Pennfield HS

The Emerald 24-25

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CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2025!

Grad Walk 2025

Photos Below:

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May PBIS Celebration

Cupcake Wars

Ryleigh Mix ‘26 & Emma Rodriguez ‘28

Freshman Cassidy Vinton was one of the winners of the cupcake wars this year. She says she's very proud of her group as well as herself for doing so well, which resulted in not having to take the exam. Originally, Cassidy's group wanted to make lemon-flavored cupcakes, but they compromised to strawberry lemon because Vinton doesn't like lemon. Cassidy thinks they won because of the creativity of it being Taco Bell themed, and the flavors being unique. She named the cupcakes “Deluxe” because of the menu item called The Deluxe Box.

Seniors Last Concert

Ariana Kilgore ‘27

Senior Alaila Vandergriff states that she feels many emotions as the final concert approaches. “It's hard to believe this will be my last time on stage.” Vadergriff says it's a bittersweet moment filled with excitement and sadness. “I'm trying to keep it together, but being the overly emotional person I am, I might shed a tear or two.” She states one of her favorite memories from choir is when they performed at the symphony concert for the first time. Vandergriff is most excited to perform “I've Had The Time Of My Life” from Dirty Dancing, or “When You Believe” from The Prince Of Egypt. “The preparation has been a mix of overwhelming and calming at the same time.” She states we have had more dance classes than normal, but they have been so much fun to learn. “As my choir chapter ends, I will cherish it forever.”

Senior Josslyn Adkins states that the feeling is super bittersweet as the concert gets closer. “I'm super excited to perform with the group, but I will be crying by the end.” Adkins is experiencing a lot of nostalgia and sadness because the choir is like her second family. Her favorite memory has been all of the choir breakfasts/brunches that they have had. “Especially when we do senior awards, they are super cheesy and heartwarming.” She is most excited to sing “When You Believe” from The Prince of Egypt. Adkins says her senior year has been the least stressful year of all. She feels that preparation for the concert has been pretty laid back, and everyone has worked well together with the choreography and music they have been rehearsing.

New Places Coming to BC

Amber Draper ‘27 & Emily Vincent ‘27

Do you ever feel like there’s nothing to do? Well, look no further, Astro Fun World is coming to Battle Creek! Opening in June/July 2025, this out-of-this-world entertainment center is bringing indoor electric GoKarts, Laser Tag, Mini Golf, a Ninja Course, VR rides, etc. Of course, that's just a few of the attractions they have to offer. Astro Fun World will have over 50 arcade games, bringing the fun to Battle Creek. Also coming to Battle Creek is Olive Garden, opening the first week of June, and Texas Roadhouse, which is still being built. Check them out this summer!

Congratulations, Class of 2025! Only two weeks left until Pennfield isn’t your usual destination, and four weeks until you’re wearing the cap and gown, walking into the world. You’ve had teachers you’ll miss, sports you put your all into, friends you are scared to leave behind, and memories you will never forget. I’m sure you all remember having parties in elementary school, giving candy to your class, and bringing in cupcakes for your birthday. Those days aren’t gone; it's just time to move on. There is so much in front of you; the future is waiting, and as you step forward, remember the valuable lessons you learned and the dreams you hold. Congratulations and best of luck! -Emma Davis

2025 design created by Bri Treadway.

cmu trip

Emma Davis ‘27 & Tyler Primm ‘27

On Wednesday, April 23, around 50 students took a trip to CMU, Central Michigan University. They had the opportunity to tour the campus and learn all the different things the university offers. The students first got to sit in on a quick overview of what the college experience was like at CMU. Then, students went on a tour around campus and got to see the different buildings and even a dorm room. They were then treated to lunch in the dining hall, with a variety of food options.

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Example of Brianna Treadway's Ice Bucket Challenge

USC Speak Your Mind Challenge

Emma Rodrigues ‘27 & Ryleigh Mix ‘26

The USC Speak Your Mind Challenge, or the USC Ice Bucket Challenge, has been spreading on social media. The challenge is having everyone dump ice water on their heads, but it's for a good cause. Originally, the ice bucket challenge was created to raise awareness for the disease called ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), which still has no cure. The trend even raised money for ALS research. Now, the challenge raises awareness for mental health and encourages those who are struggling with their mental health to speak their mind.

To participate in the USC Speak Your Mind Challenge, you must be nominated by someone who has done it. If nominated, you post a video of you pouring a bucket of ice water over your head and nominate others to do the same.

Bravo Competition!!

Ariana Kilgore ‘27

Junior Kailey Leiter is participating in the Bravo Competition. The competition is taking place in Kalamazoo at the Crescendo Academy of Music. The Bravo competition is for all types of musicians. Leiter states that you have to audition, and if you get selected, you get to perform at a show. She wanted to do this show because she felt it could help her get more performing experience and recognition from colleges. Leiter has been preparing for this competition by reviewing music with Mr. Bowen and Mrs. Beach. She chose the song “When He Sees Me” from the musical Waitress. She chose this song because she wanted to do a song she felt comfortable with, since she had performed the song the year before at Follies. Leiters states she would love to be picked to move on in the competition. “It would be an amazing experience.” This competition has been going on for many years, but this is the first year she has heard about it.

mr. Kirkland's band

Emma Rodriguez ‘27 & Ryleigh Mix ‘26

Art teacher Mr. Kirkland isn’t just interested in art, he is also a member of a band called “Burning Couches.” He will be performing with his band for the next PBIS day on the 25th. Kirkland says he is a bit nervous, but not about performing in front of the school; he’s nervous because for this performance, he switched his role, and it’s going to be a new experience for him. Kirkland says he’s always loved music, and he’s always loved playing rock, and so do his sons; they started playing it too, and they formed a band over it. He and his band got together around 7 years ago. As of a couple of years ago, Kirkland's friend Neil had recently joined the band, along with a student at Pennfield, Blake Jinks, who had been added to play bass. Lastly, Mr. Kirkland says the songs they are performing are a secret, so make sure you come!

Baking for Business

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

Cassidy Kelley-Vinton is a freshman here at Pennfield. Vinton is an exceptional baker. She bakes all kinds of goodies to bring to school for everyone to try! “People tell me they get excited for Mondays because that’s when I bring cookies.” Vinton makes everyone's day with her delicious treats. She usually makes chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies, Rice Krispies, and even brownies. She has been bringing baked goods to school with her every Monday for the whole year to share and for free. Cassidy would like to run her own bakery someday and hopes her efforts will make loyal customers in the future. “My cookies are free, so people can try them and enjoy them. I hope this will make people come see me when I have my bakery and support my business.”

New Emerald Logo

Ms. Royer's Graphic Design class students created new logos for The Emerald. Faith Young's design won!

Alex Alton

Ariana Kilgore ‘27

Alex Alton is a senior this year. He attends CACC and is taking culinary classes. Alton states, “I’m ready to move on, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous.” Many big decisions are coming up for Alton, such as college and work. “It’s exciting, but it feels like a lot all at once.” Alton states that his class at the career center is super hands-on, which he loves. “The instructor’s not just a great chef, he’s just an awesome guy in general.” He says it is one of the few classes where the content they are learning connects to what he wants to do with his life, so it feels way more rewarding. Alton says that the competition team is one of the hardest parts of the class if you make it onto the competition team. But for the whole class, it’s gotta be the fire drills. “Chef splits us into groups, gives us one main ingredient, and we’ve got about an hour to develop and execute a dish using that ingredient. It tests your creativity and ability to work under pressure.”

