Goshen Community Schools

The Goshen boys soccer team put a little scare into the hearts of their fans on Monday night in the regional championship game at Merrillville, when they gave up two goals within the first 15 minutes of the game. But the boys regrouped, showed their mental toughness, and battled back to win the game 4-2, thrilling all of the Goshen fans in attendance (and those following on Twitter and Facebook at home).

Below, two of the goals:

Below, the grins that matched their great win:

The team will play #1 ranked Lafayette Harrison in Semi-State action on Saturday, October 21 at 5:00 p.m. at Kokomo High School.

A huge thank you to the boys for their great display of RedHawk resilience and to the students, parents, and fans who supported them. We hope to see all of you again (and more!) in Kokomo on Saturday.

GO BIG RED! Puro Goshen.

(Credit for photography goes to Branden Beachy)

Goshen Community Schools will be hosting three public meetings to further explain the Strategic Planning Facilities Committee recommendation to the school board. Their recommendation was to proceed with building a new 5-8 Intermediate School on the school-owned property at SR 119 and Greene Road, and to convert the current Goshen Middle School to a 5-8 Intermediate School as well.

Please plan to attend one of the meetings listed below to learn more about the rationale that led to this recommendation and to give your input. There will be table group discussions held following the presentation in order to receive feedback from the public.

Meetings will be held at these locations and times:

Thursday, November 16, at 7:00 p.m. at the Model Cafeteria

Monday, December 4, at 7:00 p.m. at the Goshen High School Cafeteria

Tuesday, December 12, at 6:00 p.m. at the Goshen Middle School Cafeteria

Goshen High School is pleased to announce that they have had five students recognized as National Merit Commended scholars this year! They are: Cade Fisher, Kathryn Herschberger, Greta Klassen, Simon Myers, and Raina Shreiner Barger,

Of the 1.6 million students that took the PSAT nationwide, these GHS students are in the top 34,000!

Congratulations to all of you, well done!!

Everyone at Waterford Elementary School took part in the Great Lakes Great Apple Crunch at noon today. The GCS food service staff gathered the apples from Martin’s Super Markets and Kercher’s Apple Orchard, and supplied apples to all of the students in the school corporation. The students and staff were part of approximately one million participants in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Indiana who were crunching on local apples today!

Mrs. Overton was waiting with a smile, ready to hand out apples.

The kindergarten students got apple slices, because the apples were SO big!

The students filed into the cafeteria and got their apples.

Class after class….

Until they filled the cafeteria.

And they smiled, and laughed, and played with their apples, waiting for 12:00 sharp.

And then, when Mr. Miller had counted them down to 12:00, they CRUNCHED!

But they still smiled because the apples were so good!

Thank you to Martin’s Super Markets for making a generous donation to our students today, and thank you also to Kercher’s for giving us a fantastic price cut so that we could supply all of our students with a great, healthy snack.

Have you had your apple today?!!

The Little BIG Idea Grant committee is looking for people to apply for their grants! Can Goshen find some creative students, staff members, or families who could use $1,000 to make something happen in our community?!!

Please take note: The committee has emphasized that the idea/project needs to be something that will bring people together, and that it must take place in Elkhart County.

Check out this winning Little BIG Ideas Grant: Goshen Rocks https://www.facebook.com/LittleBigIdeaGrants/videos/489877821411676/

Here is the Vibrant Communities website where you will find the grant application: http://vibrantelkhartcounty.org/littlebigideagrant/

Good luck!

Mrs. Jane Troup, who has served on the Goshen Board of School Trustees for 23 years, was honored recently at the Indiana School Board Association (ISBA) conference, where she was awarded the Outstanding Boardmanship Award.

Mrs. Jane Troup

Mrs. Troup has served in many capacities on the GCS school board, including 1 year as treasurer, 11 years as secretary, 4 years as vice president, and 4 years as president. Along with her board roles, Mrs. Troup has served on many district committees as well, including the Athletic Council (10 years), Policy Committee (15 years), Facility Task Force (5 years), and the Legislative Committee (10 years). In addition to her many GCS roles, Mrs. Troup also served on the Indiana School Board Association Board of Directors from 2006-2013. She was the ISBA Regional Director from 2006-2009, and was elected as the ISBA President from 2011-2012.

