Archer Update #35

Every year, Penn-Harris-Madison employees nominate two Teachers of the Year (elementary and secondary), along with a Classified Employee of the Year. Employees nominate teachers and employees who have made a concrete difference in the life and/or academic success of students.

This week Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker travelled around the district to surprise this year's winners. On Monday, April 24, P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker surprised Walt Disney Music Teacher Mr. Robi Davidson naming him P-H-M Elementary Teacher of the Year. The next day he surprised Penn High School AP History Teacher and Tennis Coach Mr. Eric Bowers and named him Secondary Teacher of the Year. Dr. Thacker wrapped up the week on Friday naming Horizon Teacher's Aide Julie Mead Classified Employee of the Year.

All awardees officially recognized at P-H-M’s annual Employee Recognition & Retiree Dinner in mid May.

*Remember to buy or find a pair at home of wired earphones for ILEARN - Airpods or wireless earphones will not be acceptable for testing.

Progress Reports will be posted to Skyward on Friday, Apr. 28 @ 4:00 p.m.

No SCHOOL on Tuesday May 2nd - SPRING ELECTION DAY

In this week's issue of the Archer Update, you can read about the following:

1. McKinnies Realty - Homes for Heroes - DMS Teacher of the Month for April
   
2. One More Week of ILEARN Testing
3. National History Day State Results
4. 6th and 7th Grade Spring Dance and Social Info!
5. 8th Grade Parents - Final D.C. Meeting
6. Register My Athlete for High School (8th Graders)
7. Summer Enrichment Academies
8. Pickleball Intramural Date Changes
9. Host a High School Foreign Exchange Student!
10. 21st Century Scholars Enrollment Event
11. Reporting Student Absences

Friendly Reminders:

UNPAID LUNCH BALANCES: Did you know that you can access your student's lunch account at www.SchoolCafe.com ? Parents can make payments, view purchases and set limits! Please pay your child's lunch balances today!

Discovery Middle School is now ranked #2 in the State of Indiana for top performing middle schools (this is out of about 300). Our teachers continue to be prepared to provide the most targeted, engaging lessons to help all our students reach their fullest learning potential. Our students are some of the best in Indiana and possibly the world! Thank you for sending us your finest!

Mrs. Erin Randolph, 7th grade Language Arts Teacher

Mrs. Randolph goes above and beyond for all of her students. She is hardworking, dedicated, and consistently an advocate for her students to raise their own expectations of what they see as possible. She collaborates with the Reading and Language Arts teachers at Discovery to ensure students are reading literature that is relevant, rigorous, and highly engaging. She takes time to email parents, students, and administrators when students outshine their previous performance and never shies away from giving students extra help and support when needed throughout the year - including during summer school! She can be counted on daily and she always leads the way in a calm and caring way! We are so proud of Mrs. Randolph!

On Saturday, 22 April, 31 Discovery Middle School students traveled with their families to Marian University to compete in the National History Day State competition. This year proved to be fruitful for DMS students, with many succeeding in the competition.

• Liam Fouts - Third Place Research Paper

• Sam Clyde and Shreya Nayee - Second Place Group Website

• Claire Vreeke and Lily Grocock - First Place Group Performance

• Nayva Ramanujan- Third Place Individual Documentary

• Preston Dhaenens and Will Abercrombie- First Place Group Documentary

• Ren Aravelo- Second Place Individual Exhibit

• Jack Sagarsee and Sejune Kang - First Place Group Exhibit

First and second place students will be invited to the national competition, held in June at the University of Maryland, in Annapolis. Third place students are alternates, in case a a first or second place student cannot attend the national competition.

Congratulations to all our exceptional students!! Go Archers!

Incoming Freshmen (current eighth-graders) will be able to register to participate in Penn Athletics and Clubs in Register My Athlete for the 2023-2024 school year starting on June 1. All Penn student-athletes and club participants are required to be registered in Register My Athlete. Click the link to access Register My Athletic: https://penn.phmschools.org/register-my-athlete

Enrichment Academies

• Visual Arts Academy (July 10 – 14, July 17 – 21, or July 24 – 28, 2023) In this award-winning one-week academy, current P-H-M Kindergarten – 5th grade students learn art history, art production and writing through a unique integration program. The program is based at Penn High School and in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame's Snite Museum of Art. Families may select the week that is most convenient for all of their children to attend, regardless of their grade. Click here to register.

• Junior STEM Academy - In this one-week academy, current P-H-M K – 5th graders will discover how math and science are applied in the real world. Each week is reserved for specific grades and will be held at Penn High School. Click here to register.

  • Kindergarten and 1st grade attend the week of July 24 – 28
  • 2nd and 3rd grade attend the week of July 17 – 21

  • 4th and 5th grade attend the week of July 10 – 14

• Junior Foreign Language Academy (July 10 – 14) This academy integrates the French language, social studies, culture, visual arts and music into an intensive and enriching learning experience. The one-week camp is held at Penn High School and is open to current P-H-M 3rd, 4th or 5th grade students. Click here to register.

• Learn a Foreign Language Academy (June 5 – 16) This two-week academy is open to current 6th and 7th graders. The course will be taught by Penn High School Language teachers who will teach the students how to read, write, and speak in German, Spanish or American Sign Language. Click here to register.

The New Dates will all be in May:

1st, 3rd, 4th, 8th, 10th, 11th, 15th, 17th, 18th and 22nd

From 7:20-8:50

Host a Foreign Exchange Student! If you reside in PHM, your foreign exchange student can ride the bus and attend Penn High School! Share your America and learn from a student from another country!

Host Families Provide:

-A bed (can share a room) and 3 meals a day

-Transportation to and from school (they can ride the school bus)

-Treat the Student as part of the Family

Exchange Students Provide:

-Their Own Money for extra expenses

-Have their own medical insurance and go through a medical screening

-Are top students in their country, advanced academically, and follow high standards for conduct

-Dream of being part of your family and experience being an American high school student!

Host for the 2023-2024 School Year!

21st Century Scholars: Apply Now!

• Indiana’s 21st Century Scholars program is an early-college promise program designed to make college more affordable for students.
• Eligible students who meet requirements receive a two- or four-year scholarship that pays up to 100% tuition at an eligible Indiana college or university.
• All 7th and 8th grade students are eligible to apply, if they are a resident of Indiana. Students MUST apply by June 30th of their 8th grade year.
• Click here to learn more and apply: https://learnmoreindiana.org/scholars
• Contact your child's school counselor with questions

If your child will be absent for any reason, please notify our office as soon as possible! Our office staff records all absences beginning at 8:00 am and must phone any student's home who does not report to school without notice.

Another option is to go to your Skyward Family Access Account and follow these steps:

• Click on the Attendance Tile for the child who will be absent.
• Click on the Absence Requests Tab
• Click Add Absence Request on the right side of the screen
• Enter Start and End Date
• Check All Day if the absence will be the entire school day
• Attendance Reason - Choose from the drop down menu
• Comment - Add any information regarding the absence reason
• Click SAVE in the upper right hand corner

Website: https://discovery.phmschools.org/
Location: 10050 Brummitt Road, Granger, IN, USA
Phone: 574-674-6010