Today (Friday, September 15, 2023) Penn-Harris-Madison’s Learning Division awarded their first Teacher Impact Awards. New this year, the P-H-M Impact Award is being presented to educators who have helped their students achieve individual academic growth on their formative assessments over time. All P-H-M teachers across the district are dedicated to helping their students achieve personal academic success. The P-H-M Impact Award is shining the spotlight on those teachers who are showing the most significant overall student growth during the 2022-2023 school year (Round 1 of Awards). These teachers are prime examples of how our teachers and students achieve P-H-M Excellence!

With the help of Principal Elizabeth Cunha and Assistant Principals Troy Kauffman and Kevin McMillen, Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Heather Short, Dr. Lavon Dean-Null, Ryan Towner, and Executive Director of the P-H-M Education Foundation Jen Turnblom surprised 7^th grade teacher Emma Zerfas while she was teaching Math Class. Her students were overjoyed for her! Zerfas students had the highest consistent 7th grade Math growth of all 7th grade Math teachers in P-H-M’s three middle schools. Zerfas’ students averaged 47% growth in proficiency; the average P-H-M proficiency growth was 28%. Click here to see photos on Facebook.

Dr. Thacker and team also gave two awards to 5th grade co-teaching team of Lexie Banks and Erin Horvath at Mary Frank. With the help of Principal Christie Heerschop, Dr. Thacker was also able to surprise Banks and Horvath. Banks and Horvath had the two highest Math growth scores for 5th grade in P-H-M. Banks’s Class went from 3% proficiency at the beginning of 2022 school year (Clear Sight), to 97% proficiency on the Spring 2023 ILEARN. Horvath’s class went from 5% to 90% proficiency. Banks’ class had a gain of 94% and Horvath’s 85%! The average 5th Math grade gain across P-H-M 5th grade was 50%.Click here to see photos on Facebook.

As a side note, Horvath’s classroom was Dr. Thacker’s room when he taught at Mary Frank!

P-H-M is grateful to the Education Foundation for covering the cost of these beautiful awards. 

The Teacher Impact Awards are also a testament to the hard work and outstanding learning and comprehension of our students and the support they receive from their families. That’s P-H-M’s Triangle of Success!

This was only Round 1 of surprising teachers with the Impact Awards. There are many P-H-M teachers to recognize in the days, weeks and months ahead!

Boys in grades 2nd to 8th are invited to participate in “Back to School” Basketball League at Penn High School.

2nd – 6th grade League

DATES: September 24th; Oct. 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd 29th LOCATION:

• 2nd-4th, Penn Fitness Center
• 5th-6th, Main Arena/West Balcony/Aux Gym Time

TIMES:

• 2nd-4th, Sundays, Noon – 4:00 p.m.
• 5th-6th, Sundays, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.

COST: $99 Click here to register online.

7th & 8th grade League

DATES: September 10th, 17th, 24th; Oct. 1st, 8th

LOCATION: Penn High School

TIMES: Sundays, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.

COST: $79 Click here to register online.

Questions? Please contact the League Director Coach Smith if you have any questions at jsmith5@phm.k12.in.us

This year’s annual Community Tailgate will be a great way to kick off the return of the Backyard Brawl between the Kingsmen and the Mishawaka Cavemen. 

All fans are welcome, Cavemen and Kingsmen! There’s plenty of food for fans on both sides.

Gates open at 5:00 p.m. You must have a ticket to the football game to enter. Once inside the stadium head down to the white tents in the South End Zone, near the Zolman’s Tire & Auto Care South Concession Stand.

Discovery History teacher Mr. James Howard was nominated as Indiana's middle school teacher representative for the "National History Day" Teacher of the Year.

Each National History Day affiliate may nominate one high school and one middle school teacher for this award. Every nominee for the $10,000 award is a teacher who demonstrates a commitment to engaging students in historical learning through the innovative use of primary sources, implementation of active learning strategies to foster historical thinking skills, and participation in the National History Day Contest.

The national winner will be selected by a committee of experienced teachers and historians, and announced on Thursday, June 15, 2023, at the National History Day National Contest Awards Ceremony in College Park, Maryland. Nominees’ work must clearly illustrate the development and use of creative teaching methods that engage students in history and help them make exciting discoveries about the past.

*Photo credit to the Discovery Photography Club students who took these great pictures of Mr. Howard!

ESS hires substitute teachers and aides, along with Exceptional Education Assistant positions.

Can’t make it to one of the Hiring Events listed above. Click here to apply today. Be sure to enter Penn-Harris-Madison in the search box.

March 27, 28 and 29 at Penn High School

If you are interested, please email Varsity Coach Rita Szweda at rszweda@phm.k12.in.us to be added to the tryout list and provided with tryout information.

Looking for a job with flexibility around your student's school schedule? Do you know of a friend or family member looking for a great place to work?

We’re hiring these positions:

• Educational Assistants, starting at $16.42 
• Teacher Aides, starting at $15.35 per hour 
• School Bus Drivers, up to $25.00
• Food Service, $15.03 – $25.40
• Custodians,  $17.74 – $23.96
• Kids Club Childcare Assistants, starting at $13.38
  *click here for more info on hourly wages for these positions

Come out to our Job Fair for on the spot interviews!

Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023

2:00 – 5:00 p.m.
 

