Author Archives: Keith Lang

Cattle now being raised on Tippecanoe Valley High School grounds

This entry was posted in News, TV High School on December 9, 2016 by Keith Lang.

Cattle are officially being raised on school grounds at Tippecanoe Valley High School. The delivery of four steers on December 8 was the last major piece of the school’s Farm-to-Fork program to come together.

Dale Miller raises cattle on his farm near Claypool and sold the steers to the school at a discounted price. He spent his entire life around agriculture and wanted to be involved with the program as soon as he heard about it.

“It’s very applicable for a rural school because a lot of the students are probably involved in agriculture in some degree. They now get hands-on experience working directly with this,” said Miller, who is also a Tippecanoe Valley graduate.

The steers are a mix of both Angus and Hereford breeds. They will be raised to a certain weight and then processed at This Old Farm in Colfax, Indiana, a USDA-inspected processing facility.

“It’s really exciting that they’re doing this. I think it’s going to be a good program. It really makes sense for kids to see how this works from A to B,” said Miller.

The Farm-to-Fork initiative started as an idea in a political economic studies class about how to put a better quality meal on school cafeteria tables. The idea eventually turned into a plan to raise calves on school grounds, process the meat, and then use the meat in school lunches.

Curriculum will now be designed around the program for a variety of subjects. Community partnerships and grant money will be looked at to sustain Farm-to-Fork in the future.

TVSC Safe Schools Hotline

This entry was posted in Akron, Mentone, TV High School, TV Middle School on August 25, 2016 by Keith Lang.

As the school year begins, Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation would like to remind students and parents of a valuable resource, the Safe Schools Hotline. This hotline can be used to report threats of violence, bullying, suicide, theft, gang activity, drug use, vandalism or any other concern at any TVSC school by calling (574) 387-3825. When you place a call to the hotline, you will be asked to leave a message including any relevant information to the situation. Your message will start a chain reaction that will immediately reach all building administrators and the school’s resource officer by phone and email. Complete call transcripts will be included so all administrators are aware of the full situation. From there, administrators will evaluate the threat and take appropriate action.

You may also text the Safe Schools Hotline; message and data rates may apply. Your message will immediately be transmitted to all building administrators and the school’s resource officer and will be handled appropriately.

In a world where the unthinkable happens somewhere nearly every day, tools such as the TVSC Safe Schools Hotline are needed to help protect students and staff from a tragedy that no parent, teacher, or school administrator wants to deal with – ever. If you have first-hand knowledge of a potentially harmful situation, please call or text the TVSC Safe Schools Hotline at (574) 387-3825.

Bibler Memorial Press Box Dedication at First Valley Home Game

This entry was posted in TV High School on August 22, 2016 by Keith Lang.

Friday night, hundreds of Tippecanoe Valley fans poured through the gates to take in the first home football game of the year. Even though the Vikings suffered a tough 47-0 loss to Culver Military Academy, there was a bigger story taking place at the field. For one thing, Valley fans took their seats to watch the game on the west side of the field, a distinct change from last year. Facing east, the new bleachers provided an incredible view of the game. Even more important than the new bleachers, however, was what stood directly behind them – the new Scott Bibler Memorial Press Box, which commemorates the life of long-time Valley football coach Scott Bibler. Scott passed away in a plane crash in early October 2015; his wife, Stephanie, and daughters Chelsea and Megan knew almost immediately that they wanted to honor his life by donating a new press box to the school and football program he loved so much.

Throughout the day leading up to the game, clouds hovered and threatened rain. At kickoff, though, the sky was clear. Sitting in the press box and surveying the field through a large panel of seamless glass, WRSW radio announcer Rita Price remarked emphatically, “It’s not going to rain on this. This is Scott’s parade tonight.”

And Scott’s parade it was. At halftime, Stephanie, Megan, and Chelsea were joined on the field by friends, family, and Tippecanoe Valley staff for a ribbon-cutting ceremony officially dedicating the press box to Scott. Those in the stands rose to their feet to honor a man and family who have been a large part of their community for so many years. Through the new press box, Scott Bibler will continue to touch the lives of those in the Tippecanoe Valley community for years to come.

Pictured (L to R): Stephanie, Chelsea and Megan Bibler stand in front of a memorial wall inside the new press box during an open house on Saturday morning.

Valley HS Athletic Passes Available Now!

This entry was posted in TV High School on August 22, 2016 by Keith Lang.

Do you love Valley Athletics? We know you do! And once again this year, Tippecanoe Valley High School is offering athletic passes that will let you attend as many home Valley High School athletic events as you want throughout the year (excluding tournaments) for one low price! Pricing is as follows:

Adult All-Sport Pass – $75

Senior Citizen (Age 60+) All-Sport Pass – $55

Student (Grades 1-12) All-Sport Pass – $45

At basketball games, pass holders will be in unreserved seating.

Individual season tickets for each sport will be sold as in the past.

Viking Discount Cards Available Now!

This entry was posted in TV High School, Uncategorized on August 15, 2016 by Keith Lang.

The Viking Football team will once again be selling Viking Discount Cards this year. Many local businesses, like Bourbon Street Pizza, Subway, and Jarrety’s, plus many others, are offering great discounts! The cards are being sold for $10, and all proceeds will go directly to the TVHS and TVMS Football programs. If you would like to purchase a card, find a high school or middle school football player, Coach Holsopple, Mr. Cooper, or any member of the football staff.

Full Steam Ahead on Akron Elementary Project

This entry was posted in Akron on August 10, 2016 by Keith Lang.

What a difference a month can make!

In mid-July the construction at Akron Elementary, which will culminate in a new gymnasium, cafeteria, and kitchen for the building, not to mention new classrooms and courtyards, had been underway for almost two months. Foundations had been laid and everyone was hard at work, but the visible portions of the project had yet to take shape.

