March 2019 News
Academy Seniors Participate in Poverty Simulation
Friday, March 22, 2019
As part of the Senior Colloquium “Topics and Perspective in Economics,” approximately 120 Academy seniors participated in a poverty simulation presented by Second Harvest Food Bank on Tuesday, March 19. During the two-hour simulation, the students were divided into around 40 families who each had to deal with limited resources, increased stress, and other situations faced by the economically disadvantaged. The simulation, conducted by Ms. Dorica Watson from Second Harvest, was divided into four fifteen-minute “weeks” during which the students had to work (or try to find work), pay their rent or mortgage, shop for food, ensure that their children attended school or were otherwise cared for, and try not to run afoul of the law.
Over the course of the program, students quickly learned how difficult “real life” can be to manage when faced with resource insecurity, and how poverty and stress can force people to make choices that they wouldn’t otherwise make. From time to time, Ms. Watson would hand out “Bad News” cards piling on additional hardships for the students to face, based on her real experiences helping the economically disadvantaged.
Mr. John Marsh, co-instructor of the Colloquium course, helped to organize the event. A number of Academy juniors ran the local businesses in “Realville” which included a bank, employers, a superstore, a homeless shelter, a realtor, the utility company, a school, a pawn shop, a payday loan provider, police, social services, and a community action agency. At the end of the simulation, all of the participants gathered to share their experiences, which Ms. Watson helped to relate to the real experiences of those dealing with resource insecurity.
Students Serve as Pages at the Indiana Statehouse
Thursday, March 14, 2019
During the 2019 session of the Indiana General Assembly, 45 Academy students served as Senate Pages and House Pages. In addition to touring the historic Statehouse which includes the House and Senate Chambers, the Supreme Court, and the Governor’s Office, students had the opportunity to observe the legislative session directly from the Statehouse floor in addition to meeting and assisting their specific legislator with tasks.
Academy students serving as Senate Pages at the Indiana Statehouse on Wednesday, February 13:
| Student (Senator) | Student (Senator) |
|---|---|
| Rahul Agarwal (Mike Gaskill) | Alexandra Klingsmith (Chris Garten) |
| Isabelle Berhman (Timothy Lanane) | Lillia Mangel-Martin (Ed Charbonneu) |
| Suzanne Brown (Rick Niemeyer) | Alan Pieper (Eric Bassler) |
| Amy Ciceu (Mark Messmer) | Khristian Reed (Susan Glick) |
| Logan Criner (Phillip Boots) | Isabel Reynolds (Ed Charbonneu) |
| Alexandra Dines (Karen Tallinn) | Lillian Rogers (Ed Charbonneu) |
| Naomi Edet (Frank Mrvan) | Evalina Schneider (Rodric Bray) |
| Meredith Fairman (Liz Brown) | Jessica Schwarz (Chip Perfect) |
| Dryden Frecker (John Crane) | Kaitlin Scott (Jean Leising) |
| Eric Harman (Randall Head) | Nora Slaven (Jeff Raatz) |
| Izabelle Hilderbrand (Eric Bassler) | Amber Thurston (Aaron Freeman) |
| Lucy Khatib (Sue Errington) | Jason Wroblewski (Ryan Mishler) |
Academy students serving as House Pages at the Statehouse on Tuesday, March 12:
| Student (Representative) |
|---|
| Isabelle Behrman (Sue Errington) |
| Logan Criner (Timothy Brown) |
| Naomi Edet (Mara Candeleria Reardon) |
| Benjamin Erwin (Randall Frye) |
| Eric Harman (David Wolkins) |
| Izabelle Hilderbrand (Jeff Ellington) |
| Madison Hull (Chris Judy) |
| Evan Jannerjahn (Kevin Mahan) |
| Komal Kumar (Dale DeVon) |
| Hanbit Lee (Sue Errington) |
| Sydney Mrazik (Alan Morrison) |
| Jacob Nichols (Jim Pressel) |
| Khristian Reed (Dennis Zent) |
| Lillian Rogers (Ed Soliday) |
| Evalina Schneider (David Frizzell) |
| Nora Slaven (Thomas Saunders) |
| Abagail Smith (Dale DeVon) |
| Rachel Snow (Sue Errington) |
| Jalyn Upshaw (Earl Harris) |
| Samantha Walkley (Chuck Goodrich) |
| Jacob Zeh (Chuck Goodrich) |
German 2 Students Excel at National German Exam
Friday, February 22, 2019
Twelve Indiana Academy German 2 students earned awards for their efforts on the National German Exam. The scores listed below reflects the percentile rank among all students, heritage speakers included, who took the test for Level 2.
