​By Dr. Thomas Little
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

We firmly believe that teachers are among the most influential adults in children’s lives. These dedicated educators set the tone and expectations in the classrooms and have a direct impact on the learning environment. In turn, the building principal sets the tone for the instructional program throughout the facility.
 
A retirement dinner was recently held for more than 40 people from various departments. Among those honored were support staff, teachers and two principals, both of whom had a positive impact on thousands of students.  
Barbara Brouwer served as principal of Southport High School for the past decade, and John Happersberger served as principal at Burkhart Elementary for the past 18 years.

Their schools have received countless awards for academic achievement and extracurricular programs under their leadership. Burkhart received the prestigious National Blue Ribbon Award, which is only presented to a select group of schools for their high levels of academic achievement and programs. 

Southport was recently honored by the Advanced Placement group for having so many students excel in various AP classes. Students who are successful in these classes are able to transfer these credits to the college that they plan to attend. I have talked to students who had as much as a year of college completed before walking across the high school graduation stage.  

The challenge to find replacements for Mrs. Brouwer and Mr. Happersberger was a bit daunting. A team of teachers, parents and administrators served on the interview teams. Fortunately, Perry Township Schools and the community attract quality people.  

Southport Middle School Brian Knight has been named to head Southport High next year. This gentlemen is married to a teacher who grew up in Perry Township, and they have four children, all whom attend township schools. 
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Burkhart Assistant Principal Darlene Hardesty, also a township resident, has been named Burkhart’s principal.
Proud to be a part of the Perry Township family.
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Southport’s commencement ceremony is at 6 p.m. Friday; Perry Meridian’s is at 8 p.m. Friday.  

By Dr. Thomas Little
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

It’s simply amazing what a difference a month makes. Just four weeks ago I wrote about breaking ground for our kindergarten centers. Since a lot has happened during the past month, let me bring you up-to-date.

Work is progressing rapidly at MacArthur Elementary ... when it’s not raining. A temporary construction fence is in place for phase 1, and you’ll notice a lot of stockpiled dirt for fill material. Crews have also cleared the site and a few trees, all of which will be replaced. Work will begin on the storm water system, and all of the precast structures are on-site.  

Detention ponds, designed to temporarily hold a set amount of water while slowly draining to another location, are in place and utilities for the site are installed. The updated parking lots should be ready by late July. Over the next week workers should finish with tree protection, landscaping and signage.

The Homecroft site is just a few days behind MacArthur. Crews have put in a silt fence and fiber logs to help with drainage. A temporary fence has been installed. Power crews have redirected power lines around the site. In the coming days they will begin to remove the shelter house, continue grading the north bus drive and site clearing and complete new sidewalks next to Southport Road.

The Rosa Parks and Jeremiah Gray sites are on a schedule similar to Homecroft. The grounds have been cleared and construction is underway. 

A project that’s much further along is Winchester Village Elementary. For those of you who haven’t been by there in a while, you’ll notice almost a different looking, larger building. It has literally taken on a new shape as construction continues to expand the size of the school and make its classrooms more conducive for instruction.

I recently had the opportunity along with our school board and several administrators to walk through the new section at Winchester. We saw 21st century classrooms, office space and a more secure entryway. A lot of progress is going on around the new fourth- and fifth-grade wings. The brick on the outside makes it look like a real school now. Crews are working on ceramic tile. The target date for completing the wings and front office is later this month.

This investment in early childhood education is truly an investment into the future, and we know it could not be possible without your support of our school district. Building these kindergarten facilities will finally allow us to give our other grades the room they need within our schools to keep up with the growth of the district, especially in the elementary grades. Our teachers will finally have adequate space for instructing. 
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The completion date for all four kindergarten centers is July 2017. This move opens up more than 60 classroom spaces in our elementary schools.

By Dr. Thomas Little
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

Perry Township has many special people who dedicate their lives to the field of education. Just last week this community lost one of those special people who truly was the model of a servant leader in our schools. 

Steve Montgomery, 62, who died of cancer May 2, was proud of the township and a loyal Southport Cardinal to the end. He was a 1972 graduate of Southport, and he returned to his alma mater as a beloved teacher, a competitive coach and a tireless assistant athletic director.  
 
It is often said that you measure the worth of a man by the number of friends that he has. If that’s true, Steve must have been a wealthy man. 

