NORTH CENTRAL PARKE NEWS
Jan has been a teacher for 41 years with 36 of them being at NCP Schools. She has taught a wide range of business courses which range from accounting, business law, keyboarding, marketing, shorthand, personal finance, and web design for a total of 27 different class options.
While she is looking forward to retirement, she will miss the students who wanted to learn and the teachers who wanted to help their students. She has enjoyed having former students contact her to tell her that they are using the skills that they learned in classes or have a career in an area in which she taught them. She has also enjoyed watching the students grow and learn especially since she had students that ranged from sixth grade to seniors. As Jan looks forward to retirement, she plans to savor each day, taking life one step at a time. Her reflective words, “Time goes too fast. I don’t know how I got to this point because it seems like I just started teaching,” capture the bittersweet nature of this transition. While she will miss the daily interactions and the dynamic environment of the classroom, she is ready to embrace new adventures and experiences.
Susan has also been teaching for 41 years with six of them as the preschool teacher at Rockville Christian Church before coming to Rockville Elementary School. In addition to preschool, she has taught third grade for 10 years, kindergarten for 14 years and has been a Title 1 teacher and building coordinator for 10 years.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching children and being a part of their lives. My position has also allowed me to be creative when planning events, directing shows, and decorating the building,” said Susan.
She is going to miss the RES staff who have been truly the best, according to Susan. Along with her husband, Brad, she plans to travel to visit their children and grandchildren. They will also be managing their properties and working on various projects.
Starting at Turkey Run Elementary in 2000, Becky has been an art teacher at all levels for 25 years. She began her teaching career in 1986.
“I have enjoyed working in all levels of art education. It has been amazing to see students grow from kindergarten to high school and through graduation. The relationships that were built and continue into their adulthood has been a blessing,” said Becky.
Becky will miss being able to encourage students to grow and change in their art and in the lives as well as the people upon her retirement.
As of right now, she doesn’t have any specific plans for her retirement.
“I am praying for guidance in where the Lord is leading me and my husband. We want to serve Him in some way,” said Becky.
As she leaves her education career, she has enjoyed being a part of the artistic growth of the students. Artistic expression is a key element of children’s development.
And in the words of the dolphins, “So long, and thanks for all the fish.”
She notes: “So long, and thanks for all the fish” is a humorous idiom used to say goodbye, acknowledging the positive experiences received during the time spent. This comes from “The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy”, a fantasy where dolphins used the phrase as they left Earth just before it was destroyed.
Patty Stillwell has 33 years of service having started working at Rockville Elementary in 1986. Her husband had just started the police academy, so she began working part time and later went to full-time hours.
“My plans are to clean my house from top to bottom, work in her yard and travel,” said Patty. “I have enjoyed working with everyone and I will miss them.”
Parke Heritage High School senior Tilmon Black is one of two athletes who were awarded the Brady Comeback Award by the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA).
The Brady Comeback Awards are named for Dr. Thomas A Brady, a founder of Forté Sports Medicine and Orthopedics who is known as the father of sports medicine in Central Indiana. The awards honor both male and female student athletes at the high school level from Indiana who have distinguished themselves by overcoming adversity or injury and returned and excelled beyond expectations in their respective sports.
This year’s honorees persevered as they recovered from injuries, surgeries and treatments to help lead and inspire their respective teams on and off the court, field and sidelines. Recipients receive a $2,500 scholarship, which was awarded at the IHSAA Impact Awards. Tilmon Black
Tilmon is a multi-sport athlete – a wrestler, football player, and dirt bike racer – whose high
school years have been marked by extraordinary perseverance through a series of devastating injuries.
Parke Heritage Middle School held its Eighth Grade Recognition ceremony on Thursday, May 22 in the middle school gym.
The 2024-2025 House Leaders were the guest speakers. Beckett Stemlee, Eli Thompson, Leah Mathis, Laney Crowder, and Alisa McMullen each shared special messages for their classmates and teachers. Brookelynn Bennington served as the mistress of ceremonies for the night.
Carson Davis led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance and Jenna Newnum led the opening prayer. Special musical pieces were performed by the middle band and choir. Sophia Rodriguez also performed a special song for the class.
Alisa McMullen was named the Leader of the Pack and Jenna Newnum received the Heart of a Wolf award. Agriculture teacher and FFA advisor Karsyn Zenor was presented the Faculty Member Tribute award by Kennedy Mitchell.
