Education Commons^™

Learning Opportunities 2019/2020, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Course Catalogs

The graduation requirements of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy are established by the IMSA Board of Trustees. Each semester students must take a minimum of five academic courses (2.5 credits) for a letter grade (not Pass/Fail) not including Fine Arts, Wellness, SIR, Internship, and Independent Study. Students may enroll in a maximum of nine courses each semester including academic courses, Fine Arts,Wellness, SIR, Internship, and Independent Study. Only courses taken for a letter grade will count towards graduation credit.

Learning Opportunities 2018/2019, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Course Catalogs

The graduation requirements of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy are established by the IMSA Board of Trustees. Each semester students must take a minimum of five academic courses (2.5 credits) for a letter grade (not Pass/Fail) not including Fine Arts, Wellness, and Independent Study courses. Students may enroll in a maximum of nine courses each semester including academic courses, Fine Arts, Wellness, SIR, and Independent Study. Only courses taken for a letter grade will count towards graduation credit.

Impact Report 2018: Equity And Excellence, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Impact Reports

For over 30 years, the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) has pioneered the future of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education through its two legislative charges: 1) to provide a uniquely challenging education for students talented in the areas of mathematics and science; and 2) to stimulate further excellence for all Illinois schools in mathematics and science. IMSA champions these goals through:

• Residential education: Helping talented 10th-12th graders representing over 93% of Illinois counties to date reach their fullest potential.
• Student and educator outreach: Leading the charge to continually innovate K-12 STEM education, creating a strong and diverse …

Imsa360: Spring 2018, Imsa Fund

IMSA Fund Reports

IMSA is a leader in educating and developing a diverse STEM pipeline of creative, ethical, and scientific innovators for Illinois and the world. We aspire to become a recognized global leader and catalyst in equity and excellence in STEM teaching and learning, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Excerpt: From the President

Imsa 2018 Profile, Office Of College And Academic Counseling

IMSA Profile

The Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) fosters the discoverers. The thinkers. The innovators and experimenters. The problem-solvers of the future who can change the world through their life’s work. IMSA innovates the future of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. It creates a strong and diverse pipeline of talented students at its tuition-free residential academy in Aurora, IL for 10th through 12th grade students. IMSA’s mission is to ignite and nurture creative, scientific, ethical minds that advance the human condition.

2018 Intersession Catalog, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Intersession Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Imsa360: Fall 2017, Imsa Fund

IMSA Fund Reports

Welcome to the 2017-2018 school year! It’s a special academic year in that we begin the school year with a full budget! Over the past three years, our colleagues in public schools (K-12), who are under the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), began their school year with a full budget while IMSA and the rest of the universities, which are under the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE), began and operated most of the past two years without a full budget.

Excerpt: From the President

Learning Opportunities 2017/2018, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Course Catalogs

The graduation requirements of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy are in concert with those maintained by the State of Illinois with additional requirements as established by the IMSA Board of Trustees. Each semester students must take a minimum of five courses (2.5 credits) for a letter grade (not Pass/Fail) not including Fine Arts, Wellness, and Independent Study courses. Only courses taken for a letter grade will count towards graduation credit.

Recipient Of The 2017 Alumni Trailblazer Award, Claudia Flores '93

Alumni Trailblazer Award

Ms. Flores is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the International Human Rights Clinic (IHRC) at The University of Chicago Law School. IHRC works to promote and protect the human rights of individuals and communities globally. Prior to The University of Chicago Law School, Flores was a partner in the civil rights practice of Hughes Socol Piers Resnick & Dym, Ltd. Additionally, she served as constitutional and legal advisor for the United Nations in East Timor and Zimbabwe. She also managed a program of the American Center for International Labor Solidarity to combat human trafficking in Indonesia …

Recipient Of The 2017 Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award, Vincent Enriquez '99

Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award

Major Enriquez served as part of Operation Enduring Freedom with deployments in Afghanistan and PACOM Theater. His awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Achievement Medal, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, Sapper Tab, Ranger Tab, and Special Forces Tab. His foreign awards include the German Armed Forces Proficiency Badge (Gold), and Australian, Korean, and Thai Airborne Wings. Army Ranger and Special Forces “Green Beret” Major Vincent Enriquez graduated from the United States Military Academy with a …

