After two days and 153 miles on the road, Schmucker Middle School Teacher LA High arrived at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis with a special delivery: a donation raised by the Schmucker school community throughout the school year.

The 2025 P-H-M Secondary Teacher of the Year was joined on the trip by friends and supporters. They biked from Mishawaka to Riley Hospital in Indianapolis to personally deliver the check of $15,000 to the Riley Children’s Foundation.

The ride served as the culmination of another successful year of fundraising at Schmucker. Students and staff participated in a variety of events throughout the school year to support Riley, including Riley Trivia Night in May, various dress-up days, walk the track events, teacher pie-in-the-face, and a student-led “$5 Week.”

These annual fundraising efforts have become a tradition at Schmucker, bringing students and staff together in support of children and families receiving care through Riley Children’s Health.

Schmucker would like to thank everyone who participated in this year’s events and helped make the donation possible.

The Penn-Harris-Madison Education Foundation (PHMEF) continues its mission of supporting excellence in education by awarding $73,715.48 in classroom innovation grants for the 2025-2026 school year, marking one of the largest funding years in foundation history! And Schmucker was fortunate to receive $731.00 in grant dollars!

Each year, PHMEF’s Annual Grant Cycle provides teachers across the district with opportunities to bring creative, hands-on learning projects to life, projects that go beyond traditional classroom resources. The grants are made possible through the generosity of community donors, local businesses, and district supporters.

During the first couple of weeks of December, PHMEF Executive Director Jennifer Turnblom surprised grant recipients. Click here to see the full photo gallery.

Schmucker was awarded one EZ grant (under $750). The description is listed below:

1. Schmucker Orchestra Project Tune-Up
Dorothy Carnall • $731.00
Instrument Tuners/Devices

“On behalf of the entire PHM Education Foundation Board I want you to know how deeply we believe in our teachers and staff,” said PHMEF Executive Director Jennifer Turnblom. “Your dedication, and passion for making a positive impact are what make our schools truly exceptional. We are committed to funding your innovative ideas because you are the heart of excellence in PHM, and we are proud to support the remarkable work you do every day.”

For more on the P-H-M Education Foundation’s 2025-26 grant awards, click here.

U.S. News and World Report released its “Best Schools” rankings for K-8 public schools by state and Schmucker is #53 out of Indiana’s public middle schools!

Discovery also made the list at #3

Data is based on the 2021–2022, 2022–2023 and 2023–2024 school years.

All of P-H-M’s elementary schools are ranked among Indiana’s “Best Elementary Schools”:

• Northpoint #1  
• Prairie Vista #2 
• Horizon #37
• Mary Frank #39
• Bittersweet #94
• Elm Road #172
• Moran #175
• Elsie Rogers #297
• Madison #273
• Meadow’s Edge #370
• Walt Disney #385

Indiana’s 395 Indiana public high schools were also ranked, and Penn ranked #26.

The U.S. News & World Report analyzed 103,391 pre-K, elementary and middle schools nationwide for their rankings. The rankings use the same methodology for all included grade levels. For each state, schools were assessed on their shares of students who were proficient or above proficient in their mathematics and reading/language arts state assessments. Half of the formula assessed the scores themselves and the other half incorporated the test results in the context of socioeconomic demographics. In other words, the top-ranked schools are all high-achieving and have succeeded at educating all their students. Click here for more information on the methodology.

The highest ranked U.S. public schools in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025-2026 Best High Schools rankings are those whose students demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math, reading and science state assessments, earned qualifying scores on an array of college-level exams, and graduated in high proportions. They reviewed data on 17,901 public high schools. Click here for more background information on their ranking system.

October is National Principals Month! To celebrate, we’re sharing short Q&As with each of our principals—giving you a glimpse into their leadership style, favorite parts of school life, and what drives their #PHMExcellence every day.

If you could swap places with a student for one day, what class or activity would you be most excited to participate in — and why?

I think I would go to Mr Reininga’s PLTW class when he is using his 3D printers. Those are just fascinating to me. I love crafts and I would enjoy creating and printing.

What’s your go-to morning routine (or must-have snack/coffee order) that helps you tackle the day?

Wake up, walk the dog, and coffee….in that order!

What were you like as a middle or high school student — and what’s one piece of advice you’d give your younger self?

I think I would tell myself to learn Spanish and do all I can to travel abroad sooner than later. I did not get off the contintent until I was 32.

If your job as a principal had a theme song, what song would be your walk up song–the one playing when you walked into school each day?

Shake It Off – Taylor Swift

What was your favorite school lunch or snack when you were a student? What is your favorite school lunch now as a principal?

Pizza in elementary school. I great spinach salad with carrots feta and grilled chicken.

What’s one fun fact about you that most students or staff don’t know?

I am a Swiftie

Do you have any hidden talents or hobbies outside of school that might surprise people?

I love to needlepoint and read. Boring and not surprising.

What’s one thing on your bucket list you still hope to do one day?

Visit all the Christmas Markets in Europe.

What’s your favorite school tradition or event?

Sparty Sports

If you could describe your school in one word, what would it be?

CONNECT! It is our one word for this year!

