Congratulations to CHS’s own Mark Peterson for being named the 2025 Indiana Career Development Professional of the Year. The head of the CHS Internship Program received the award from the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and Institute for Workforce Excellence at an Impact Award luncheon.
“It was a really neat honor. The Secretary of Education, Katie Jenner, was there. We had some big hitters there who were able to see what Mark does for Chesterton High School,” CHS principal Brent Martinson said.
Peterson, who is also the head football coach at CHS, has helped pair many current seniors to their internship employers and the program has grown under his leadership, with more and more kids entering the program every year.
“He does that extra mile stuff all the time and with everything he does. To me, he is one of the most invaluable educators we have here at Chesterton High School because of that mentality he has with everything he does,” Martinson continued.
A great way to distinguish between someone who deserves an award and someone who doesn’t is the way they carry themselves. Many people could be boastful or act entitled when they are in the position of Peterson, but nobody will hear him mention it as a bragging point.
“I’m glad he got recognized for all the hard work he does. He’s the last guy who would want the award, but he’s definitely the guy who should have gotten it,” Martinson added.
Another great thing about Peterson is that he has the same attitude in everything he does. As a coach, he always tells his players to never act entitled, even though they might be treated better in the school. He tells them that they should never act privileged toward any teacher or student. Peterson’s goal is the same in the internship program and with the football program: preparing high school students for their lives after high school.
This year, the internship program added girls head basketball coach Candy Wilson to their staff. Wilson fits well into the program as she has been around the community for so long.
“Mrs. Peterson and I were both point guards, and she was at Valpo and I was at Chesterton so I have known their family for a very long time, so it kind of circled around when this job opened up and I reached out and then Mrs. Peterson kind of got me started with this,” Wilson said.
Wilson went from Valparaiso and came back to Chesterton to coach this year. She is excited to be in a community of familiar faces. Her players will say that she has a great sense of humor. She is very thrilled to work with the Petersons, since they all come from similar backgrounds, and are now pretty close.
“Mrs. Peterson was an incredible basketball player. I don’t know if a lot of students know that, but she could probably still play,” Wilson said.
Wilson, who works with Coach Peterson on the daily, knows better than anyone how vital Peterson is to this program.
“He is so good at finding the best opportunity and then also you need to be able to adjust and adapt because he may need to change a placement for an environment that better suits a kid. He is constantly building more contacts and finding new opportunities so we can get the best experiences for our kids. His knowledge, experience, and background are just phenomenal” Wilson remarked.
Peterson certainly has a knack for adapting on the fly. During the Lake Central football game this season, Peterson took out his starting personnel group partway through the game and trusted his heavier, “hippos” personnel on offense. Chesterton won that game 17-16.
“He’s a wealth of knowledge and it’s incredible how much they have grown the program in such a short amount of time,” Wilson said.
Any current juniors interested in the program can talk with Coach Peterson in order to figure out the best opportunity for them their senior year. Fill out the application form on the Chesterton High School website in order to get entered into the program.