He loves the hands-on part of it, actually cooking, plating, and working as a team. He states you get one hour to make a full three-course meal with no electricity. They only have two burners, and everything else has to be done by hand. This year, they did a Michigan Coho Salmon Chowder as the appetizer, Seared Duck Breast with a Cherry Espagnole sauce, Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes, and Asparagus for the entrée, and a Raspberry Napoleon with Goat Cheese Mousse and Lemon Curd for dessert. “It was super stressful.” Alton says that working as a team made the competition more manageable. He works at Kitchen Proper. Technically, Alton was hired as a dishwasher, but they’ve been bringing him onto the line more often. Alton has been running the pantry, so he handles salads, appetizers, soups, and desserts. “It’s been a great way to learn and get real experience in a restaurant setting.”

Upcoming Spring CHOIR Concert

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

Pennfield High School Choir currently has a concert approaching fast! Choir Director Steve Bowen is most excited about the concert. Bowen puts a lot of effort into creating a concert and finding songs for the choir to sing. Eighth grade has different music than 9-12; there are sometimes solo songs he picks and has to review, and he has to pick a soloist after he watches them audition. He has to work things out with Mr. Dixon so we can use the auditorium when needed. Bowen even creates choreography for certain songs sometimes. Overall, Mr. Bowen puts a lot into every concert and always does a fantastic job. This concert has been a lot of work, especially because the choir did not attend festival as planned. The choir had songs picked out and learned for festival, which we later did not attend, so those songs just went right into our spring concert folder. While Bowen did add several more songs to the “setlist” to make it more on theme because normally the spring concert has a theme, and Bowen always picks something extraordinary. Now, the choir is singing songs from “The Greatest Showman” and songs previously performed, like “The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls” and more. Mr. Bowen is confident in his concert arranging skills and the choir’s ability to be able to put on a show. Although Bowen is sad it is the last concert of the year, he is excited for more opportunities next year in picking new music and having a different class of students to sing with.

Mrs. Simmons on the PBIS Celebration

Ariana Kilgore ‘27

PBIS is part of a state initiative with MMTSS (Michigan Multi-Tiered Systems of Support). The goal is to use PBIS to support the whole school with students' social, learning, behavioral, and emotional needs. Celebrations recognize the positive things that students are doing each month. Pennfield has an awesome team of teachers and students who support the planning process. The team has used survey data from over 400 of our 750 students to determine what kids want to see at our celebrations. “We would love to have more students join our team and have their voices heard!” Each month they look at the data to determine where they are seeing the biggest behavior issues which determines the criteria to be able to participate. For example, our last celebration required students to have less than 3 tardies for the two weeks leading up to the celebration. The biggest thing is getting more kids involved. “I want all grade-level voices to be heard and all student interests to be recognized.” Ideally, we continue a positive path and students find joy in the things we do. The most recent PBIS celebration was a lot of fun. “I didn't see very many phones and in place saw students being creative, playing games, and just enjoying the outdoors. It felt like the reset we all needed, and the 70-degree day helped. I especially loved the kids playing Duck, Duck, Goose. It's nice to see kids be kids.”

National Honors Society

Amber Draper ‘27 & Emily Vincent ‘27

Member of Pennfield’s National Honors Society, Madison Lajoie is a sophomore who discovered the club through her cousin. Lajoie knew this would be a good opportunity and would look good for college, so she tried out. Although she struggled with writing the essay and doubted herself, they accepted her. “I was thrilled being accepted, and honestly it kinda felt like a dream.” Volunteering is a big thing for NHS, so she started volunteering more as she’s getting inducted on the 17th. “I'm not stressed about the National Honors Society. I was a member in 8th grade, and while we didn’t do much, I feel like it helped me be a little less nervous.” Lajoie’s way of preventing stress is music because it calms her down.

Sophomore Jonathan Franks is also a part of Pennfield’s National Honors Society. Franks found out similar to Lajoie when his sister and mom told him to join it. “My sister and mom would always be talking about my sister doing some sort of volunteer work which I thought would be fun to do.” He states his reaction was pretty tame, but he was excited and glad he was selected. Frank states how he doesn’t do much to prepare his mind but he’s used to a busy schedule. “I'm kind of used to doing a lot of things at the same time, so I guess that could count as my preparation,” Franks says he’s a little stressed about it but not as much as he thought he would be, and when he’s stressed, he listens to music or hangs out with his friends. “I think music has been beneficial to my stress management, and who doesn't like hanging out with friends?”

PBIS Designs in Digital Photography

Mrs. Fox and mini-games for staff

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

Our secretary Mrs. Fox here at PHS loves to play games. Fox has created a few games this year that the teachers and staff can participate in. Fox explained she has a Pinterest board that helps her develop ideas for games that could be fun for the staff. This week’s mini-game has something to do with Oreos, which Fox says has the most teachers participating. Teachers don’t compete against each other so it’s fun for everyone. Fox has found that the biggest competitors are the more athletic people or coaches, they go for the win. “The Duck Hunt has been my personal favorite. I would have more definite rules if I did it again, but it was fun to set up every day. The Oreos were easy and fun, although I did get some looks in the grocery store.” Fox says her next mini-game probably won’t be until next March. “March is such a hard month for teachers and students, it’s soooo long until spring break.” Fox does know that she wants to do the Duck Hunt again and she has ideas for a safari theme. Overall, Fox loves creating mini-games for everyone to participate in and hopes the fun will spread and more people will join in and participate.

National Breakfast Week

Tyler McKenzie ‘27 & Amiel Bradd ‘28

Last week at Pennfield was National Breakfast Week! Our Pennfield Food Services Director, Mrs. Huyser, says, “National Breakfast Week’s mission is to have students start off the day right- and that includes a nutritious breakfast for all students.” Pennfield Schools participates in NSBW every year because not all students have a hot breakfast at home every morning before school. Asking for staff help was a fun idea for students to interact with staff and to be a part of the food service world for a day. Huyser believes breakfast is a necessary meal and also the most important. Huyser states, “It is proven that students who eat breakfast are more likely to reach higher levels of achievement in reading and math, score higher on standardized tests, have better concentration and memory, be more alert, and maintain a healthy weight. Personally speaking… I make sure my three kids eat a nutrient-dense breakfast before they leave the house in the morning and on the weekends before we start the day because I know their bodies need the energy to get their day started.”

Mental Health

Ryleigh Mix ‘26 & Emma Rodriguez ‘28

Fitness teacher Ms. Collins says that mental health is important because it directly impacts how we think, feel, and behave daily. It influences how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. It is a reflection of how we view ourselves. Collins thinks that people have a misconception of what putting mental health first is. “I think many are putting a focus on their mental health, but in reality are just avoiding issues in their life.” If you are putting a focus on mental health, then you are actively working on solutions and coping strategies, because it doesn't go away, you do have to fight through a lot. She says sleep improves mental health because students usually don't get the 8 hours of sleep they need, and a huge reason for this is technology. Lastly, to Ms. Collins mental health is real and something that doesn't go away with a pill, lying around, or ignoring issues. It takes work and it's hard because it means you have to look inward and reflect on how you can change your mindset. You can't change anyone else or a situation that already happened, but can you forgive yourself to move forward. You can move forward and become a better version of yourself because of the experiences you have been through.

Yearbook Announcements

Ariana Kilgore ‘27

All year long, our Pennfield yearbook staff works to make our yearbook the best it can be. At the beginning of the year, our yearbooks are sold at a discounted price of around 50 dollars. The prices go up throughout the year, and now they are sold for 79 dollars. So, if you want your yearbook cheaper, buy it at the beginning of the year (don’t forget this in 2026). Make sure to buy your 2025 yearbook before April 30th, or you may lose your chance to buy one. By your book at Jostens.com

Twins, Sisters, or Friends?

Francesca Dunn ‘27 & Chelsea Hayward ‘27

Senior Hanna Feldman finds it funny when people ask if she and Graci Bivens are twins or related. Feldman didn't know Bivens before she moved to the United States. But she states, “We got in contact two weeks before I came to the U.S. She wrote to me on WhatsApp, and later we started talking on Snapchat. It was a lot of fun because it was new for me to communicate in English and to talk to someone from the other side of the world.” Feldman’s favorite memory with Bivens is their first holiday together, which was two days after she arrived in Michigan. Feldman states, “It took two days for us to warm up to each other, but after that, we clicked right away.”