In Mrs. Troup’s nomination for the award, she was also recognized as a leader in promoting positive changes within Goshen Community Schools. She helped to establish and sustain the district Athletic Council during a time when the community and the district were interested in upgrading athletics and athletic facilities. She served on the Goshen High School Dollars for Scholars board, helping to raise funds and distribute many thousands of dollars in scholarships to Goshen High School seniors. Mrs. Troup was also recognized for her positive board behavior in the community, for encouraging the district to hold community meetings, and for organizing a variety of task forces over the years to encourage community involvement and two-way communication between the district and the community.

Mrs. Troup has volunteered many hours to GCS beyond her duties as a board member. She was part of a group that advocated for the bike path to the middle school, she served on the PTO, she helped build many musical and theater sets, and she has attended thousands of GCS athletic events and music programs, long after her own children were grown and gone from the school system.

For 23 years, Mrs. Troup has been instrumental in developing the long range plans for Goshen schools, including four major building projects. She is, and always has been, a key board leader who is plugged in to the community, and is open to listening to many different voices and opinions. She has been an exemplary board member; modeling for others what the proper board protocols are for any situation.

Mrs. Troup’s contributions and achievements in ISBA/NSBA (National School Board Association) include:

ISBA Awards Committee, 2003, 2004, and 2005

ISBA Policy Liaison, 2005, 2006

Provided ISBA Journal Article, 2006

ISBA Board of Directors, 2006-2013

ISBA Regional Director, 2006-2009

ISBA President, 2011-2012 (rotated through previous chairs to attain that seat)

ISBA Past President, 2012-2013

Has attended at least 22 ISBA Fall Annual Conferences, 1995-2017

Has attended 33 ISBA Regional Meetings from 1996-2017, Presiding 2006-2009

Has attended at least 15 ISBA Summer and Winter Academies from 2004-2015

Attended many other ISBA meetings and seminars, including Key Works, School Law, SMART Training, Effective Governance, and New Board Member Orientation

Has represented ISBA at the NSBA Leadership Conference at least six times from 2004-2015

Represented ISBA at NSBA Presidents Retreat 2010 and 2012

Attended the NSBA Annual Conference at least 19 times from 1996-2017

Served on the NSBA Nominating Committee

Mrs. Troup has made many contributions to Goshen Community Schools over the years and she brings a wealth of knowledge to board discussions. GCS appreciates her continued willingness to read, research, and learn more about education in order to advocate for students and staff members, and to commit herself to the bi-monthly board meetings for so many years!

As a way to involve students in celebrating National School Lunch Week (Oct. 9-13), GHS cafeteria manager Shannon Dellinger created a contest for students: She asked them to “design a healthy meal”. They had to keep in mind the nutritional requirements for a school lunch, but could choose something that they would like to see offered in the cafeteria. Apparently there was a great response, and GHS students had many terrific ideas!

And the winner of the lunch contest for National School Lunch Week is: Sophomore Ivette Quintero!  Her meal will be featured in the cafeteria on Friday, October 13^th.  The winning meal that she entered was posole served with sliced radish, shredded cabbage & cilantro, chasca with lime wedges, and rice & corn tortilla shells.  Ivette will receive two large pizzas as her prize.

Congratulations, Ivette! And thank you to Shannon for encouraging student creativity and honoring Ivette by serving her meal next week!

Friday, Oct. 13th update: Pictured below are GHS Cafeteria Manager Shannon Dellinger and Ivette Quintero, contest winner, with her winning menu.

Congratulations, Ivette!

Goshen Community Schools is in need of substitute teachers. 

Goshen Community Schools partners with PCMI and willSub to fill our substitute teacher and substitute paraprofessional positions.  The pay is competitive and varies depending on experience and degree.

If you are interested in working as a substitute, please visit www.pcmiservices.com and select the “Apply Now” link.

We look forward to having you as a part of our team!

As a part of the New Tech curriculum at Model, students learn their state standards/class content as they work on projects. For their first project of the year, the 4th grade classes at Model chose to study homelessness in the Goshen community. They gathered information from resources such as The Window of Goshen, the Goshen Interfaith Hospitality Network, and Faith Mission in Elkhart.

