November 4, 2025

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

We recognize that the government shutdown may be creating challenges for some members of our community. In the spirit of compassion and connection, IMSA will be providing complimentary Titans Care Dinner Meals for IMSA families and colleagues from November 3–21, or until the shutdown is resolved. View the email sent on October 31 for more details.

Location: IMSA Cafeteria

Days/Times:

• Monday–Friday | 5:00 p.m. – 7:15 p.m.
• Saturday–Sunday | 5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

If your family lives outside a reasonable driving distance from IMSA and would like assistance, please reach out to Dr. Katie Berger (kberger@imsa.edu), Chief Student Affairs Officer, to discuss available support options.

This initiative is made possible through the IMSA Fund for Advancement of Education. If you would like to contribute, you can donate here by selecting Titans Care Dinners in the drop-down menu.

In honor of Veterans Day, IMSA invites students to take part in our Veterans Day Reflection Contest. This is a chance to share, in your own words, what this day means to you. Consider how the values of service, sacrifice, and patriotism are demonstrated by those who have served our country and continue to inspire others.

Reflections should be 250 words or fewer. Three students will be selected to read their essays during the Veterans Day Assembly. Winners will also receive a $25 DoorDash gift card.

Submit your reflection to officeofpublicaffairs@imsa.edu 
by Wednesday, November 5, 2025.

Show your entrepreneurial and AI skills in the Stevens High School Entrepreneurship and AI Video Pitch Competition! Create a 2-minute video that identifies a problem, presents your solution, and shows how AI powers it.

Open to Sophomores and Juniors only.

Prizes: 1st – $500 | 2nd – $250 | 3rd – $100

Deadlines:

• Register by January 7, 2026
• Submit video by January 15, 2026

Need help with your pitch? Email Mr. Goldblatt at sgoldblatt@imsa.edu.

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.

At IMSA, we hope to create opportunities to bring external inspiration directly into our community. We firmly believe that the most powerful lessons in lifelong curiosity come from observing real people navigating the complexities of the real world.

We are currently seeking guest speaker recommendations to bring real-world inspiration to our community. We’re looking for individuals—artists, innovators, educators, entrepreneurs, or community leaders—who embody persistent curiosity and a passion for learning. Think of someone in your network who models lifelong curiosity through creativity, adaptability, or problem-solving. If you know anyone who models these qualities who may be interested in speaking to our students, please let us know using the link below.

Veterans Day Assembly

Tuesday, November 11, 2025

11:05 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

Main Gym

Join the IMSA community in honoring the bravery and sacrifices of our veterans. 

This is a mandatory assembly. The halls will be closed, and sign-outs will not be permitted during the assembly.

We are entering the holiday season, when blood needs historically increase and donors decrease. Help fill the shelves by donating. 

If you register and have a successful donation, you will receive:

• A Versiti T-shirt - to match the lounge pants from September.
• Service hours - internal or external for your time at the drive.
• 1 hour towards a Versiti Leaders for Life graduation cord.
• SNACKS and drinks before and after donation.

You must be 17 to donate (16 with parental consent). You must also meet height and weight requirements.

If you are planning to donate, please remember to eat protein and green leafy vegetables in the days leading up to the donation. Drink a lot of water and have a meal before coming to the drive to donate. 

Please bring a photo ID with you and complete the VersitPass questionnaire.

Representatives from Herff Jones will be on campus to take measurements and orders for seniors' caps and gowns, as well as orders for class rings and letter jackets.

The Kane County Fairgrounds is hosting a trading card expo with over 180 card dealers selling sports trading cards, Pokémon cards, and more. IMSA will cover the entry fee for those students interested in attending. The trip will depart from campus at 9:00 a.m. and return at 12:00 p.m. Students can sign up using this form.

Priority will be given to students who sign up by November 6. 

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:

• November 18: "AI and IT" Jake Gerstein '15 (CIBC)
• 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.

ISA is seeking parent volunteers for the upcoming Diwali Cultural Show. You can help by donating food, giving your time, or contributing funds for the student meal/reception after the show. Please consider signing up using the links below. The students look forward to these cultural show meals and very much appreciate any support from our IMSA families!

Please print and include

the meal content form with any food donation.

You may also donate funds via Zelle to

treasurer@imsapac.org

Student Spotlight

Three IMSA students are showcasing their research on a global stage this week at the Japanese Super Science Fair. Tanvi Boddupalli ’26 presented her SIR research, representing IMSA among international peers. Roy Wang '26 and Kelsie Li '26 also shared their project posters, connecting with fellow STEM students from around the world.

In addition to presenting their work, the students are taking part in cultural exchanges, exploring Japan, and gaining a deeper understanding of Japanese culture, making this both a scientific and cultural learning experience.

Girls Tennis

The Titans wrapped up an impressive 2025 Girls Tennis season with standout performances across the board. The team placed well in every tournament and even captured first place at the Rosary Invitational. In dual matches, the Titans beat Aurora Central Catholic 9-0 and Rosary 6-0, and finished the season with a winning record.

