LP Link: Oct. 15, 2021

The LP Link is published bi-weekly during the school year to highlight the latest districtwide news and events at Lake Park High School. Contact Sherri Anderson, Director of Communications, if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for content.

National Merit Scholarship Program

Lancers earn prestigious academic recognition.

Congratulations to 19 Lake Park students who have earned academic recognition through the 67th Annual National Merit Scholarship Program. About 1.5 million juniors in more than 21,000 high schools entered the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. Students and their families will be recognized during the regular Board of Education meeting on Monday, October 25.

Semifinalists: Lake Park High School senior Aanika Parikh has been selected as a Semifinalist in the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Competition. She was selected based on test scores of the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test and represents less than one percent of the U.S. high school seniors. To become semifinalists, the students must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed by their school principal, and earn SAT scores that confirm their earlier qualifying test performance. They must also submit a detailed scholarship application, which includes a self-descriptive essay and information about their participation and leadership in school and community activities. The approximately 16,000 semifinalists have the opportunity to continue in the competition for 7,500 Merit Scholarship awards, worth $30 million.

Commended Students: Six Lake Park High School seniors have been named Commended Students in the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program. The Commended Students are: Sara Afreen, Nishant Mistry, Abigail Pichay, Isaac Sentman, Mikayla Tesolin, and Emma Weishaar. About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2022 competition for Merit Scholarship Awards, Commended Students placed among the top five percent of more than 1.5 million juniors who entered the 2022 competition by taking the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).

College Board National Recognition: Twelve Lake Park High School seniors have been selected for the 2021 National Hispanic Recognition Program Award. The selected students are: Elizabeth Arias, Nicholas Barthelotti, Michael Furlin, Andrew Hernandez, Bryan Mendoza, Sarah Pena, Tristan Phillips, Antonio Pinto, Olivia Ramirez, Victor-Emmanuel Torres, Jacob Vera, and Joshua Viola. The College Board's National Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP) identifies academically outstanding African American, Hispanic American or Latinx, Indigenous, or students who attend school in a rural area or small town. Each year, the NHRP honors about 5,000 of the highest-scoring students from over 250,000 Hispanic/Latino juniors who take the PSAT/NMSQT.

State Spirit March and Sendoff

First IHSA State sendoff this school year celebrated boys and girls golf.

Celebrating the first State Spirit March and Sendoff of the 2021-22 school year were members of the Lancer Boys and Girls Golf teams. Both teams culminated their seasons by successfully advancing to the IHSA Sectional Tournament!

The boys golf program is led by Head Coach Tim Moran and Assistant Coach Tom Mazzie.

The girls golf program is led by Head Coach Jeff Henrikson and Assistant Coach James Chellson.

Congratulations to Lancer golfer Josh Lahner (11) who had to fight through a playoff with three other golfers in Sectionals to advance to state! Last weekend, Josh hit the links in the IHSA Class 3A State tournament in Bloomington at The Den Golf Course. His round on Friday, October 8 qualified him to advance and play in the state finals on Saturday, October 9.

Make a Difference Day

Lancer tradition of giving back to the community continues on October 16.

Although the Seventh Annual "Make a Difference Day" will look slightly different this year with masks required on buses and for indoor projects, the annual tradition continues with students giving back to the community through volunteer experiences. Students will meet at West Campus in the morning for breakfast, and from there, transportation will be provided to and from most projects on Saturday, October 16 from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m.

Projects this year include: landscaping and winterizing the American Legion in Roselle, painting in the Tanglewood community, making cards and no-sew blankets for cancer patients at Phil's Friends, food packing at Kids Against Hunger, assembling Cocoa Kits at the Roselle Library, removing non-native plants and small trees at Churchill Woods Forest Preserve, and building packets for sexual assault survivors in the Sexual Violence Support Services program at the YWCA.

Thanks to our Lancer students and sponsors for stepping up to Make a Difference!

Need Assistance Applying for College?

Attend a free college application completion workshop on October 26.

Families of seniors: does your student need help finishing college apps for November deadlines?

Please join Lake Park's College & Career Center and representatives from the Illinois Student Assistance Commission at a College Application Completion Workshop on Tuesday, October 26 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the West Campus College & Career Center, room 231A.

This workshop is designed to answer any questions your Lancer may have on their applications and to help submit them. Some desktop computers will be available, but students are encouraged to bring their Chromebooks.

If you have any questions regarding this upcoming workshop, contact Lake Park's College and Career Counselor Laura Michaels at (630) 529-2283.

Freshman Poetry Partnership

Support the LPEF partnership that benefits all freshman students.

Each year, Adam Gottlieb, poet and teaching-artist, partners with Lake Park's English Department to provide all freshman students the opportunity to explore their identity through the art of performance poetry. Adam is an experienced poet and mentor who provides a safe, constructive space for all students to grow and learn.

This year's workshops will take place October 21 through December 2. Each workshop helps students through the drafting process and performance preparation. As a teaching team, Lake Park recognized the effectiveness of his mentorship and community building, as Adam is able to quickly build rapport and trust with the students, and the students respond remarkably well to Adam and his process.

You can help us offer this value program each year by covering the cost of a workshop session for a student. The cost per student is under $5 for each session with Adam. A donation as small as $10 helps cover the entire cost for 2 students!

Please visit the Freshman Poetry Partnership website to see students’ performances and testimonials.

Winter Athletic Registration

Registration portal opens today.

Winter athletic registration opens today, and all student-athletes must be registered prior to tryouts and/or practice for the following sports:

Boys Basketball - Monday, November 8

Girls Basketball - Monday, November 1

Boys Bowling - Monday, October 25

Girls Bowling - Monday, November 15

Co-ed Cheer - Monday, October 25

Girls Gymnastics - Monday, November 8

Lancettes - Monday, October 25

Boys Swimming - Monday, November 22

Wrestling - Monday, November 8

View a comprehensive help guide for athletic registration and to access the link. For more information or questions, contact athletics@lphs.org.

Thespians Sponsor "Haunted" House

East Campus Dice Auditorium turns spooky this month!

Guests over 12 years old are invited to "The Haunted Hotel" on Friday, October 22 from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. in the East Campus Dice Auditorium when the Lake Park Thespians present their annual haunted house. This event serves as a fundraiser for the Theatre Department. Admission is $3.00 per ticket or $5.00 per person with unlimited opportunities to walk thru.