Eli Bucksbaum is exhibiting and auctioning artwork at the Happy Jack Pop-up Shop and gallery, open now at 8 Fulton Street in New York City. Happy Jack is a clothing and art company created by Eli’s best friend, Jack Nathan, to raise awareness for mental health and anxiety amongst kids and adults alike. In the wake of Jack’s passing this last July, Happy Jack's legacy lives on. “May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so we thought that there was no better time to open a pop-up shop completely dedicated and in tribute to Jack. I will be curating the gallery with all of Jack's artworks and five of mine which will be up for silent auction throughout the month.” To make a bid on Eli's art, all you have to do is sign up and provide an email and password on the Happy Jack website and then you are all set to go. Fifty percent of all profits will be donated to The Child Mind Institute, which aims to transform the lives of children and families struggling with mental health and learning disorders.” See Happy Jack online and check out the silent auction. 
 

In Latin’s history books, future students will not only read about what it was like to compete in athletics during a global pandemic, they will also see these record-breaking summer season accomplishments by the Romans during this unprecedented time!

Congratulations to the Boys Baseball team who won the ISL Conference and IHSA Regional championships this season! They played a solid game against Timothy Christian in the IHSA Sectional final but lost 8-12. This young team gained a lot of experience this season, which will take them far next year. We say goodbye to seniors Eli Aronson ’21, Timothy Devine ’21, Will Furlow ’21, Spencer Gunning ’21, Peter Jones ’21 and Matthew Shrake ’21.  Go Romans!

 

The Boys Lacrosse team entered its fourth year as a varsity program, led by seniors Shahab Kousheshi ’21, Henry Finkel ’21 and Charlie Weiss ’21. The team went 5-7 on the season, winning games over Northside College Prep, DePaul College Prep, and suffering three one-goal losses to Whitney Young, Highland Park HS and Lane Tech.  

 

 

The Girls Lacrosse team played their first season as a varsity sport in 2021. They competed against some very tough opponents, going 7-6 on the season. Alanna Madry ’22 was chosen as an All-Sectional athlete by the Illinois Girls Lacrosse Coaches Association. The whole team will be back next spring!




 

Girls Soccer had an excellent season, tying for first place in the ISL! The team was led by eight senior 4-year award winners, including two Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-Sectional athletes: Alessandra Kaestner ’21 (1st team) and Malia Brandt ’21 (H.M.). Earning All-League honors are Malia Brandt ’21, Alessandra Kaestner ’21, Zoe Weiss ’22, Ava Falk ’23 and Eden Raviv  ’23. Good luck to all of our seniors: Claire Box ’21, Malia Brandt ’21, Eliza Bufferd ’21, Frances Hutchison ’21, Alessandra Kaestner ’21, Megan Lorenz ’21, Alexa Silverman ’21 and Tara Walsh ’21!
 

The Girls Softball team went 4-6 on the season, taking second place in the ISL. All-League athletes are Maya Shroff ’21, Katie Hallinan ’24, Emery Sill ’24 and Maggie Zeiger ’24. Thanks to Maeve Healy ’21 and Maya Shroff ’21, our 4-year award winning senior captains for leading the way! Congratulations to Coach Dave Gonzales for earning Coach of the Year in the Independent School League!



 

Boys Track & Field placed third in the ISL and fifth in Sectionals this season. Four members of the Boys Track & Field team competed in the State meet. All four earned All-State honors.  

• 1600m = Peter Bernhardt ’21
• 300m Hurdles = Cole Fuller ’21
• 1600m 3rd place = Ryan Hardiman ’22 
• 1600m = Akili Parekh ’23

Thanks to our four 4-year award winning seniors: George Alexandrakis ’21, Peter Berhhardt ’21, Henry Coleman ’21 and Cole Fuller ’21!

 

The Boys Tennis team brought home the 2021 IHSA Class 1A State championship for the first time in Latin history. They also won the ISL and Sectionals on their way to State. Congrats, Romans!

• Boys Doubles = State Champions - Akshay Garapati ’23 & Kiran Garapati ’23
• Boys Singles = 4th Place - Sujan Garapati ’21
• Boys Singles = 5 points - Will Benford ’22
• Boys Doubles = 4 points - Sam Cutinho ’22 & Antonio Feliciano ’21 
   

The Girls Track & Field team brought home their first-ever 2021 IHSA Class 2A State championship. All-American athletes Ava Parekh ’22 (3200m) & Marianne Mihas ’21 (800m) were ranked nationally. Congratulations to all of these phenomenal athletes!

