Elsie Rogers Express

"It's the most wonderful time of the year!" That's because P-H-M Education Foundation is spreading holiday cheer across the district surprising grant applicants. This year the Foundation is awarding its largest grant awards ever thanks to the generosity of donors within P-H-M and businesses in our local community! This grant cycle the Foundation is awarding more than $42,000 to P-H-M schools and programs! Find out which school/program will be next and how much money they are receiving by clicking here to like and follow the P-H-M Education Foundation on Facebook.

Mrs. Berry wrote a grant to the P-H-M Education Foundation for Beebots which are used for coding. The money received will be used to purchase a set of Beebots and coding mats. When she introduced students to Beebots back in the fall, the Elsie Rogers students loved the experience. This was her motivation for the grant, making learning exciting and fun!

It’s time for our community food drive! This year, Elsie Rogers has partnered with Northeast Neighborhood Food Pantry to serve those in need! We will be collecting non perishable food items (no glass containers please) starting on December 4th up until December 14th. To make it a little more interesting, classes will be competing for participation in some "Reindeer Games" and a hot cocoa bar experience on December 15! We can’t wait to see our R.O.C.K. star students in action!

Today our third graders were able to learn about the history of fencing from Notre Dame fencers, Rebeca and Maya. Rebeca has been competing in fencing for 16 years. Maya has been competing for 10 years. The ladies performed for the students, taught them how to hold the sword, and let them try on their national championship rings!

You'll find the student attendance policy in the K-5 Student Handbook on pages 19-20. Please note the listed "good cause" reasons for absences. Family vacations are not automatically excused but will be considered for approval. Please email me at ccampbell@phm.k12.in.us or

jcramer-Berry@phm.k12.in.us at least 2 weeks in advance of a family trip to seek approval for the excused absence. There are NO excused family vacations during IREAD-3 or ILEARN (March, April and May).

We are monitoring attendance very closely this year as our school's attendance percentage from the sate has declined.

Our school start time is 8:40 am. Students may arrive as early as 8:25 am. Students arriving after 8:40 are considered tardy. Dismissal is 3:05 pm.

As part of the new Indiana law HB-1093, schools are limited to three days of eLearning. Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation will use, if warranted, three weather related days as needed throughout the year. If additional makeup days are required, they will be added to the end of the school year calendar. Principals will communicate with parents eLearning expectations and possible calendar adjustments throughout the year.

It's hard to believe It's the first of December! With that comes cold and snowy weather. As we start our journey into winter, we'd like to remind you that ALL students go outside for recess, so please make sure students are prepared for the cold weather. The temperature must fall below 20 degrees (actual or windchill) before we determine there is indoor recess. This is on p. 23-24 of the PHM student handbook.

Winter gear should include coats, hats, gloves, scarves, and snow gear (boots and snowpants) if necessary. We cannot keep students inside unless we have a doctor's note with specifications on how many days they should remain inside.

Please make sure you label all outdoor wear so that students can identify their items easily should they end up in the lost and found.

Email: ccampbell@phm.k12.in.us
Website: https://elsierogers.phmschools.org/
Location: 56219 Currant Road, Mishawaka, IN, USA
Phone: 574-259-5231
Twitter: @ElsieRogersES