I would like to share a few thoughts from some of his friends.

Mike Tomey recounts, “Steve was my hero and best friend, and he is a legend on the Southside.” Mike says you still hear people talking about Steve’s athletic abilities as a dominating running back and a hitter whose home runs defied gravity. While at Southport he frequently rushed for more than 200 yards a game. This accomplishment was even more impressive when you consider that defenses singled out this athlete and set up their plays based on one goal – to stop Steve Montgomery. 

This story from Tony Ardizzone describes the fact that Steve could crush a baseball. He says that while coaching junior varsity baseball at an opposing school, the game had to be stopped three times because Steve kept hitting home runs all the way onto the JV diamond. The highlight of Steve’s high school career was being named Marion County co-Athlete of the Year.

Steve Harnedy reports that Steve is one of the top three athletes in the history of Southport. He says Steve had many offers to play at large schools but chose Indiana Central (now the University of Indianapolis), where he starred in baseball and football. He is a member of the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame. 

Steve continued his love of athletics after college by teaching and coaching. He returned to Perry Township and taught physical education and coached football and wrestling at Perry Meridian Middle School before heading to Southport to teach health and physical education. 

His softball teams won many county and sectional titles. This gentlemen was loved and admired by his students and peers. Steve was recently named to the Indiana Football Hall of Fame. His wife, Judy, served as guidance secretary at Southport, and his children, Scott and Sarah, graduated from Southport. Scott coaches softball at Southport, where Steve served as his assistant. 
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Steve’s calling was held May 5 at Perry Stadium. We thank the Montgomery family for sharing such a phenomenal teacher and coach with the township’s students and staff. Our thoughts and prayers are with Steve’s family and friends during this time of reflection and healing.

By Dr. Thomas Little
Superintendent of Perry Township Schools

I believe it is important to honor the accomplishments of people. Accordingly, we recently spent a few minutes and broke bread with our valedictorians and salutatorians from Southport and Perry Meridian high schools. The students were excited but uncertain about the next phase of their lives. They all expressed gratitude for their teachers and the experience they had at their high schools.

As you read their backgrounds, a common theme among each student surfaces: Extra- and co-curricular programs play a key role in their high school experience. These individuals are busy and utilize every spare minute of every day. These students represent a student body that in many cases have similar schedules and challenges whose GPA is equally impressive.   

The valedictorian of Perry Meridian is April Gettelfinger, who earned a 4.55 GPA. Her teachers commented that she loves to participate in service projects and enjoys the arts. 

She is vice president of the school’s National Honor Society chapter, an actress on the Perry stage, a member of the Creative Writing and Kiwanis Key clubs and managing editor of The Focus, the school newspaper. 

“What I do after school is my greatest motivation,” she said. “My extracurricular activities added significance and memorability to my school life.” 

She hopes to become a rheumatologist and will enter a premedical track of study at the University of Evansville in the fall.

Perry’s salutatorian is Michelle Frustero, who earned a 4.54 GPA behind her passion for math and a strong desire to learn.  

She attributes her academic success to hard work and dedication. Michelle is entrenched in the World Languages Club and Book Club. She plans to major in secondary education at the University of Indianapolis. Our goal is for her to be successful in college and bring her back home to teach in Perry Township.  

Southport’s valedictorian is Delaney Bucker, whose GPA is 4.56. In addition to enrolling in challenging courses, she has competed in cross country, swimming and track, serving as captain of each team this season. 

Her academic pursuit has led her to choose Arizona State University and its honors college, Barrett, where she intends to major in biology. She also plans to compete on the triathlon team. “Sports are not my only defining factor. I am a tough competitor in the classroom as well,” said Delaney, who is president of Southport’s National Honor Society and a Spanish tutor.

Jaclyn Boyer, who earned salutatorian honors at Southport after earning a 4.54 GPA, said she has a love for learning that is unquenchable. 

Philanthropic events also play a key role in her life. Her leadership abilities are demonstrated in everything she has done, from academics to athletics and church.  

She is the design editor of the yearbook and won a literary award her junior year. She is often seen taking pictures and gathering information at games, club activities and other events. She has earned multiple awards for her academic and swimming endeavors.  
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 We congratulate all of our seniors preparing for life after high school and wish them the best.