• 4x800m Relay = State Champions - Bea Parr ’21, McLaine Leik ’23, McKenna Fellows ’22 & Marianne Mihas ’21
• 3200m = State Champion - Ava Parekh ’22 & 7th Place - Olivia Syftestad ’21
• 800m = State Champion - Marianne Mihas ’21 & 4th Place - Ava Parekh ’22
• 400m = 2nd Place - Marianne Mihas ’21
• 1600m = 2nd Place - Ava Parekh ’22 & 4th Place - Bea Parr ’21
• 4x400m Relay = 5th place - McLaine Leik ’23, Ava Parekh ’22, McKenna Fellows ’22 & Marianne Mihas ’21
• Shot Put = 8th Place - Alice Mihas ’23
• Discus = 8th Place - Alice Mihas ’23
   

The Boys Volleyball team was on an 11-game winning streak when they earned the IHSA Regional championship this season! They matched up against Oak Park & River Forest High School in IHSA Sectionals. Unfortunately, the Romans lost (0-2), but there were some amazing rallies and outstanding individual and team play throughout the match. We say goodbye to our six dedicated seniors–all 4-year award winners: Wesley Eaton ’21, Darius Nabers ’21, Tushar Patel ’21, Nicholas Pranger ’21, Tejas Vadali ’21 and Sebastian Valenzuela ’21!
 

Boys Water Polo was led this year by senior, 4-year award winners Cole Lindemann ’21 and Sam Szykowny ’21. They had a very small team but played with determination, losing to several of their opponents with much larger rosters by one goal. 

 

 

 

 

The Girls Water Polo Team was led by six seniors this season. They went 5-7 with great wins over Argo, Resurrection, Amundsen, Lockport and Jones/Payton. Congratulations to Elena Skender ’21 who earned All-Sectional honors! We say goodbye to seniors Vivienne Kaufman ’21, Freddi Mitchell ’21, Emily Mundy ’21, Zoe Smith ’21 and Rebecca Wanger ’21!

 

 

 

Athletics

Did you know that Mitsubishi, a car manufacturer, is reducing CO2 output by 30% by lowering industrial emissions to 0 and lowering their power generation emissions significantly? Or that Gap, Inc., the clothing brand, promises to source all cotton from sustainable sources by 2025 and launched a pop-up shop in 2017 where customers could purchase up-cycled denim to bring awareness to clothing waste?
Climate change has been a topic in the news for many years. Eighth grade students in Kathleen Meade's science class took a deeper look into the effect climate change has on the world around them.

Students created visual representations about the topic, including an explanation of two signs of climate change, two solutions and three images that they associated with climate change. The last element on the piece of paper was one of their choices–they either calculated their families carbon footprint, researched legislation, identified companies making a difference or looked at current events. Check out an example of the one-page visual.

 

Academics
 

We would like to say a very heartfelt thank you to the faculty and staff who will be leaving Latin this year for their service to the school. We wish you well in your next adventures!

Upper School
Danika Amusin, Mathematics
Kim Diorio, English
Jennifer Hayman, Learning Resources
Cara Gallagher, History
Betty Lark Ross (retiree), Visual Arts
Ashly Lawrence, Counseling
Miten Patel, History
Jenny Stevens, Counseling
Faye Wells, Science
Leah Wolf, Computer Science

Middle School
Julie Badynee, Learning Resources
Renie Dunn Finch (retiree), Dean of Students/Physical Education
Jane Kelly (retiree), Dance/Movement
Samantha Johnson, Mathematics
Lindsay Ann Ruiz (sabbatical substitute), English

Lower School
Pauline Brakebill (retiree), Division Assistant
Julie Brooks, Division Director
Logan Gannon, Remote Lead Teacher
Harriett Hauske, Junior Kindergarten
Nancy Kamin, Remote Lead Teacher
Becki Maloney, Nurse
Gabe Paynter, Third Grade
Page Syvertsen, First Grade

LS Assistant Teachers:
Marie Adams
Jackie Baker
Jazmin Clemons
Bailey Kaufman
Angela Krischon
Sydney Levenfeld
Luisa Milano
Margie Muller
Nina Powell
Morgan Richmond
Ada Tan
Mady Temple

Staff
Zahra Bhoy, Development Coordinator
Melissa North, Director of Events
Jill Norris, HR Generalist
Sara Salzman, Associate Director of Enrollment Management
Morganne Stevens, Associate Director of Latin 360°

Community & Traditions

In Latin’s history books, future students will not only read about what it was like to compete in athletics during a global pandemic, they will also see these record-breaking summer season accomplishments by the Romans during this unprecedented time!

Congratulations to the Boys Baseball team who won the ISL Conference and IHSA Regional championships this season! They played a solid game against Timothy Christian in the IHSA Sectional final but lost 8-12. This young team gained a lot of experience this season, which will take them far next year. We say goodbye to seniors Eli Aronson ’21, Timothy Devine ’21, Will Furlow ’21, Spencer Gunning ’21, Peter Jones ’21 and Matthew Shrake ’21.  Go Romans!

