2024 Penn Musical, “The Music Man”
Penn’s school musical this year is “The Music Man.”
You won’t want to miss Penn’s talented student performers as they act out the play that follows fast-talking traveling salesman, Harold Hill, as he cons the people of River City, Iowa, into buying instruments and uniforms for a boys’ band that he vows to organize – this, despite the fact that he doesn’t know a trombone from a treble clef!
This year’s musical also includes the talents of a few P-H-M elementary and middle school students:
- Mary Cortes, 5th grade, Prairie Vista Elementary School
- Maxwell MacMillan, 5th grade, Mary Frank Elementary School
- Anniston Steele, 7th grade, Grissom Middle School
- Ezra Carrico, Katherine Hawkins, Benjamin Robertson and Noah Rohde, all in 8th grade, Schmucker Middle School
This isn’t the first year Penn’s musicals have included students from younger grades. In 2016, younger students also participated in “Mary Poppins.” But this is the first year in recent memory to have this many!
Visit bit.ly/PennMusicMan to purchase tickets.
Coach Cates named National Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year!
The National High School Strength Coaches Association (NHSSCA) named Penn Strength and Conditioning Coach Matt Cates the 2024 National Coach of the Year!
Last February Coach Cates was named the 2023 Great Lakes Regional Coach of the Year. In 2020, he became the State Director of NHSSCA for Indiana. In January 2022, Penn’s Strength and Conditioning program led by Coach Cates was awarded with a NHSSCA Program of Excellence School designation!
Coach Cates’ enthusiasm and dedication working with student-athletes has made him one of the most popular people at Penn High School. Coach Cates builds lasting relationships with students bringing out the best in them. He is a great motivator, making videos in 2021 to help students cope with the pandemic. Click to watch some of his videos on PHM’s TikTok account. At the start of the 2023-2024 school year, he was one of the teachers who spoke at the Freshman Class Meeting welcoming 9th graders to Penn. He got the biggest round of applause, even from the freshmen! Click to see the pictures.
Cates was chosen from four finalists. The award is given each year to a high school Strength Coach based on their achievements and contributions to their school community. Click here for more information on the award.
Coach Cates will be honored this summer at the national conference in Dallas as NHSSCA’s 2024 National Coach of the Year!
FIRST-IN District Robotics Competition, March 2 & 3
The 2024 FIN Mishawaka FRC District Event will once again be held at Penn High School March 1st – 3rd (open to the public on Saturday, March 2 and Sunday, March 3). The event will be held in Penn’s Main Arena. See below for a daily schedule:
Saturday, March 2
- 10:30 – 11:00 a.m., Opening Ceremonies
- 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., Qualifying Matches (No matches during Lunch, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.)
Sunday, March 3
- 9:30 – 10:00 a.m., Opening Ceremonies
- 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., Qualifying Matches
- 12:30 – 1:00 p.m., Alliance Selections
- 1:00 – 2:00 p.m., Lunch
- 2:00 – 5:00 p.m., Playoff Matches & Awards Ceremony
For elementary aged children, there’s also the Next Gen event from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. The event will be upstairs–above Penn’s Main Arena–in the Fitness Center. This event is open to all children, not just P-H-M students. Children have the opportunity to do hands-on STEM activities, even operate a robot! Click here for pictures from last year’s event.
This year’s game is CRESCENDOSM presented by Haas; click here to view a video about the game. FIRST© Robotics Competition teams will use their STEM skills and creative power to turn up the volume as they design, build, and program their robots for action-packed game play. Watch the game animation to inspire ideas.
During our 2023-2024 arts-inspired robotics season, FIRST® IN SHOWSM presented by Qualcomm, FIRST Robotics teams will celebrate the roles STEM skills play in the arts and design, and how these skills help build a world of endless possibilities for students. Click here to learn more about FIRST® IN and the District event being held at Penn High School.
Penn Head Football Coach Cory Yeoman Announces his Retirement
After 40 years with the Penn High School Football program, Hall of Famer Coach Cory Yeoman announced to Kingsmen student-athletes and assistant coaches this afternoon that he will be retiring as head coach and Penn teacher at the end of this school year.
