Taya Spears, Senior - Third Place ($50) and Honorable Mention ($25)
Alaina Mauzy, Junior - Honorable Mention ($25)
Anne Buzzard, Freshman - Merit Recognition
"It is through the generous efforts of these sponsors that our athletes are provided with the best equipment and uniforms possible. We, the Athletic Department, are always appreciative of the support our corporate sponsors donate but this year we would like to thank you one more time for supporting our student-athletes. Thank you for helping make sports possible for our student- athletes.
This year the athletic department has 62 full sponsors. This year marks the 100 th year for Memorial Gym. The 67 year old floor was replaced this fall. Mr. Doug Corn and Mr. Tom McManus cut 12x12 inch pieces of the floor while Brittany Meek of M3 Custom Designs made the artwork for each Corporate Sponsor plaque for us to make this a special piece of memorabilia for them to take home tonight."
RCHS has a unique ability to earn money through Career and Technical Education (CTE) funding that we receive from the State due to the programming we can bring to our school.
Our Admin team has worked hard to develop programs that:
-Promote a targeted and individualized educational path
-Rush County has deemed to be in high demand
-Give students the opportunity to build their own future in Rush County
-Provide certifications that make students employable right after graduation
-Work as a funding source for the entire corporation.
This is just a portion of the state funding that we have increased in the past three years. As you can see from the chart, because of the 8 new programs that we have started in three years, we have seen a 140% increase in CTE Funding. From $250,000 the year before I arrived to a projected $600,000 this school year.
This funding does NOT just go back into the programs. These funds are deposited each year into the Education Fund to help support ALL District teachers.
Over many years, we have sent students to Whitewater Career Center to participate in many of their amazing programs. This has been an extremely beneficial partnership for our kids. However, this does come at a cost. We pay a tuition fee for each student and only receive a portion of that back in State CTE funding. Although well worth it, it does cost the corporation to send kids to WCC.
This brings me to the advantage of starting some of our own programs. CTE programs that we have started have cost the corporation $0 in tuition. We are able to gain revenue from in-house programs and generate money for the corporation.
At RCHS, we value data because it shows our trends from year to year. I have shown you the overall trend in State Funding brought in at RCHS, which has increased by $750,000 that goes directly toward all teacher raises in the corporation from the new programming at RCHS in just 3 years.
Now, here is a list of key things to look at when assessing a school:
Attendance Rate (94% or higher)
Graduation Rate
Dual Credit courses passed
SAT Performance
Diploma Strength
I want to focus on school-wide attendance. The State of Indiana has set the expectation that all students be present in school 94% of the school days. If kids are not here, they do not learn.
I created the bar graph comparing State Average attendance vs. RCHS attendance (2018–2026).
Key visual takeaways from the graph included in this post:
RCHS dropped sharply during COVID (2021) to about 27.9%, far below the state average.
Recovery began in 2023 when RCHS briefly exceeded the state average.
After my arrival (2024–2026) there is a major upward trend at RCHS:
2024: 53%
2025: 85%
2026: 93% (so far)
By 2025–2026, RCHS significantly outperforms the state average.
This has been accomplished in three ways:
Intentional focus on the attendance of students
Overhauling past practices on attendance procedures
Focus on building culture and school pride. Making RCHS a place kids want to be!
For more information, please click the link below:
https://www.rushville.k12.in.us/page/delay-and-closure-information
https://www.applitrack.com/rushville/onlineapp/JobPostings/view.asp?Category=Administration&AppliTrackJobId=414&AppliTrackLayoutMode=detail&AppliTrackViewPosting=1
