Staff Report

AKRON — Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation will host its first-ever Corporation Art Show, showcasing student artwork from all Tippecanoe Valley schools.

The event will take place on Wednesday, April 30, from 4 to 7 p.m., will be hosted by Tippecanoe Valley High School and will become an annual celebration of student creativity moving forward, according to a news release from the school district.

This year’s art show will feature artwork created by students from Mentone Elementary School, Akron Elementary School, Tippecanoe Valley Middle School and Tippecanoe Valley High School, offering families and community members an opportunity to experience the talents of students across all grade levels.

The inaugural event was made possible through a KEYS Grant award, which supported the development and launch of this corporation-wide arts initiative. The grant reflects Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation’s continued commitment to enriching educational experiences and expanding opportunities in the arts, the release states.

“Art plays a vital role in student expression, creativity, and learning,” said Ashlie Schlemmer, director of communications. “We are excited to bring our schools together for this special event and to celebrate the incredible work our students are doing every day.”

Families, friends and community members are invited to attend.

Light refreshments will be available during the event.

For more information, contact Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation.

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AKRON — Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation is proud to announce a special recognition ceremony honoring Mr. Gene Hughes for an extraordinary 50 years of commitment, leadership, and service to TVSC athletics.

TVSC invites the community to join in recognizing Hughes for his remarkable contributions and lifelong friendship to Tippecanoe Valley athletics during Saturday’s ceremony, the school district said in a news release.

The celebration will take place this Saturday, Jan. 31, before the 5 p.m. girls varsity basketball game against Wawasee.

For five decades, Hughes has served as a constant source of support,
care, and encouragement for Valley student‐athletes. His service began as an
athletic trainer, a role he held for 18 years, where he became a trusted presence on the sidelines and a vital resource for student health and safety.

Following his training career, he continued supporting students by driving
the athletics bus for another 18 years, ensuring teams traveled safely to
competitions across the region.

Hughes also made a significant impact as both a head and assistant coach for track. Known for his meticulous attention to detail, he kept stats and operated the scoreboard for the track program for many years. His dedication extended into basketball as well; when the junior varsity basketball coach required surgery, Hughes stepped in as interim head
coach to keep the team moving forward.

After retiring, Hughes continued giving back to the Valley community by
serving for six years as an Instructional Aide and Athletic Director at Akron
Elementary School, further demonstrating his lifelong commitment to students.

In addition to his school roles, Hughes worked as an EMT. One of his most
meaningful memories came during a wrestling match in which a student
suffered a serious neck injury. Drawing on his EMT training, Mr. Hughes
responded quickly and with expert care, preventing further harm and
ensuring the athlete received the urgent attention he needed.

When asked what he has enjoyed most about his decades with TVSC athletics, Hughes said, “Being with the kids and trying to encouragethem to do the best they could.”

Beyond his athletic roles, Hughes has been a guiding force for Special Olympics at TVSC, organizing events for more than 20 years and creating opportunities for athletes of all abilities to shine. Even today, he remains a familiar and beloved presence at TVSC sporting events, often attending alongside his daughter, Teri.

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By Dan Spalding
News Now Warsaw

MENTONE — Rita Price took in the moment without saying a word.

The sports broadcasting legend who has spent 50 years providing play-by-play, insights and heartfelt analysis for Tippecanoe Valley High School sports, found herself Friday night sitting on the basketball court named after her — The Rita Price Simpson Court — absorbing speeches acknowledging her place in the school's history.

[caption id="attachment_105624" align="alignright" width="475"] Standing behind Rita Price, from left, are Girls Basketball Coach Rebekah Parker, Football Coach Steve Moriarty, Athletic Director Sam Sturtevant, and Boys Basketball Coach Joe Luce. News Now Warsaw photo by Dan Spalding.[/caption]

The 82-year-old Price, who continues to work for WRSW radio, heard a series of short speeches from Girls Basketball Coach Rebekah Parker, Boys Basketball Coach Joe Luce and Football Coach Steve Moriarty as well as compliments from a spokesman for 3rd District Congressman Marlin Stutzman whose comments were entered into the Congressional record earlier in the week.