Senior Graci Bivens says she doesn't mind when people confuse her and Hanna Feldman as twins or sisters, but she thinks it's funny. Bivens and Feldman didn't know each other before Feldman came to the United States, but Bivens says they clicked instantly. Biven’s favorite memory with Feldman was their trip to Vermont, which was two days after Feldman first got here. Bivens and Feldman have four classes together, and they enjoy spending that time together.

Women's History Month

Emma Davis ‘27 & Tyler Primm ‘27

Mrs. Treadway is an English teacher here at Pennfield and says the most influential woman in her life is her mom. Treadway said that it is important to have a special month for women because it reminds people of how far society has come regarding women’s rights. Treadway is thankful that she can be independent, earn a living, and provide for her family. Treadway thinks that equality for women still has a long way to go in many places around the world. She says “Hopefully, women's equality can help people in other places that treat women like second-class citizens learn and change.”

Mrs. Sleper is a Special Education teacher here at Pennfield and says that the influential women in her life are her four daughters; Avery, Logen, Marin, and Kate. Sleper says “I think it's important to recognize and honor the contributions women have made in a variety of fields and ways of life.” Sleper says she is thankful that women have secured the right to vote. Sleper thinks that women’s equality helps diminish discrimination and create a more just society for all.

Brothers Grimm

Layla Wesley '27

The Pennfield Drama Club’s production of “The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon” by Don Zolidis will take place on March 13, 14, and 15, at 7 pm.

Sophomore Abagail Good plays Dirt Merchant, Crab Person 2 and Plinky Pli. Good joined the play because she liked doing the play last year and thought it would be fun to do another play. She is not that nervous about the play because she thinks it'll be easier with her experience.

Sophomore Levi Hoffman plays King 2 and Walt. Hoffman joined the play because he likes acting, being in the spotlight, and gaining more confidence to perform in front of people. Hoffman is nervous to perform next week because he does not have all of his lines memorized.

Freshman Connor Holder plays Hansel and Dwarf # 2. Holder wanted to be in the play because he thought the play he did last year in his class was fun. He is mostly nervous because he does not think everyone is ready to perform next week.

Incentives for the Class of 2025

Alyssa Brown ‘25

A meeting for all seniors took place this Monday and Mr. Wilson addressed how any senior who ends the year with no E’s can leave on May 16, instead of the 21. Part of the reason that Wilson decided to do this was because he compared our calendar to that of other schools and noted that Pennfield started a little bit earlier than most of them. They also looked at weekly grade reports and noted that 60 or so seniors had one or more E in their classes. “We wanted to give them an incentive to do well and give them that support. It helps those senior teachers out too for any seniors that aren’t passing,” Wilson stated. This has plenty of seniors amped up about graduating and ready to leave, “I think May is a beautiful time of the year for seniors to go and hang out with their friends, so I hope this news motivates them to do their best and get out a few days early.”

Senior Addison Rudd finds this news to be exciting. “My friends and I made a plan to go to the beach on the last day, and I’m excited to spend more time with my family.” She’s ready to be out of school and have more time for family and friends, and she plans to work a lot more. 'I know it’s only a week early, but that’s a week’s paycheck." Rudd is passing all of her classes with A’s and she is confident that she can maintain that streak. She doesn’t believe that everyone will be able to leave by the 16 because the senior class tends to slack off a lot. ‘I know so many students that just don’t do anything and don’t care.’

Senior Lilly Mikulla is “so happy” that she might be able to get out a little earlier than planned. She’s not failing any of her classes anymore and plans to keep her grades up so that she can leave on the 16 of May. If anyone is failing currently, Mikulla suggests that “they should study more often and pay attention in class.” She’s not sure if everyone will get out early or not since there are a lot of seniors and classes have been hard.

The Revival of Duo

Ariana Kilgore ‘27

Duo is the mascot of the language learning app Duolingo. Allegedly he was struck by a Tesla. After 2 weeks of being dead, he made a surprise return. He posted on Instagram and in the caption he said “Faking my death was the test.” Cheez-it even commented on Instagram, “I'd say you didn’t have to go so hard, but you kinda did have to go this hard after coming back from the dead.” The death and revival of Duo has been an interesting gimmick.

Varsity Basketball

Cancer Game

Tyler McKenzie '27

Mia Wells is a freshman on the girl's varsity basketball team. Wells said that the Cancer Game was to support families and friends who have or have had cancer. She said the game is special because so many people come out to support and cheer on the teams. Wells’s goal for the game was to win and work as a team to beat Parma. She was excited to play because she knew how many people supported the team who had cancer before.

Peyton Merlington is a sophomore on the boy's Pennfield varsity team. Merlington says he is excited to honor the people in his family who had cancer. He said he wanted to show awareness and he was excited for the crowd. He said, “All I need to do is do my job and we’ll be successful.” The girl's varsity basketball team went down, while the boys flourished and are now I-8 Champions!

❄️ King and Queen

Congratulations 2025 Winter Carnival King Mason Duncan and Queen Ariana Taylor.

student section cheers boys on to victory

The boys varsity basketball team takes down Coldwater 59-51 at the Winter Carnival Game.

Winter Carnival Court Sophomore Representatives

Ariana Kilgore '27

Sophomore Isaiah Gray was excited when he discovered he made the court with his girlfriend. Gray loves the person he is walking with. He says, “She is a cool, outgoing, and beautiful girl.” He is proud to represent the court with her. He has prepared for the court by buying a new outfit. Gray is most excited about the dance and spending time with his girlfriend, Jenna.

Sophomore Jenna Wiley felt excited because she knew she would be able to go shopping to find a dress. Wiley states, “I am excited to walk with Isaiah because he is my favorite person to spend time with.” She prepared for the court by going shopping for her dress. She is most excited to spend time with her friends and boyfriend.

Winter Carnival Pep Rally Photos

Study Abroad spotlight

Mia Wells ‘28

Eighth-grader Olivia Branham plans on attending the study abroad trip to Ireland and Scotland. She said she is looking forward to hiking and touring all the castles. Branham says, “I'm most excited about Scotland, because of the mountains we're going to see.” She is nervous about all of the long flights or losing something. Branham said she hasn’t been out of the country before, so this will be her first time.

Los Angeles Fires

Julian Bennett ‘26 & Julianah Stengel ‘26

On January 7th, 2025 a mix of dry weather conditions and embers from an unknown source started a fire that will be remembered forever. It’s now just over a month since the fires started burning and more than two dozen people have been recorded dead, nearly 40,000 acres are burned and thousands of homes have been destroyed. Reporters say that when the fires started there were alerts sent out to everyone in LA instead of just those who needed to evacuate causing chaos and everyone to leave unnecessarily. But it’s not all bad, charities have already started helping people recover from this tragedy. Thankfully since February 1st, 2025, all the fires have been successfully contained and everyone is now safe.

PBIS Variety Show

Emma Davis '27, Tyler Primm ‘27 & Destiny Crumb '27

Freshman Faith Young was a part of the PBIS variety show celebration alongside Walter Angell, promoting the “Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon” play happening in March. Young said her favorite part about the show was “Walter running around. I could never and he’s really good at it. It definitely had the crowd confused and laughing.” Young says she wishes she had her lines better memorized, she feels she had to look at her script more than she would’ve liked. Young's favorite PBIS celebration was when the gym was open and she was able to walk around the halls with her friends and visit teachers. Young says she wishes the celebration was longer and that more people would have signed up.