In his address to the players and coaches, Coach Yeoman shared, “By far the best thing I have ever done as a coach or as a player is to surround myself with great people. You win with people! Thousands of people made this journey possible. Thank you to the Yeoman Family; for over 50 Years our Mom, wives and daughters have let us boys play and coach the game we love for the school we love.”
Coach Yeoman went on to say to his players, “I would like to thank the hundreds of tough Kingsmen players in the ‘long black line;’ I am so proud of you. I love you boys! It has been an honor being a member of ‘the long black line.’ It has been an honor to be one of ‘Gees’s boys.’ Go Penn Go!”
Click below to see a full photo gallery of Coach Yeoman.
Coach Yeoman spent his first 19 years as an Assistant Coach under Hall of Famer Coach Chris Geesman, and the past 21 years as Head Coach. Yeoman took over the Kingsmen program in 2003 and compiled a 208-56 record overall.
In his first season after replacing legendary Coach Geesman, Yeoman guided Penn to the 2003 State Championship Game. Yeoman also led Penn to Semi-state titles in 2017, 2015 and 2011. In addition to winning four Semi-state Championships, the Kingsmen have won nine regional crowns under Yeoman’s leadership, 13 sectional titles and 17 Northern Indiana Conference championships.
“It’s hard to put into words what Coach Yeoman means to our school community. He’s been a staple of Penn High School for 40 years, as a student, a teacher, an assistant coach, and as our head football coach for 21 years,” said Penn Athletic Director Jeff Hart.
“More importantly, his unmatched legacy as a positive leader, mentor, and relationship-builder will be sorely missed in our building and beyond,” Hart continued. “I’ve been fortunate to work closely with him for the last several years and I’ve seen up close his unique ability to have great success coaching with a servant’s heart while building lifelong relationships with staff and students. I’m blessed to call him a friend.”
Coach Yeoman bleeds black and gold and has always been a Kingsmen. He played for Penn, earning all-state honors at defensive tackle. In 1979, Coach Yeoman led a Kingsmen defense that only allowed 33 yards rushing a game. That Kingsmen team finished 11-1, winning an NIC Championship before losing to Hobart in the second round of the playoffs. Yeoman graduated from Penn in 1980.
Coach Yeoman is in the Indiana Football Hall of Fame, the first Penn player nominated for the Hall.
“Coach Yeoman is a Kingsmen legend. He learned from the best [Coach Chris Geesman] and became the best,” said Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker. “Coach is highly respected across Indiana; and while we’ll miss him coaching on the sidelines, we know that he won’t be very far from Everwise Freed Field on Friday nights. Once a Kingsmen, always a Kingsmen!”
After his playing career at Penn, coach Yeoman played for Miami (Ohio) University. He was a roommate and teammate of the Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl winning head coach, John Harbaugh. Yeoman joined the Kingsmen coaching staff after graduation from Miami, and has been on the Kingsmen sidelines for 40 seasons.
After Penn’s 28-7 victory against the Mishawaka Cavemen on Friday, Aug. 25, 2023, Yeoman was named the Indianapolis Colts Indiana High School Coach of the Week. The victory against the archrival Cavemen also gave Yeoman his 200th career victory, making him only the second Kingsmen Football coach to reach that coveted plateau.
Penn is now the only high school in Indiana to have two coaches meet this milestone. The first was longtime Kingsmen coach Chris Geesman (309 wins), who Coach Yeoman played under and coached with at the beginning of his career at Penn.
Yeoman is beloved and admired by his players and assistant coaches. He serves as a mentor to Penn students not only as a coach, but also as a Physical Education and Sports Performance teacher. Yeoman was also an Industrial Arts Teacher. Coach loves the interactions with students. For years, he’s assisted with Penn’s Commencements, helping line students up and assisting families whose children are being honored posthumously. Yeoman once said to a colleague “My favorite time of year is graduation; this is what it’s all about!”
Coach Yeoman’s last day will come at the end of the 2023-2024 school year. Coach looks forward to spending time with his grandchild, wife and family, and of course cheering for the Kingsmen on Friday nights.
