Cathcing up with STEM, E-sports, Artists, Mock Trial to State, and a lesson in financial literacy

INDIAN HILL SCHOOLS: Heather Higdon, Director of Communications

INDIAN HILL, OH (March 16, 2022) – It is a busy time for students of the Indian Hill Exempted Village School District with much for which to be proud. Here is a gathering of stories from the schools highlighting events for STEM, competitive E-sports, celebrated works of art, members of the Mock Trial Team and a story about lessons in financial literacy. 

Indian Hill High School students host STEM Night for kindergarten!

 IHHS SWENext (Society of Women Engineers) talk science with Daisy Troop

From transportation to clean water to chemistry – Indian Hill Primary School kindergarten students in Daisy Troop #4345 dug into STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) learning Thursday, March 10, with Indian Hill High School (IHHS) students as their teachers. 

The IHHS SWENext (Society of Women Engineers) chapter, new this year to the district, hosted the event.

“This event is a wonderful way for the IHHS SWENext members to become role models to younger students,” said Carrie Vanden Boom, IHHS SWENext counselor. “They are athletes, musicians, artists, and performers with the common passion for science and exploring the why and how – which is central to engineering.”

The SWENext members hosted learning stations to explore the engineering disciplines, including: chemical, structural, civil, material, environmental, and mechanical engineering.

The Indian Hill Robotics Club also joined the event, demonstrating a robot. The Daisies earned two badges as part of the educational experience.

“Working with the Daisies is just the start to how this group of high school students can impact our community,” said Vanden Boom. “My hope is that we can host more out-reach programs like this in the future.”

Indian Hill High School students prepare to compete in DECA International

 Twenty-nine Braves advance from state; one IHHS student earns state leadership role

The Indian Hill School District congratulates the 29 Indian Hill High School DECA students who will advance to compete at the DECA International Competition in April, following their performance during the DECA State Competition held at the Columbus Hyatt Regency March 12-13. 

Of Indian Hill’s 62 competitors, 50 advanced to the finals and 40 finished in the Top 10 of their event with nine First Place finishes. Additionally, we celebrate IHHS student William Dalton who made school history by becoming the first DECA State Officer.

“What an incredible achievement for William and all of our talented students,” said Phil Said, who teaches marketing at Indian Hill High School in partnership with Great Oaks and sponsors the DECA program. “We made school history last year when the competition was virtual; this year, we were in person and broke last year’s record for wins. We are extremely proud of our team!”

The Indian Hill High School students who earned state awards includes:

• First Place: Marina Anderson, Hollis Chan, William Dalton, Hunter Gillan, Annie Isphording, Vinya Ivaturi, Annie Joy, Madison Kahn, Ryan Rammacher, Pranav Rastogi, Elizabeth Whaley
• Second Place: Conrad Bennett, Drew Boylan, Yvette Detweiler, Anya Govil, Nathan Heilbrunn, Peter Sheakley, Arjun Velayutham
• Third Place: Sophia Chen, Bentley Dalton, Jackson Kaster
• Fourth Place: Cece Benza, Sanibel Betts, Emerson Evans, Ben Liebel
• Fifth Place: Bella Carson, Ninah Foad, Skyler Robinson, Maggie Schoeny
• Sixth Place: Gibson Holmes, Ben Vigran
• Seventh Place: Julianne Allspach, Nate Bunkowske, Wyatt Higgins, Tejas Pisati, Hannah Pollock, Kunal Ranjan
• Ninth Place: Berta Carol Jutgla, Sami Grenda
• Tenth Place: Piper Isgrig, Margot Paul, Brandon Yang

The DECA International Competition will be held April 23-26 in Atlanta. DECA Inc. is a student organization with members in all 50 United States and the District of Columbia, Canada, China, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, Korea, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The United States Congress, the United States Department of Education, and state and international departments of education authorize DECA’s programs. DECA prepares the next generation to be academically prepared, community oriented, professionally responsible, and experienced leaders. The High School Division includes 190,000 members in 3,500 schools.

Middle School student-artist selected by Cincinnati Art Museum

 Ava Vance’s work displayed as part of 2022 10×10

Teen Art Expo

The Indian Hill School District congratulates Indian Hill Middle School student-artist Ava Vance for her selection to be a featured artist in the Cincinnati Art Museum’s 2022 10×10 Teen Art Expo.

Vance was selected by the museum education staff in addition to a committee consisting of teen art enthusiasts from around Cincinnati.

“I’ve always been passionate about art,” said Ava Vance. “I knew I had to enter.”

Vance’s art will be on display at the Cincinnati Art Museum April 26 through May 1 on the third floor.