Eighth-grader Olivia Wills was one of the many students who was a part of the trivia games against the teachers. Wills says her favorite part about being in the show was being able to participate in the games with her friends. One thing Wills wishes she had done better was bet more points at the end of the trivia game so they could have beat the teachers. Wills's favorite PBIS celebration so far this year was the movie day celebration, what she liked most about the movie day was that she got to help out with making the popcorn and then handing it out with her friends. Wills says “I wish that the audience could have been more engaged in the show. I think a lot of students would have liked it more and been more excited about it if they did.” She feels that would have made the celebration a lot better for her and everyone else.

Blast from the Past:

When NASA Visited Pennfield

Amber Draper ‘27 & Ariana Kilgore ‘27

Back in 2007 (before some of our current students were born), Pennfield had an assembly out of this world and luckily for us the teacher who prepared it all is still here at Pennfield. Mr. Piotrowski is our amazing Physics and Astronomy teacher who thought back 18 years to tell us the dedication it took to get NASA astronaut commander Sunita Williams and flight director Robert (Bob) Dempsey out to Pennfield. You may have heard of Suni Williams before. As of now Suni and her space partner Butch Wilmore have been in space since June 6, 2024, and won’t arrive back on Earth until late March or early April. This hasn’t stopped her from loving her work or regretting the decision as Suni conducted a spacewalk on the 16th and 24th of January 2025.

The Emerald in Print 2007

Mr. Piotrowski had a lucky connection with Robert Dempsey; he was his best friend in high school. “He mentioned the program that had astronauts talking to high school students. It’s typically very competitive, but he offered an opening to my wife's school! The principal wasn’t interested and declined so I hurried and filled a form out and to my luck, Mr. Dempsey shepherded it through the process and we were scheduled.” Mr. P says that typically only one school is chosen and it takes a very dedicated person to research and apply to NASA. Once they got permission and the talk got approved, he had to find a window with NASA and set a timeline of events for Ms. Williams and Mr. Dempsey. Piotrowski's next mission was to book the auditorium and get the audio-visual equipment. “I remember putting forward requests for student questions and organizing who would ask them at the presentation.” Mr. Piotrowski says he was nervous about the assembly but extremely excited about it. He states how he didn’t notice a vibe within the school or an understanding of how special the event was. Mr. P says how he wanted everything to look nice, and well organized and that Ms. Williams and Mr. Dempsey felt comfortable. At the time Pennfield High School was brand new so he wanted it to look good and inviting. “I wanted to impress my friend and not look foolish. Also, there was some media coverage so I wanted Pennfield to look good.” After the assembly while Mr. Piotrowski was on planning he visited Mr. Dempsey before they left for the airport and got to show him his classroom. Mr. P states how they reminisced about the model rockets they launched together in high school and how Dempsey was surprised he had a picture of him in his class and took a picture of Mr. P to put in his office at NASA. “After the day was over, I was both proud of my friend and of Pennfield.”

Teacher Professional Development

Ryeigh Mix ‘26 & Emma Rodriguez ‘27

While students enjoy their half-days and days off, teachers are still in school working to improve the educational environment. Teachers have something called Teacher Professional Development. Professional Development refers to formal training that teachers participate in to strengthen their skills and knowledge as educators.

A few weeks ago, the teachers bonded over some bowling with district team building. Mr. Lessnau participated and had fun. He enjoyed spending time with his colleagues outside of the work environment. It felt like a celebration of the year so far. Lessnau won a medal for his efforts, even though he says he isn’t that good. He pulled around a 115 to 130 as his final scoring. He was lucky to be a part of this experience.

Nailed it

Tyler McKenzie ‘27 & Amiel Bradd

An annual “Nailed It” challenge takes place every year in Mrs. Rzpeka's classroom. Using Rice Krispies and frosting the students are challenged to re-create an image with Rice Krispies and the best and closest look-a-like wins!

Nutrition teacher Mrs. Rzepka does a Rice Krispie challenge every year to do something fun and work on team-building skills with classmates. Rzepka states that she will have all staff vote on the challenge. Whoever did their character best will win. After the contest is finalized she calls out the winner for each hour. The students will each get 2 class periods to get their project accomplished.

PenNfield High School’s Counselors

Chelsea Hayward ’27 & Francesca Dunn ‘27

Counselor Mr. Hermann says “The combination of Testing and setting up everyone's schedule for next year is the most stressful time of the year (February through May). Don't get me wrong the first week back each semester is very busy. It is better for everyone to have their schedules set before a semester starts.” Hermann finds it fun to come up with everyone's schedule; he states “Mrs. Avery and I meet with all of our students and discuss their next year's classes and put them in PowerSchool. Then with the help of the principal, Mrs. Latchaw, and PowerSchool, we sort out who is teaching what, which electives we can offer (based on student selections), and which class goes where. This is a lot of trial and error. Once we have most students fully scheduled, we adjust individual student schedules to get them what they need/want.” Hermann’s least favorite part of his job is spending so much time testing students, (SAT, PSAT, WorkKeys, etc). Hermann’s favorite thing about his job is working directly with students and helping them find a path out of Pennfield High School. Hermann states that he decided to be a counselor because “I liked teaching and working with students but I did not like grading and teaching the same things every year. I noticed after my 1st year of teaching that our school counselor was close to retiring and I enrolled in the school counseling program at Northern Michigan University. I am now able to work with students and every day is different (and no grading papers!)”

Counselor Mrs. Avery says, “The beginning of the semester is always stressful because there is a lot to take into consideration regarding student schedules, such as KCC and dual enrollment, CACC adjustments, RMTC credit recovery, etc. It can also be a stressful time of year for seniors preparing for their last semester and making sure they have all the classes and credits they need to graduate.” Avery says her least favorite part of her job is not having enough time in the day to do what she needs to do. Her favorite part of her job is meeting and talking to students. When asked how she decided to become a counselor Avery stated, “I have always loved working with high school students.” Avery used to spend a lot of time with Diane Voshell, her high school mentor, and she encouraged her to pursue the field of counseling. Avery says, “Sometimes it just clicks and you know what you enjoy doing and it really doesn't feel like work. It feels like what I get to do and enjoy."

Video Production

Check out the latest on our video production YouTube channel.

8th grade writers

Ms. Royer's 8th-grade Visual Communications class is currently in its journalism quarter. First quarter they learned about digital photography, the second quarter was geared toward graphic design, the third quarter is journalism, and the fourth quarter will be video production. Check out their first articles here!

Student Teacher Ms. Whiting

Francesca Dunn ‘27 & Chelsea Hayward ‘27

Mr. McCafferty’s student teacher Ms. Whiting graduated from Charlotte High School and currently attends college at Saginaw Valley State University. Whiting hopes to teach special education or social studies in the future. She plans to be here at Pennfield for sixteen weeks until the end of April. Whiting decided to come to Pennfield because she liked the environment. She first did fieldwork at Dunlap, then subbed here at the high school. Whiting decided that this is where she wants to be and hopes to stay at Pennfield.

Student-Athlete of the Month

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

Sophomore Natalie Vogel has been voted Student-Athlete of the Month for January. Vogel was nervous when she was first called to Mr. Steele's office. “I thought I was getting in trouble.” When Mr. Steele told her she was a Student-Athlete of the Month she was so excited. She received a T-shirt and her picture up on the cafeteria wall for the month. “I was excited about getting it because I haven’t seen a cheerleader get Student-Athlete of the Month since I’ve been in high school.” Vogel thinks other athletes here at Pennfield can work towards achieving Student-Athlete of the Month by building character, being a part of your team, advocating for your team, and just doing the right thing.

Varsity Competitive Cheer Win

DeeAna Black ‘28 & Mia Wells '28

Junior Alyssa Dillard was happy about the first competitive cheer win of the season. Dillard said, “This is the start of more success and hopefully we can go to the state competition.” She thinks the team has realized the feeling of the 1st place spot and hopes that pushes everyone more. “If I could change anything it would be my small mistakes.”

