March 19, 2024

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Last Saturday, students and staff competed in a Student vs. Staff basketball tournament. The day was filled with exciting competition and laughs all around. Congratulations to the Senior Team for their victory over the staff!

Thank you to all the staff members who participated and chaperoned, and the students who helped organize this fun event.

The CAC office invites Sophomores and Juniors to join them for a college visit from the University of Pennsylvania. Meet Caroline Bormann, UPenn Admissions Representative, who will share information about the University of Pennsylvania and answer your questions. 

The Black Student Union is hosting a merch fundraiser for their culture show, Asante! Sweatshirts will be $25.00 and T-shirts will be $15.00. Sizes S-4XL are available. The items will be available for purchase on the following dates:

March 19: 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. (Cash Only)

March 21: Midday and 4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. (Cash Only)

The merch will be distributed the week of the show. If parents are interested in purchasing the design, please let your student know so they can help you purchase one!

Designed by Ebba Kaulus '24

Seniors - get ready to book your Titan Thrift Prom Boutique appointment!

• Titan Prom Boutique will offer a variety of gently used men’s and women’s formalwear, business attire, and accessories.
• Titan Thrift Shop will offer a variety of casual clothing, household items, and giftable items. Cash and credit cards will be accepted on all three days.

So that we may provide a personalized shopping experience, Seniors must book an appointment for the Boutique. Senior Titans have received an email from Sign Up Genius with instructions on how to book their appointment.

We continue collecting donations for both Titan Prom Boutique and Titan Thrift. We thank everyone who has generously donated to help our Titans sustainably shop on campus.

If you have questions regarding the Titan Prom Boutique or Titan Thrift, please see Michelle Bemis in Student Life.

Parent Meetings



Parent meetings for all grade levels will occur this week. Please check the IMSA PAC calendar or our Facebook page for details on how to join the meetings.

Senior Banquet Tickets

If you have not registered for the Senior Banquet or reserved a hotel room for the weekend (if needed) please check out the Senior Banquet Page for registration and reservation details. Please complete the registration if you are not attending so we can release your seats. Registration closes on April 1.  

PAC Executive Board Nominations

IMSA PAC is seeking nominations for the 2024-2025 Executive Board through March 31, 2024. Nominate yourself to serve as an officer on the Executive Board using this Nomination Form or review the Committee Committee Bylaws.

Please check www.IMSAPAC.org for updates to our programs or to view the calendar so you don't miss events this spring!

Join us for a showcase and engagement session on the progress of our AI Center pilot and space for staff and faculty to share their ideas and insights on AI. Whether you’re new to the concept of AI or a seasoned expert, this presentation aims to be an engaging and thought-provoking discussion on the future of AI at IMSA.

Get to know your faculty and staff by finding out how music has impacted their lives!  

Check out the bulletin board outside of the CAC office. The recommendations will be updated weekly! Find out who is a fan of KPop, Michael Jackson, Summer Walker, and IMSA's own musical artist! 

Some responses may surprise you! 

Equity and Excellence is a priority at IMSA, and it is guided by Board policy and a plan executed by IMSA's leadership. In a recent community update, DEI Director Dr. Adrienne Coleman shared our prior results to illustrate our progress, and also our accountability to strive to do better. We also maintain an operational excellence dashboard to monitor equity gaps with the intention of closing them to demonstrate our accountability to the Board of Trustees and to our students.  

Our students want to ensure we address bias so their environment is physically, emotionally, and psychologically safe. While there is an approach to reporting bias, they want to ensure that bias is being addressed in a way that it is resolved. In recent months, the student group, the Founders of Campus Unity and Solution (FOCUS), has been meeting with Cabinet members (Dr. Mekkey, Dr. Rowley, Ms. Berger, and Dr. Glazer) in work groups with other students to explore processes and policies we currently have in place around bias incidents and consequences for misconduct. Based on the different concerns expressed by FOCUS, the workgroups have developed the following design briefs to outline the problem-solving process and who is involved in the decision-making process: 

• Bias incidents
• Sexual assault
• Quarterly reports
• Freedom of expression
• DEI professional development and training
• Diversity in hiring
• Accountability

Involving students is an integral part of improving our processes to create a safer, more inclusive environment at IMSA. I've enjoyed working with our students on this meaningful work, and feel proud they are actively working on proposing ideas that lead to better outcomes in our community.

If you have thoughts on this topic or wish me to address others, please reach out to me at eglazer@imsa.edu.

IMSA maintains a physical archive, thanks to the contributions from alumni and former colleagues. The archives capture our history, such as activities, educational experiments, news stories, and more. Dr. Christian Nokkentved (also known as "Doc Nokk"), a former faculty member, organizes the archives room in the IRC and routinely puts on new displays. 

The latest exhibit is on the history of computing at IMSA, and on display are old floppy disks, info about our first connection to the internet, pictures of old computers and servers, and dot matrix printouts. Parents/guardians- you might get a kick out of seeing remnants of the past technology.

Now, students' handheld technologies far surpass the power and connectivity of the supercomputers of the past. Knowing the advancements we have seen in the past 30-35 years, just imagine the potential for their futures, given that technology evolves exponentially. It's fun to be part of this history.

Did you know that the average American takes 1,500 car trips per year and vehicles produce around one-third of all air pollution in the US? This can lead to high levels of pollution in urban areas due to increased air toxins and has a substantial impact on carbon emissions around the globe, too.

The easiest solution (and the best for your health!) is to get on your bike or walk instead, particularly for trips covering shorter distances. For longer ones, taking a public bus can almost halve the number of carbon emissions produced compared to using your own car.