Top singles player Srimedha Veerathu '27 went undefeated in dual matches, with her only loss at Sectionals coming against the eventual State Champion. Srimedha, along with doubles team Michelle Fanjoy '26 and Anya Parikh '26, represented the Titans at the State Tournament after hard-fought sectional matches. Way to go, Titans!

Srimedha Veerathu '27

Michelle Fanjoy '26

Anya Parikh '26

Boys Soccer

Congratulations to the Boys Soccer team on an outstanding season! The Titans climbed the conference and IHSA rankings, earning the honor of hosting the first round of postseason play. Axel Aguilar '26 and Shihan Cheng '27 were named All-Conference, while Ian Wang '27 and Andrew Zhu '26 earned Honorable Mentions. Through their teamwork, grit, and sportsmanship, the team not only achieved success on the field but also strengthened IMSA’s reputation as a respected and competitive program.

Axel Aguilar '26

Shihan Cheng '27

Scholastic Bowl

The IMSA Scholastic Bowl team took first place at the IHSSBCA Novice Tournament at Auburn High School in Rockford last weekend.  Special congratulations to Dhairya Jaswani '28, Ravi Shah '28, and Charlie Johnson-Ware '28, who all placed in the top ten for the tournament!

Speech Team

The Speech Team kicked off their season with an impressive performance at York's Seventh Annual Royal Court Invitational. Congratulations to the following students who placed in their events:

Eric Lee '26, 6th place, Extemporaneous Speaking, Varsity

Rishima Mukherjee '26, 3rd place, Original Oratory, Varsity

Mbayie Tendong '27, 5th place, Original Oratory, Varsity

Molly Federici '26, 3rd place, Radio Speaking, Varsity

Emily Schart '27, 6th place, Prose Reading, Varsity 

Molly Federici '26, 3rd place, Special Occasion Speaking, Varsity 

Sullivan Olson '28, Tournament Champion, Impromptu Speaking, Novice

Debate Team

IMSA Debate had an impressive showing at the ICDA 3 Tournament. The team placed fifth overall and earned six total nominations. Congratulations to Anoushka Rangan ’27 for winning the Second Place Chamber Award, Meimei Litowitz ’27 for Best Presiding Officer, Claire Hua ’28 for the Third Place Chamber Award, and Riyan Jain ’26 for the Third Place Chamber Award!

Congratulations to Dr. Jessica Amacher and Dr. Sarah O’Leary-Driscoll on the publication of their book chapter, “Creating environmental impact statements as a tool to improve student understanding of complex ecological and environmental issues.” The chapter appears in the new book “Wicked problems in PreK-12 science education: Stories and strategies for confronting complex topics in the science classroom.”

Their chapter explores how Environmental Impact Statements, reports that study how a project might affect the environment, can help students think critically, use data, and make connections between what they study in class and the environmental issues facing our world today.

Last week’s Titan Tuesday post mistakenly omitted Resident Counselor Oscar Vazquez, who also presented at the annual ASCEND Diversity, Equity, and Rightful Presence Conference at Aurora University. He joined Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Associate Rodrigo Sanchez and Area Coordinator Stephanie Broy in sharing IMSA’s DEI initiatives and how these efforts continue to positively shape the student experience.

It's a busy time of year for seniors applying for early decision in college admissions. They spent part of their fall break working on essays and applications, and have continued doing so over the past two weeks leading up to the November 1 deadline. Thank goodness for that fall break!

Likewise, IMSA faculty and staff have been writing letters of recommendation. This is no small task, especially for those who have over 10 of them to complete. When writing letters of recommendation, we carefully think about your contributions, your character, what makes your IMSA experience distinctive, and how that might be meaningful for your major and prospective destination. College admissions is truly a matchmaking process, and we want to make sure you land in places that are a good fit. It's less about where you go and more about making sure you are in a place where you can do amazing things.

You might feel compelled to express gratitude given the amount of thought, time, and advocacy an IMSA colleague puts into these letters. You can say thanks in a lot of ways, but please know colleagues at IMSA cannot accept individual gifts of monetary value per state law. Here are some other ways to say thanks: A thank you letter, an expression of gratitude in person, volunteering at IMSA, contributing to a social/community event, donating to the IMSA Fund (501c3) in honor of an important IMSA cause. 

We're all part of a community that believes in the common good. We help each other because we know that's the right thing to do. Please know that writing these letters of recommendation is an honor to recognize your IMSA students, and I am incredibly grateful to our colleagues who extend themselves beyond their workdays to support our students' futures.

Apex America Initiative:

High School AI Championship

Put your AI and STEM skills to the test in America’s first national high school AI competition! This competition is created by Correlation One, the experts behind programs that connect students with top companies like SpaceX, Google, and Tesla. All experience levels are welcome to enter!

How It Works

• Phase 1: Online skills assessment (Python, math, data reasoning)
• Phase 2: Team challenge round — solve real-world AI problems with peers and mentors
• Phase 3: Grand finale — compete for scholarships ($25,000 for first place!) and network with industry leaders

Help is available at IN2 from IMSA.ai and the AI Center Staff.

Competition: March - April 2026

Application Deadline: November 30, 2025

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 7 - Diwali Student Show

November 8 - Diwali Family Show

November 11 - Veterans Day Assembly

November 15 - Admissions Preview Day

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.