 

The Boys Lacrosse team entered its fourth year as a varsity program, led by seniors Shahab Kousheshi ’21, Henry Finkel ’21 and Charlie Weiss ’21. The team went 5-7 on the season, winning games over Northside College Prep, DePaul College Prep, and suffering three one-goal losses to Whitney Young, Highland Park HS and Lane Tech.  

 

 

The Girls Lacrosse team played their first season as a varsity sport in 2021. They competed against some very tough opponents, going 7-6 on the season. Alanna Madry ’22 was chosen as an All-Sectional athlete by the Illinois Girls Lacrosse Coaches Association. The whole team will be back next spring!




 

Girls Soccer had an excellent season, tying for first place in the ISL! The team was led by eight senior 4-year award winners, including two Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-Sectional athletes: Alessandra Kaestner ’21 (1st team) and Malia Brandt ’21 (H.M.). Earning All-League honors are Malia Brandt ’21, Alessandra Kaestner ’21, Zoe Weiss ’22, Ava Falk ’23 and Eden Raviv  ’23. Good luck to all of our seniors: Claire Box ’21, Malia Brandt ’21, Eliza Bufferd ’21, Frances Hutchison ’21, Alessandra Kaestner ’21, Megan Lorenz ’21, Alexa Silverman ’21 and Tara Walsh ’21!
 

The Girls Softball team went 4-6 on the season, taking second place in the ISL. All-League athletes are Maya Shroff ’21, Katie Hallinan ’24, Emery Sill ’24 and Maggie Zeiger ’24. Thanks to Maeve Healy ’21 and Maya Shroff ’21, our 4-year award winning senior captains for leading the way! Congratulations to Coach Dave Gonzales for earning Coach of the Year in the Independent School League!



 

Boys Track & Field placed third in the ISL and fifth in Sectionals this season. Four members of the Boys Track & Field team competed in the State meet. All four earned All-State honors.  

• 1600m = Peter Bernhardt ’21
• 300m Hurdles = Cole Fuller ’21
• 1600m 3rd place = Ryan Hardiman ’22 
• 1600m = Akili Parekh ’23

Thanks to our four 4-year award winning seniors: George Alexandrakis ’21, Peter Berhhardt ’21, Henry Coleman ’21 and Cole Fuller ’21!

 

The Boys Tennis team brought home the 2021 IHSA Class 1A State championship for the first time in Latin history. They also won the ISL and Sectionals on their way to State. Congrats, Romans!

• Boys Doubles = State Champions - Akshay Garapati ’23 & Kiran Garapati ’23
• Boys Singles = 4th Place - Sujan Garapati ’21
• Boys Singles = 5 points - Will Benford ’22
• Boys Doubles = 4 points - Sam Cutinho ’22 & Antonio Feliciano ’21 
   

The Girls Track & Field team brought home their first-ever 2021 IHSA Class 2A State championship. All-American athletes Ava Parekh ’22 (3200m) & Marianne Mihas ’21 (800m) were ranked nationally. Congratulations to all of these phenomenal athletes!

• 4x800m Relay = State Champions - Bea Parr ’21, McLaine Leik ’23, McKenna Fellows ’22 & Marianne Mihas ’21
• 3200m = State Champion - Ava Parekh ’22 & 7th Place - Olivia Syftestad ’21
• 800m = State Champion - Marianne Mihas ’21 & 4th Place - Ava Parekh ’22
• 400m = 2nd Place - Marianne Mihas ’21
• 1600m = 2nd Place - Ava Parekh ’22 & 4th Place - Bea Parr ’21
• 4x400m Relay = 5th place - McLaine Leik ’23, Ava Parekh ’22, McKenna Fellows ’22 & Marianne Mihas ’21
• Shot Put = 8th Place - Alice Mihas ’23
• Discus = 8th Place - Alice Mihas ’23
   

The Boys Volleyball team was on an 11-game winning streak when they earned the IHSA Regional championship this season! They matched up against Oak Park & River Forest High School in IHSA Sectionals. Unfortunately, the Romans lost (0-2), but there were some amazing rallies and outstanding individual and team play throughout the match. We say goodbye to our six dedicated seniors–all 4-year award winners: Wesley Eaton ’21, Darius Nabers ’21, Tushar Patel ’21, Nicholas Pranger ’21, Tejas Vadali ’21 and Sebastian Valenzuela ’21!
 

Boys Water Polo was led this year by senior, 4-year award winners Cole Lindemann ’21 and Sam Szykowny ’21. They had a very small team but played with determination, losing to several of their opponents with much larger rosters by one goal. 

