November 18, 2025

If you ever need to refer back to a previous Titan Tuesday, visit the Titan Tuesday Archive.

During the week of Thanksgiving, IMSA will have Virtual Engagement Days on Monday, November 24, and Tuesday, November 25. This allows students to return home before Thanksgiving week while still having the opportunity to engage in their academics and academic support remotely.  

Additional Details:  

• Virtual Engagement Days will not be a full day of regular classes via Zoom. Each faculty member will have an appropriate plan for their class, which may or may not include synchronous Zoom meetings.  
• Assignments and assessments can be given and/or due on the Virtual Engagement Days.
• For attendance, if a student cannot participate in any synchronous meetings during the Virtual Engagement Days, the family must notify the Attendance Office, as they would on a normal day of class. If a student has an unexcused absence from a required meeting during the Virtual Engagement Days, it will be marked as such in the attendance records. 
• Faculty and academic support staff will communicate any synchronous meeting requirements or opportunities to students as early as possible, but no later than Friday, November 21.
• The A-Day (Monday) and B-Day (Tuesday) schedules will remain in place so that faculty who want to schedule synchronous meetings have a designated time to do so without creating scheduling conflicts.
• Faculty and staff may still host office hours/drop-in Zoom time outside their regularly scheduled class times, just as during normal class days.

As we head into the end of the semester, please make sure you are referencing the most up-to-date academic calendar.

Medications Over Break

Students’ medications for break can be picked up (by an adult) on Friday, November 21, in the Health Office between 7:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. If your student is leaving campus after 2:30 p.m., their medications will be moved to the hall RC office for pickup.

If you plan to leave campus on a different day and need to pick up medications early, please let the Health Office know so we can make arrangements.

Remember to return all medication bottles after the break. If you are sending a refill back, please only send the doses needed through December 18. As a reminder, you should also make sure your student has cold medications, cough drops, and Kleenex for their personal use.

It's a great time of year to express gratitude to those in our lives. If you would like to share a message of gratitude with someone making a difference in your life at IMSA, you can complete the gratitude form below. Each message will be shared with that person with a digital graphic of your choice.

This January, a group of students will be taking a medical mission trip to Belize. Part of their work will include bringing much-needed supplies to help care for the residents. If you would like to donate to their trip, they are collecting the following items.

• Sanitary pads

• Baby wipes

• Diapers (sizes 3, 4, and 5)

• Pacifiers

• Diaper rash cream

• Toothbrushes (adult & child)

• Toothpaste (adult & child)

• Body soap

• Shampoo

• Conditioner

• Lotion (adult & baby)

• Deodorant

View the flyer for more details

A collection box will be located in the Health Office after Thanksgiving break through January 7, 2026.

The National Community Service Award applications from the United Nations Association have been released! 

Students can create an account, insert service learning opportunities that have been completed, AND be rewarded for their hard work and dedication to their community and other communities around the at home or around the world. See previous IMSA award winners here and the IMSA profile here!

All community service activities between June 1, 2025 and April 15, 2026 can be counted. Physical award packets will be mailed to IMSA in May!

We’ve added two important webinars to the CAC webpage: the FAFSA Webinar featuring an Illinois Student Assistance Commission presentation and the AP Exam Registration Webinar. Visit the page for more helpful college planning and AP resources.

Lexington Food Service Meeting 
for Parents

Wednesday, November 19, 2025

12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Via Zoom

Join us to continue the conversation about food service at IMSA! We will review recent food service changes and continue to discuss feedback from parents. Lexington staff and IMSA staff will be present to answer questions.

AI Bytes
at the New AI Center in IN2

Join us every B-Day for the return of AI Bytes from 2:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the new AI Center, now located in the back of IN2! Meet amazing Alumni working in the AI field and enter for a drawing to win a $25 DoorDash Gift Card.

Here’s the Fall AI Bytes Lineup:

• December 2: "AI in the Legal Profession" Susan Massey '01 (Buckingham Business Law)

Questions? Email aicenter@imsa.edu

Email Angie Richardson at angie@imsa.edu if you have any questions.

Poetic Justice Poetry Slam

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

IRC

In collaboration with the Office of DEI, CCE, and Poetic Justice, the IRC will host the Poetic Justice Poetry Slam featuring IMSA alumni Dr. Cindy Lyles Reed '02.

IMSA Parent Book Club

Thursday, December 11, 2025

5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Zoom

The next book choice for the Parent Book Club will be The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better, and Live Better by Jenny Anderson and Rebecca Winthrop.

Book Summary

Adolescents are hardwired to explore and grow, and learning is mainly how they do this. But a shocking majority of teens are disengaged from school, simultaneously bored and overwhelmed. This is feeding an alarming teen mental health crisis. As kids get older and more independent, parents often feel powerless to help. But fear not, there are evidence-backed strategies to guide them from disengagement to drive, in and out of school.

All are welcome, whether you read the book or not!

Student Spotlight

UPenn PennSEM Business Case Competition

Congratulations to Charlotte Okulaja '27 and Benas Stonys '27, who took third place at the North American Division of the UPenn PennSEM Business Case Competition. The students dove into the exciting world of business consulting to demonstrate their strategic thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork skills in a competitive environment.

