Penn High School

Penn High School is a public high school located just outside Mishawaka, Indiana, United States, near South Bend. It is the only high school in the Penn-Harris-Madison (PHM) School Corporation.

Penn High School
Address
56100 Bittersweet Road

Mishawaka
,
St. Joseph County
,
Indiana
46545

United States
Coordinates41.678802°N 86.108834°W / 41.678802; -86.108834
Information
TypePublic High School
MottoRigor. Relevance. Relationships.
Established1958
School districtPenn-Harris-Madison School Corporation
CEEB code152347
NCES School ID180603001060[1]
PrincipalSean Galiher
Teaching staff166.30 (FTE)[2]
Grades9–12
Enrollment3,751 (2018-19)[2]
Student to teacher ratio22.56[2]
Color(s)     
Athletics conferenceNorthern Indiana Athletic Conference
Team nameKingsmen
RivalMishawaka
NewspaperPenn News Network
WebsiteOfficial Website

History

Penn High School was opened on September 1, 1958, following a year of construction and a cost of $1 million. The first graduating class, the class of 1960, had roughly 200 seniors. Prior to the construction of Penn, students in the Penn and Harris Townships went to Mishawaka High School or Jimtown High School.

The 1962 merger of the Penn and Harris Township expanded the school system. The following year, Madison Township was also incorporated, creating today's Penn-Harris-Madison school district.

Penn High School continued to expand in the following years. By 1965, the school district was attended by more than 1,600 students. In the late 1980s, the school underwent renovations to enlarge the school.[3]

Academics

Penn High School students are divided into several academies. Freshmen are sorted into 6 freshman academies known as houses. Each house consists of roughly 160 students taught by the same core teachers. Prior to junior year, students choose to be a part of one of four academies: Fine Arts, STEM, Management and Business, and Health and Human Services.[4]

Penn High School offers up to 23 Advanced Placement classes[5] along with several Advanced College Project classes through a partnership with Indiana colleges. GPA is calculated on a 4.0 scale with college courses assigned a weighted grade that is on a 5.0 scale.[6] Based on AP exam participation and passing rate, Penn students have a College Readiness Index of 30.0/100.0.[7]

For the class of 2015, Penn achieved a graduation rate of over 97%. 90% of students passed the state's English graduation exam and 90% passed Indiana's math graduation exam. 66% of Penn students scored a three or higher on an Advanced Placement exam.[8] Penn High School students averaged an SAT score of 1564 in 2010, compared to the Indiana state average of 1496.[9]

Penn High School was recognized as a 4-Star School by the Indiana Department of Education for the 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 school years.[10] To achieve this rating the school had to receive an "A" on the state's A-F accountability system, have an excellent ISTEP+ pass rate, carry on overall high graduation rate, and show that they were successful in closing achievement gaps.[11]

Demographics

The demographic breakdown of the 3,376 students enrolled for the 2014-2015 school year was:

  • Male - 50.2%
  • Female - 49.8%
  • Native American/Alaskan - 0.6%
  • Asian/Pacific islander - 5.1%
  • Black - 4.2%
  • Hispanic - 3.7%
  • White - 82.4%
  • Multiracial - 3.7%

In addition, 17.3% of the students were eligible for free or reduced price lunch.[1]

Extracurricular Activities

Athletics

Penn is part of the Northern Indiana Athletic Conference. They compete under the name "Kingsmen" and the school colors are black, gold and white. Rivals include Mishawaka High School, South Bend St. Joseph's High School, Fort Wayne Snider, and Elkhart Memorial High School. The following IHSAA sanctioned sports are offered:[12]

  • Baseball (boys)
    • State champions - 1994, 1998, 2001, 2015[13]
  • Basketball (boys & girls)
    • Girls basketball state champions - 2016[14]
  • Cross country (boys & girls)
  • Football (boys)
    • State champions - 1983, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000[13]
  • Golf (boys & girls)
    • Girls state champions - 1994, 2002, 2004, 2005[13]
  • Soccer (boys & girls)
    • Boys state champions - 1999[13]
    • Girls state champions - 2016, 2017[13]
  • Softball (girls)
    • State champions - 1999[13]
  • Swimming (boys & girls)
  • Tennis (boys & girls)
  • Track (boys & girls)
  • Volleyball (girls)
    • State champions - 2010, 2011[13]
  • Wrestling (boys)
    • State champions - 2015[13]

Academic Competitions

Penn High School participates in the Indiana Academic Super Bowl, run by the Indiana Association of School Principals. The statewide competition consists of rounds of 25 multiple choice questions that students answer as a team.[15][16] Teams from Penn have had several victories at the Super Bowl. They won in English in 2007, science in 2003 and 2010, and social studies in 2003, 2005, 2006, and 2008–2014.[17][18] Additionally, the mock trial team advanced to the national championship in 2014 after winning the state championship. [19]

As of 2016, Penn has established a Technology Student Association Chapter.[20] Penn's TSA Chapter competes in both the National and Indiana State Leadership Conferences and has had numerous victories at the Indiana TSA State Leadership Conference.[21]

Notable alumni

See also

References
  1. "Search for Public Schools - Penn High School (180603001060)". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  2. "Penn High School". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  3. Penn High School. History Information Sheet. May 24, 2013
  4. "The Academies". Penn Harris Madison. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  5. "Course Menu for Penn Seniors" (PDF). Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  6. "Special Programs". Penn High School. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  7. "Penn High School Test Scores". US News and World Report. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  8. "Penn High School Progress Report 2015-16" (PDF). Penn Harris Madison. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  9. "Average SAT Scores". Averagesatscores.org. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  10. "About Penn". Penn Harris Madison. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  11. "Four Star Schools". Indiana Department of Education. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  12. "IHSAA 2014-2015 School directory" (pdf). ihsaa.org. IHSAA. p. 97. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  13. "IHSAA State Championships by School". ihsaa.org. IHSAA. Archived from the original on 13 May 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  14. http://www.ihsaa.org/dnn/Sports/Girls/Basketball/2015-16/StateTournament/tabid/1863/Default.aspx#35191931-state-finals
  15. "Page Not Found - Indiana Association of School Principals". iasp.org. Archived from the original on February 7, 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2015. Cite uses generic title (help)
  16. "Page Not Found - Indiana Association of School Principals". iasp.org. Archived from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved 25 February 2015. Cite uses generic title (help)
  17. "Indiana Academic Competition Results History". Archived from the original on March 6, 2014. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  18. "2012 Indiana Academic Super Bowl State Finals Results". IASP. Archived from the original on March 7, 2013. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  19. "Penn High School takes home its first state Mock Trial Trophy". Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  20. "Technology Students Association | Penn High School". penn.phmschools.org. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  21. "State Conference Results". indiana-tsa. Indiana Technology Student Association. 2017-04-08. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  22. Owen, Frank (2013). Clubland the fabulous rise and murderous fall of club culture. New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 126–128. ISBN 9781429979177.
  23. "Rosenthal to headline latest class of Indiana Football Hall of Fame". WNDU. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  24. "Noma Gurich". Oklahoma Civil Justice Council. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
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