News

P-H-M’s Annual Community Tailgate is a long-standing tradition that brings families, students, staff, and community members together to show their Penn pride. The event is held before the Penn Football home opener and is a chance for everyone across the district to connect, celebrate, and support the Kingsmen. This year's home opener will be "The Backyard Brawl" against Mishawaka on Friday, August 29th, 2025. Click ...

Horizon’s third graders achieved a perfect 100% IREAD pass rate in 2025, improving from 95.3% in 2024. With 115 students tested—the most of any Indiana school to achieve a perfect score—Horizon ranks as the state’s highest-performing school for both participation and success. Our Suns truly lived their motto: Going Above and Beyond. “Our students put into practice the literacy foundations taught by P-H-M’s dedicated teachers, ...

Penn-Harris-Madison invites students, families, alumni, and community members to celebrate Homecoming 2025 on Friday, September 26, 2025 courtesy of the PHM Education Foundation. The annual celebration includes the Homecoming Parade on Bittersweet Road in front of Penn High School, showcasing student groups, athletic teams, school clubs, and community organizations, followed by the Penn Kingsmen football game against South Bend Adams at Everwise Freed Field. This ...

P-H-M is hosting a districtwide drug awareness parent community meeting to help educate P-H-M families about the current drug trends attracting teenagers. This valuable information is something all parents/guardians should be aware of. Families of all grade levels, K-12, are invited and encouraged to attend. The session will be led by Tall Cop Says Stop™ contracted educator, Melissa Moore, CPS. Tall Cop Says Stop™ was ...

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 ...

Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation (P-H-M) proudly shares the outstanding performance of its students on the Spring 2025 ILEARN assessment, as released by the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE). P-H-M students once again outperformed the state average by an impressive 20 percentage points in the percentage of students passing both English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics. This achievement places P-H-M in the top 4% of public school ...

Retiring P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker, incoming Superintendent Dr. Heather Short, Principal Amy Fadorsen, incoming Assistant Superintendent Dr. Lavon Dean-Null, and Literacy Director Ryan Towner stopped by Horizon on Monday, June 2nd to surprise a couple of our teachers with a big honor for all their hard work with students: Mary Beth Hollinger and Michelle Sanchez. Both Hollinger and Sanchez, along with some other teachers ...

In March, Superintendent of Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation Dr. Jerry Thacker announced his retirement after 19 years. Under Dr. Thacker’s leadership, P-H-M has achieved extraordinary milestones, including raising the graduation rate from 79% to 98%, ranking in the top 4% of the state academically, and helping students earn more than $200 million in scholarships. He also prioritized school safety, leading P-H-M to be ranked sixth in ...

Dr. Jerry Thacker is proud and delighted that the Board of School Trustees appointed Dr. Heather Short this week to succeed him as superintendent upon his retirement. From Dr. Heather Short: As the incoming Superintendent, I am thrilled to recommend Dr. Lavon Dean-Null to succeed me as the next Assistant Superintendent for Instruction. In addition, I am also recommending Dr. Mindy Higginson as the next ...

In a special meeting held Tuesday, May 27, the Penn-Harris-Madison Board of School Trustees unanimously (7-0) approved the appointment of Dr. Heather Short as the district’s next superintendent effective July 1, 2025. Nearly 50 P-H-M teachers, administrators, staff, family and friends showed up to express their overwhelming support of Dr. Short's appointment. Dr. Short, a lifelong educator who has dedicated her entire 31-year career to ...