 

 

 

 

The Girls Water Polo Team was led by six seniors this season. They went 5-7 with great wins over Argo, Resurrection, Amundsen, Lockport and Jones/Payton. Congratulations to Elena Skender ’21 who earned All-Sectional honors! We say goodbye to seniors Vivienne Kaufman ’21, Freddi Mitchell ’21, Emily Mundy ’21, Zoe Smith ’21 and Rebecca Wanger ’21!

 

 

 

Athletics

More than 50 upper school students participated in the Global Online Academy (GOA) this year, including the summer term. Next year, more than 60 students will be participating. GOA courses have continued to grow in popularity since Latin partnered with the organization in October 2011.

GOA, a network of online courses for students all over the globe, fosters new and effective ways for students to learn, through best practices in education, and promotes students’ global awareness and understanding by creating truly diverse, worldwide, online communities.

Roughly 30% of GOA member schools are located in countries outside of the U.S. Upper School Science teacher Amy Merrell has been the site director for GOA at Latin for the past six years. She noted that roughly 30% of GOA member schools are located in countries outside of the U.S. Each class typically has around 18 students or less and most of the students are from other areas of the U.S. and countries around the world. Latin students are almost always the only Chicagoans.

The most popular GOA classes include: Medical Problem Solving, Abnormal Psychology and Introduction to Psychology. A new class that is quickly gaining popularity from Latin students is Entrepreneurship in a Global Context. 

Each year, the organization holds the Annual GOA Catalyst Conference, a global online event for students to share projects designed to spark change in their communities. Each presentation is the culmination of a capstone project that asks students to transform learning from their course into research-based solutions for real-world issues.

The following Latin students were selected from more than 400 presentations to receive a GOA Citation. Citations are awarded by Global Online Academy and member school faculty to those presentations that best represent the goals of the conference: 1) Raising awareness, 2) Promoting grassroots action, 3) Promoting institutional change. 

Jadyn A. ’23: Through the lens of a separated city: How do we provide equal and equitable access to vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Milana J. ’21: How does Systematic Racism influence Health Inequality within Chicago?
Jay D. ’22: Catalyst Conference Introduction 2021: How can we, as a society, help create dignified and purposeful lives for the lives of Misericordia’s residents through the lens of the well-being theory and positive psychology?
 

Academics

To everyone who attended Romans Raise & Revel, to each person who donated, to our students, faculty, and alumni who shared their stories, and the volunteers who made the night possible, THANK YOU! 
Thank you for showing us the resilience of the Latin community, and coming together in celebration of the Latin experience.

Even during this unusual year, the generosity of the Latin community has stayed consistent. Through your support of Romans Raise & Revel, we were able to raise more than $1.1M in financial aid for Latin.  

Unable to tune in? Want to share or relive the fun? Check out the recording of the program. It's not too late to donate and show your support.

Our Voices

One of the fourth grade classrooms passionately discussed social issues and the impact they have on our world. These lessons stemmed from their yearlong unpacking of identities and coming together as a classroom community. 

In the spring, fourth graders participated in the opinion writing unit, which focuses on understanding how to take a stand, set a clear thesis statement, give supporting reasons, and back up their thinking with evidence.

The first project in this unit was for students to create social issues acrostic poems, where certain letters in each line spell out a word or phrase. This assignment helped students to think about issues going on in their world. They generated their own list and discussed what each issue means and means to them.

These conversations were also supplemented with books as well. The issues they chose for their poems were ones that they felt strongly about in this moment–many about animals, as the 9- and 10-year-old brains adore their animals!

Students were pleased to show off their work to a very special visitor, Head of School Randall Dunn, during their classroom gallery walk.

Then the students dove deeper into the social issues and identified one that they care deeply about, researched the issues, and then wrote a five-paragraph essay on the issue. 

To view more of the students' acrostic poems, browse the photo gallery below.

Academics

Did you know that Mitsubishi, a car manufacturer, is reducing CO2 output by 30% by lowering industrial emissions to 0 and lowering their power generation emissions significantly? Or that Gap, Inc., the clothing brand, promises to source all cotton from sustainable sources by 2025 and launched a pop-up shop in 2017 where customers could purchase up-cycled denim to bring awareness to clothing waste?
Climate change has been a topic in the news for many years. Eighth grade students in Kathleen Meade's science class took a deeper look into the effect climate change has on the world around them.

Students created visual representations about the topic, including an explanation of two signs of climate change, two solutions and three images that they associated with climate change. The last element on the piece of paper was one of their choices–they either calculated their families carbon footprint, researched legislation, identified companies making a difference or looked at current events. Check out an example of the one-page visual.

 

Academics
 

More than 50 upper school students participated in the Global Online Academy (GOA) this year, including the summer term. Next year, more than 60 students will be participating. GOA courses have continued to grow in popularity since Latin partnered with the organization in October 2011.