Fast forward to August 8, the first day of school for Tippecanoe Valley. The landscape of the project has altered considerably. The gymnasium walls have begun to go up. At their highest point, they stretch almost twenty feet into the sky, and roughly sixteen more feet will be added before the project’s completion. The gym floor’s concrete base has been poured, and the kitchen area is beginning to take shape. Machinery whirs and workers bustle around the area, working hard to make sure the project stays its course.

At the beginning of the school day Brandon Wolf, site manager for the Akron project, gave a presentation to all Akron Elementary students, educating them about safety at the building as the project progresses throughout the school year. The project is expected to be fully completed in December 2017. With sixteen months between now and then, it is sure to be exciting to watch progress being made in leaps and bounds each month.

Making the Makerspace

This entry was posted in Akron on August 10, 2016 by Keith Lang.

Pictured: Akron Elementary students Sarah and Sydney show off their magnetic architecture creation at one of the school library’s many educational Makerspace stations.

As children prepare for school to start at Tippecanoe Valley, the corporation is also preparing activities to engage and excite them. One of the programs that is sure to do this is Akron Elementary’s new Makerspace in its school library. The Makerspace will focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) capabilities by providing children with ample opportunities to observe these concepts in action and, in some cases, engage with them through various stations set up around the library. Some of these areas include an ant farm, rotating solar system model, microscope station, and Lego architecture area. There are even art-related stations, including ones dedicated to origami, sewing, and crocheting. In total, there are nearly two dozen activities from which students can choose.

Each of the stations is arranged in a way that encourages children to not only engage with the activity at hand, but dive deeper into their area of interest with books related to the activity set up right at the station. Some of the ideas for stations came from both parents and students. One fourth grader expressed a passion for video game design and suggested that the program include a station devoted to this interest. When school resumes, other students sharing his interest will be able to explore electronic game design with computers dedicated to the activity. This is only one example of the Makerspace fueling students’ passion for learning.

Students will be able to utilize the Makerspace during part of their regular library time; classes may also reserve some of the activities during class time to reinforce what they are learning in the classroom.

Akron Elementary’s Makerspace was made possible by a generous grant from the Dekko Foundation. School librarian Andrea Michel could not contain her excitement about the space and her appreciation for the grant funding that made it possible. “We are very thankful and blessed to have received this grant from the Dekko Foundation,” she said happily. Final touches are being put in place before school resumes on Monday, August 8, and soon, Akron Elementary students will be even better equipped to be outstanding today, tomorrow, and beyond.

Teachers and Staff Honored at Tippecanoe Valley School Board Meeting

This entry was posted in News on July 18, 2016 by Keith Lang.

On Monday night, July 11, the conference room of the administration building of Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation was filled with people excited to honor teachers and staff members for their years of outstanding service. Micah Lukens, a thirteen-year lead teacher of the alternative education program at the Burket Educational Center, was recognized as one of the corporation’s World Class Teachers. Throughout his career, which began at the same time the Burket Educational Center opened, Lukens has touched the lives of 284 students who have graduated from the program.

Recent retiree, Wayne Landis, was also recognized for his 30 years of service as a Math teacher at Tippecanoe Valley Middle school. Landis received a glass apple and gift card to commemorate his years of teaching.

Teachers were not the only honorees at Monday’s meeting: both Cheryl Simons, Tippecanoe Valley Middle School’s attendance and athletic secretary, and Lyle Butt, the corporation’s head bus mechanic, were recognized for their hard work and dedication and presented with the TVSC Pillar Award for Outstanding Support Staff. Simons, who was unable to attend, has been a part of the corporation since 1985; Butt has been ensuring the safety of the corporation’s buses for twenty years. Everyone in attendance expressed their gratitude to these teachers and staff for their dedication to the corporation and its students.

Pictured, left to right, are Micah Lukens, TVSC School Board President Dave O’Brien, and Lyle Butt.

Pictured, left to right, are TVSC School Board President Dave O’Brien and Wayne Landis.

United Way Day of Caring Comes to Tippecanoe Valley

This entry was posted in News on July 18, 2016 by Keith Lang.

As part of the United Way of Kosciusko County’s Day of Caring initiative, a group of Zimmer Biomet employees visited Tippecanoe Valley Middle School, transforming two areas into new health and fitness rooms. Other groups appeared at different area schools throughout the day, painting the bleachers at Mentone Elementary, the curbs and some exterior doors at Tippecanoe Valley High School, as well as the conference room, stage walls, and bleachers at Burket Educational Center.

Pictured are the newly-completed health and fitness rooms at Tippecanoe Valley Middle School, which are sure to be well-used.

Tippecanoe Valley Student Immunization Information

This entry was posted in News on July 1, 2016 by Keith Lang.

SCHOOL NEWS RELEASE

July 1, 2016

August 8^th is the deadline for all Tippecanoe Valley students to have immunizations completed for the 2016-17 school year. Students in all grades are required to meet the minimum immunization requirements, determined by the Indiana State Department of Health, including children three to five years of age attending a preschool special education program, childcare, or preschool within any Tippecanoe Valley school. In Indiana the only exemptions allowed are for medical or religious reasons. Each exemption has specific rules for filing an exemption with the school.

When students enroll in a school for the first time parents must provide the school with a written immunization record. As new immunizations are required for students in sixth grade and twelfth grade, parents must also provide the school with written documentation that the updated shots have been completed.

The complete list of immunizations required for the new school year can be found on the Indiana CHIRP and Tippecanoe Valley websites. Questions about school immunizations can be directed to the school nurse in each building. The school nurses will be available during school registration from noon to 8:00 p.m. on July 26 and 28.

Author Archives: Keith Lang

Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation Launches New Website