Schmucker Middle School (Door B) 56045 Bittersweet Rd, Mishawaka
 

Click here to see the open positions that are accepting applications. If you can’t make it to the job fair, fill out an application online today!

Penn-Harris-Madison schools are focused on continuous academic improvement that results in academic success for all students.

Standardized testing, or summative assessment, is one measure of academic success, but it is not the only measure.

In pursuit of providing more comprehensive analysis and to expand upon the data provided by state standardized tests, the Indiana Department of Education publicly launched this week (Tuesday, December 13, 2022) the first iteration of the Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed dashboard, or Indiana GPS (click here to view the State Indiana profile).

The description of the Indiana GPS dashboard on the IDOE website states “Together, our mission is to empower Indiana’s educators, families, communities, and employers with a learner-centered, future-focused dashboard that displays how our students are building the necessary knowledge and skills—in all grades and in all schools— through the Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed dashboard, or Indiana GPS.”

The IDOE’s goal is to support Indiana’s goal to educate and graduate Hoosier students who can compete in the global economy. P-H-M supports this goal. Students whether they are going on into higher education, directly into the workforce or enlisting in our nation’s military must be prepared to be successful in life beyond high school. Strong and valuable education of today’s youth results in a knowledgeable and skilled adult Indiana workforce for tomorrow.

A student’s access to early education is an essential first step in their academic and overall development. Measuring kindergarten readiness, as well as a student’s PreK-2 literacy progress can provide key indicators of future success across the K-12 continuum.

We know that effective literacy skills play a vital role in helping students gain a deeper understanding of the world, explore topics in-depth, and seek credible information. At Penn-Harris-Madison, we have a well-articulated approach to teaching literacy based on the five critical pillars: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. 

All of these components woven together help create a skilled reader. Our daily literacy block incorporates whole-group instruction, small-group (leveled) instruction, explicit phonics instruction, and vocabulary building. 

Our teachers have been trained in order to deliver high-quality instruction that is supported through curriculum resources to meet the needs of all learners. Teachers are in regular contact with parents regarding their student’s progress and instructional goals.

At the elementary level, a couple of the indicators the GPS dashboard measures are early literacy and math growth. See some of P-H-M’s highlights are below; click here to view the full P-H-M GPS profile.

Early Literacy Measures

• Percentage of PHM 3rd graders showing proficiency on IREAD-3: 88.3%
  • • State Goal: 95% by 2027
    • Current State Status: 81.6%, 1 out of every 5 third graders in Indiana is not proficient in key literacy skills

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? 
Students who pass the IREAD-3 assessment by grade three are roughly 35% more likely to graduate high school (as referenced on the GPS information webpage).

Math Growth

• Percentage of PHM 6th graders meeting their individual growth targets on the math ILEARN: 41.9%
  • State Goal: 45.8% by 2030
  • Current State Status: 34.1% of Indiana sixth graders are meeting their math growth goals

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Early mathematics instruction focuses on concrete concepts before transitioning to more complex ideas after grade six. Students who are meeting growth goals at this critical juncture have a leg up on future math and science learning.

Graduation Pathways Completion

While still in its first iteration, the goal of the GPS is to examine Indiana high school’s graduation and post-graduation data with the goal to ultimately measure long-term success of each Hoosier.
 

• Percentage of Penn Students who complete graduation requirements: 97.3%
  • State Goal: 95% by 2030
  • Current State Status: 86.4% of Indiana students complete their graduation requirements

• Percentage of Penn Seniors who completed advanced coursework (Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or Dual Credit) during high school: 75.4%
  • Current State Status: 59.5% of Indiana students complete advanced coursework

• Percentage of Penn Seniors earning Indiana Diplomas above a General designation (Core 40 or higher): 98.3%
  • Current State Status: 90.1% of Indiana students earn Core 40 diplomas or higher

• Percentage of Penn Seniors earning high quality college and career credentials: 11.3%.
  Members of the Class of 2021 who earned either an Indiana College Core (ICC) or an Associates Degree was 11.3%–the graduates who completed one or two years of college were members of Penn’s Early College Academy. In 2021, Penn High School ranked FIRST in the state with the highest number of students earning the Indiana College Core (ICC)! Beginning in the 2023-2024 school year, non-Early College students will also be able to pursue an ICC Certificate.
  • State Goal: 60% by 2030
  • Current State Status: 5% of Indiana students earn a college or career credential before graduation, opening doors of future opportunity

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
Increased education levels are positively correlated to labor participation, wages, and overall net worth.

COMING SOON:

The second iteration of the Indiana GPS dashboard – which will display all local data, including longitudinal and disaggregated data – is coming soon. Later in 2023, schools will be able to use the dashboard to view authenticated student-level data (not available to the public). 

• PreK-Grade 2 Literacy – Percentage of PreK-Grade 2 students demonstrating progress in essential early reading skills from one year to the next.
• Kindergarten Readiness – Percentage of students demonstrating the skills necessary to be considered ready to start kindergarten.
• Employment & Enrollment – Percentage of high school graduates employed or enrolled 1 year after their expected graduation year. Goal TBD.

Click here to learn more about the Indiana Graduates Prepared to Succeed dashboard.

Click here to view the full P-H-M GPS profile (scroll to the bottom of the webpage to find links to all 15 P-H-M schools–11 elementary schools, 3 middle schools, and Penn High School).