Junior Madi Kelley-Vinton was super proud of her team she said we worked very hard the week of the competition. Kelley-Vinton said, “It was a mental and physical task but we executed it perfectly even though we were missing some key players that week.” She believes this win has brought even more spirit within them since they are now aware of their capabilities and are determined to keep a winning streak. Kelley-Vinton stated the one thing she would do differently is be more confident in herself because she wasn’t sure how they would place during the competition, she knows now that with effort and determination, they are capable of winning.

Titan Business Challenge

Mrs. Galbraith’s Intro to Business classes had the privilege of participating in Junior Achievement of Southwest Michigan’s Titan Business Challenge on December 16, 2024, at Western Michigan University.

💚 Have a Great Break Panthers!!!! ❤️

December PBIS Celebration

'On the fly articleS'

Check out more here!

Sophomore Madison Lajoie is part of Mr. Bowen’s high school choir, which recently had an unfortunate postponement of a Christmas concert set for December 12 due to weather. The concert is now happening on Thursday, December 19. Lajoie said, “I was pretty disappointed, but the concert having been postponed gives us extra time to prepare and figure everything out.” Lajoie says the choir is ready, and everybody looks forward to singing all the stunning songs they have prepared. Lajoie says she looks forward to choir every day and has loved it since she joined, and says it always makes her day a little better. Lajoie says this will be her fourth Christmas concert with Mr. Bowen, and she is so excited!

-Emma Davis ‘27

Staff Underground Spirit Week

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

The Pennfield staff recently had an underground spirit week with fun dress-up days. Mr. Lessnau says the idea was pronounced at a meeting where Ms. Creager and Mrs. Simmons suggested it. Lessnau didn’t feel it was difficult to get all the staff to participate. “Most people were excited to have something fun and different to participate in.” The days were chosen based on what everyone thought would be easy and fun for everyone. Lessnau thought anything but a cup day was fun. “The weirdness was really cool.” Lessnau wanted to recognize Gammons, Mr. Collins, Strozier, Martin, and Simmons for going above and beyond in the spirit week with what he considered the best looks. Lessnau did get asked several times a day what he was doing or what all the other teachers were doing but it wasn’t hard to keep it a secret, because he thought the students enjoyed being surprised with something like that. Overall Lessnau had fun during the underground spirit week and liked doing something different and new.

staff underground spirit week.mp4

Senior Spotlight

MORE SENIOR SPOTLIGHTS HERE!

Francesca Dunn ‘27 & Chelsea Hayward ‘27

Senior Cara Smith has attended Pennfield her entire school career. Some of her favorite memories from Pennfield have been with the band. She states, “From the bus ride to our final showcase, every second I’ve spent with the band is my favorite and most fond memories.” Smith works at the Chick-fil-A in Battle Creek and has many other hobbies. But what she enjoys most is writing. She even hopes one day she will be able to publish her own work. Smith's favorite class is AP Literature with Mr. Lessnau. She says, “English has always been my favorite subject in school, and Mr. Lessnau is a pretty fun teacher.” One of Smiths dreams has always been to attend college after she graduates. She plans on attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln next year. Smith is excited for graduation and she states, “I’m really looking forward to it. It’s time to close this chapter off high school and walk into something new, and I'm ready for it.”

Senior Madison Cole has been attending Pennfield since third grade. One of Cole’s favorite memories was Mrs. Bunning’s Spanish II class during her sophomore year. She says, “It was a relatively small class, and the whole class was filled with some of my best friends. We also had potlucks where we would all bring in different types of food every couple of months. I remember that class being a "break" from the rest of the school day, and I always looked forward to going.” Cole's favorite subject in school is biology because she enjoys writing lab reports, conducting hands-on experiments, and learning about animals. Cole plays basketball, and lacrosse, and played football every year but her senior year. Over the summer she works as a camp counselor at the Sherman Lake YMCA. However, she currently works as a milker at the Crandall Dairy Farm. Cole is also an intern at the Beadle Lake and Athens Veterinary Clinic so she can gain more experience with veterinarians. Cole is graduating with an Associate of Science from Kellogg Community College this May. Then she will attend Michigan State University, to major in Animal Science and Zoology on the pre-vet track at the STEM Lyman Briggs Residential College while being part of the honors program. Her goal is to become a veterinarian, and her dream vet school is the University of California, Davis. Cole is very excited to graduate. She states, “While I am very grateful for all the memories, skills, and friends Pennfield has given me, I am ready to move on and explore the world.”

Gift Ideas for Parents

Danika Rothchild ‘26 & Alaina Simmons ‘26

Parents may need some gift ideas for important holidays and birthdays coming up. A few of these ideas can help parents find gifts for their children in grades 8-12.

Follies 2024 🎤

Powerpuff 2024 🏐

Tyler McKenzie ‘27 & Amiel Bradd ‘28

At Pennfield, we hosted an annual Powerpuff volleyball tournament for the boys. Each grade faced off.

Carter Bammer played on the sophomore Powderpuff team. He played because he did it last year. Bammer played middle hitter. He believed they had a good chance to beat the seniors and possibly the juniors. “C Bamm,” thought the team needed to work on communication and have good plays set up by the coaches to win the championship. He stated that he needed to work on hitting the ball harder when he spiked and his blocking ability.

Jenna Ẁiley was a team coach. She loves playing volleyball and coaching it, too. Wiley plays middle, but she can play anywhere. Jenna hoped to win at least one game but didn't believe they could pull off the entire tournament win.

Unfortunately, the sophomores took second place with the final championship loss to the juniors.

DeeAna Black ‘28 & Mia Wells ‘28

Freshman Xandar Swank participated in the Powerpuff Volleyball game. Swank played the right side and setter. He was most excited about spiking the ball and trying to win. “We wanted to beat the juniors and sophomores.” Swank thought they would lose against the juniors but they would beat the other team. His goal was to get better at volleyball and to hang out with his friends.

Freshman Amiel Bradd is one of the freshman coaches for this year's Powerpuff Volleyball game. She was most excited about getting to coach the players. Bradd said “The team I really want them to beat was the sophomores or the seniors. I don't know how the juniors play so I don’t know if they are good.” Bradd states that she thought they would do okay because they had already scrimmaged the seniors and sophomores and did pretty well against them. Her goal was to beat one team or win the whole tournament.

Video Production 2024

Check out our videos at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHC750P6qHWkjXZEyW4RbXA

Pennfield’s Achievement

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

Mrs. Simmons has worked hard to bring Pennfield to an achievement level. Simmons loves that the school is being recognized at a state level. “Implementing PBIS is a heavy lift and requires a lot of changes to the school process.” Mrs. Simmons appreciates everyone for participating in this change. The students, admin, and teachers are the ones who help implement the change we need here at Pennfield. “The more we believe in it, the better it becomes.” For example, the Golden Standards award and PRIDE slips are new this year because we could implement them, and now students see the benefit of doing the right thing. Mrs. Simmons knew Pennfeld had put in some hard work and dedication but didn’t realize it was that much. She was surprised to see that Pennfield had won the recognition, but honored because it means the work that our students and staff had done didn’t go unnoticed. Mrs. Simmons was very honored to be receiving this award but still believes there is work to do to support students. “Now that we have a solid plan for Tier 1, we can move into dedicating more time to Tier 2 and Tier 3, behavior support for students. We also will be looking at incorporating specific literacy and academic support outside of or after school.” The plan to make Pennfield a better place is still in motion but we are getting closer each day to the school we aspire to be.

Alyssa Brown ‘25

As you may know, Pennfield has started doing monthly PBIS celebrations. Part of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) for student behaviors and academics is rooted in recognizing students' positive behaviors. Pennfield started PBIS celebrations to celebrate those students who give their best effort. Mrs. Simmons says that kids need time to be kids, "So often, you're put in a position where you need to be the grown-up and our celebration days allow for students to let loose for a little bit." She believes that this will have a huge impact on how students choose to behave. Once PBIS is over and students go home, the teachers go into Professional Development until the end of the school day. They get to reflect on how PBIS is going, provide essential information for student success, and get time to work with other people in their departments. "I wanted kids to be able to be themselves, but also to know that positive behavior can be rewarding. Think of how often you hear of bad things, but not the good, we want to make out good things outweigh it all," Simmons adds.

