Penn High School’s “Golden Girl” is coming home! On Sunday, September 8th the community will have a celebratory parade for the Female Wrestler Olympic Gold Medalist.

The parade starts at 3:00 at the intersection of Bittersweet and McKinley Highway. The parade will proceed West down McKinley Highway and will end at Zolman’s Tire (2014 E McKinley Ave., Mishawaka).

There will be an Olympic Celebration 4:30 p.m. at Urban Swirl (Heritage Square, Granger). Congressman Rudy Yakym will present Sarah with a special gift; and Mishawaka Mayor Dave Wood’s office will present a proclamation. Mark McGill will emcee the event.

There will be free posters, available on a first come, first serve basis. T-shirts will also be available for sale.

Sarah Hildebrandt earned a Gold Medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics in Women’s Wrestling (50kg). Hildebrandt was one of two American women to win a Gold Medal in Wrestling at the 2024 Olympics. She is also just the fourth woman to win Gold in Team USA Wrestling history.

Hildebrandt earned a Bronze Medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. She is also a two-time national collegiate champion. A 2011 graduate of Penn High School, Hildebrandt became the first female to qualify for the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) Wrestling Semi-State competition and led Penn High School to the IHSAA Team Championship. Her personal coach is Penn Boys Wrestling Head Coach Brad Harper.

Click here for Sarah’s full list of accomplishments from her early years at Discovery Middle School. 

Registration for the Girls Basketball Youth League will take place at Penn High School on Sunday, September 8th, 2024 from 12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Please enter Door “D”.

This league is designed for girls in grades 3rd – 8th who live within the P-H-M District Boundaries.

Visit the PDFs posted below for information on how to register, dates/times/locations and cost.

CLICK HERE for complete league registration information.

CLICK HERE for important dates. 

Registration is open for Basketball Youth Leagues designed to help players develop their skills.

Visit the PDFs posted below for information on how to register, dates/times/locations and cost.

CLICK HERE for information on the Basketball Leagues for Boys in Grades 5-6 and 7-8.

CLICK HERE for information on the Basketball Leagues for Boys and Girls in Grades 1-2 and for Boys in Grades 3-4.

We are so excited to have everyone back at school, please view the photo gallery below to see some “First Day of School Smiles!” 

With the start of the 2024-2025 academic year, P-H-M is switching to ParentSquare, a new unified, user-friendly, communications platform designed with parents and guardians in mind. CLICK HERE TO GET ALL THE INFO YOU NEED TO GET STARTED.

ParentSquare provides a centralized location for families to receive communications from school principals, teachers, coaches, and front office staff on all their students, in all schools, in all classrooms! CLICK HERE TO GET ALL THE INFO YOU NEED TO GET STARTED. 

Parents/guardians receive alerts, updates, and posts on:

• important notifications, such as school closings and delays
• attendance
• principal & teacher newsletters
• school & classroom calendar of events
• volunteer & RSVP for events
• fill out permission slips & other forms
• … ALL IN ONE LOCATION!

Families chose their preferred mode of communication for non-urgent notifications– app, text, email, phone. Parents/guardians can also chose to have all communications automatically translated to their preferred first language.

As we approach the first day of school (Wednesday, August 21), principals and teachers will be using ParentSquare to share important “Back to School” information. Parents and guardians are asked to activate their accounts by Monday, August 12, 2024.

PLEASE NOTE: If your child is transitioning to a new building from last school year, the information will be updated later this summer. You are still able to register for ParentSquare.

To activate parent/guardian accounts, parents need to check their email for the welcome and introductory email.

The email was sent between Thursday, July 11 and Friday, July 12, 2024 with the subject line: “Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp. is now using ParentSquare.” 

The sender of the email will appear as “Penn-Harris-Madison via ParentSquare” with a donotreply @parentsquare.com email address, similar to this … 

Every year the graduating seniors go back to their former elementary schools for “Senior Parades.” It’s fun not only for the students to see their former teachers, but it’s also fun for the current elementary students to see the graduates, congratulate them and wish them good luck!

Bittersweet’s Senior Parade was the last day of school Friday, May 31, 2024.

Friday, May 31, 2024 was the last day of the 2023-24 school year. Our mascot the Bobcat made a special appearance joining the teachers and bus drivers to give the students a memorable send-off!

Over the years as a student Bittersweet, Jordy Kruger earned the nickname “The Mayor of Bittersweet” because of his commanding and outgoing personality. Just like a politician he knows how to work the room! Jordy always seems to be happy and gets along with everyone; everyone loves him!

Before Jordy’s last day as a 5th grader, we thought it would be a good idea for him to “pass the torch” onto a new “Mayor of Bittersweet;” and Elliot Fratena is just the student for the job!

So on Thursday, May 30–the second to last day of school for the 2023-24 school year–Principal Shonda Masterson presented Jordy, the first “Mayor of Bittersweet” with a key to the school pass on to Elliot as the new Mayor. A few staff members and Elliot’s Dad were present for the “ceremony.”

What advice to Jordy pass on to Elliot? “If there’s any more kids in a wheelchair, never put a speed limit on them! That’s the #1 rule!”

Jordy is going into 6th grade at Schmucker and Elliot will be going into 4th grade.

As Memorial Day weekend approaches, it’s essential to reflect on the true meaning of this holiday: honoring and mourning the brave men and women who gave their lives in service to our country. This year, our first-grade students embraced this spirit by creating patriotic decorations to pay tribute to these heroes.

In a touching gesture, the students placed their handmade decorations at the graves of service members in the Veterans Garden at Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens in Osceola.

Their heartfelt efforts brought a splash of color and a sense of gratitude to the resting place of those who served. This act of remembrance from such young members of our community serves as a poignant reminder of the importance of Memorial Day and the enduring legacy of our fallen service members.