Penn-Harris-Madison will begin an immediate search for a new Kingsmen Head Football Coach; the announcement is to be determined at a later date.
Coaching Profile of Cory Yeoman:
40 Years Coaching at Penn High School, 425 – 79
- 504 Games Coached at Penn High School
- 1984 – 2023 Seasons
- 1984 – 2002 Assistant Coach, 217 – 23
- 2003 – 2023 Head Coach, 208 – 56
- 36 X Northern Indiana Conference
- 24 X Sectional
- 17 Regionals
- 11 Semi-State
- 7 State Runners-up
- 4 State Championships
Cap and Gown orders due Friday, March 1
Attention Penn High School Parents and Students:
Graduation is fast approaching and we want to ensure that you have everything you need for this special day. Caps and Gowns will be passed out during Rehearsal scheduled for Wednesday, April 24, and Thursday, April 25. If you have not placed your order, please order no later than Friday, March 1, 2024, to pick up at the scheduled delivery event on April 24 and April 25.
The Commencement Ceremony is scheduled for 7 p.m., Monday, June 3, 2024, at the University of Notre Dame.
The following link will take you to your school’s landing page for all your graduation needs. This link includes all the packages and ala carte items for announcements, apparel and your cap and gown unit.
If you only need a cap and gown (includes tassel) here is the direct link.
Congratulations on this milestone achievement. If you have questions, please contact the Jostens office at 574.216.6336.
Penn Debate Coach Gains Team Trophy, Loses Hair!
To celebrate Penn’s Speech and Debate Team State Debate Tournament winning Penn’s first Debate Team Championship ever instead of just having a celebratory party (which the team did), they also through in a “team activity.”
After school on Tuesday, January 30th, Team Captains and students got to cut off their Team Coach Mr. Jeremy Starkweather’s hair! Mr. Starkweather is known for his golden, poofy afro. But to motivate the team to win the ISSDA State Debate Tournament, he told his team captains last summer when they were at the National Competition that the students could cut his hair if they won the State Championship in 2024. Of course the team won, so that meant Mr. Starkweather had to give up his golden locks. Click to watch the TikTok video below. Click to see the full photo gallery.
To make the fun go for a good cause, Mr. Starkweather reached out to the students who run Short Hair Because We Care to donate his hair. Remarkably but not surprisingly, Mr. Starkweather had 9 inches to donate! Because he was donating his hair, the students couldn’t just shave his head with clippers, his hair had to be sectioned off and braided into mini-pony tails, which made the process a little longer. But the payoff was worth the wait for the students!
It was quite the turnout to see this big event. Not only were the Debate students there, but so were other Penn students who heard about it, Principal Dr. Sean Galiher, and other Penn teachers and coaches. Even PHM District administration and Superintendent Dr. Thacker turned out for the big show. Dr. Thacker even had the honorary last cut!
One of the Team Captains Bella Schaetzle’s mother is a hair stylist and loaned her daughter the tools to cut Mr. Starkweather’s hair. She also graciously offered to clean up his “cut” once the students were done. Below is what Mr. Starkweather looks like the day after on Wednesday, January 31st. He says his hair should grow back in a few months!
Thanks for being a good sport and such a dedicated coach Mr. Starkweather!
Penn Orchestra Performs Elementary School Pops
“Captain Jack Sparrow” made an appearance at Penn High School today (Tuesday, January 30) performing the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song for 4th and 5th grade students. This mini concert is a great way to introduce students to instruments they might not be familiar with as they think about what possible instrument they might want to pursue in middle school. In P-H-M middle schools, students can pursue orchestra, band or choir as a Fine Arts elective.
Students got a real treat … the Orchestra’s drummers performed a sown written by Senior Clayton Hopper; it was called “March of the Clumsy.” All the drummers performed it together to demo percussion.
Due to scheduling logistics, only half of P-H-M elementary schools participated traveled to Penn for this year’s show. The other half attended last year. That way every P-H-M student will see the show in either 4th grade or a 5th grade.
Take a look at the photo gallery below …