Price’s sports broadcasting career began in 1975 and paralleled the emergence of Indiana girls high school sports.

Parker praised Price’s talents.

[caption id="attachment_105625" align="alignright" width="370"] Free shirts honoring Rita Price were available to everyone at Friday's game. News Now Warsaw photo by Dan Spalding.[/caption]

“You are so good at what you do, it’s absolutely like you bring the game to life, like you're right there watching it,” she said.

Luce and Parker both conveyed messages from Indiana sports dignitaries and several former standout players for Valley, including Trey Eaton, the boys basketball's all-time scoring leader.

Eaton's message: "Rita, your voice was more than just commentary. It is the heartbeat of every Valley basketball game, the soundtrack of Valley’s greatest moments, and the steady presence through every high and low throughout the last 4,000-plus games. Thank you for everything you’ve done for Valley.” 

Moriarty talked about the bond his family shares with Rita and her family and the far-reaching impact her words have had.

“From the back streets of Burket, all the way to Athens, Sevastapol, even to Atwood and the main streets in Akron — and even the Java Jacks with your Pink Flamingo — they’ve always been there for you and you’ve been there for us. You’ve been embedded in our community.”

He added, “Those crisp fall nights, you have (been) the voice of Death Valley Football. You are the voice of Death Valley Football.”

Pat Miller, representing Stutzman’s office, expressed appreciation for Price's legacy.

Miller reminded the audience that Price has been with WRSW radio for 65 years and is a Hall of Fame inductee with the Indiana High School Basketball, Indiana Broadcasters Association, Kosciusko County Basketball — and on top of that — is a former Woman of the Year recipient with Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce

"That's quite a milestone and Rita is truly a remarkable woman," Miller said.

Mentone sits in the middle of Indiana's 2nd Congressional District which is represented by Rudy Yakym.

While Stutzman's Third District covers northeast Indiana, Miller explained afterward that the two Congressional offices agreed to allow Stutzman to honor Price because the old 3rd District used to include the school before redistricting years ago.

Shirts commemorating Price's impact on Valley sports were distributed before the game and worn by fans, staff and the basketball team during warm-ups.

The ceremony was held shortly before the start of the varsity game against Huntington North, which was won by Tippecanoe Valley, 58-38.

Asked why she chose not to address the crowd, Price said she was eager to get the game started.

After Friday night’s game, She and her broadcast partner, Baylen Hite, would be headed to Logansport Saturday morning to cover all three games of the girls semi-state that includes Whitko for the first time in school history.

Price downplayed her legacy just a bit.

"It is true, if you stay around long enough, good things will happen to you," Price said.

"I'm very humbled by all of it," she said. "You know, I never did this for that, but it sure is nice."

[gallery columns="1" size="full" ids="105617,105630,105620,105613,105656,105621"]

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AKRON — Tippecanoe Valley High School announced its valedictorian for the 2024-25 school year is Mercedes Herrera, and the salutatorian is Mackaylie Costello.

Mercedes is the daughter of Ignacio Herrera and Mercedes Rios De Herrera, of Akron.

Outside the classroom, Mercedes has been actively involved in Youth Council, a faith-based organization that has helped develop her leadership and commitment to serving others.

She has also participated in the Spanish Club and competed on the Mock Trial team as a junior.

After graduation, Mercedes plans to attend Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame. She is still working on figuring out what to study.

Ignacio said finding out his daughter was valedictorian felt great. Ignacio and wife, Mercedes, found out the news a few days prior, and Ignacio said it was hard to keep it a secret. Ignacio said his daughter has always been a straight-A student and they hoped she would continue on in that journey.

Mother Mercedes said she and Ignacio were very happy and very thankful for a good school and all her daughter’s teachers.

Mackaylie is the daughter of Ryan and Addie Costello, Mentone.