Follies 2024

Julianah Stengel ‘26 & Julian Bennett ‘26

Follies are coming up and many people have auditioned. One of them is Junior Kailey Leiter. She auditioned Tuesday and found out Friday she made it through and Leiter will be singing “Hopelessly Devoted to You” from the movie “Grease.” She started singing in middle school but has been doing Follies since her freshman year. Leiter says, “I'm looking forward to dancing, singing, and watching everybody else do their acts.” Although she hopes to win Leiter doesn’t care about winning and just wants to sing.

This is Sophomore Jenna Wiley's second year doing Follies and she has been singing since elementary school. Wiley will sing “Maybe” by Sienna Spiro. Wiley likes the whole week of rehearsals, rehearsals are two hours every day after school the week of Follies. Wiley says “It’s usually an upperclassman who wins, I don’t think I’ll win but I’d like to.”

Senior Ariana Taylor has been singing since the fourth quarter of her junior year. She will sing “In The Stars” by Benson Boone. During her freshman year, Taylor promised herself that she would try new things at least once. This is her first time singing in front of a crowd, and while she hopes to win, she doesn’t think she will, saying, “Have you heard Ariana Kilgore sing?”

The Follies are on Friday, November 15. Let's hope they all have a great performance and a good time at this year’s show.

The Battle Creek Symphony Concert

Allie King ‘25 & Alaila Vandegriff ‘25

Mr. Bowen has been doing the Battle Creek Symphony concert for 3 years now. Miss Harrigan is the director of the Symphony and has worked with Mr. Bowen in the past to plan this concert. “Once we decided on the theme, I let her take over the planning and preparation of the concert.” Bowen believes taking directions from another director benefited our choir in so many ways and made sure everyone understood the relative material. Bowen states that singing with the Symphony shows that there are other musical venues for the choir to perform in. Most people don’t get the opportunity to perform with a mass choir and an orchestra, for Bowen that was a life-changing moment. Mr. Bowen hopes some of his students were affected positively by this concert. “From my perspective, the concert was a tremendous success. Everything looked fantastic on stage and sounded even better. I was happy to be in the audience to experience a choir performance from a different vantage point.” Mr. Bowen also thought very highly of the other schools and members of the orchestra performance. “It was fantastic. There was such a huge improvement from the afternoon dress rehearsal to the performance. Something came alive in everyone at that performance.” Overall, the concert was everything Mr. Bowen hoped for and it’s always fun for the directors to see all the hard work done in the classroom come together and work out. Bowen states the only thing he would’ve changed is not having the choir stand on stage while the Symphony played their individual song, he understood it was difficult for some performers.

New Staff at Pennfield

Alyssa Brown ‘25

Pennfield High School has just gained a new staff member, Ms. Beach, who is now the choir accompanist. Ms. Beach began learning how to play piano at five years old and after a few years of basic lessons, her mother connected her with an educator who also taught at Michigan State University. Her professional career started at sixteen when she became music director and pianist for Birchwood United Methodist Church. “I continued my musical journey with First United Methodist Church, McCamly Plaza's Center Stage, and Stouffer's Hotel "The Roof" providing fine dining entertainment. I also performed at private parties, weddings, funerals, and various social events, during which I began offering private piano lessons.” She relocated to North Carolina, performing with the Lake Norman Orchestra and serving as a music director for youth and adult musicals. Ms. Beach was also the traditional pianist at Williamson’s Chapel United Methodist Church and Bethel Presbyterian Church. She returned to Michigan in January and has resumed her position as the pianist for the All Ears Theatre and of course, holds her current role at Pennfield. “Mr. Bowen had posted a message on Facebook that there was a posting on Pennfield School’s website that urgently needed an accompanist. A few former colleagues and friends had tagged me, leading to an immediate exchange with Mr. Bowen.” The students have welcomed her warmly, and “their dedication to Mr. Bowen and the choir is truly inspiring.” Ms. Beach loves working at Pennfield and believes that Mr. Bowen and she share a similar approach when it comes to earning respect and engaging with the students. Both of them believe that their focus should extend beyond just teaching the songs; they also emphasize the importance of music theory and genuine vocal and aural education methods.

New Librarian Mr. Guenther

Danika Rothchild ‘26 & Alaina Simmons ‘26

Pennfield High School welcomes a new librarian, Mr. Guenther. Before coming to Pennfield, he worked for the Geek Squad for 15 years on computers. Guenther states “I am in college currently working on my bachelor's degree in English.” He came to Pennfield after looking at multiple different schools and their availabilities, he then came across an open librarian position at Pennfield. Guenther says, “This is a great fit for me and is really what I’m going to school for.”

JV Volleyball I-8

Co-Champions!

Alaina Simmons ‘26

The JV volleyball team achieved a huge accomplishment, under coach Holly Conley. They have finished the 2024 season tied for 1st place in the I-8 league! The JV team ended the season; 58-22 games, 28-7 matches, 10-2 in I8 games, and 5-1 in I8 matches. They also went from September 9- October 23 without losing a match. Way to go JV volleyball girls!

Olivet Visit

Tackling the Football Players

Allie King '25 & Alaila Vandegriff '25

During homecoming week, Coach Hattan wanted to include the cheer team in something special. He set up a time and place where we could tackle the football players. Madison Kelley-Vinton states she was excited for a new experience and ready to show everyone that size isn’t equivalent to power. Madi explained it felt like hitting a mat after falling out of a stunt when tackling the boys, but nothing she’s never done before. She said she was most scared of the helmets because they didn’t fit her little head correctly, she busted her lip on the helmet she tackled so hard.

Clare Hackworth had an amazing time tackling the football players. She was excited and slightly nervous to tackle them because they are bigger than her and she didn’t want to look dumb if she went to tackle them and they didn’t budge at all. Hackworth states “It was a fun experience and fun to tackle the boys we cheer for every week.” Clare felt good when tackling the boys because she felt they deserved to be tackled by the cheer team because they were not involved in the thunderstruck dance as we had planned. Other than that Clare felt it was a good time and super funny to see everyone tackling and falling. When tackling the boys Hackworth was most scared of them not falling over when she went to tackle them which they did.

Hoco King & Queen

Francesca Dunn ‘27 & Chelsea Hayward ‘27

Senior Anna Keown was not expecting to win Homecoming Queen; she was just excited to be on the Homecoming Court. When asked how she felt when she won Keown said “I was shocked. The anticipation of Abbie walking down behind me and then coming back. It was hard not to look and see where she was.” Her favorite part of the Homecoming week was getting ready, and conducting the marching band during halftime. Keown and Hunter came up with the idea for their pep rally walkout by asking teachers for ideas. She said, “Having the band do our music was a last-minute idea, but since we are both in the band it was fun to have them do the music for us.” Keown was looking forward to riding in the Corvettes at the parade and rode in the same Corvette her sister rode in two years ago. Keown says “It was a "T Top" so it was a little tricky to not feel like I was going to slide off but I am really glad we got to do it.”

Senior Cartier Boykins was not expecting to win Homecoming King. Boykins states “ I was only looking forward to participating in the things of homecoming week. Considering that I did win, the most important part was enjoying the little things.” He said “When I won it was an exciting experience as well. It made me feel like I accomplished something that would make my family and friends happy.” Boykin's favorite part of Homecoming was getting all dressed up and wearing clothes others may not expect him to wear. Boykins liked riding in the Corvettes, he states “Riding in the Corvettes was an enjoyable moment for me. I saw all the faces of people supporting me, my peers, and the kids getting to experience something positive, especially as the world starts to mature quickly and make more bad decisions.” Boykins states “My partner Olivia Wygant and I came up with our Pep Rally walk-out dance while viewing TikToks and freestyling some of the dances that came to our minds while remaking the others.”