GOA, a network of online courses for students all over the globe, fosters new and effective ways for students to learn, through best practices in education, and promotes students’ global awareness and understanding by creating truly diverse, worldwide, online communities.

Roughly 30% of GOA member schools are located in countries outside of the U.S. Upper School Science teacher Amy Merrell has been the site director for GOA at Latin for the past six years. She noted that roughly 30% of GOA member schools are located in countries outside of the U.S. Each class typically has around 18 students or less and most of the students are from other areas of the U.S. and countries around the world. Latin students are almost always the only Chicagoans.

The most popular GOA classes include: Medical Problem Solving, Abnormal Psychology and Introduction to Psychology. A new class that is quickly gaining popularity from Latin students is Entrepreneurship in a Global Context. 

Each year, the organization holds the Annual GOA Catalyst Conference, a global online event for students to share projects designed to spark change in their communities. Each presentation is the culmination of a capstone project that asks students to transform learning from their course into research-based solutions for real-world issues.

The following Latin students were selected from more than 400 presentations to receive a GOA Citation. Citations are awarded by Global Online Academy and member school faculty to those presentations that best represent the goals of the conference: 1) Raising awareness, 2) Promoting grassroots action, 3) Promoting institutional change. 

Jadyn A. ’23: Through the lens of a separated city: How do we provide equal and equitable access to vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Milana J. ’21: How does Systematic Racism influence Health Inequality within Chicago?
Jay D. ’22: Catalyst Conference Introduction 2021: How can we, as a society, help create dignified and purposeful lives for the lives of Misericordia’s residents through the lens of the well-being theory and positive psychology?
 

Academics

One of the fourth grade classrooms passionately discussed social issues and the impact they have on our world. These lessons stemmed from their yearlong unpacking of identities and coming together as a classroom community. 

In the spring, fourth graders participated in the opinion writing unit, which focuses on understanding how to take a stand, set a clear thesis statement, give supporting reasons, and back up their thinking with evidence.

The first project in this unit was for students to create social issues acrostic poems, where certain letters in each line spell out a word or phrase. This assignment helped students to think about issues going on in their world. They generated their own list and discussed what each issue means and means to them.

These conversations were also supplemented with books as well. The issues they chose for their poems were ones that they felt strongly about in this moment–many about animals, as the 9- and 10-year-old brains adore their animals!

Students were pleased to show off their work to a very special visitor, Head of School Randall Dunn, during their classroom gallery walk.

Then the students dove deeper into the social issues and identified one that they care deeply about, researched the issues, and then wrote a five-paragraph essay on the issue. 

To view more of the students' acrostic poems, browse the photo gallery below.

Academics

Third grade students completed a Chicago neighborhood study unit where they learned about Gold Coast (where Latin is) and Uptown (where we have Third Space).

Throughout this unit the students studied neighborhood data, including racial demographics, income, educational attainment, etc. They also learned about the strengths and challenges of both neighborhoods. Typically, the third grade class takes a field trip to Uptown during this unit, but because of COVID the students virtually interviewed three community members from Uptown. They learned a lot about anti-Asian hate that is happening as well as the negative impact COVID has had on businesses in Uptown. 

The students had lots of great discussions in the classrooms about what it means to be an ally, so the teachers decided to reframe the final project in this unit. They posed this question to our students: "How can you be an ally to the community members in Uptown?" Block Club Chicago wrote an article promoting the event Celebrate Argyle that one of the community members our students interviewed helped to found. This was a great way for students to see that being an ally means amplifying the voices of others and walking alongside them as a way to help. 

The students chose different ways to help promote the event, including creating big posters, creating flyers to pass out to friends and neighbors, and writing letters to encourage people to attend. Third grade students and teachers encourage the Latin community to also be an ally and visit Argyle Street to support the businesses and spread the word.

If you see a third grader, ask them what it means to be an ally! 

Academics

The Independent Study Program (ISP) at Latin offers students the opportunity to discover their passions and learn about a topic that is tailored to their interests. Eleventh grade student Alyssa B. '22 is interested in filmmaking, specifically the editing and post-production aspects of the industry.
She decided to take the Documentary Filmmaking ISP with Visual Arts teacher and department chair Betty Lark Ross to learn more about the preproduction and interviewing process. "I decided that doing this ISP would be beneficial in making me a more well-rounded videographer, " said Alyssa. 

As part of this class, her final project was to create a film featuring in-depth interviews I decided that doing this ISP would be beneficial in making me a more well-rounded videographer.
Alyssa B. '22 with credible sources. News coverage surrounding a popular application called TikTok and its potential concern with cybersecurity inspired the concept of Alyssa's film.

"I felt like I could not find a singular source that summarized what was and was not accurate information about the app compared to other social media platforms," she said. "So, I decided to attempt to do so myself with my film."

