hrimaging.com; select the orange tab, which is ‘order prints from special events’.

NO ONE EXCEPT SCHOOL & P-H-M PERSONNEL WILL BE ALLOWED ON THE ARENA FLOOR TO TAKE PICTURES!

Senior Recognition Program will be at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 14, in the Penn High School Center for the Performing Arts by invitation only.

Penn High School was ranked 13th in Indiana—the only Top #20 high school in the Michiana area—in US News & World Report’s 2019 U.S. News Best High Schools listing. 

Penn’s other points of distinction noted by the prestigious national magazine ranking, students have the opportunity to take Advanced Placement course work and exams. The AP participation rate at Penn High School is 47 percent.

With the release of the Spring 2018 ISTEP+ results, overall Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation ranks in the state’s Top 5% of public school districts for grade 10 ISTEP+ scores. And Penn High School ranks in the Top 5% of all Indiana public high schools. Click to read more about Penn’s Performance Report from the Indiana Department of Education.

Indiana high school students typically follow the Core 40 curriculum, which includes required classes in English Language Arts, math, Social Studies and Science, among others. Students who fulfill additional requirements can earn a diploma with academic or technical honors. At Penn High School, more than 85% of students graduate with High Honors, Academic Honors or Technical Honors. Learn more about the Core 40 Curriculum on the Indiana Department of Education website.

The Academies at Penn High School provide the framework for student success. Through their work in each academy, students find relevant and meaningful coursework taught in a supportive environment where each student is known well by his teachers and peers. Through these “smaller learning communities,” students build relationships while engaged in relevant learning experiences.

Penn’s Early College Academy has received an endorsement as an Early College High School by The Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning. As an endorsed Early College High School by the CELL, Penn’s Early College Academy is regarded as an exemplar for other high schools across Indiana implementing an Early College program.

Penn is a Four Star School earning the Project Lead the Way Distinguished School distinction in 2017-18 (for the 2016-17 school year), and the STEM Academy has been certified as a Full STEM Certified Program by the Indiana Department of Education. 

Click to see the full list and find out more how US News & World Report ranks the Best High Schools. 

Click to watch Class of 2018 student profiles from each of Penn’s seven academies (video profiles about the Class of 2019 graduates will soon be added. Commencement will be held June 7 at Notre Dame’s Purcell Pavilion).

Penn High School will host a Summer Work Opportunities Fair through May 10.

Companies and organizations are invited to visit Penn during lunch to recruit and potentially hire students. We are looking for any type of work experience for students – welding, fast food, construction, grocery stores, banking, summer camps, paid, unpaid, etc.

The Details:

– Please fill out this form to attend the fair.

– Dates: Now-through-May 10.

– Time: 11 a.m.-2 p.m. EDT

– We will have 5-8 companies/organizations per day at Penn.

– Each company/organization will be given two days minimum, more if space allows.

– We will provide you with a space on the stage in our cafeteria during all four lunches, a 6-foot table and chairs.

– We ask that you provide a one page information sheet for all the positions you have available.  Please include company, a job description, any requirements like age, pay or range if applicable, responsibilities, and any other important information. Please include the document in the above form or email them to Penn High School Assistant Principal Josiah Parker. (jparker@phm.k12.in.us)

– We will communicate with students what companies/organizations will be at lunch each day and provide your information via a page on our website. Your company information and job postings will be included on the website. We will also promote this to our students at school, in our newsletter, and via our social media.

– A background check from each person attending is required before anyone comes to school. Please allow a few days for processing. You may download the form here and return it to Assistant Principal Josiah Parker via email at jparker@phm.k12.in.us.

– It is up to you how you use these days. If you would like to hold interviews, you can be provided with a quiet area. You may just provide information, speak with students and ask them to apply later, have applications for students to fill out, request interviews with students at a later date, whatever works for you.

– Penn High School is only helping to create the connections between you and students. Unless you require Student-Learner exemptions described, below we will not be a part of this hiring and working process.

