Odyssey Week Packed With Fun Activities, Lively Performances And Two Beautiful Murals
The new (and reimagined) version of Odyssey, renamed Odyssey Fine Arts Week, capped a successful week last Friday with the unveiling of two beautiful and imaginative murals on the first- and second-floor rotundas in the West Building.
The rest of Odyssey Fine Arts Week was filled with activities such as: blacklight painting, a doodle room, window painting, tape art, karaoke, origami, a screening of the film “Reeling” and the Smartistry learning lunch; as well as performances such as: the jazz ensemble, live music, singers, a magician, a comedy dance show, a contortionist, jugglers, a living statue, live painting and music from AMPlified.
A quick note: A final round of Odyssey t-shirts are on sale now. Place your order by Sunday.
Chess Team Wins State Championship!
For the second time in three years, the Stevenson chess team said “Check Mate” just enough times at the state finals.
Over the weekend at the Peoria Civic Center, the Patriots won the IHSA Chess State Championship, their second since 2020 and their third as a program overall. Stevenson first won the state chess championship in 2008.
There were 128 teams from across the state competing for the top trophy, and Stevenson survived a difficult field, edging second-place Barrington and third-place Evanston.
The chess players and coaches in the picture above are: From left to right in the front row: Maanav Agrawal, Fred Yuan, Rohit Guha, Eduard Danilyan, Ashley Yan. From left to right in the back row: Coach Vincent Springer, Sofia Pahsyan, Ray Sun, Aaron Gan, Kirinji Shivakumar, Saanvi Adusumalli (who is in front of Coach Scott Oliver), Srihas Rao, Stella Pahsyan, Coach Ken Wallach.
To read more about the chess team’s victory at state, including comments from head coach Vincent Springer, please click here.
Sweet! PPA Bake Sale Is Tomorrow
Got a sweet tooth? The Patriot Parent Association has got you covered. There is a bake sale tomorrow and everything is $1. Cash and Patriot Dollars are accepted, but students will likely make it through the line quickest with cash! Bake Sales start immediately after sixth period and will be held in the Wood Commons and Glass Commons.
Want To Design Stevenson’s Next Spirit Wear T-Shirt? Submit Your Ideas Now
Attention all wanna-be fashion designers: the Patriot School Store needs your help designing a new SHS spirit wear t-shirt and is conducting Stevenson’s second t-shirt design competition, open to all students. The competition will be made up of two rounds: in the first round, all submissions will be voted on by Stevenson students, faculty, and staff; the top two designs with the most votes will move on to the second round for a final vote. The winning t-shirt will be available for purchase in the school store and through the online store. The winner will receive his or her t-shirt FREE! Submit your creative, original design in a PDF format to mshahinian@d125.org by March 6 to be entered into the competition.
Be A Part Of Stevenson’s Next Fashion Show!
There will be an informational meeting for those interested in volunteering or modeling for the FASHION SHOW tomorrow in Room 1612 (the Clothing Lab) from 3:30 to 4:15 p.m. Those interested in modeling, working backstage, doing hair and makeup, hospitality and more should attend. The Fashion Show, sponsored by the Stevenson Styler Fashion Club, will be held on Thursday, April 14 at 7 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center. Time responsibilities will vary based on roles. Questions? Contact Mrs. Erickson at cerickson@shsdailydigest
Apply To Be A Peer Helper For The 2022-23 School Year!
Interested in being a role model to younger students? The Peer Helpers will be accepting applications for the 2022-23 school year starting on Thursday. Peer Helpers must be sophomores, juniors, and seniors who demonstrate leadership, are kind and open-minded, and who excel in character, communication skills, and interpersonal skills. Peer Helpers are role models to other students both inside and outside of school. Current freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who are interested in becoming a Peer Helper should complete the online application by March 17.
Know An Exceptional Patriot? Submit Your Nomination For Winter Sports Now
Attention all coaches, students, and parents! Don’t FORGET – You still have time to nominate a team or individual for the “Exceptional Stevenson Patriot Pride Award” (ESPPA’s) for winter sports. Winter sports awards are coming up at 7 p.m. on March 8. We need your nominations to decide the winners. Please take a look at the nomination form and recommend your favorite event/individual for each award. The deadline to nominate is Feb. 25.
Athletic Results
Girls Basketball: The Patriots (30-2) defeated Zion-Benton 66-24 in the Regional Semifinals. Simone Sawyer scored a team-high 12 points. Ava Bardic contributed 11 points, while Emory Klatt added 10. Other scorers in the game were Kate Arne with 9 points, Nisha Musunuri with 8 points, Kendall Williams with 6 points, and Jordan Polen with 5 points. The Patriots advance to the Regional Championship against the winner of Round Lake/Warren. The championship tips off at 7 p.m. on Friday in the Sportscenter.
Girls Hockey: The Scouts Hockey team upset New Trier, the second-place team in the Metro Girls Founder’s Cup in the semifinals on Friday 3-2 to advance to Sunday night’s Founder’s Cup Championship game. After a hard fought battle, the Scouts lost to the first-place Upper Fox Valley team 6-2 to earn a second-place finish in the Founder’s Cup League. Next up for the girls hockey team is its state playoff game on Monday at 4:15 p.m. against Loyola at Heartland Ice Arena. Congratulations to the Stevenson girls who are on the team (Alicia Sharun, Maycie Sulkin, Lainey Switzer and Rachel Wilson) for earning the Metro Girls League Academic Achievement Award. The award is achieved by earning an unweighted grade point average of 3.5 or higher.
Better, Faster, Stronger: How Learning Engineering Aims To Transform Education
In university labs and edtech startups across the country, researchers are trying to crack the code of what it would take to improve education on a large scale. Their field, called “learning engineering,” is interdisciplinary, drawing on psychology, education, artificial intelligence, engineering and computer science. Their goals are to help make high-quality education accessible, affordable and effective on a grand scale. It’s a world of personalized tutors, carefully-timed nudges, A/B testing of teaching materials—and even the occasional android teaching assistant.
Washington State House Bill Would Expand Outdoor Education Statewide
Outdoor education programs originated in Washington state, with the opening of an outdoor school near Ellensburg in 1939, according to Outdoor Schools Washington, an organization founded in 2021 to work with the state’s public instruction officials to increase opportunities for residential outdoor programs. House Bill 2078 offers students more than just a way to reconnect with nature throughout the isolation of the pandemic. Outdoor learning has been shown to have huge developmental benefits, from improving social and emotional skills to fostering community and connectedness. Learning in nature also helps students develop curiosity and an appreciation for the scientific processes of our environment, the bill’s supporters say.
The Week Ahead
Mark your calendars for these events and see the Stevenson Calendar for details on these and future programs.
Feb. 15-28: Black History Month
Feb. 15: Choral Concert
Feb. 16: PPA Bake Sale
Feb. 16: Sports Booster Meeting
Feb. 17: Patriot Theatre Company Fundraiser
Feb. 17: Love, Thespians Fundraiser
Feb. 18: Non-Attendance Day
Feb. 21: No School: President’s Day
Feb. 22: First Day Of Winterfest
Stevenson Daily Digest 