Alyssa diligently researched the topic using credible sources for facts to include in her film. With the help of Latin's Director of Alumni Relations Stephanie Chu and her ISP advisor, she also interviewed experts in the field of cybersecurity (some of whom are Latin alums) to offer additional insight into the TikTok security controversy.

Alyssa then utilized her skills in animation and graphics to tell an informative story in this eight-minute video titled "TikTok: A Data Dilemma."

Our Voices

Upper school students transformed the fall play into a virtual, interactive experience, complete with an engaging website and a cutting-edge Zoom performance. Twenty-one students presented "Lucy Westenra is Not (and Will Never Be) a Vampire" from 20 different locations on October 28-30, 2020. The play, written by Latin alum and current lower school assistant teacher, Marjorie Muller '13," is based on Bram Stoker's classic novel "Dracula."

The production of presenting the virtual performance took careful planning and technological skill. Each student used a green screen (coupled with a chroma-key green virtual background) on Zoom. Back at Latin, a "mission control" center utilized brand new technology that was developed during the pandemic to route the live feeds of the actors on Zoom and make them appear in the custom configurations on screen. First, ZoomOSC software allowed "mission control" to see the location of each actor on the Zoom feed (top left, center right, bottom middle, etc.). Then software from Troikatronix called Isadora merged the performers onto shared backgrounds to make them appear like they were in the same location, plus it layered in video and audio effects. 

Students developed problem-solving, creative-thinking and technology-building skills, which they will use to revamp theatrical performance experiences for years to come.

Working alongside upper school technical theater teacher Thad Hallstein, the show's student stage manager, Natalie R. '22, called out all of the screen configuration changes and audio and effects cues. This included giving the actors their cues in the Zoom chat as well as communicating with the actors in a separate group text chat for other directions. The student computer control operator, Elliot K. '22, then executed the cues in the performance software. He also served as an emergency understudy to step in front of a green screen set up at Latin should an actor's WIFI drop out or they lose connection with them on Zoom. Shane Enderle, a member of Latin's IT team, monitored the feed from the performance software to ensure the video and audio functioned properly in the live stream.

 

Directed by upper school drama and technical theater teacher Frank Schneider, the show was viewable on Twitch, a live stream tool that was embedded on the website quincymorrison.net, which the students created specifically for the play.

Students developed problem-solving, creative-thinking and technology-building skills, which they will use to revamp theatrical performance experiences for years to come.

 

Arts

Latin’s 2019 upper school fall play, “She Kills Monsters” by Qui Nguyen, is an energetic comedic drama set in a fictional high school in the 1990s and a special-effects-laden fantasy world within the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons.

The play is filled with ogres, killer fairies, evil cheerleaders and even a flesh-eating Jell-O mold! This ambitious piece presented numerous design and technical challenges. Over the summer, Director Nick Baer and performing arts faculty designers, along with guest costume designer Gaby Kuhn, collaborated to create the look and feel of the show, beginning by sharing a variety of ’90s era research images: D&D figurines and packaging, stills from MTV shows, album cover art and layouts from Ray Gun magazine, to name a few. With support from Latin’s Performing Arts Endowment, additional guest artists were brought in to assist with the effort. Mask and puppet maker David Knezz taught sculpting and papier-mâché techniques, helping the cast create their own masks for several fantasy characters. Fight choreographers Dave Gonzalez and Nicky Jasper were integral in developing the dramatic final sequence of the play, in which a five-headed dragon, operated by student puppeteers in the balcony, swoops in over the heads of the audience to do battle with the play’s hero.

The fall semester stagecraft class was tasked with developing many of the effects and specialty costume pieces from the play. Students worked in groups to research techniques, gather resources and collaborate with faculty and guest artists. One group created the Beholder, a grotesque giant eyeball that appears for a short but memorably hilarious moment. Another group created the five dragon puppets, working with Knezz through multiple iterations of sculpting techniques for the heads, as well as engineering puppeteering poles up to 22 feet long that were lightweight, yet nimble and durable enough to be operated safely above the audience. Another group created a giant cube of green Jell-O, using PVC pipes, pool noodles, and translucent plastic strips that could “swallow” a character whole. The last group created blood and gore effects, concocting gallons of “blood” from corn syrup, chocolate sauce and laundry detergent. This group also worked closely with Kuhn building fake arms that could be dramatically ripped off a character during each performance. Many of the particular requirements for these projects evolved as fights, blocking and concepts were refined in rehearsal. Through this process, stagecraft students learned the value of frequent, detailed communication with members of the production team and cast.

At the end of the semester, a group of stagecraft students created a gallery display of artifacts and documentation from the play. They gathered production photos, original design drawings, props and costume pieces, displaying them paired with labels and descriptions to tell the story of the “behind the scenes” production process. This display gave the Latin community the chance to see the extensive creative and technical work from students, faculty and guest artists that goes into putting on a visually compelling theatrical production on the Latin stage.

