‘Tis The Season To Start Thinking About Giving
The holidays are right around the corner and Stevenson, along with the National Honor Society, is again conducting its popular Give-A-Thon, an annual school-wide campaign aimed at bringing joy to families around Lake County during the upcoming winter holiday season. This will be Stevenson’s 37th year of spreading this holiday cheer to those in need and the goal is to provide gifts to 250-plus Lake County families, enough food to stock the Vernon Area Pantry for six months, and six months-worth of baby and young motherhood supplies for the Lake County P.A.D.S.
To start the planning process, the National Honor Society is hosting a meeting on Thursday for any students interested in being student leaders in their classrooms for Give-A-Thon. Meeting times are during the lunch periods (late arrival schedule) in Room 2104 (bring your own lunch) and at 7 p.m. on Zoom. Meanwhile, ask your teacher to be a Give-A-Thon leader in your class. They’ll register your class through an online link that they received in their e-mail. You will then help your class collect food donations and baby items, or raise money to purchase holiday gifts for a family.
So What Courses Do You Want To Take…Next Year?
Sure, the 2021-22 school year has just begun, but it’s never too early to start thinking about next year!
As a reminder, please mark your calendars and save the date for our kickoff event, “Let’s Talk About Your Future,” which is slated for Wednesday night. Families can engage in meaningful conversations about their students’ interests and goals for the future. This will be a “no homework” evening to allow time for these conversations.
Please be on the lookout today for an e-mail from Sarah Bowen, Director of Student Services, that will further explain our “Let’s Talk About Your Future” event.
Vernon Township Pool Named After Former Stevenson Student
Former Stevenson student Jacob Grossman, who died at age 22 in February of 2021, was honored Sunday with a celebration of life at Vernon Township that included music, activities and the re-naming of the township pool to the The Jacob Grossman Memorial Aquatic Center.
Grossman had a genetic disease called Fanconi Anemia (FA). FA is a DNA breakage disease that causes bone marrow failure and cancers. Though considered primarily a blood disease, FA can still affect all systems of the body. It is a complex and chronic disease that is relentless. The Fanconi Anemia Research Fund (FARF), which is taking donations in Grossman’s name, does research on several types of cancer and is partnered with Stand Up To Cancer.
Described as an “old soul” and a “bright light who left his mark,” Grossman adored movies, 80s music, singing, and being with his family and his friends.
Frosh/Soph And Winter Play Workshop On Wednesday
A workshop for the Frosh/Soph play and the Winter play will be taking place from 3:45-4:30 p.m. on Wednesday in the Little Theater. The workshop is intended to prepare students for auditions and leadership interviews. The Frosh/Soph Play is “A Mirror Most Marvel” and “Squirrel Girl Goes to College” and the Winter Play is “Ranked.” For any questions, please contact either Mr. Fitzpatrick, jfitzpatrick@d125.org or Ms. Chusid, achusid@d125.org.
Girls Tennis Takes Class 2A Sectional Championship!
For the ninth time in 10 years, the Stevenson girls tennis team won the Class 2A sectional championship. In addition, six players qualified individually for the state finals by placing in the top four of the bracket. The final singles match of the day between Stevenson’s Sarah Wang and Autumn Rabjohns of Lake Forest ended up being the deciding factor in the Patriots’ first-place finish. Wang swept the match, 7-5, 6-2. Meanwhile, Sonia Mehta and Ainika Hou placed second and Kate Herlily and Thea Surya placed fourth in the doubles bracket. Pairings will be announced on Wednesday for the three-day state tournament, which starts on Thursday on campus courts in Districts 211 and 214. Stevenson’s Vernon Hills Athletic Complex is also a state site on Thursday.
Cast Your Vote For Fall Sports Awards
The Athletic Department will be hosting its Fall Sports Awards Night at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 15 in the Sportscenter. All fall student-athletes and families are invited and encouraged to attend. If you can’t attend, you can watch virtually as the event will also be streamed on the Stevenson Patriots Athletics YouTube page.
In addition to recognizing all teams as well as some individuals, some unique awards will also be announced. These awards, broken into different categories, are part of the Exceptional Stevenson Patriot Pride Award (ESPPA) and are based on nominations. Anyone can nominate an individual or team and the deadline to submit nominations is Nov. 5. Nominate someone today for an ESPPA. Here are the categories:
*BREAKTHROUGH UNDER-LEVEL ATHLETE
*BREAKTHROUGH VARSITY ATHLETE
*OUTSTANDING UNDER-LEVEL TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCE
*BEST UNDER-LEVEL GAME PERFORMANCE
*BEST VARSITY GAME PERFORMANCE
*SUPER FAN
*OUTSTANDING MANAGER
*BEST MOMENT IN SPORTS
Boys Soccer To Host Regionals This Week
Stevenson is the host for the Class 3A IHSA boys soccer regional this week. No. 4-seed Buffalo Grove takes on No. 14 Rolling Meadows at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, the No. 5 Patriots will face No. 12 Zion-Benton, with a 6:30 p.m. start. Winners advance to the regional final at 4 p.m. on Saturday. All matches will be played in the Stadium. Spectators should purchase tickets in advance at GoFan. No event or booster passes will be accepted.
IHSA Recognizes Stevenson Football For Sportmanship
Stevenson football has received the IHSA’s “Sport a Winning Attitude” Award. The IHSA’s “Do What’s Right!” sportsmanship program encompasses a multitude of different initiatives and opportunities for member schools and their students. Those efforts include sportsmanship banners for schools that display exemplary sportsmanship at IHSA state final team events and a bi-annual student leadership conference, or also meeting IHSA Sportsmanship and Sport A Winning Attitude expectations. This specific recognition highlighted the sportsmanship exhibited by Stevenson in its recent game at Warren.