Best of luck to these students as they move to the high school in the fall!
A average
MaKenna Mager, Aiden Nicholas, Matthew Fox, Kash Jeffries, Cohen Berry, Ella Vandiver, Stephen Myers, Kennedy Mitchell, Cade Hoover, and Holly Toney
President"s Academic Achievement
Zoey Garver, Jaxton Shannon, Jaydon Delp, Mallory Hill, Bella Stone, Autumn Threlkeld, Zyriah Wheeler, Connor Heyen, Ellasen Wood, Greyson Berry, Couy Berry, Juliette Wyatt, Layla Engle, Peyton Tislow, Conner Cook, Jorgio Gille, Paizlie Kelly
The Turkey Run Elementary School Leader in Me program recently received grant money from the Rockville Rotary Club.
Rotary member Bonnie Hobbs presented the award to Jill Ferguson, Leader in Me advisor and Lighthouse team members Jake Sauter and Eli White.
Most of the grant funds awarded were generated by volunteer workers in the Rotary drink tent on the Rockville courthouse square during the Parke County Covered Bridge Festival.
A big thank you to the Rotary Club for this donation. TRES appreciates all of the support from our community groups!
Seventh grade science students at Parke Heritage Middle School were recently challenged to build a device that can transport an egg down a ramp, safely and such that a vehicle company would want to purchase the car’s design. After many challenges, the car that protected the egg so that it didn’t crack or break was made by Liam Busenbark and Krede Shields.
This project was based on and worked around learning Newton's 3 Laws of Motion- all of which play a role in a car accident. The students had a budget and a list of supplies to choose from. They had to calculate tax based on Indiana's 7% sales tax, as well. They also filled out a mock check to "purchase" their supplies. With their budget of $5,000, they could purchase items such as a straw- $200, rubber band- $100, balloon- $350 as well as other items. Four wheels and two axles were provided to the design team.
All vehicles did an initial test, which involved going down a ramp into a cinder block. Many eggs were injured (cracked), and others suffered fatalities (oozing of yolk/white). The groups from each class who survived this initial test competed in a battle of the best.
In the final rounds, there were a total of 12 cars. The students' vehicles experienced head-on, rear-end, and T-bone collisions in addition to various ramp angles and the cars careening off a cliff. The final test for determining the longest-lasting vehicle was a drop test.
The science class is taught by Mrs. Haley Roach and Mrs. Lainey McCrory.
The Parke Heritage High School Biology 1 classes spent the day at Turkey Run State Park as an incentive field trip.
To qualify, students had to pass the third quarter and have a C- or higher by the end of April. There were 60 students who qualified! The group spent the day at the park where 35 hiked the five-mile challenge with Mr. Mike Slater. A slower relaxed version of the five-mile hike was led by Mrs. Melanie Miller. There were also several who hiked about three miles with Mrs. Diane Shelton. A small group hiked four miles with Ms. Susan Seitz who completed some community service hours by cleaning up trash.
Students also visited the Nature Center, spent time at Sugar Creek and enjoyed being outside on a beautiful May Day!
The group would like to thank School Resource Officer Eric Thompson for spending his day hiking with Mr. Slater, Mr. Glass who helped chaperon and Mrs. Tiffany Thompson from the Department of Natural Resources office for her assistance in securing a shelter house for the classes and who provided guidance for the community service project.
The PH athletic department is hosting several summer camps for elementary and middle school students. Forms are being sent home with students. They can also be found on the Athletics page of the school websites.
- Volleyball May 28-30 $30
- Girls Basketball May 27-30 $30
- Boys Basketball June 2-5 $35
- Dance July 7-8 $30
- Football July 7-9 $30
- Tennis July 21-25 $35
- Wrestling July 7-8 $30
- ATHLETIC SCHEDULES: Updated athletic schedules can be found on the NCP webpage: Schedules. Athletic schedules may be constantly changing. To stay updated, download the Event Link app or go to their website at https://eventlink.com/ Parents can subscribe to daily emails that are sent out daily to remind you of upcoming events.
NORTH CENTRAL PARKE SCHOOLS
Email: webmaster@ncp.k12.in.us
Website: www.ncp.k12.in.us
Location: 602 Howard Ave, Rockville, IN
Phone: 765-569-4190
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Twitter: @NCPSchoolCorp