Gold Medals were awarded to:
| Brandon Kem | 96% |
| Noah Migoski | 96% |
| Marc Bailey | 95% |
| Sam Shephard | 95% |
| Isabel Reynolds | 94% |
| Lillia Mangel-Martin | 89% |
Silver Medals were awarded to:
| Mary Wilson | 87% |
| Dawson Crisman | 84% |
| Hannah Jones | 84% |
| Dillon Linville | 84% |
Bronze Medals were awarded to:
| Ahna Abraham | 75% |
| Cameron Gage | 72% |
Middle row, l-to-r: Kaileb White, Logan Telschow, Sam Shephard
Front row, l-to-r: Isabel Reynolds, Hannah Jones.
On Saturday, February 16, nine of our German students attended the annual ISGA Staatskongress, hosted by the German Department at Ball State, and this year, our school won the Quiz Bowl competition. The winning team was made up of Hannah Jones, Noah Migoski, Isabel Reynolds, and Sam Shephard. Well done, team!
Congratulations to these students and their instructor, Ms. Heather Rogers, on their accomplishment and their continued dedication to learning the German language.
Academy Teams Win First Place in All Three Levels at Japanese Olympiad
Monday, February 18, 2019
All three levels of the Academy’s Japanese students won first place in the Japanese Olympiad of Indiana (JOI) held on Saturday, Feb. 16 on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. JOI is a Japanese language and culture quiz bowl for all high school students studying Japanese in Indiana. The annual competition has teams of high school students showcase their knowledge of Japanese language, culture, society and history. This year nine schools participated, with around 90 students competing.
In past years, the Academy only had a team for Level II. This year the Academy was able to have teams for each of the three levels. Congratulations to all three Indiana Academy teams and their instructor, Ms. Clara Chi, for winning first place!
Level II team (2 years of high school Japanese)
Captain: Kiersten Hardy
Kellie Geisel
Khristian Reed
Level III team (3 years of high school Japanese)
Captain: Katie Basey
Samantha Murray
Nicole Nguyen
Leah Chambers (alternate)
Level IV team (4 years of high school Japanese)
Captain: Kevin Gao
Alice Zheng
Sage Hamm
Academy Closed Wednesday (1/30) and Part of Thursday (1/31)
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
Ball State University is closing Wednesday January 30 through 11:00 a.m. Thursday January 31 due to the anticipated extremely cold and dangerous weather. The purpose of this message is to provide all students with the same instructions regarding your classes. Classes will be conducted through an e-Learning format to avoid making up the missed school day at a later date.
Note to parents: The residence hall remains open during this time. Students are not being sent home.
For all Academy classes that meet on Wednesday, January 30
- Your instructor will contact you with instructions regarding your assignment. The contact will most likely be by e-mail, but a few instructors may have given information during class today.
- Each class assignment will require you to produce a product of some sort. The product will serve as evidence of your participation in the e-Learning class
- The product must be sent or given to your instructor no later than midnight on Friday, February 1st. Products may be turned in earlier if desired.
- The product will be your evidence of having attended class on the e-Learning day. Failure to submit your product will result in an unexcused absence and a zero for the assignment.
For any Academy classes that meets 8:00 – 11:00 on Thursday, January 31
- Classes that normally meet from 10:00 – 12:00 will meet at 11:00. Please plan on attending these classes.
- All other classes that meet prior to 11:00 are cancelled. However, your instructor may send you an assignment so watch your e-mail for instructions.
Study Hall
- Study hall is cancelled for Wednesday, January 30th.
If you have questions regarding your assignment, please contact your instructor.
If you have questions regarding an Academic situation or concern, please contact Dr. Jeff Smith or Dr. Dain Kavars.