Mackaylie has been involved in volleyball and softball for all four years, as well as student council, student council leadership, National Honor Society and Sunshine Society. She has also devoted her time to various community service projects.

After high school, Mackaylie plans to attend Purdue University, Fort Wayne. She is still figuring out what to study.

Ryan said he and Addie are very proud of Mackaylie. She’s a smart and determined kid and has fun with a nice set of friends. He said it’s enjoyable to be her parent.

Mackaylie was awarded top student in middle school and her sister, Malaynie, was valedictorian four years ago.

Mercedes and Mackaylie both said it was cool to be named valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively. They said when they looked at their grades, they could see their rank, so they weren’t necessarily surprised by the news.

“We are incredibly proud of Mercedes and Mackaylie for their hard work and dedication throughout their years at Tippecanoe Valley,” said Brandon Kresca, principal of Tippecanoe Valley High School in a news release from Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation. “Their perseverance, leadership, and commitment to excellence serve as an inspiration to their peers and the entire Valley community.”

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AKRON — Teachers, coaches, administrators and students were excited to show the public the renovations and additions to Tippecanoe Valley High School during an open house on Sunday.

Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation Superintendent Blaine Conley said planning began in 2022 with public meetings to gather input from not only school personnel but also from the community on what the needs for the facility were.

They knew the pool needed to be renovated.

Wanting to expand the agriculture program, having added a second teacher a few years ago, Conley said, “We wanted to provide a really improved instructional space for those two teachers.” 

The weight room was expanded, and a multi-purpose room will give the wrestling team a place to work and practice to expand their program.

“We were able to get all those different components into this project,” he said. “The auditorium was something that had been discussed for a long time, and we knew that there will be community events out here. And, obviously, the student events with our choir, theater and band. There will be more people able to come out and watch our kids compete and participate in those different activities.”

The project is very close to being completed. The $31 million in renovations and new construction is a tax rate-neutral project, Conley said.

One of the new spaces is the weight and fitness room, along with new locker rooms, to the right of a new entry.

Brandon Webster, strength and conditioning coach, said, “The old weight room was about 2,000 square feet. This is about 5,000 square feet, and we added 15 racks, so now we can have class sizes of 60 in here training at one time. So it’s just a little bit more efficient and, obviously, we’ve got a little bit more toys to play with to kind of help lead the student-athletes to a better future.”

Along with the weights, there are some cardio machines, med balls and “all sorts of fun stuff,” he said.
Of the people he sees during the day, Webster said about 90% are athletes.

Since opening in February, the weight and fitness room has just been open to students to let them break in the new equipment. Starting Nov. 11, it will be opened to the public, Conley said. Hours will be 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. People can enter the north door.

Across the hall from the weight and fitness room is the newly constructed stage and auditorium.

Thomas Boys, director of vocal music and theater arts, said the new stage at 48 feet is wider than the old state was at about 30 feet. Stage depth is also bigger, and over 600 people can be seated in the updated chairs.

“In here, we’re on all LED lighting,” he said, and they don’t have to climb a ladder to change the color gels on the lights. It’s all on the keyboard system up in the booth. 

“Everything is larger,” Boys said, including the wing space. “We can have larger groups. If any outside groups wanted to come and do a concert, or any kind of performance, I think we’re able to accommodate almost any normal-size production.”

There’s dressing rooms for boys and girls, as well as a green room for performers to do their hair and makeup.

The first production that will make use of the stage is Valley’s Got Talent at 7 p.m. Nov. 7. Two weeks after that will be the fall play, “Circus Olympus.” Show times are 7 p.m. Nov. 21 and 2 p.m. Nov. 23.

Boys said they’re getting training on the lights and sound this week.

Janell Riner, band director for the past 26 years, said the auditorium is acoustically designed for performances.

“It’s going to boost our sound - not necessarily make us louder, but the audience is going to be able to hear with absolute precision everything we do, which is really exciting,” she said. “The band will be able to hear themselves better. That makes you a better musician.”

She said it’ll give the band program a boost with exposure, which she said will be great.