“We are incredibly proud of Ava, and we are so excited to see her exceptional talent recognized by such a prestigious museum,” said Indian Hill Middle School Principal Jennifer Ulland.

Esports teams ready for competition!

 Braves prepare to join the Esports Ohio League

The Indian Hill School District welcomes two Esports Ohio League teams to Indian Hill High School (IHHS).

Teams Rocket League and Valorant are now training in the new IHHS Esports Room through the support of the Indian Hill Foundation.

“Teamwork, communication, and leadership are three future-ready skills our student-gamers are learning through our participation in this new league, and I’m excited to help develop these talents,” said IHHS teacher Daniel Boyer, who mentors both teams. “My hope is that students grow closer to their school and one another.”

The Rocket League team includes students: Tyler Huang, Declan Odell, Jeremiah Winfree, Gabriel Tassi Borges Zenaide, and Andrew Heinichen serves as team captain.

The Valorant team includes students: Breckem Vanden Boom, Conner Vanden Boom, Luke Boudreau, Mitchell Ford, Anhad Gill, Ryan Hassett, Jack Moore, Alex Pheng, and Daniel Chen serves as team captain.

“We sincerely appreciate the support of our Indian Hill Foundation in bringing this student-generated team to life for our school,” said Indian Hill High School Principal Jeff Damadeo. “Our Indian Hill Foundation has set the stage for this program to grow and evolve over time.”

Student-gamers share six computers to prepare for competitions splitting the facility between the teams during the week for training. Additionally, Indian Hill High School uses the new Esports Room to host competitions, as students compete virtually against other teams in the state. 

“I want the effects of this program to extend beyond high school,” said Boyer. “Whether that’s scholarships to play at the collegiate level or an increased interest in careers related to the field of gaming.”

Indian Hill celebrates State Mock Trial Finalists!

 Braves competed in OCLRE State Championship March 12

The Indian Hill School District celebrates the State Finalist Ohio Center for Law-Related Education (OCLRE) Mock Trial Team of Avery Valz, Gulirano Almuratova, Sarika Singh, Yamini Balaji, Sophie Chabris, Lily Andrews, William Dalton, and Ashwini Krishnan. 

The Indian Hill High School (IHHS) students competed in the 2022 OCLRE Mock Trial State Championships on Saturday March 12, 2022.

“I couldn’t be prouder of our team!” said Indian Hill High School Mock Trial Team Co-Captain Avery Valz. “We faced numerous skilled teams throughout the year, prevailing over fearsome programs with prior state championship titles! Our season-long efforts were definitely worth it, and, given our state runner-up finish, rewarded!”

Prior to the state finals, the students prevailed against six previous state championship schools consecutively. For the season, including district, regional, and state levels of competition, the students had a record of eight wins until the final State Championship match. In addition to being a team state finalist, IHHS student Gulirano Almuratova received the Outstanding Attorney award in the state final match. Almuratova is only the seventh person in Indian Hill history to win the award in the state finals.

“These students worked hard and countless hours to understand the case and the legal arguments that would support each side,” said Marc Manly, legal advisor and IHHS Mock Trial mentor. “Their performances in mock trials were something that most actual lawyers with several years of experience could not have mastered.” 

The 2022 OCLRE Mock Trial State Championship was originally scheduled to be in-person in Columbus, but transitioned to a virtual competition due to travel conditions.

“Watching out students, I was simply in awe of the high level of professionalism, preparedness, discipline and diligence they showed,” said Indian Hill High School Principal Jeff Damadeo. “We are incredibly proud of all they have accomplished this school year!”

A lesson in financial literacy rolls into

Indian Hill Elementary School

 Food truck owners serve up an education in economics to students

“Show & Tell” took on a new meaning for third-grade students, as food truck operators rolled into campus to serve up a lesson on financial literacy. 

The owners of Marty’s Waffles, Marty Meersman, and Bones’ Burgers, Curtis Bonekemper, joined educators and students for a question and answer session on February 25. Students took tours of the food trucks.

“Students need to learn how to budget and create plans in order to make personal economic decisions for the present and future as they partake in the economy,” said Indian Hill Elementary School teacher Lee Jimenez, who creates unique financial literacy learning opportunities for young Braves throughout the school year.

This lesson focused on budget, income, profit, debt, and supply and demand.

“We are thrilled to partner with local business owners to make these high-level concepts real and accessible for our students,” said Indian Hill Elementary School Principal Whitney Buell. “This is an opportunity for students to explore relevant content from a different perspective; we thank Mr. Meersman and Mr. Bonekemper for taking the time to share their knowledge.”

For more information, please visit www.indianhillschools.org