March 2020 News
Technology Student Association State Champions
Sunday, March 1, 2020
On Friday February 28 and Saturday February 29, the Indiana Academy Technology Student Association team traveled to Purdue University to compete in the 2020 TSA State Competition.
The members on the team are Xander Good, Izzy Hilderbrand, Nate Johnson, Collin Kinney, Shivali Singireddy, and Kylie Wagaman.
The Academy team put up some impressive results:
Coding
Xander Good and Nate Johnson – First Place
Izzy Hilderbrand and Collin Kinney – Third Place
Essays on Technology
Shivali Singireddy – Third Place
Prepared Presentation
Kylie Wagaman – First Place
Technology Bowl
Xander Good, Izzy Hilderbrand, and Collin Kinney – First Place
The Technology Bowl competition was very exciting. The Indiana Academy team made it to the final round of the competition, and with the score tied at 30 points it was down to the last question for the win. Xander Good buzzed in with the correct answer to give the Indiana Academy TSA team the win.
Kylie Wagaman was elected to be the 2019-2020 Indiana State TSA President. Since Kylie is graduating in May, she will be stepping down from this prestigious position, but was honored for her leadership in TSA.
At the very end of the Awards Ceremony, the Indiana Academy was announced as TSA State Champions. Next this team will be traveling to Nashville, TN to compete in the National TSA Championship. This event will be held at the end of June.
Congratulations to the Indiana TSA State Champions, and thanks to all of the team’s fans who have supported this team through their fundraising efforts.
Below is a slideshow of photos from the competition.
Team Places First in Japan Olympiad of Indiana for Third Straight Year
Monday, February 24, 2020
The team from the Indiana Academy placed first at the Japan Olympiad of Indiana, held at Purdue University on Saturday, February 22. This is the third consecutive year in which the Indiana Academy has placed first. Ms. Clara Chi, the team sponsor, said “In the championship round our team members were not only lightning fast in raising their hand, they knew obscure facts in areas such as Japanese geography and history. They attended every weekly practice the past two months, and put in hours outside of practice times. Their dedication, hard work, and stellar teamwork led them to easily dominate the competition.”
The Indiana Academy Level II team includes seniors Mary Wilson (captain), Brandon Kem, Maggie Dong, and alternate Kylie Wilson. Special thanks also go to senior Allie Foury for volunteering her time to help quiz the team at weekly practices.
Science Olympiad Team Advances to State
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
On Saturday, February 8, the Academy Science Olympiad team traveled to the Regional round of competition in Bloomington. The team won medals in twelve events, finished third overall, and qualified to advance to the state tournament.
Competing for the Academy were Carlie Butler, Lehan Hu, Komal Kumar, Evy Lee, Bony Li, Nichole Nguyen, Derek Park, Grace Reynolds, Kavin Saravanan, Abbi Smith, Maddy Witt, Robert Xu, Anna Yang, and Zhiyu Zhang. Mr. Mike Mayfield, Mr. Josh Ruark, and Ms. Heather Rogers accompanied the team.
Congratulations to all! The state tournament will be held in Lafayette on Saturday, March 21.
2020 National Merit Finalists
Monday, February 10, 2020
Congratulations to the following seniors who have been named Finalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program:
Amy Ciceu
Lucille Cochard
Komal Kumar
Academy Instructor’s Film Wins at Canadian Festival
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Congratulations to David Haynes, Instructor of English at the Indiana Academy, for his second short film Base Camp being awarded Best International Short Film at the Rio Grind Film Festival, in Vancouver, Canada.
Mr. Haynes’ first film, Break My Bones, was also featured at several film festivals.
Rising Stars of Indiana Class of 2021
Monday, November 25, 2019
The Indiana Association of School Principals (IASP) recently announced the Rising Stars of Indiana Class of 2020. Each Indiana high school was invited to recognize up to four students currently in the 11th grade, based on their academic achievement.
Students recognized from the Indiana Academy are:
Lehan Hu
Corrine Meier
Shivali Singireddy
Josie Stevenson
The Indiana Academy, along with IASP, congratulates these students on all they have already achieved, as well as offering support and encouragement as they continue their accomplishments and expand their knowledge, growth and leadership skills well into the future.
Academy Instructors Receive Bell Education Grants
Wednesday, November 20, 2019
The following Academy instructors received a Robert P. Bell Education grant from the Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County Inc.:
- Tom Arnold – $238.04 (Election of 1896 Posters)
- John Marsh – $450 (Build an Escape Room)
- Stephanie Nagelkirk – $356.29 (Harlem Renaissance Party)
- Evan Ward – $108 (Ancient & Medieval Medicine Science Fair)
Each of these instructors has been awarded a similar grant in the past, and we are proud of their continued efforts in securing funding for innovative projects for our students.
Fourteenth Annual Harlem Renaissance Party
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
On Monday, November 11, Stephanie Nagelkirk’s African-American Literature class hosted its fourteenth annual Harlem Renaissance Party. The party is the culmination of a research project where students choose a figure from this pivotal time in history and portray that person for the evening.
A class-only dinner was followed by a public show, featuring students portraying such artists as Jelly Roll Morton, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Zora Neale Hurston, Duke Ellington, Jessie Redmon Fauset, and others. Performances ranged from vocal solos and instrumental pieces to dramatic readings and speech excerpts.
Ms. Nagelkirk uses the Harlem Renaissance party and performances as a novel way to engage students with a part of history and culture with which most traditional literature classes would be unfamiliar.
Academy Partners with Earlham College for Japanese Exchange Visit
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
The Indiana Academy will host a group of Japanese visitors October 28-November 4. This will be our first time hosting this Japanese group in partnership with Earlham College. There are hopes this could grow into a regular event, with a possibility of future exchange opportunities as well. As hosts, we will guide our visitors, teach them about our school and share our culture. Our visitors will teach us origami and the possibility of a traditional Japanese dance performance is also being discussed. The delegation consists of nine Japanese students and three chaperones. They are joining us from Morioka and Tanohata schools, located within the Iwate Prefecture.
History Professor Publishes and Speaks
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Dr. Daniel Vandersommers, Assistant Teaching Professor of History at the Indiana Academy, has published his first book. Zoo Studies: A New Humanities, coedited with Tracy McDonald, is an original and groundbreaking work that will change the way readers see nonhuman animals and themselves. More information about the book is available here.
In addition, Dr. Vandersommers was the keynote speaker at the 2019 CAZA (Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums) conference in Calgary on Friday, September 27. He gave a speech titled “Toward Ecological Futures: Zoo Conservation and Embracing Narratives of Entanglement.” CAZA is committed to the advancement of accredited zoos and aquariums as humane agencies of animal welfare, conservation, science and education.