“I would think, for the parents, it would be really, really exciting to come and watch their kids in a place like this. Behind the scenes, we know how hard the kids work, but then to get them out here, in this place, it just really, really highlights all the work that they’ve put into it. So, as a parent, I would be very excited to see my kid on this stage,” she stated.

The pool has been renovated and looks like new.

Scott Whetstone, boys and girls swim coach, said he swam at the old TVHS pool for age group and in high school.

“It’s a huge update. Much needed. But it’s been a lot of change and a lot of updates, with the bleachers, obviously. Getting the pool re-tiled. A whole new circulation system, all the stuff they did to improve to just get us up and running,” he said.

It’s still a six-lane pool, but there is an updated digital scoreboard. There’s a new timing system and inlines.

“Everything refurbished and new,” Whetstone stated. “We’re hoping to bring in some kids, that’s what we’re trying to do - help the program. Obviously, a new facility should help. Trying to get some numbers up and trying to get things moving along.”

The girls swim season starts today, Monday, Oct. 28, while the boys start Nov. 11.
He thanked the school board and everyone who helped make the pool a reality.

Conley said there will be open time for the pool for the public, with that information to be posted on their Facebook page.

Nathan Shewman, head wrestling coach, said the dedicated wrestling room will have mats on the floor from wall to wall. While there won’t be any competitions held in the room, he said it’ll just be for practice.

“With girls wrestling being sanctioned this year, that’s going to increase the number of kids we have in here at any given time for practice. It’ll be nice to have a place of our own finally,” he stated.

Luke Tucker, FFA president, and Aaron Backus, FFA secretary, highlighted the new agriculture space in the school.

“A lot of the stuff in here is new, more modern. With the shop stuff, it’ll help us learn the more modern ways to do stuff. There’s a lot of more new stuff that we didn’t have in our old one,” Backus said.

The FFA also has its own office for meetings.

In the new shop are all new welding booths and welders, which “is a big upgrade from what we had,” Tucker said. “And we have all new tools, tool chests, all that type of stuff.” He said the shop is a lot nicer.

Michael Jones, one of two TVHS agriculture teachers, said four years ago they added a second ag teacher, Hope Slagle, after student enrollment in the ag program increased.
“When we moved back here (from the north side of the school to the south), they built us two brand new classrooms, which are wide open. Lots of lab space so we can do more labs. And then a new ag shop for my ag mechanics classes,” he stated. 

The ag classes are closer to the woods, which they use a lot. The cattle operations also are back there.

Jonathan Tinkey, esports coach at Valley, and player Jacob Scacco showed off the new esports room.

“Esports stands for electronic sports. It is competition of different video games, usually team-based,” Tinkey said. “... Players compete against different schools in getting different objectives in a map.”

He said esports help students with teamwork and thinking on their feet. In many matches, they can be won or lost on a quick decision. Valley has 30 students currently in esports and they’re divided into four different games.

Scacco has been playing esports for two years. He said what he likes about it are the connections he makes. His best friend plays with him and esports gives them something to talk about and learn about each other. He said he’s also made a lot of friends through the games.

Brandon Kresca, TVHS principal, summarized the renovation project by stating, “It’s new opportunity ... We’ve just been anticipating this completion so that we can have access to all these spaces for our different groups - our fine arts departments, our athletic departments, our agriculture departments.  So many different groups are getting their programs enhanced by these different spaces.”

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AKRON — Tippecanoe Valley High School announced its valedictorian for the 2023-24 school year is Kaylynn Miller, and salutatorian is Caroline Stump.

Kaylynn is the daughter of Jill and Steve Miller, Mentone.

Kaylynn was in cheerleading for three years, on student council four years, National Honor Society, Sunshine Society, Mock Trial, Kosciusko Youth Leadership Academy, theater and youth group.

She plans on attending Indiana Wesleyan University and studying political science/pre-law.

“It’s really, really exciting,” Kaylynn said about being valedictorian. “It’s something I’ve been working towards for a really long time, obviously. But it just feels good that all that hard work wasn’t for nothing. And I feel really grateful to tell all the people who supported me that.”