Arts

So what better way to kick off the remote music learning series, than to recreate the joy of music-making together with families. The instrument choices were boxes (drums), cutlery, lids, pots/pans/cans or other items that could creatively be turned into musical instruments. Everyone could join the band – pets, babies, toddlers, younger and older siblings, grown-ups. There is a wonderful saying, "Art decorates space; and music decorates time." Mrs. Friedman, Mrs. Durairaj, Ms. Martinez and Ms. Baker are working with lower school students and families to make the most of their space and time with creative ideas. Check out family music makers in action!

Arts

In Latin’s history books, future students will not only read about what it was like to compete in athletics during a global pandemic, they will also see these record-breaking summer season accomplishments by the Romans during this unprecedented time!

Congratulations to the Boys Baseball team who won the ISL Conference and IHSA Regional championships this season! They played a solid game against Timothy Christian in the IHSA Sectional final but lost 8-12. This young team gained a lot of experience this season, which will take them far next year. We say goodbye to seniors Eli Aronson ’21, Timothy Devine ’21, Will Furlow ’21, Spencer Gunning ’21, Peter Jones ’21 and Matthew Shrake ’21.  Go Romans!

 

The Boys Lacrosse team entered its fourth year as a varsity program, led by seniors Shahab Kousheshi ’21, Henry Finkel ’21 and Charlie Weiss ’21. The team went 5-7 on the season, winning games over Northside College Prep, DePaul College Prep, and suffering three one-goal losses to Whitney Young, Highland Park HS and Lane Tech.  

 

 

The Girls Lacrosse team played their first season as a varsity sport in 2021. They competed against some very tough opponents, going 7-6 on the season. Alanna Madry ’22 was chosen as an All-Sectional athlete by the Illinois Girls Lacrosse Coaches Association. The whole team will be back next spring!




 

Girls Soccer had an excellent season, tying for first place in the ISL! The team was led by eight senior 4-year award winners, including two Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-Sectional athletes: Alessandra Kaestner ’21 (1st team) and Malia Brandt ’21 (H.M.). Earning All-League honors are Malia Brandt ’21, Alessandra Kaestner ’21, Zoe Weiss ’22, Ava Falk ’23 and Eden Raviv  ’23. Good luck to all of our seniors: Claire Box ’21, Malia Brandt ’21, Eliza Bufferd ’21, Frances Hutchison ’21, Alessandra Kaestner ’21, Megan Lorenz ’21, Alexa Silverman ’21 and Tara Walsh ’21!
 

The Girls Softball team went 4-6 on the season, taking second place in the ISL. All-League athletes are Maya Shroff ’21, Katie Hallinan ’24, Emery Sill ’24 and Maggie Zeiger ’24. Thanks to Maeve Healy ’21 and Maya Shroff ’21, our 4-year award winning senior captains for leading the way! Congratulations to Coach Dave Gonzales for earning Coach of the Year in the Independent School League!



 

Boys Track & Field placed third in the ISL and fifth in Sectionals this season. Four members of the Boys Track & Field team competed in the State meet. All four earned All-State honors.  

• 1600m = Peter Bernhardt ’21
• 300m Hurdles = Cole Fuller ’21
• 1600m 3rd place = Ryan Hardiman ’22 
• 1600m = Akili Parekh ’23

Thanks to our four 4-year award winning seniors: George Alexandrakis ’21, Peter Berhhardt ’21, Henry Coleman ’21 and Cole Fuller ’21!

 

The Boys Tennis team brought home the 2021 IHSA Class 1A State championship for the first time in Latin history. They also won the ISL and Sectionals on their way to State. Congrats, Romans!

• Boys Doubles = State Champions - Akshay Garapati ’23 & Kiran Garapati ’23
• Boys Singles = 4th Place - Sujan Garapati ’21
• Boys Singles = 5 points - Will Benford ’22
• Boys Doubles = 4 points - Sam Cutinho ’22 & Antonio Feliciano ’21 
   

The Girls Track & Field team brought home their first-ever 2021 IHSA Class 2A State championship. All-American athletes Ava Parekh ’22 (3200m) & Marianne Mihas ’21 (800m) were ranked nationally. Congratulations to all of these phenomenal athletes!

