Go Gryphons is a newsletter that highlights the achievements of ISI students, faculty, staff, alumni, and board members.
Share your successes with us for future editions of Go Gryphons!
January 2022
Senior Receives Prestigious Indiana College Scholarship
Each year, the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program offers the Lilly Scholarship to 9 students in Marion County. This distinguished scholarship includes full tuition, required fees, and a book stipend for all four years to any Indiana college or university that the student chooses to attend.
In December, a representative from the Central Indiana Community Foundation, along with members of the Upper School College Counseling and Leadership teams, surprised Samantha McCrea during the school day by awarding her with this distinct honor.
Middle Schooler Wins National Title in Equestrian Competition
In November, grade 6 student Samuelle Leerkamp competed with horse Idol of Kings in the Marshal & Sterling Insurance/USHJA National Championships.
Samuelle won the .7 Meter Children's National Championship and the USHJA outreach Golden Ticket for being a top scorer in Zone 5. The USHJA also published a video featuring Samuelle.
Sisters Perform as Part of the Indiana Ballet Conservatory
In November, Katerina (grade 3) and Anastasia (kindergarten) Hanzlik performed as Little Mouse and Angel in The Nutcracker at The Palladium in Carmel. The sisters performed as part of the Indiana Ballet Conservatory.
Middle Schooler's Soccer Talent Recognized by Professional Team
Four Grade 11 Students Receive Academic Recognition
Seniors Produce Original Play
ISI Recognizes Language Learning with the Global Seal of Biliteracy
Students Attend Symposium at University of Indianapolis
Grade 11 students Zaina Hayek, Melanie Kreutz, and Georgia Wiltz attended the Lugar Symposium in December. Hosted by the Lugar Academy, the event brings together top high school juniors from around the state to discuss public issues and world events.
Lower School Chess Players Win First Place at Tournament
In September, four Lower School students who participate in the Chess enrichment class won first place at a tournament hosted at the Westfield Library. Zameer Kaushik, Austin Howerton, Hayden Patel, and Jordan Howerton won first place as a school team in Category Third Grade. Ashton Kathir also won first place in Category First Grade.
January 2022
Girls Volleyball Snags Sectional Runner-Up Title
High School Girls Volleyball earned a Sectional Runner-Up title after being narrowly defeated by the Indiana School for the Deaf in three close sets. Grade 12 student Nia Simmons was also given an Honorable Mention for the 2021 Girls Volleyball All-Conference Team.
Boys Soccer Earns Best Record in 5 Years, All Conference Players Named
High School Boys Soccer accomplished their best record in 5 years, finishing the season 7-4-1. Grade 12 student Myles Bernat and Grade 11 student Patrick Machado competed in the first-team All-Conference game. Grade 12 student Will Breeden competed in the second-team All-Conference game.
Girls Soccer Players Given Honorable Mention
High School Girls Soccer finished the season with a record of 3-1-6 and is looking forward to continuing to build out the program. Following their season, Grade 10 student Caitlyn Hempstead and Grade 11 students Karina Peate and Grace Kaneshiro were Honorable Mentions for the 2021 PAAC Girls Soccer All-Conference Team.
January 2022
Head of School Serving on Board of Local Non-Profit
In January 2021, Head of School Elizabeth Head began serving on the Board of Directors at American China Society of Indiana (ACSI), a local non-profit that leads the way to facilitate productive, sustainable, and open business relationships between Indiana and China. As part of her duties, Ms. Head attends quarterly Board meetings.
Lower School Principal Co-Hosts Webinar
In December, Lower School Principal spoke at a webinar hosted by the Committee on Teaching About the United Nations. The webinar, titled "Global Competence: Teaching and Learning In An Interconnected World," aimed to "define global competence, explain why it is essential for today's learners and show how it has been implemented in various programs." Ms. Haygaru spoke about the implementation of a Compassionate Systems Framework at the Lower School.
Upper School Principal Continues Work with the IB Educator Network
Upper School Principal Richard Bruford has worked in the IB educator network for 15 years, holding roles as a school evaluation team leader, workshop leader, consultant, and lead educator. Since arriving to the U.S. last year, Mr. Bruford has served as an evaluation team leader for schools in Colorado, North Carolina, Oregon, and Virginia. As a workshop leader, Mr. Bruford leads workshops on successfully implementing the IB Diploma Programme in schools around the world, which helps him provide pertinent professional development for our own faculty at ISI. He remains passionate in this work and has even encouraged ISI teachers to become members of the same network.
High School Biology Teacher & Students Interview on Podcast
Biology teacher Susannah Miller, alongside Grade 9 students Umay Ozsoy, Blair Breeden, and Kennedi Green, were interviewed by Robert Colangelo of Green Sense Radio Show. Ms. Miller and her students spoke about student's passion for the environment and how this is incorporated to their daily lessons. Listen to the interview here.
January 2022
Former ISI Student Selected for Prestigious Fellowship
Former ISI student, Maya Caldwell, has been chosen to join Orr Fellowship, which is "a two-year, post-graduate program that places high-achieving students into full-time, paid jobs at companies or organizations in Indianapolis." Maya was one of six DePauw seniors and 100 other Indiana college seniors offered this fellowship. Nearly 12,00 fellowship applications were submitted this year.
Class of 2020 Alum Making Strides at University Level
Class of 2013 Alum Develops App for International Students
Santiago Salmeron, Class of 2013, works as a mobile app developer and helped with the creation of the app Sunapsis. The app was released in February and was created to assist international students coming to the U.S. for college upload required documents. Indiana University has already implemented this tool. The Indiana Daily Student published an article with more information on the app.
January 2022
Board Member Serving as Interim Dean at Butler
Craig Caldwell, who previously served as an Associate Dean in Butler University's Lacy School of Business (LSB), was appointed as the School's Interim Dean in July. Caldwell continues to teach in the MBA and Master of Science in Risk & Insurance programs.
Board Secretary Promoted Within Eli Lilly and Company
In June, Board Secretary Alonzo Weems assumed his new role, Senior Vice President and Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer, at Eli Lilly and Company. His alma mater, Wabash College, announced the news and shared more about this new role.
Board Member Receives Award From International Center
In September, Andrea Richter-Garry was the recipient of the 2021 Global Impression Award, which "honors emerging leaders who are demonstrating success in their profession, directly impacting the global community within Indiana, and whose work has a considerable impact on a vision for an Indiana that is a vibrant place to live and work while valuing all cultures." The award is presented at the International Citizen of the Year event, hosted by the International Center, each year.
Go Gryphons is curated thanks to submissions from our community members.
We encourage readers to share their achievements or those of others for inclusion in future editions of Go Gryphons.
submit content for go gryphons