Penn High School

Penn High School is a high school of well-populated scale in Mishawaka, Indiana, part of Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp, serveing 3,687 students in grades 9 through 12. By comparison, Indiana's public schools average about 816 students each, so Penn High School sits 352% above that benchmark.

Penn-Harris-Madison School Corp comprises 15 schools with combined enrollment of 11,329 students; Penn High School is among them.

On the student-mix side, Penn High School lists that 69% of the student body identifies as White; the rest comes out to 9% Hispanic, 9% Black, 7% multiracial, 6% Asian. That composition is broadly in line with St. Joseph County as a whole.

In terms of school funding signals, Penn High School lists 189 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 19.6:1. The state averages around 16.6:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. Around 31% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. That share is lower than St. Joseph County's rate of about 46%.

In the area at large, St. Joseph County reports that median household earnings sit near $66,868, 34% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 9% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, St. Joseph County runs 73 public schools (combined enrollment of about 35,614 students), of which Penn High School is one.

Schmucker Middle School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.2 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Penn High School.

The school occupies a bedroom-community site.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Penn High School has showed little movement, going from 3,726 students in 2018 to 3,687 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 74% to 69% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 22.8:1 in 2018 to 19.6:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.