Jill said when Kaylynn was in sixth grade and her teacher asked the class to set a goal for themselves, Kaylynn set the goal of becoming valedictorian.

“And she’s never lost sight of that. She’s never forgotten. She’s worked really hard. She’s set her priorities, made sacrifices and I’m just thrilled she got to achieve it. We’re thrilled,” Jill said.

Caroline is the daughter of Donna and Herb Stump, Silver Lake.

Caroline has participated in NHS, Student Council, Mock Trial, Sunshine Society, KYLA and theater.

She plans on going to Indiana University - Bloomington to study international law and institutions.

“It’s really nice (to be named salutatorian), especially accomplishing it along with my two best friends,” who are Kaylynn and Caroline’s twin sister Katelyn, who placed third in the class. “I’m grateful for my parents and all my friends,” Caroline said.

Donna said she and Herb were proud Caroline kept going and kept working to the best of her abilities.

“We always told her we supported her working to her best abilities, no matter what. We didn’t expect her to be number one. We just wanted her to do her best,” Donna said.

Tippecanoe Valley High School Principal Brendan Kresca said, “Here at Tippecanoe Valley, we’re very proud of Kaylynn and Caroline. They’re excellent representatives of Tippecanoe Valley High School just in the amount of work it takes to be successful and to dedicate to your academics. And they have no doubt demonstrated that over their four years at schools. So we’re very thankful for these two.”

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AKRON -- Tippecanoe Valley High School will host a public pep rally for the girl’s Basketball team as they prepare to compete at the IHSAA Semi-State Tournament.

The team moved forward with its regional victory on Saturday.

Supporters are urged to wear green.

The rally will be at 2:40 p.m. Friday in the TVHS Gym. Visitors should enter through door 23, which is the main gym door.

Visitors are asked to arrive and be seated by 2:30 p.m.

Here is a Times-Union recap of last week's game.

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Superintendent Brett Boggs tells News Now Warsaw he received a letter of resignation on Wednesday from Principal Michael Bendicsen.

Bendicsen was the principal at TVHS for 3 years.

Boggs says the move was somewhat expected because Bendicsen has his doctorate and had expressed interest in working in a central office administration role.

Bendicsen has been approved for such a role at Fort Wayne Community Schools. Boggs says Bendicsen will be working with their alternative education program.

Tippecanoe Valley Schools has posted the TVHS principal position and will be taking applications to fill the role.

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Students in the ag department's Farm to Fork Program had the unique experience of getting to raise cattle at school. The first four steers were processed and served for lunch in the high school cafeteria.

[caption id="attachment_22809" align="alignnone" width="300"] (Photo Supplied / Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation )[/caption]

The "Viking burgers" were just the start of what's to come for the program. Ag Director Michael Jones tells News Now Warsaw they have a vision for how the program will move forward.

"Everything's built out there, it's going to switch to the animal science and econ part: how much feed are they eating, how much are they eating on a daily basis, how many pounds of feed do they have to eat to gain a pound of weight, those types of things," explains Jones. "We're going to continue to probably get different breeds in and see how they react, how fast they grow or how slow they grow."

A senior student that participated in the program says the idea came about in American Studies class.

"We built the fenced-in area and the little shed for them this year, and then we brought them in, we raised them up, feed them out...we really had a good time with it," she says. "The meat from them was actually really good."

Though some students have farm experience at home, not all of them do.

"Probably less than 50% of our kids are not growing up on farms that are in ag classes so they're learning in here because they can't get it at home," explains Ag Director Jones. "None of them that I know of raised any cattle so they're getting a new experience there."

[caption id="attachment_22810" align="alignnone" width="300"] (Photo Supplied / Tippecanoe Valley School Corporation )[/caption]

Several students attended the processing of the meat, which was then used in school lunches Monday. The initiative aims to not only improve hands-on education for students, but also offer them higher quality meals in the school's cafeteria.

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