May 2018 News
Explore the “Cave of Time” at the Indiana Academy
Tuesday, May 22, 2018
Students at the Indiana Academy for Science, Mathematics, and Humanities are currently involved in May Term, a unique two-week program that happens at the conclusion of every spring semester.
May Term is a graduation requirement for Academy students and provides them with opportunities to take in-depth courses on special subjects, travel, and participate in internships. Each year brings new courses and experiences. This year there are over 20 different courses including Forensic Science and Japanese Manga as well as travel opportunities ranging from Australia to Yellowstone National Park, to name just two trips.
One of this year’s May Term projects, the “Cave of Time” is led by John Marsh, Instructor of History, and explores the wonders of four of the world’s most famous caves. Visitors to the exhibit will encounter the prehistoric artwork found in Chauvet and Lascaux caves in France, Cueva de las Manos (Cave of Hands) in Argentina, and the exquisite Buddhist artwork of China’s Dunhuang Caves along the Silk Road.
The “Cave of Time” was constructed by 16 students, who will serve as tour guides. During the tours, the student guides will share the meaning and the stories behind the amazing works of art as visitors take a museum-quality, flashlight journey through winding passages with rough walls, dripping water, and a partially excavated burial site.
The exhibit is free and open to the public from 4-7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 23 with no reservations in Room 209 of Burris Laboratory School. Tours run every 15 minutes.
Financial support is provided by a Robert P. Bell Education Grant through the Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County, Inc. In-kind support is provided by Gill Bros. Furniture and the Back to School Teachers Store.
Located on the picturesque campus of Ball State University, the Indiana Academy is a nationally ranked two-year public high school for high ability juniors and seniors coming from anywhere in the state.
Indiana Academy Takes First Place in Academic Super Bowl State Finals
Monday, May 7, 2018
Two teams from the Indiana Academy participated in the statewide Indiana Academic Super Bowl Championship. The Academy’s science and math teams both finished in first place. The math team won with 5 points separating them from the teams finishing in second place while the science results came down to the wire with the final score being 23-22. The last time the Academy took two state championships in the same year was 2008 when the Academy also brought home the math and science trophies.
Hosted by the Indiana Association of School Principals (IASP) the Super Bowl finals took place Saturday, May 5 on the campus of Purdue University in West Lafayette. The theme of the Academic Super Bowl this year was World War I. Various academic subjects were tested based on this specific period of time, and each subject area looked at the developments in that field around the time of WWI. The Academy’s math and science teams qualified to compete in the state finals after winning at the regional competition on Tuesday, April 17 that included approximately 5,100 students representing 282 high schools from across the state.
Congratulations goes to the Academy’s Academic Super Bowl coach, Mr. Joshua Ruark, Instructor of Mathematics, and the following members of the winning teams:
Tony Qing
Conner Partaker
Charlotte Chen
Qifan Yang
Ryan Martinez
Eric Ma
Sterling St. Rain
National Latin Exam
Friday, May 4, 2018
The results are in from the National Latin Exam which our Latin students took in February and we had very many students who received a distinction of some sort. Congratulations to the following students and their instructor Mr. Evan Ward on their accomplishments on the Level 1 exam.
I — Those who received a Cum Laude distinction:
Cassidy Rager
Jade Jameson
II — Those who received a Magna Cum Laude distinction:
Han McCoin
Tayah Lowe
Elliott Whiteside
Nora Slaven
Veronica Barber
Kaylee Bright
III — Those who received a Silver – Maxima Cum Laude distinction and honorary medal:
Mckenna Reid
Alex Newhall
Rachel Stephens
Mattie Vanvleet
Paige Lang
Jill Hale
Drew Wheatley
Micayla Roginski
Natasha Carlton
Grace Allman
Ian Efsits
Aaron Dowdle
Jacob Nichols
IV — Last but not least, those who received a Gold – Summa Cum Laude distinction and honorary medal (meaning that their exams had near-perfect scores):
Grace Alvarez-Rosario
Grace Siefker
Katelyn Kaiser
Judy Liu
Hannah Ridgeway
Preston Dunithan
Euge! (Well done!)
National German Exam
Thursday, May 3, 2018
Earlier this semester, students in the Academy German 202 class took the 2018 AATG National German Exam. The listed percentiles indicate the performance of students in comparison to all students (nation-wide) taking the exam for Level II.
Earning a Gold Medal:
Grace Moore — 98th percentile
Amy Gong — 94th percentile
Sara Ahmad — 93rd percentile
Isaac Solloway — 90th percentile
Collin Banasiak — 89th percentile
Earning a Silver Medal:
Justin Linville — 83rd percentile
Earning a Bronze Medal:
David Stephens — 77th percentile
Congratulations to these students! This is a testament to their commitment and hard work in learning the German language and to the outstanding instruction and preparation they have received from Dr. Gislind Pentecost last year and Frau Rogers this year.