Acting

Layla Wesley ‘27

Sophomore Lily Odette joined the acting class because she decided to step out of her comfort zone. Odette's favorite part of acting class is being able to be herself and she also loves the improv games they play. Lily states “I’m ready to perform my monologue because I get to be in the spotlight and try something new!”

Sophomore Bella Gillson Joined acting because she was in the play "Icebergs" last year and enjoyed it. Gillson's favorite thing about the class is watching her classmates do improv games. Bella States, “I am ready to perform my monologue, but I bet I will still get nervous right beforehand like I normally do when I have to talk in front of people.”

Senior Walter Angell joined acting because it allowed him to express himself without judgment. Walter's favorite thing to do in class is participate in all the improv games and some of the skits. Angell said, “I've had my monologue memorized for a week and a half now so I'm basically ready to perform it."

Principal honors his word

Principal Mr. Wilson promised to let homecoming spirit cup winners shave his head and beard.

hoco king & Queen

Congratulations Anna Keown and Cartier Boykins!

View HOCO 24 pics at the links below: 📸

High School Marching Band at Homecoming

Band Video .mp4

HOCO Pep Rally 📸

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Hl39s8DTcVc41OyS2Zhmnq2z5x1fLhQF?usp=sharing

powder puff 📸

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1veR8AMReJDJGtgzeHkpIr8QmSoq0rGut?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1e4do_Rp1WcJ6obAA72uaQfgeMiijsBbH?usp=sharing

Homecoming court 2024 👑

Congratulations! Cartier Boykins, Olivia Wygant, Brenden Back, Addison Barker, Josiah Schwartz, Natalie Hensel, Evan Lampert, Avery Hock, Hunter Jenney, Anna Keown, Brevin Bailey, Kirra Budreau, Aidan Bammer, Josslyn Adkins, Braden Campbell, Madelyn Briggs, Austin Lahn, Alexandria King-Green, Antinio Wilson and Aubrey Duff.

Hurricane Helene

Julianah Stengel '26 & Julian Bennett '26

Hurricane Helene has hit Florida hard and is moving to other states. When Helene first hit landfall it was categorized as a category four storm which is the second worst category a hurricane can get. As of right now, 161 people have died in six different states due to Helene. Many other people remain missing and officers are worried the death toll will rise. Florida advised the people to evacuate but many stayed behind. Sand has buried roads, cars, houses, shops, and anything along the coast. The sheriff of Taylor County, where Keaton Beach is located, said Helene destroyed 90% of homes in the area. Destroyed homes are just a tiny bit of the damage though, Helene uprooted trees, downed power lines, and flooded streets. The people in Florida who have been affected have lost everything.

As Helene migrated to other states more people lost family members, homes, pets, and even their lives. Fortunately, some cities only got strong winds and heavy rain. North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee have all been severely affected by the storm. As it keeps moving, people's houses will keep getting flooded and destroyed but people are trying to make the best of it and stay positive. People have been kayaking down the streets and piloting their boats around town. Even though they’re having fun it has been advised for people to stay out of the water if possible because of power lines falling in the water causing it to be hazardous and possibly deadly. Unfortunately, these people are losing everything. Keep these people and their families in your hearts as Helene is considered to be one of the deadliest hurricanes to make landfall in the mainland of the United States. If you want to help out any families, there are many programs to donate to.

Hurricane Milton is the newest hurricane, about to hit the mainland. It’s a category 3 and it is currently being advised for some areas in Florida to evacuate.

Mrs. Treadway

Vana Peebles

Reading with Pennfield

Alyssa Brown ‘25

Mrs. Treadway is going on her tenth year of teaching here at Pennfield, and her 19th year of teaching high school. As an English teacher, she loves to read crime, horror, classical, and historical fiction books. John Sandford is one of Mrs. Treadway's favorite authors, but she also enjoys reading Stephen King. The last book Mrs. Treadway read was “Dark Angel” by John Sandford, "It is about a detective's daughter who fights crime in an unconventional way." She hates it when others try to talk to her while she's reading because it distracts her and "ruins the flow." Mrs. Treadway isn’t sure what most students look for in books, she just wishes that more would try to find a great book to enjoy.

Senior Vana Peebles has been an active reader since COVID-19. She started reading more often while everyone was online because of the extra time she had on her hands. Peebles loves reading romance and drama books and she always looks for a good plot otherwise she won't be able to get through it. The last book she read was “Ugly Love” by Colleen Hoover, about two neighbors who fall in love. People around Peebles will distract her from reading a lot and she hates it, as well as being distracted by too loud of an environment. Peebles reads on her phone a lot, so she's not quite sure that she would choose electronics over reading a book.

Senior Gracie Ashworth-Prough learned to read when she was only five but preferred picture books. When she was eight she started reading the words to “Junie B. Jones” books, not just looking for pictures. Prough will often look for a main character with flaws in a book, "I can't immerse myself in the book if all of the characters are perfect." Her favorite author is V.C. Andrews, but could differentiate depending on the genre. The last book Prough read was “The Unwelcomed Child,” about a little girl staying with Christian grandparents and her path to rebellion. Nothing distracts her from reading other than when her head hurts. Prough states that she wouldn't mind a book over electronics because she uses hers to read anyway.

Open the Door for Mr. Doerr!

Tyler McKenzie ‘27 & Amiel Bradd ‘28

At Pennfield one of our goals is to be safe and keep our school safe. Mr. Doerr is a new staff member who is a safety paraprofessional and his room is in the downstairs computer lab. Doerr is also our varsity football team's wide receiver and defensive back coach. He sees the ability to make a difference in our entire school, not just the football field. He adds “I see myself here for a while, at least 20 years.” Doerr states, “I’m most excited to build relationships with all the students, also having the ability to make a difference in someone's life.” He cares for every kid and knows everyone comes from a different background. He says, “A simple good morning, how are you? Can go a long way.” We are blessed to have another caring staff member with us. If you see him in the hallway, say hello!

Excited for Homecoming Week

Alex Miller ‘27 & Lorenzo Willis ‘27

With this week's homecoming celebration, Mrs. Simmons formerly known as Mrs. Kane and Mr. Allen are thrilled to start preparing. Mrs. Simmons's favorite part about the prep is the spirit week. She loves getting involved and seeing students do the same with the creativity of their outfits. Simmons thinks this year will be more exciting for students and the community due to the traditional parade being brought back. She hopes students find a way to be more socially involved as she was in high school before they graduate to get the experience they deserve.

Mr. Allen was an athlete, so winning the homecoming football game would be his year's highlight. He's ready to see both the players and the crowd with outgoing energy and a sense of school pride. He hopes people are reminded of the hard-working and solid program coaches, athletes, students, and the rest of the staff have been working towards. Mr. Allen was always involved with the celebratory spirit and attended the homecoming dance in high school.

Hoco Proposal

Emma Davis '27 & Tyler Primm '27

Sophomore Madalynn Inman was asked to homecoming by Junior Deondre Manalac. Inman said, “I expected it because he made it very obvious.” Inman said that she felt very excited in the moment, and was happy that he asked her.

Junior Deondre Manalac said that it only took him about three days to plan the proposal, two days to make the poster, and one day to get all the supplies needed. Manalac said that he was nervous to propose to Inman but was excited to see her reaction. Manalac says that he had his mom's help when it came to the cursive writing on the poster. Manalac proposed after one of his varsity football games outside of Dunlap Elementary.