PennSEM is a leading consulting organization at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania that brings together the brightest minds to deliver impactful solutions across industries. Through initiatives like this competition, PennSEM demonstrates its dedication to educational outreach and mentorship, shaping the future of the consulting industry.

Charlotte Okulaja '27

Benas Stonys '27

Good News

CAB's "Fit Fridays"

IMSA students, staff, and faculty participated in the first CAB Fit Friday with a "Grey-Out" theme on November 14, 2025.

In an effort to build engagement and community within IMSA, please join in this week's Fit Friday theme - Pumpkin Spice Latte! Come sporting your flannels, beanies, and scarves as we head into Virtual Academic Engagement Days and Thanksgiving Break!

Service in Action

IMSA students are actively engaging in meaningful service across both the IMSA community and the greater Aurora area. On Veterans Day, students wrote heartfelt letters to active-duty service members and veterans through an organization called  "A Million Thanks."

On November 12, several student groups visited Jennings Terrace Assisted Living Center in Aurora, where they enjoyed lively rounds of bingo with residents. The residents deeply appreciated the students’ energy and conversations, and they warmly invited IMSA students to return. Featured at the center of the group photos is Jennings Terrace’s beloved official greeter, Mr. Michael, who has been especially enthusiastic about our ongoing visits. A special thank you to RC Cheyanne Ouellette for leading service opportunities weekly!

Veterans Day

IMSA proudly honored Veterans Day with an assembly that brought our community together in reflection and gratitude. We extend our sincere thanks to the students and staff whose thoughtful participation made the program truly special. The event also featured a powerful reflection from Elizabeth Thompson '26 and an inspiring video message from Colonel Kenyatta Ruffin ’99. Watch the full ceremony here.

IMSA is such a unique and wonderful place that provides students with extraordinary opportunities. I once heard that IMSA is the state's greatest hidden gem, likely because of our small enrollment. However, we shouldn't be a secret. We have a second legislative charge to further excellence in STEM education, and we're quite active in developing professional development and outreach programs. For example, IMSA has a Fusion curriculum available for elementary and middle school teachers. We also run weekend programming throughout the year, and our students manage a Learning Enrichment Engine that promotes free events around the state.

In recent years, we've also been motivated to create new access points to IMSA, such as remote learning opportunities, summer research programs, and opening Hubs in new locations around the state to further promote IMSA programs. Starting in January, we are making an AI credential freely available to high school students in Illinois. Also, later this week, the Board of Trustees will decide on a new future option: IMSA Scholar in Residence, an opportunity to study at IMSA for a semester (as space is available in the 2nd semester). Our aspiration is to broaden IMSA's impact through these new pathways. An IMSA education can be life-changing, not just for current students, but also through the impact our alumni will have on advancing the human condition.

End of Semester Schedule

Students and families, please review the following details carefully about the last two weeks of the Fall semester (December 8-12 and December 15-18)

Classes and Summative Assessments

• December 8-12 will maintain a regular class schedule. 
• Deadlines for major summative assessments in English, History/Social Science, World Languages, Wellness, and Fine Arts will be this week. 
• Mathematics, Science, and Computer Science will not have major summative assessments this week (ex, unit exams). 
• December 15-18 will have a modified schedule.
• Major summative assessments for Mathematics, Science, and Computer Science will take place this week according to the posted schedule. 
• Summative assessments scheduled for the week of December 15 must be taken during the assigned slots and cannot be taken earlier. 
• If a student has two or more assessments scheduled for the same time slot, please contact the Principal’s Office at prinoffc@imsa.edu. If a student has three or more exams on the same day, they may request that the Principal’s Office reschedule one or more exams to a different date. 
• Thursday, December 18, will be reserved for make-ups and rescheduled assessments, as needed. 

Main Building Access and Move Out

• Students will remain in the academic building on December 16-17. When not participating in a summative assessment, students will have a menu of opportunities to engage around campus, including study halls, games, and physical fitness sessions. The menu of options will be made available before Thanksgiving. 
• Students will move out within 24 hours of their final scheduled summative assessment. 

Thanks to the incredible generosity of our IMSA community, we are excited to share that the Titans Care Dinner program is expanding! Your donations and support have made it possible for us to extend care to more families through a new Titans Care To-Go Weekend Meal option.

Beginning this Friday, November 14, families may now pick up frozen to-go meals that include multiple weekend meal options. Families can select from the Classic Kitchen options on the IMSA menu for the selected date. We ask that families sign up for the frozen to-go dinner option no later than 9:00 a.m. on Thursday for a Friday dinnertime pick up, so we can plan accordingly.

We are so grateful for the kindness and compassion of our community in helping make this expansion possible. Together, we continue to ensure that every member of the IMSA family is supported and cared for.

If you would like to contribute to support this effort, you can donate here and click on Titans Care Dinners in the drop-down menu.

Use the peer tutor website to find out more information about IMSA's peer tutors and how to get in touch with them. 

Contact Caleb Schlessler or Ms. Keck with questions about the Peer Tutor Program. 

November 21 - Halls close at 7:00 p.m.

November 24 and 25 - Virtual Engagement Days

November 26 - 29 - Thanksgiving Break

November 30 - Halls reopen at 3:00 p.m.

Notice of Nondiscrimination: IMSA prohibits sex discrimination in any education program or activity that it operates. Individuals may report concerns or questions to the Title IX Coordinator.