Students and staff at Schmucker Middle School started this Tuesday with a schoolwide assembly full of laughter, school spirit, and community support — all for a great cause.

In an effort to raise money for Riley Children’s Hospital, Schmucker teachers donned inflatable costumes and hit the track for a fun-filled race in front of the entire student body. Students could donate $1 to place their “vote” on who they thought would win, with a couple of lucky participants earning a $25 gift card.

The friendly competition brought plenty of cheers from the crowd, and in the end, it was L.A. High — P-H-M Secondary Teacher of the Year and one of the Top 3 finalists for Indiana Teacher of the Year — who crossed the finish line first.

The event not only raised funds for a meaningful cause but also highlighted Schmucker’s strong sense of community and commitment to giving back — all while creating a memorable, joy-filled experience for students and staff alike.

Penn High School’s newest official sport is already making history. The Penn Girls Flag Football program hosted its first-ever Prospect Camp on July 22-23, welcoming over a dozen incoming middle school athletes. The two-day camp focused on building foundational skills in flag football, while also emphasizing teamwork and leadership development.

To see the full Flag Football Prospect Camp photo gallery click here.

The camp follows the official launch of the Girls Flag Football program at Penn, approved by the Penn-Harris-Madison Board of School Trustees in March. The Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) announced earlier this year that 55 schools have committed to fielding teams for the 2025 season—more than double the 27 teams that participated in 2024.

The IHSAA is one of 19 state associations currently piloting the Girls Flag Football program in partnership with the NFL and the Indianapolis Colts. As part of this initiative, Penn High School will receive $6,500 in grant funding from the NFL and Colts to support the 2025 and 2026 seasons.

While the new IHSAA-sanctioned Girls Flag Football program marks a major expansion in athletic opportunity for student-athletes, Penn’s long-running “Powder Puff” Homecoming tournament will continue as a separate tradition. The event features four teams—one per class year—and remains a popular part of Penn’s Homecoming week festivities.

Penn Flag Football’s inaugural season is set to include a seven-game regular season, culminating in a postseason that features a sectional round and a state championship. The Northern Indiana Conference (NIC) is projecting six teams for the 2025 season: Penn, Elkhart, South Bend Adams, South Bend Riley, South Bend St. Joseph and South Bend Washington.

The NIC schedule kicks off with four conference games at School Field on Saturday, Aug. 23. Regular doubleheaders will follow at rotating locations throughout the season. Penn’s first home game is scheduled for Wednesday, September 3, against South Bend Riley. Game times will be announced at a later date.

The Penn team will hold practices after school on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, with games played on Wednesdays. Matches will be played in a 7-on-7 format, with each game lasting 60 minutes.

Leading the program is Head Coach Jerimiah Maggart, a 2007 Penn graduate and former football and wrestling standout. Maggart joined the Penn faculty for the 2024–2025 school year as a Fitness, Health, and Strength and Conditioning instructor. He previously taught and coached at Jimtown High School, where he served as head coach of the boys and girls wrestling programs. He has also coached at North Montgomery and Manchester High Schools. Maggart is a graduate of Purdue University.

Maggart aims to grow the program quickly, starting with a varsity team this fall. His long-term goals include adding a junior varsity team by the 2026 season and building out youth and middle school feeder programs.

Tryouts and official practices for the Penn Flag Football Team are scheduled to start on Monday, August 4.

Click here for a Google Form to fill out if you are interested in playing Girls Flag Football.

You can also email Coach Maggart at jmaggart1@phm.k12.in.us for more information.

At Monday night’s P-H-M Board of School Trustees meeting Superintendent Dr. Heather Short, presented three current P-H-M administrators for promotion. This was Dr. Short’s first school board meeting as superintendent since she started in the role on July 1. The following administrative changes were approved at the meeting:

Randy Williams was approved as the new Director of Academic and Student Support. Williams previously served in several administrative roles within PHM since 2008, including Principal of Madison and Walt Disney Elementary Schools, Dean of Students at Penn and Associate Principal of Penn. In 2018 he was honored as a member of the “Forty under 40” class. In 2023 He became the Director of Secondary Education and Student Services for the Middlebury Community School system. Williams now returns to Penn-Harris-Madison with a wealth of new professional experiences and an enhanced skill set.

Maddie Schmidt was approved for the Assistant Principal position at Grissom Middle School. Schmidt is a former Kingsmen and a graduate of Judson University. She has a master’s degree in Educational and Business Administration from Bethel University. Schmidt began her career teaching language arts at Schmucker Middle School. During her time there, she also served as an Instructional Leader. She is an active member of PHM’s Excellence in Leadership initiative and has held multiple teacher leadership roles at SMS. Most recently, she served as a Dean at Schmucker. 

Beth Stroven was approved for the Assistant Principal position at Schmucker Middle School. This past year, Stroven served as a math teacher at Grissom Middle School and is a member of PHM’s Excellence in Leadership initiative. Prior to joining P-H-M, she was a teacher in Elkhart Community Schools, where she was recognized as the 2019 District Elementary Teacher of the Year and received the prestigious Woodrow Wilson Fellowship Grant where she earned a master’s degree in Educational and Business Administration from Indiana State University. She later served as the principal of Mary Daly Elementary School.