Perry Central plans College and Career Week, spotlights Class of 2026 seniors

Perry Central’s June updates were less about wrapping up the year than about lining up the next one. The district’s live feed promoted College & Career Week, with Perry Central Elementary planning dress-up days all week and students set to show off future goals, favorite careers and school spirit. At the same time, the feed kept the Class of 2026 in view through a steady run of senior profile posts.

Those profiles named Charlize Lynch, Colt Sitzman, Aralyn Myers, Cooper Brown, Jake Hurm, Trent Wilbur, Dakoda Michel, Victor Harpenau, Hunter Lindsey, Luke Zellers, Nash Weyer, Kaidence Troutman and Alexis Troutman. For a small district, that kind of public spotlight does more than mark a season of graduation. It gives families a way to see individual students recognized by name while the school year is still turning into summer.

That matters in Perry County, where Perry Central Junior-Senior High School serves about 582 students in grades 7-12 and Perry Central Elementary School serves about 703 students in grades PK-6. Perry County itself has about 19,170 residents, was organized in 1814 and takes its name from War of 1812 hero Oliver Hazard Perry. From its campus in Leopold, Perry Central operates as one of the county’s most visible public institutions, so routine school posts often function as community bulletin board items as much as school updates.

The district’s college-and-career messaging also fits an established model. Perry Central says it is an Early College High School and partners with Ivy Tech Community College, which provides a College Connection Coach at the school. The district says students can earn the General Core Transfer 30, which transfers to Indiana public colleges and universities. A Governor’s Workforce Cabinet document says Perry Central offers 12 career pathways aligned to Ivy Tech certificates and industry-based certifications.

That background gives extra weight to the College & Career Week theme. Perry Central says its Early College High School approach has helped students complete the first year of college during high school and save tuition costs, including an estimate that 38% of the Class of 2022 finished that first year while still in high school and saved about $300,000. For younger students, dress-up days offered a simple entry point into those bigger options, whether college, a trade or another career path.

The calendar shows how quickly the district is turning the page. A 2025-26 school calendar placed the year from early August 2025 to late May 2026, with graduation tentatively listed for May 24, 2026. The announcements page points to summer school from June 1-19, 2026, and a back-to-school kickoff on August 3, 2026, from 5 to 7 p.m. The feed also said an anonymous community partner will provide free all-sports passes for Perry Central students in grades 7-12 for the 2026-27 school year, another sign that the district is already building toward the next season of student life.