• 4x800m Relay = State Champions - Bea Parr ’21, McLaine Leik ’23, McKenna Fellows ’22 & Marianne Mihas ’21
• 3200m = State Champion - Ava Parekh ’22 & 7th Place - Olivia Syftestad ’21
• 800m = State Champion - Marianne Mihas ’21 & 4th Place - Ava Parekh ’22
• 400m = 2nd Place - Marianne Mihas ’21
• 1600m = 2nd Place - Ava Parekh ’22 & 4th Place - Bea Parr ’21
• 4x400m Relay = 5th place - McLaine Leik ’23, Ava Parekh ’22, McKenna Fellows ’22 & Marianne Mihas ’21
• Shot Put = 8th Place - Alice Mihas ’23
• Discus = 8th Place - Alice Mihas ’23
   

The Boys Volleyball team was on an 11-game winning streak when they earned the IHSA Regional championship this season! They matched up against Oak Park & River Forest High School in IHSA Sectionals. Unfortunately, the Romans lost (0-2), but there were some amazing rallies and outstanding individual and team play throughout the match. We say goodbye to our six dedicated seniors–all 4-year award winners: Wesley Eaton ’21, Darius Nabers ’21, Tushar Patel ’21, Nicholas Pranger ’21, Tejas Vadali ’21 and Sebastian Valenzuela ’21!
 

Boys Water Polo was led this year by senior, 4-year award winners Cole Lindemann ’21 and Sam Szykowny ’21. They had a very small team but played with determination, losing to several of their opponents with much larger rosters by one goal. 

 

 

 

 

The Girls Water Polo Team was led by six seniors this season. They went 5-7 with great wins over Argo, Resurrection, Amundsen, Lockport and Jones/Payton. Congratulations to Elena Skender ’21 who earned All-Sectional honors! We say goodbye to seniors Vivienne Kaufman ’21, Freddi Mitchell ’21, Emily Mundy ’21, Zoe Smith ’21 and Rebecca Wanger ’21!

 

 

 

Athletics

We are so proud of our student-athletes who have committed to playing a sport in college next year!

Eli A. will be playing baseball at Denison University; Peter B. will be running cross country and track at Kenyon College; Molly C. will be on the equestrian team Baylor University; Colin C. will be playing soccer at Wesleyan University; and Blake D. playing golf and ice hockey at The University of Tampa.

Cole F. will be playing soccer and track at Oberlin College; Sujan G. will be playing tennis at Bowdoin University; Anees G. will be playing tennis at New York University; Natalie M. will be playing basketball at Johns Hopkins University; Marianne M. will be running track at Harvard University; Charlie M. will be rowing at Loyola Marymount University; and Bea P. will be running cross country and track at Middlebury College.

Noah R. will be running track at Lewis and Clark College; Ashley R. will be swimming at Carleton College; Matthew S. will be playing baseball at Bates College; Olivia S. will be running cross country and track at The George Washington University; and Ava T. will be playing volleyball at The University of Arizona. Congratulations to our student-athletes!

Go Romans!

Athletics

Three of the Latin sailing club's varsity boats placed 3rd in a race on April 11, which qualified the team to move to the next round in Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota on May 1 and 2. 

The race culminated in an intense sail-off tiebreaker with St. Ignatius for the 3rd place spot. Everyone on the team is very excited to represent Latin and the Chicago Yacht Club in Minnesota. "We will continue to practice hard honing our speed and tactics!" said Alex L. '21, captain of Latin's sailing club.

Athletics

Get to know Jessie Heider who has been Latin's partner from Athletico and athletic trainer since 2010. In January, Jessie officially became the first full-time in-house athletic trainer at Latin. 

Education 

B.S. in Athletic Training - Purdue University
M.S. in Health Education & Promotion - University of Cincinnati

Position and years at Latin

Athletic Trainer - 10 years

Favorite Quote: 

"Today me will live in the moment, unless it's unpleasant, in which case me will eat a cookie." –Cookie Monster

What are your favorite things about Latin? 

There is such a close sense of community at Latin. One of my favorite things about working here is being able to connect with and get to know so many different people.

What are the best parts of your job? 

It’s rewarding to help kids through the rehabilitation process and then get to see them successfully return to their sport after experiencing an injury. I also love that every workday is different… it keeps me on my toes!

Why did you decide that you wanted to work at a school? 

I always found the idea of working at a school appealing because I knew it would give me the opportunity to be involved in so much more than just athletics. At Latin, I’m lucky enough to work with both athletics and our Latin 360 program. It’s also fun to be able to support our students in other ways, such as helping with senior projects or attending dance shows and plays.

What was the last good book you read? 

"American Dirt" by Jeanine Cummins

What are your hobbies and interests? 

I love spending time with my dog, Piper, playing fantasy football and following Purdue sports (Boiler Up!). I’m also excited to get back to traveling again once the pandemic is over.

What was your first job?

I worked as an Athletic Trainer for Women’s Lacrosse at the University of Cincinnati while in grad school, but working at Latin was my first “official” job after finishing school.

What’s your favorite place you’ve ever visited? 

Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada

What's the best advice you've ever heard?

Be present. Try not to focus on what happened in the past or what will happen in the future. Enjoy the “now.”

Our Voices