Kayva Reddy '24 recently presented her SIR project research, "Epidemiological trends of SARS-CoV-2 infections during pregnancy in Chicago," at the St. Jude Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Research Conference in Memphis. At the conference, Kavya attended research presentations by pediatric infectious disease specialists and poster sessions.

Regarding her time at the conference, Kavya stated:

"I loved hearing about what projects everyone was working on and the different infectious disease cases they came across. It was an amazing experience and solidified my interest in the medical field!"

Kavya, pictured with her mentor Dr. Leena Mithal

Ankit Walishetti ‘25 advanced to the National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (NJSHS) after receiving the 1st Place Poster Presentation Award at the Illinois JSHS at Southern Illinois University. Here, Ankit was recognized as an Illinois Regional Finalist for his research and is one of only five students invited to present at the 2024 National Symposia.

Ankit’s research, “Algorithmic Design and Computational Modeling Using Dynamic Spectrum Allocation (DSA) Techniques to Optimize Bandwidth Management in Wireless Communication Systems,” contributes to a future of efficient bandwidth spectrum management through the development of DSA-based algorithms for transmitter allocation. You can view his work on IMSA’s Digital Commons.

Ankit considers this experience to be a solid foundation, further motivating him to delve deeper into his research interests and passions within the field of computer science and work towards advancing the human condition.

Dr. Peter Dong has been teaching physics at IMSA since 2008. He started his academic journey with a bachelor's degree in physics and music from Harvard before pursuing his Ph.D. in physics from UCLA. His doctoral research focused on high-energy collider physics, a field he continues to delve into through his involvement in the SIR program. With previous experience at the Tevatron at Fermilab and ongoing work with the LHC at CERN, Dr. Dong remains deeply engaged in particle physics research. He also recently collaborated with award-winning authors and CERN scientists on "Collision," a science fiction anthology rooted in real science.

Reflecting on his decision to teach, Dr. Dong stated, "I decided to become a teacher because of the exceptional educators I encountered in elementary and high school. I found that teaching was my true passion." Apart from physics, Dr. Dong has a keen interest in music, having even written a physics-themed musical for his senior thesis at Harvard. He also enjoys cooking, reading, writing, and spending time with his wife and four children.

Please complete the Spotlight Submission Form if you have been recently recognized in your field, celebrated for your academic or professional achievements, or are working on a project you'd like to share. If you have any questions, please contact Alex Johnson at ajohnson2@imsa.edu.

The ITS HelpDesk Team has seen several computer problems that can be corrected and/or avoided by regularly rebooting or restarting devices. On average, 85% of computer issues can be resolved or avoided by simply rebooting or restarting the computer regularly. Just like the human body needs rest to clear its mind, a computer needs the same thing to clear its memory. This is true of Macintosh, Linux, Windows, and cellphone operating systems like iPhone iOS and Android.

IMSA IT Staff recommends that you restart your laptop, tablet devices, and phones at least once a week. Shutting down the devices for a few minutes is also recommended.

Restarting your laptop is not as simple as just pressing the power button. In most cases for laptops, this just puts the device to sleep, which is not the same as restarting or shutting down. Follow the directions below to properly shut down your devices.

For Macintosh Computers:

• Click on the Apple icon in the upper left corner of the screen
• A menu will pop up
• Click on: “Restart…”
• Click the Restart button

For Windows Computers:

• Click on the Windows icon in the lower-left corner of the screen
• Click on the Power button icon
• Click on: “Restart”

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Kishor Kapale, Ph.D.

Dr. Kapale is a Physics Professor from Western Illinois University. He was an integral part of the Promise 2.0 pilot program last summer and is currently part of the IMSA parent community. His research interests include Theoretical Quantum Optics, Atom Optics, and Quantum Information Science.

Class of 2026

Your next LEAD elective module will occur on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. You will need a laptop, notebook, and writing utensils. Absences should be emailed to LEAD program coordinator Emma Wilson Parker (ewilson1@imsa.edu) on Tuesday nights at 4:30 p.m. If you have any questions or concerns, contact LEAD program coordinator Emma Wilson.

All sophomore students are required to attend the Student Leadership Exchange (SLX) to complete the LEAD program. SLX is a day-long event where students will present their LEAD projects surrounding social entrepreneurship, activism, and data journalism in correspondence with the UN's Sustainability Development Goals. and network with evaluators from IMSA and the wider community.

Check out the new search engine from the Illinois of Gifted Children for local STEM enrichment opportunities for all ages. This search engine was developed by IMSA Senior, Michael Meng '25!

Titan To Go is a resource for students to discreetly order basic toiletries when they cannot replace them before a trip home. Students may select from the following items:



• Shampoo and Conditioner
• Toothpaste and Toothbrushes 
• Dental Floss 
• Deodorant 
• Menstrual products
• Hand soap 
• Body lotion 
• Facial tissues
• Lip balm  
• Contact lens cases

Requests are confidential and can be made by clicking on the button above. Requests received by 8:00 a.m. will be processed daily, Monday through Friday. You will pick up your items in a Smart Locker once you receive a notification that your package has been scanned in.

For more information, contact Michelle Bemis, Volunteer Coordinator for Titan To Go at mbemis@imsa.edu.

Mark Your Calendars! 

March 22 - Quarter 3 Ends

March 23 - Halls Close at 1:00 p.m.

March 24 - April 1 - Spring Break

April 2 - Classes Resume

April 10 - SAT/PSAT and IMSAloquium Practice

ILLINOIS MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE ACADEMY



1500 Sullivan Rd., Aurora, IL 60506-1000 |  630.907.5000 |  imsa.edu

To ignite and nurture creative, ethical, scientific

minds that advance the human condition.