Like clockwork, summer is picking up where spring left off and is taking with it taking with it hundreds of exhausted seniors, to be replaced by fall’s latest batch of incoming freshmen. Countless numbers of students have come and gone through the halls of Noblesville, and this year’s group is no different. Yet as time passes, and generation after generation leaves the building for the final time, Noblesville High School remains, a constant in an ever-changing world. The school will look different next year, as it always does, but it will be the same school students left in the spring. The same smiling faces will greet everyone in the morning and the same friends from each year before will be in the halls. The 2025-26 school year will bring many changes: new construction will be finished, new coaches will take over some of the most prestigious sports teams in the state, and a new principal will be working to fill the shoes of Craig McCaffrey. Exciting times lie ahead for the Millers in the near future. As the year winds down, it is time to take a moment to reflect on the academic and athletic success of the current year, take a peek ahead at the new school year to come and the changes it will bring, and close the book on the class of 2025.
Constructing The Future
Since the first breaking of ground in January of 2024, Noblesville High School has been focused on what the corporation calls an “academic expansion plan,” the largest addition to the campus since the addition of the fresh- man center in 2014.
“[We are] adding much needed square footage to the building, especially for programs that were previously underserved,” assistant principal Kevin Stuckwisch said. “[The new space includes] a journalism classroom, a video studio, a wrestling practice facility, an Athletic Office, and a Bistro area,”
These additions will bring previously off-campus classes into the school as well.
“As a result we have almost 50 students signed up to take welding, and over 70 enrolled in construction trades,” Stuckwisch said.
According to Stuckwisch, concerns regarding the construction have been addressed with thorough consideration of all department needs and careful prioritization.
“Change is never easy,” Stuckwisch said. “It was important to establish guidelines to help me stay focused and objective in my decision-making.”
Saying Goodbye
For the first time since 2019, NHS will be looking for a new principal. Craig McCaffrey is currently wrapping up his 20th year at NHS, recording a three-year stint as a chemistry teacher, 12 years as an administrator, and serving as the school’s principal for the last 5 years.
“I spent so much time here, and my kids went here,” McCaffrey said. “My heart will always be in Noblesville.”
The love McCaffrey has for Noblesville and NHS is some- thing that was felt by many during his time as principal. One student who felt the love was NHS senior football player Clayton Bensinger.
“It was always fun to see him at our games trying to get the student section going and supporting us,” Bensinger said. “That just shows he cares about us.”
The community was made aware of McCaffrey’s departure in an April 29 email, after the Hamilton Southeastern school board officially confirmed that McCaffrey was approved to be the next principal at Hamilton Southeastern High School.
“Since they sent out the announcement, it’s just been an out- pour of support and love from the community,” McCaffrey said.
His replacement is currently undecided. But when considering the future of NHS, McCaffrey had just one piece of advice for the principal who will follow him.
“Spend time with the students. Get out and get involved. Noblesville students are so nice and so cool to be around,” McCaffrey said. “My toughest days as principal are days where it’s all meetings and all adults. Then you get to spend time with the students again and remember why you do it all.”
A Look Back in Sports
At Noblesville High School, there’s one place that has seen a level of success that coach Mike Brady says “doesn’t happen in high school sports.” That place, the home of seven state championships in the past five years, is the soccer field. This year, both the boys and girls soccer teams continued their recent dominance—the boys continued their two-year undefeated streak into late September, and the girls etched their names into history as state champions for the third year in a row. Both seasons proved bittersweet, however, as head coaches on both squads, Brady and Ken Dollaske, stepped down due to retirement and relocation respectively, ending an era at NHS.
“You just know in your heart when it’s time for something to end. My coaching career has been like a roller coaster ride. It was fun and exhilarating,” Brady said.
“I enjoyed every moment of it, but like all rides, they come to an end, and I’m getting off this one with a huge smile on my face.”
For the girls in Brady’s program, the three-peat was a career-long journey and a year-long goal. Senior Bella Wyatt, after her final game as a Miller, felt this championship meant everything to her and her teammates.
“It was an honor to leave a legacy behind. It’s my senior year and most of the starters were seniors,” Wyatt said. “I couldn’t be more proud of this team and what they’re about.”
Soccer isn’t the only place where Noblesville found success during the 2024-25 school year, however. Both boys cross country and girls golf finished runner-up in their respective state finals, while the girls cross country team took home an H.C.C. championship trophy. Similarities between sports aren’t just measured in medals, as other sports programs saw major changes this year as well. When longtime football head coach Dave Sharpe stepped down from his position, his replacement was quickly found in former Carmel High School head coach John Hebert.
“I’m extremely excited to be part of a breakthrough with a program that is dying for it,” Hebert told the IndyStar. “I can’t wait to get to work and get to know each of the players on the team and start building.”
NHS Is Ready For 2025-26
And so, the 2024-2025 school year comes to a close, leaving a number of transformations behind, changes to people and places. According to Stuckwisch, the additional athletic and academic spaces are needed to manage the rate of growth and to provide opportunities for success for students. The community support since before these changes began, along with the energy from those directing these revisions, have the district’s leaders excitied for 2025-2026.
“There’s absolutely nothing I wouldn’t want to gladly show off and brag about the awesome things our kids [do] every day,” Noblesville Schools superintendent Daniel Hile said.
