Highland Highlights - April 2026

How's it going, everyone? I'm excited to be back with another edition of the Highland Highlights newsletter.

I have a bunch of cool stories for you today. You'll learn about the Johnston Bucket Drumming Club's debut song, our various Honor Society recognition events, and how students are preparing for Earth Day. Keep reading to see what our schools were up to last month!

In this Admin Update, Johnston Elementary School Principal, Mrs. Amy Harrington, talks about all the great and unique things happening at Johnston at the end of the school year.

Helping Our Planet 🌏

Students in 2nd Grade at Merkley have been getting ready for Earth Day! Mrs. Goad's class recently did a fun project in which they came up with ideas for helping the Earth. Many students suggested planting more flowers, recycling, using reusable water bottles, and more.

Adulting Day

Eighth-grade teachers at Highland Middle School recently hosted "Adulting Day" for their students, modeled after the board game "Life." Students went through a variety of scenarios and discussed budgeting, careers, and more. Afterward, community members stopped by and hosted a mini Career Fair so our students could learn about various career paths.

Robotics Competition

Our Robotics Club at Highland High School, led by Mr. Rodney Glenn, recently participated in the FIRST Robotics Competition in Lafayette. The team worked together to design their robot and complete a series of activities with it. Congratulations to the students for their involvement in this club and competition - it is all incredibly impressive!

Wax Museums

Both Warren and Southridge held their wax museums in March! The students picked a famous person, researched their life, and prepared presentations for their fellow students and parents. There was such a wide variety of presentations, including artists like Frida Kahlo and Billie Eilish, athletes like Peyton Manning and John Cena, and even Abraham Lincoln! Check out the pictures below, as well as the video from Southridge 4th-grader Dylan S.

April 13, 2026 - Out-of-District Registration Begins (see this document for more information)
April 21, 2026, 6:00 p.m. - School Board Meeting (at the Administration Building)
May 1-3, 2026 - Highland Theatre Company's production of Big Fish (at Monbeck Auditorium, purchase tickets for Big Fish at this link!)

The 2026-27 Academic Calendar is also now available! Click here to view.

Here's an important reminder -

HHS Athletics:

Spring athletics are now in full swing! You can purchase tickets and see upcoming games using Eventlink to come out and support our teams. See you soon!

Over the past few weeks, Highland High School has held many recognition nights for students joining the National Honor Society and World Language Honor Societies, as well as for seniors graduating with honors diplomas and 3.5+ GPAs. Here are some statistics:

There were 39 students inducted into the National Honor Society on April 1, 2026. They joined the 59 current members, bringing the total to 98 students in our National Honor Society chapter.
Additionally, 7 students were inducted into the German Honor Society, 14 into the Japanese Honor Society, and a whopping 48 into the Spanish Honor Society.
Finally, we celebrated 70 graduating seniors for their tremendous academic success at a fun ice cream social. These students then recognized the STOH staff members who made a difference in their lives with a nice gift.

Check out the header image of this newsletter for the National Honor Society group picture, as well as below for pictures of the other two events.

Congratulations to all of our students!

World Language Honor Society

Senior Celebration

At Johnston's recent spring concert, the Bucket Drumming Club, led by music teacher Mr. Erik Paulsen, debuted their first original song, "Grilled Cheese." Check out the video below to see their fantastic performance!

Here's a roundup of some of our favorite social media posts from the last month, just in case you missed it!

Gardening with Life Skills

Students in our Life Skills program at HHS recently started growing a bunch of different plants, including tomatoes, sunflowers, and more!

Litter Patrol

Kindergarteners in Mrs. Pomranke's class at Southridge were visited by Lake County Solid Waste Management and learned about the consequences of littering. They then created their own badges to become Litter Patrol!

Celebrating Positive Behavior

Merkley students were treated to fun games for their positive behavior throughout the school year.

Floor Hockey

Mr. Flikkema began teaching students at Warren how to play floor hockey during PE class!

Welcome to the Highland Highlights! Welcome to the Highland Highlights!