Additional Legal Comments:

– Workers under 18.

The department of labor allows for many exemptions with Student-Learners under the age of 18 as long as they are enrolled in a school course. If you fall within those limitations we will offer a summer internship course through the high school for students so they can qualify for these  exemptions. Here is more information.

Liability.

If you have concerns on the liability of student coverage, contact Assistant Principal Josiah Parker.

Making sure students understand the importance of personal finance is the goal of TCU’s Financial Empowerment Program.

The curriculum based program was developed by teachers and incorporates web based and interactive instruction sessions. Student resources include how to protect yourself when shopping online and how to keep your smartphone from getting attacked by malware.

The program was introduced to all Freshmen as part of their existing Freshmen Connections class. Representatives from TCU were on hand to guide students through the online program.

Penn High School’s Dance Marathon FTK (For The Kids) set a goal of exceeding last year’s initial Dance Marathon total of $25,090.16 that was donated to the Riley Children’s Hospital.

The 2019 goal was surpassed by nearly 30 percent, as Penn’s second Dance Marathon FTK raised $36,929.21—that’s an increase of more than $11,000!!! A great accomplishment that the pediatric patients of Riley Children’s Hospital will surely benefit from! Click to see a photo gallery provided by Dance Marathon FTK participants.
 

“The passion and heart these students displayed as they worked tirelessly over the last year is unequaled,” Dance Marathon FTK Sponsor/Penn instructor Michele Ball said. “As sponsors, Kate O’Brien and I are so proud of these young people!

“In just over two years we have raised just over $62,000!!  Our future is bright!  Our entire club deserves a huge hug for all the time and passion and dedication they have shown.”

Ball said that Bittersweet Elementary deserves a shout out for allowing Penn’s Dance Marathon FTK Club to help with their Fall Fest and Winter Fest. Penn students face painted, did crafts with the students and played games for donations. Students also collected donations at a football game, a basketball game and other events throughout the year.

Penn’s Dance Marathon FTK also hosted restaurant give-backs almost every month and Penn instructor Dominic Ball organized a Dodgeball tournament as the culminating event in the club’s first DAY OF HOPE. Dance Marathon FTK raised more than $4,000 on the Day of Hope.

In addition, Erik Wilcox and Dance Marathon FTK vice president Maggie Sullivan, organized a highly successful Smash Bros tournament which brought in more than $500.

“Our executive board deserves a huge thank you as they sacrificed hours upon hours to make this an outstanding year,” Ball said. “Our president for the last two years, Olivia Coughlin, has really taken on the leadership role for this club.  She has encouraged, cheered on and invigorated the masses when they needed a little extra push. Her dedication never wavered and her positivity is infectious! There are so many students that played an integral part it would be hard to name them all!

Along with Olivia Coughlin and Maggie Sullivan, the Dance Marathon FTK executive board consisted of Andrea Seroczynski, Rachel Wobbe, Morgan Martin, Audrey Page, Morgin Higgins, Matthew Pruitt, Makaila Holt, Lauren Kramer, Kathryn Iappalucci, Sydney Riddle and Annabelle Morton.

“There are no words to describe how inspired I’ve been by witnessing the strength and courage of our Riley families, seeing how we’ve grown as an organization, and seeing the passion my peers and friends have for this cause,” Coughlin said.

Ball said that Penn students Sophia and Sheila Patel and Sid Das deserve a special shoutout as they became members of our Comma Club, raising more than $1,000 each.

The Penn Dance Marathon FTK Riley families are the reason the club continue to raise funds and awareness. Ball said that the organization is lucky to have eight families with it  to continue to inspire our students every day.  Riley kids are in parenthesis. 

The Riley families are:

The Kinney Family (Mikayla)

The Newcomb Family (Emily)

The Holmes Family (Natalie)

The Crawford Family (Alexa and Ellie)

The Stevenson Family (Jessica)

Mr. Bob Yenna (Heather)

The Fleming Family (Lizzy)

The Kauffman Family (Kristopher)