To begin their presentation, the students shared that their driving questions was “What responsibility do we have as citizens to help the homeless in our community?”

They took a field trip to The Window in Goshen, which offers free meals and other services to those in need. According to the director, the Model students volunteered 50 hours of work to the Window!

As they learned more about homelessness, and the amount of need in the community, the students asked the rest of the student body to help them collect items to donate to those in need. Students created a bulletin board and posters to inform the student body about their project, and encourage participation.

They gathered gently used books, toys, and clothing to donate, and bought new toiletry items for the donation drive as well. They made it a challenge between the classrooms by offering a popcorn party or an extra recess to whichever class brought in the most items for the donation drive.

For their presentation, they invited officials from The Window, GIHN, and Faith Mission, to give them a box filled with collected items (as a sample of some of the things they would be delivering to the agencies).

Students presented the boxes to each of the agencies.

Following the presentation to Faith Mission, their representative told the students that she appreciated their help, and that she was very impressed with how they were showing empathy for the homeless in the area. She said that she hopes they “continue to be agents of change”.

Mark your calendar! Wednesday, October 18, 6 to 8 pm at The Lerner Theatre’s Crystal Ballroom, 410 S Main St, Elkhart

The Vibrant Communities Steering Committee invites you to celebrate our many great places at the…

Implementation Program 2:

MAKING GREAT PLACES

Highlights of the evening:

1. Progress report – We’ve not been standing still! Many of our action proposals are already underway. From the arts to parks and trails, things are happening all around our community. Even since July, we’re on the move!
2. Little Big Idea Grant Update and Celebration – Do you have an idea about how to make a great place? We believe in the power of YOU! We believe little grants will help bring your BIG ideas to life.
3. Keynote Address – Great places don’t just happen. They’re made by people who care and are willing to try out new ideas. The Vibrant Communities Steering Committee is excited to host Dr. Katherine Loflin, the City Doctor, in Elkhart for a keynote address focusing on creative placemaking.
4. Tell us what you think! – What are your reactions to the program? At small tables we’ll talk about your ideas.

Building off last year’s momentum, the Vibrant Communities Steering Committee is ready for action. This year – from Middlebury to Nappanee, from Elkhart to Goshen, from Wakarusa to Bristol – is all about implementation. Together, we’ll identify our priorities, learn from successful experiences in other communities, unleash the creativity of our citizens and take another step toward making Elkhart County and its communities an even better place to live, work, and play.

Anyone who cares about the future of Elkhart County and its many great communities should attend.

Making a Great Place

Place matters. Whether it’s where we live, work or play, our environment has a profound impact on how we feel and how we invest. But great places don’t just happen. They’re made by people who care about the future, have faith their investments will be met with returns, and want to see their children thrive close to home. In her address, Dr. Loflin will cover all of the aspects of placemaking, the why, the how and the who. Join us, learn more, and be inspired to get involved with Vibrant Communities.

Dr. Katherine Loflin is an internationally award-winning placemaking consultant, speaker, and instructor in cities around the world. The “City Doctor”, is the Principal of Loflin Consulting Solutions. She has held advisory and leadership roles in some of the most groundbreaking and innovative placemaking projects, such as:

• City of Calgary’s Inspiring Strong Neighbourhoods Initiative (a Soul of Your Community project) Lead Consultant: The first government-led and funded project on place attachment
• Johnson C. Smith University’s Senior Research Fellow to the President and Principal Investigator in the Soul of Charlotte’s Northwest Corridor Project
• Lead Consultant and National Expert on the Knight Soul of the Community Project
• Lead Consultant on Miami Foundation’s Our Miami Project

She was also named Guest of Honor and Award Recipient at the prestigious international Place Marketing Forum 2014 in Aix en Provence, France. While there, she taught a Masters Class on Placemaking to global delegates. She is a two-time TEDx speaker on placemaking. She is an invited member of the global Placemaking Leadership Council and keynoted its inaugural event in 2013 and subsequent events in Stockholm, Sweden and Adelaide, Australia.

To register for the event (people are asked to register, but there is no cost), click on this link: http://vibrantelkhartcounty.org/makinggreatplaces/