Local author and Tippecanoe Valley High School graduate Truman Beaver has donated a copy of his latest book to the TVHS library.

Beaver stopped by the school on Dec. 12th to present his book Off Course, describing it as an action packed World War II adventure on the high seas.

The 1995 TVHS graduate went on to study at both Indiana University and Ivy Tech Community College. After college, Beaver worked in broadcasting, marketing, and the industrial chemical industry. He is also an entrepreneur operating his own sign shop, DJ service, and campground.

For more information on Beaver’s background and books, visit the Pen It! Publications, LLC website.

Pictured above from left to right are Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation Superintendent Brett Boggs, Author Truman Beaver, and Tippecanoe Valley Library Director Andrea Michel.

Mill Creek Church in Rochester made a large donation to the Tippecanoe Valley Boomerang Backpacks program on Sunday, Dec. 3rd.

Pastor Chris Beall presented TVHS Life Skills Instructor Emma Coppes with a check for $4,600.

Tippecanoe Valley Boomerang Backpacks is a program in which the weekend nutritional needs of approximately 160 children/families from Akron Elementary School and Mentone Elementary School are met by the provision of food and snacks sent home in a backpack each Friday afternoon. Students receive enough food for the entire weekend. Boomerang Backpacks helps eliminate hunger and allows students to concentrate better on learning throughout the week.

Anyone interested in donating to Tippecanoe Valley Boomerang Backpacks may do so by contacting Tippecanoe Valley High School at (574) 598-2100.

Pictured are Mill Creek Church Pastor Chris Beall and TVHS Life Skills Instructor Emma Coppes on Sunday, Dec. 3, after the announcement was made.

The Indiana Association of School Principals recently announced the Rising Stars of Indiana Class of 2019.

Each Indiana high school was invited to recognize up to four students currently in the 11th grade based on their academic achievement. According to the IASP, 1,025 high school juniors from 265 schools are being honored across the state.

Olivia Ellenwood, Elijah Holder, Shayleigh Shriver, and Dylan Wood were chosen by TVHS Principal Chad Cripe to represent Tippecanoe Valley High School.

Each student will receive a certificate as part of the honor during the Jan. 15^th school board meeting held at the Burket Educational Center. Also, at a later date, the Rising Stars of Indiana program’s college and university sponsors will receive a list of the students who indicated an interest in their school, along with the possible fields of study noted on their submission form.

For a full list of the Rising Stars of Indiana go to http://www.iasp.org/dsp/allstars/.

Pictured from left to right are Elijah Holder, Dylan Wood, Olivia Ellenwood, Shayleigh Shriver, and TVHS Principal Chad Cripe.

Tippecanoe Valley High School seniors and their parents can get their college planning questions answered at an upcoming financial aid event.

An informational meeting will take place at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 5, in the high school lecture room. The agenda will include an overview of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application process. INvestED, an organization that helps Hoosiers with the college planning process, will be on-site to answer questions.

Representatives from the Kosciusko County Community Foundation and the Northern Indiana Community Foundation will also be at the meeting to discuss scholarships and how students can apply for them.

All TVHS seniors and their parents should make plans to attend. The event is also open to students and parents from neighboring schools.

There is no charge to attend the event. Light refreshments will be served.

Written by Chad Cripe, principal at Tippecanoe Valley High School

As one of the newest members of the Tippecanoe Valley School Community, it is my pleasure and honor to write this article.  It has been a terrific start to the school year, and I am looking forward to ending the first semester strong.  At Tippecanoe Valley our mission is a commitment to student success through character, leadership and literacy.

I have been blessed with many outstanding mentors in my life, and as a former basketball coach, I turn to UCLA’s legendary Coach John Wooden and his teachings whenever I can.  Coach Wooden said, “Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, as your character is who you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.”  At Tippecanoe Valley High School, I have witnessed numerous examples of leadership from our staff and students.  While there have been too many examples of character and leadership to list, I thought I would share the amazing things that are being done in our Peers class led by Mr. Kris Walker.  These students are mentors for elementary and middle school students, conduct community service projects, and recently attended a training for Youth Mental Health First Aid in which they received recognition for their outstanding character and leadership.

At Tippecanoe Valley High School, we are also committed to student success through literacy.  This year we have developed and implemented a new Return to Instruction (RTI) program for any student that is lacking the skills necessary to be successful in the classroom and on the ISTEP+ exam.  We have built into the class schedule three days for extra Math support and three days of extra English support.  This has been a collaborative effort by all the teachers to help out and give our students the extra support they need.  I am extremely proud of all the teachers, especially the non-content area teachers that have taken a risk and stepped outside their normal areas to help ALL students learn.  I am very excited to see our scores come back this summer so that we can celebrate the success of everyone’s hard work.

Finally, in addition to further support our mission to promote student success, I am excited to announce that we are working hard to bring new dual credit and Advanced Placement courses to TVHS.  Our students will have more opportunities than they have ever had before, and our goal is to create a pathway in which a student can graduate from TVHS with enough college credits to begin their academics at any Indiana university as a sophomore.  Also, we will continue to work with the Warsaw Area Career Center to provide certifications in trades and other dual credit opportunities.  We will continue to focus on ensuring that every student has the skills they need to be successful in the 21^st century.  I am extremely proud to be a Viking and even prouder of our staff and students!  Go Vikings!!

Valley Insight is a recurring monthly article written by administrators on a variety of topics related to education and the Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation. Articles will be posted to the district’s website and also shared with the local media.