Junior Brady Conley has asked Junior Alaina Simmons for this year's homecoming. Conley knew that he would ask Simmons to hoco weeks prior but just didn't know when. He realized she had a volleyball game on a Saturday and planned to ask right after the game, Conley says that he felt amazing about asking Simmons and tried his best to surprise her and make it the best proposal. He was overjoyed when she said "yes" because that meant that he got to go to hoco with her. Conley's mom had helped him with drawing on the volleyball, helped pick out the perfect flowers, and helped plan the perfect time to meet Simmons in the parking lot for the proposal.

Junior Alaina Simmons was asked to homecoming by Brady Conley. Simmons says that she actually had no idea that Conley was going to ask her to hoco when he did. Simmons was at a volleyball game officiating the last game before going home when she saw her mom was hiding something on her phone which got her to think something was happening but had no idea it had anything to do with the proposal. Simmons says that she knew that they were going to go to hoco together because of how long they have been in a relationship, but was still excited to know that he went the extra mile to make a cute proposal happen. Simmons walked out to her car after the volleyball game already not having a very good day and was surprised by a volleyball saying "Will you hit up hoco with me" and a bouquet of flowers sitting on her car.

DeeAna Black '28 & Mia Wells '28

Sophomore Collin Stacy planned a homecoming proposal for DeeAna Black. It took 2 weeks and the idea of the poster was their song ‘Hell Or High Water’ by Zach Bryan. Stacy said he didn’t have any help with making the poster. “I did the proposal on September 26 at the JV football game.”

Freshman Erica Gregorie was asked to homecoming by Sophomore Natalie Purucker. Gregorie was asked after her volleyball practice. She said, “I was expecting it a little because she had a surprise for me.” The poster said, “You don’t need a mister when you got your sister.” Purucker gave Gregorie fruit snacks to go along with her poster.

Freshman Louis Wilcox planned a homecoming proposal for Kenzie Chapman. Wilcox proposed after the JV football game against Hastings. He came up with the idea because he wanted to do something different from the normal poster. “My idea was at a football game and you have friends hold H.O.C.O? And I gave her flowers, and candy.”

Sophomore Jenna Wiley, was asked to homecoming by Isaiah Gray. Wiley said, “My proposal happened at my orange-out cancer volleyball game.” She was not expecting her proposal but was very shocked. The theme of the poster was ‘supermodel’ by SZA.

Ms. Collins 9/11 Workout

Emma Davis ‘27 & Tyler Primm ‘27

Health teacher Ms. Collins hosted a workout for her students about 9/11. Collins says “I love the camaraderie that happens during the workout and the kids pushing one another, and it’s fun to watch them come together.” Collins says that there is nothing that could ever compare to what those people went through that day. To Collins, this workout is to show remembrance of those people who we lost on September 11, 2001, as well as to remind ourselves that we can push through anything. The reason this workout is important for Collins to have her students do every year is because it is important never to forget how on September 11, 2001, our country had changed forever.

Sophomore Willow Schantz was a part of Ms. Collins 9/11 memorial workout and said one of the best parts of the workout was knowing that it was in remembrance of the tremendous loss of life on that day and that she was doing it for a good reason. Schantz said that the workout made her feel pride and honor in her country. Shantz stated that she believed the meaning of the workout was to “remember all the lives lost during 9/11.” Schantz said that she thinks this workout was important because it was in dedication to all the tragedies that happened that day and what people had to go through, and what they are still going through to this day.

From Mrs. Kane to

Mrs. Simmons

Julian Bennett ’26 & Julianah Stenge ’26

Dean of Pennfield High School Ms. Kane now known as Mrs. Simmons has been engaged since October of 2022 and finally sealed the deal last Saturday. Meeting Mr. Simmons at college in 2020 and have loved each other since. She says that by wedding standards her wedding was small with only 70 people including herself and Mr. Simmons. But now that she's married she says, “Honestly I don’t know what to do with myself because I spent 2 years in this panic around planning the biggest event of my life, and now it’s like now what”? She has a few ideas for the future though, “A trip to Hawaii for our honeymoon and hopefully kids in the next 5 years.” Simmons says her favorite part of the wedding was “Obviously getting married but also seeing all the people who care for and support us and just dancing the night away.” She sees her wedding as the best day of her life. Make sure you celebrate the new bride when you see Mrs. Simmons.

Sports Photos with

Mr. Miller

Alex Miller '27 & Lorenzo Willis '27

Mr. Miller has been taking pictures for 15 years. He started with his kids Josh and Alex Miller, and after a while, he began using his skills for other students. Mr. Miller says his favorite part of being a photographer is capturing the moment for the kids and seeing the enjoyment after seeing their pictures. He also has been to many sporting events such as a few MSU and Ohio State football games and he often takes a few photos while at these games. He plans to take pictures for the school for many more years.

The newspaper and yearbook staff would like to thank Mr. Miller for sharing his wonderful photos over the years!

New Special Education Teacher:
Mrs. Nowlin-Brown

Francesca Dunn ‘27 & Chelsea Hayward ‘27

The new Special Education teacher Mrs. Nowlin-Brown loves teaching at Pennfield so far. She says “The staff is friendly, supportive and the students are cool.” Brown heard of an open position at Pennfield from a former colleague and was excited about the opportunity. Brown’s favorite part of her job is that she can move from classroom to classroom to support students. Brown taught in Albion for a few years, then moved to Starr Commonwealth for 15 years. She then moved to Jackson High School for 5 years, and then Brown moved to an Elementary school in Jackson for a year. Brown plans on staying at Pennfield for as long as possible. She feels more at home here at Pennfield than she did at Starr.

Block Out Cancer Game

Tyler McKenzie ‘27 & Amiel Bradd ‘28

One major event this Fall is the Block Out Cancer Game. The Cancer Game is dedicated to Freshman Coach Hannah Belote. Belote was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. She was diagnosed in May of 2024. She was transferred to the University of Michigan where she had intensive treatment.

The game is on September 18 and starts at 5 for freshman and JV and 6:15 for the varsity team, all the money profited from the game will go to Coach Belote and her medical expenses. Orange is the color for Lymphoblastic Leukemia Cancer, so wear your orange! Biggby will also be there giving out FREE orange lemonade!

Fortunately, Belote became cancer-free on August 30, she received donor cells and had a transplant. We are beyond thankful for her recovery and for her will to coach no matter what. Go Pennfield!

New Principal: Mr. Wilson

Danika Rothchild ‘26 & Alaina Simmons ‘26

Pennfield High School’s new principal Mr. Wilson, is very excited to join the Panther community. Wilson states his reason for coming to Pennfield is because “I was looking for a bigger district due to me moving closer to home and Pennfield just fell right in place.” Wilson was not expecting to have the team that he did. He states, “I have an amazing staff that was already built and very welcoming.” Former Central Michigan University graduate Mr. Wilson finished CMU with a bachelor's degree in teaching. After he graduated Wilson migrated to Fort Myers, Florida, to pursue his career in teaching at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Mr. Kirkland’s Summer Job

Julianah Stengel ‘26 & Julian Bennett ‘26

Mr. Kirkland, the art teacher at Pennfield High School has an amazing summer job that he loves. Kirkland works at Camp Barakel as a lifeguard. As a kid, Kirkland went to camp every summer and decided to become a lifeguard there after graduating high school. Kirkland became a lifeguard and started working there every summer. He just finished his 28 year there this summer. This was the first year he worked with his two oldest sons. Kirkland says, “At first it was a little weird because I was a little nervous about them having to jump in and save people, but once they got into it and started doing their thing it was pretty fun watching them.” Working as a lifeguard has helped Kirkland feel more confident when it comes to helping injured or sick kids. There was an incident that happened where as Kirkland was walking by, he noticed a kid who was struggling to swim during his test. Kirkland jumped in to save him and asked him “What happened buddy?” the kid replied, “I can’t swim.” Even though serious things can happen there, Kirkland loves working as a lifeguard. Kirkland mentioned that the Y Center offers training for anyone looking to be a certified lifeguard. Come join Kirkland in saving lives.

Welcome back to school

First Varsity Football Game

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