Athletic Results
Cross Country: At the boys and girls North Suburban Conference championship, freshman Nanoka Seki finished 13th with a time of 19:24.70, pacing the girls’ team to a seventh place finish at Zion Shiloh Park. Junior Siddarth Paleati, senior Philip Villano, and junior Michael Todorov all finished in the top 50 with some of their best times of the season. Both the boys and girls programs will compete on Saturday in the IHSA Regional, hosted by Libertyville High School, at Adler Park. The girls race is slated for 10 a.m., followed by the boys at approximately 11 a.m.
Girls Swimming & Diving: Over the weekend, the Patriots’ Swimming & Diving program won its home invitational, taking eight of 12 events. Senior diver Nora Kowalski got things started with an outstanding performance in the 11 Dive event, capturing the first title of the day. Other individual event winners included Hana Wienckowski (200 freestyle and 100 freestyle), Claudia Rzeznik (100 butterfly), Amy Andres (500 freestyle) and Abby Collins (100 backstroke). The 200 medley relay team consisting of Jenn Chen, Stephanie Kirova, Hana Wienckowski and Karina Cantero finished atop the podium, along with the 400 freestyle relay team of Claudia Rzeznik, Izzie Gattone, Sophia Berger and Abby Collins. Other top 6 medalists included; Lada Volkov (diving), Amanda Chang (200 freestyle and 500 freestyle), Sophia Berger (200 freestyle and 100 freestyle), Amy Andres (200 IM), Claudia Rzeznik (50 freestyle), Elizabeth White (50 freestyle and 100 backstroke), Izzie Gattone (50 freestyle), Jenn Chen (50 freestyle and 100 backstroke), Milena Busma (100 butterfly and 100 breaststroke), Abby Collins (100 freestyle), Delaney Umbleby (500 freestyle), Stephanie Kirova (100 breaststroke), and Vivian Zhu (100 breaststroke). The Patriots host their final regular season dual meet at 5 p.m. tomorrow when they host Mundelein for Senior Night.
Boys Ice Hockey: The Patriots capped off an amazing week with two more wins over the weekend, bringing them to 10-3 on the season and 5-2 in the SHL conference. On Saturday, Stevenson defeated No. 2 York 3-2 in a shootout thriller in front of a huge crowd of fans wearing pink to promote Breast Cancer Awareness. York opened up a 1-0 lead in the second period before Will Harlow evened the score with a goal late in the period assisted by Dylan Jette. York went back up 2-1 in the second but Davis Jegers was able to provide the equalizer with an assist from Cam Schneider to send the game to overtime. With no deciding goal in overtime, the game went to a shootout where Dylan Jette provided the game winner with an incredible, between-the-legs goal. On Sunday, Stevenson got off to a slow start against the combined team from Oak Park/River Forest (OPRF), falling behind 3-1 after two periods of play. The team rallied in the third period, scoring 4 goals to defeat OPRF, 5-4. Spencer Harman, Nolan Jones, Raffi Biedron and Dylan Jette each had goals and Davis Jegers had a goal and two assists. Stevenson will be back in action at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Twin Rinks for a matchup against the defending state champion, New Trier Green.
Girls Field Hockey: Alex Wu had the only goal of the day against Lake Forest Academy and goalie Marissa Dicker had 10 saves in the 1-0 win. The Patriots advance to the 5 p.m. sectional semifinal game tomorrow at Glenbrook South. GBS will be using GoFan, a digital ticketing platform, for the event. Please get your tickets prior to coming to the event. No charge for children under the age of 5. All spectators will enter through the Main Gate. Gates will open 45 minutes prior to the start of the first game.
Football: A fast start allowed Lake Zurich to stay in the driver’s seat for a 21-9 victory in the North Suburban Conference matchup. Trailing 14-0 at halftime, Stevenson’s offense showed some life in the second half behind Jordan Skolmar. He carried the ball twice in the first half, but on his third touch of the third quarter, he broke through the line and sped his way to a 48-yard touchdown, getting the Patriots back to within striking distance. Stevenson (3-5, 3-3) finishes at home next Friday against Libertyville. To read the Daily Herald story, click here.
Stevenson’s Kash Rajesh Talks With CNN About His Fight To Make AI More EthicalStevenson sophomore Kash Rajesh was recently interviewed by CNN Business reporter Rachel Metz about his work at Encode Justice, an organization working to make artificial intelligence more fair for everyone.
College Students Take To Social Media To Combat Sexual Misconduct
Northwestern and Loyola students are rallying online and in person against alleged attackers, saying they didn’t have confidence in university investigations.
The Week Ahead
Mark your calendars for these events and see the Stevenson Calendar for details on these and future programs.
Oct. 18: Choral Guild Meeting
Oct. 18: District 125 Board of Education Meeting
Oct. 20: No Homework Night
Oct. 20: PPA Bake Sale
Oct. 21: Late Arrival
Oct. 21: Yearbook Retake Photo Day
Oct. 21: FAFSA Completion Night Workshop
Oct. 22: Yearbook Retake Photo Day
Oct. 23-24: World’s Fair
Oct. 25: Band Chamber Concert
Oct. 25: S*H*S Thanksgiving Care Package Fundraiser
Oct. 25: Activity Period – Sophomores
Stevenson Daily Digest 