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)

The Penn High School Theater Department presents its children’s show and final show of the year,  “Fantastic Mr. Fox!”

Fantastic Mr. Fox, directed by Penn Theater Instructor Crystal Ryan, will be performed in the Studio Theater on Thursday, April 25, and Friday, April 26, at 6:30 p.m., and Saturday, April 27, at 2:00 p.m.

Click here to purchase tickets.

This family-friendly play shares with us the crazy story of how Mr. Fox (sophomore Braden McMillen) uses his cleverness to try and save all of his other dear animal friends on the hill on which he lives. His dear friend Badger (Senior Easton Meyer) narrates the suspenseful and exciting story of why Mr. Fox is so fantastic. This is an electrifying show that is perfect for young children and families to enjoy.

“I’ve always been a fan of Roald Dahl, and I’ve been looking forward to bringing one of his stories to life on stage,” Ryan said. “This adaptation continues on from the end of the book with new perspective.”

“Fantastic Mr. Fox” is an entertaining show that teaches you the value in determination!

In a surprise announcement Tuesday (April 23) morning at Penn High School, Penn-Harris-Madison Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker honored the District’s 2019 Secondary Teacher of the Year Penn’s Freshman Academy Leader & World Languages French Teacher Jeanie Mitchell (click here to view the entire photo gallery on the P-H-M District website).

Watch the video below to see her reaction when she walks into the room to find Dr. Thacker and the cameras waiting …

Madame Jeanie Mitchell came to P-H-M and to Penn High School to teach French in the World Languages Academy in 2008. Last September, she also became Freshman Academy Leader.

Through her French classes Mme. Mitchell brings the world to her students providing classroom project based learning projects, as well as field trips to the French Market in Chicago and even to France! Mme. Mitchell sees her role as a French teacher is to “encourage students to gain a better understanding of themselves and their own world by studying and relating to the practices and beliefs of others.”

As the Freshman Academy Leader, Jeanie helps make the transition from middle school to high school manageable and less daunting for incoming freshmen. She worked with other Academy teachers to begin recognizing two freshman “Students of the Month” (two from each of the four freshman houses); so far more than 60 students have been highlighted this year.

Jeanie has also worked on a Tier 3 RtI program to identify Penn’s most at-risk freshmen students pairing them up with an administrator, counselor or dean. These students not only get the wraparound support they need, but more importantly they also come to realize that they have trusted adults who care about them and who they can go to for help. Speaking of help … Jeanie is also involved in Penn’s Natural Helper’s program, which helps students to not only care for themselves, but to also show compassion and reach out and help others.

Jeanie is a leader among her peers at Penn, frequently leading staff professional development on a variety of topics such as technology, literacy strategies, effective parent communication, and how to use social media to develop teachers’ personal learning networks.

Jeanie and her husband have two children who attend Horizon Elementary School.

Click here to view the entire photo gallery on the P-H-M District website.

WHEN:  this Saturday, April 20,  10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. 

WHERE:  Penn High School Cafeteria

WHY:  Penn High School is hosting a Dance Marathon for Riley Children’s Hospital

ABOUT:  The Marathon is a multi-hour, multi-faceted event that blends dancing, games, crafts, food, and fun into one philanthropic experience. Students are on their feet the entire duration of the marathon dancing showing their support and how they stand up for Riley patients! Penn students and the community are invited to stop by for dancing, games, and a chance to hear the stories from of our Riley families.

This is Penn’s 2^nd annual Dance Marathon. Last year’s event raised more than $25,000!!! 

DONATE: If you can’t make it to the event, please click here to donate: donate.rileykids.org/kingsmenftk

Penn High School students Seunghoon (Sunny) Sun, Ian Coates, Ricky Chapple, Philipp Roehm, Rajeev Datta, David Simonetti, Elisabeth Casetti and Courtney Sharpe teamed up to earn the TEAMS (Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Math and Science) State Championship in the Grade 11/12 category.

Michelle Kwok, Yewon Oh, Tingyi Lu, Riya Patel, Zach Simon, Chelsea Chen, Zainab Nasser and Amy Bernard placed third in the 11/12 category.

Anya Tang, Julia Son, Allison Nguyen, Sharon Ni, Neda Stancheva, Max Egendoerfer and Phillip Matous placed second in the 9/10 category.

A total of 10 teams from Penn qualified for the National TEAMS Championships.

"This really is an awesome team that works together very well and I can't wait to see what they can do at Nationals," Penn TEAMS Sponsor Becky Tagliaferri said.

Penn qualified three teams for the Academic Super Bowl State Championships – Math, Fine Arts and Interdisciplinary. The State Championships are scheduled for Saturday, May 4, at Purdue University.

Penn’s Math, English, Fine Arts, Social Studies, and Interdisciplinary teams on Regional Championships, and earned a second-place finish in Science.

Penn’s Academic Super Bowl State Finalists:

Math
 

Tingyi Lu
David Simonetti
Lyvia Li
Seunghoon Sun
Rajeev Datta 

Fine Arts

Tammy Shu
Khaetsanna Vanhphoumy
Maria Castro De la Hoz
Maya Kvaratskhelia
Delna Balsara

Interdisciplinary
 

Tingyi Lu
Seunghoon Sun
Tammy Shu
Anya Tang
Emily Duchine
Michelle Kwok
 

As Paris’ most popular tourist stop, ahead of even the Eiffel Tower, people around the world have a connection Notre Dame Cathedral, including some here at Penn High School.

The fire that ravaged Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris Monday, April 15 stopped people in their tracts, stunned as they watched this major French, and world, historical and cultural landmark go up in flames.

Penn High School French teacher Jeanie Mitchell has visited the Notre-Dame de Paris five times over the course of her numerous trips to France.

Senior Hailie Kulikowski was just in Paris two weeks ago over Spring Break, the week of April 1st. She talks about how fortunate she considers herself to be among some of the last tourists to see  Notre-Dame de Paris before it went up in flames. Click the video below to hear their reaction …

P-H-M middle schools students take a trip every other summer to Europe, giving students the opportunity to go more in depth in the social students/history curriculum.

This was photo was taken in front of the Cathedral on a P-H-M middle school trip to Paris in 2012.

Penn High School Principal Sean Galiher announced that 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.

“The Early College Academy is a fantastic opportunity for students to engage in college-level course work,” Galiher said. “Receiving the endorsement as an Early College High School through CELL confirms all the hard work put forth by the students and staff who are a part of this academy the last five years. 

“The Early College Academy provides a great overall experience for students,” Galiher continued. “Teachers focus on quality instruction, but also on making connections and developing positive relationships with students. We are proud of everyone associated with the Early College Academy.”

Penn’s Early College Academy is committed to implementing the eighth core principles as mandated by the CELL and the Indiana Commission for Higher Education. The core principles include establishing a college-going culture, rigorous instruction, supports for student success, and collaborative partnerships with Ivy Tech.

“As an Early College High School, we will serve as an exemplar for other schools and will present, share, and mentor others in our experiences and program,” said Penn Assistant Principal Beth Zachary, who oversees the Early College Academy. “This recognition truly belongs to our students, their families, and to our dedicated and committed staff.

“For me, personally, being the Assistant Principal for Early College since its implementation has been one the most challenging and fulfilling experiences of my career,” Zachary said. “This program is changing the lives and futures of our students and it is a privilege to be a part of something that is making such a profound difference.”

 Penn’s status as an Early College High School will be reviewed in 2022-2023.

Penn High School’s Baseball Team defeated Bremen, 10-0, on Friday, April 12, 2019.

A Photo Gallery is posted below.

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.