Recipient Of The 2017 Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award, Julie Comerford '98

Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award

Dr. Comerford is Assistant Professor in the Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder, where she works on observations of kpc-scale separation dual supermassive black holes in merger-remnant galaxies. These objects are observable when one or both of the supermassive black holes accrete gas as active galactic nuclei (AGN), in systems known as offset AGN and dual AGN, respectively. She uses research as a tool for education, teaming up with PhD Comics to create a video “Black Holes Explained,” which has received over 50,000 views on YouTube. Additionally, she has been working to improve equity …

Impact Report 2017: Imsa30, The Promise And Power Of Imsa, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Impact Reports

The State of Illinois launched the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA), which is recognized as the world's leading teaching and learning lab for imagination and inquiry, in collaboration with business, education, and science leaders. For 30 years, IMSA has pioneered the future of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education through its two legislative charges: 1) to provide a uniquely challenging education for students talented in the areas of mathematics and science and 2) to stimulate further excellence for all Illinois schools in mathematics and science. IMSA champions these goals through:

New STEM teaching models: leading the charge to …

“Living The Imsa Values: Respecting Our Cultural Differences” : Remarks To All School Assembly, José M. Torres

Keynotes, Speeches, and Lectures

Last September, during Labor Day weekend, I took my 6-year old grandson, Malachi bowling. Of course, we had to have the bumpers up against the railing, which helped me immensely with my own gutter balls. During one of the games, when Malachi threw his ball it got kind of stuck between our lane and the one next to ours. The ball was almost at the other lane when I instantaneously dashed toward the ball. I didn’t realize, or had forgotten, that the lanes are greased and very slippery. Upon crossing the line, I immediately went up about 3 feet in …

Imsa360: Winter 2017, Imsa Fund

IMSA Fund Reports

IMSA is nurturing a strong and diverse pipeline of innovative leaders for Illinois and the world, preparing them to solve the most complex social problems of our time.

Innovation is part of IMSA’s legacy. In fact, IMSA alumni have been driving the technology sector over the past decade. Andrew Baptist ‘94, Greg Dhuse ‘99, Dusty Hendrickson ‘01 and Ethan Wozniak ‘99 are responsible for 212 of 350 patents generated by data storage leader, Cleversafe. Sam Yagan ‘95 relocated his tech company, ShopRunner, to Illinois and also co-founded OkCupid, SparkNotes, Techstars Chicago and Corazon Capital. Jessica Droste Yagan ‘95, CEO of …

2017 Intersession Catalog, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Intersession Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Imsa 2017 Profile, Office Of College And Academic Counseling

IMSA Profile

"The internationally recognized Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy® (IMSA) develops creative, ethical leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. As a teaching and learning laboratory created by the State of Illinois, IMSA enrolls academically talented Illinois students (grades 10-12) in its advanced, residential college preparatory program. 99.5% of graduating seniors matriculate to colleges and universities."*

*Excerpt from the IMSA 2017 Profile

1. Types Of Alignment: Presentations & Demos Assignment, Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll

Sequence Alignments

Pairwise Alignment: DNA

Pairwise Alignment: Protein

Multiple Sequence Alignment: DNA

Multiple Sequence Alignment: Protein

Learning Opportunities 2016/2017, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Course Catalogs

The graduation requirements of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy are in concert with those maintained by the State of Illinois with additional requirements as established by the IMSA Board of Trustees. Each semester students must take a minimum of 5 academic courses (2.5 credits) for a grade (not Pass/Fail). Fine Arts, Wellness, and Independent Study courses, or any course taken on a Pass/Fail basis do not count towards the 5 course (2.5 credits) minimum. Most students will take between 5 (2.5 credits) and 7 (3.5 credits) academic courses per semester. Only courses taken for a letter grade will count …

1. "Investigating The Impact Of Changes In Carbon Dioxide Concentration On Ecosystems", Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

Question: Does the concentration of carbon dioxide affect air temperature in a closed environment?

2a: "Illinois Carbon Dioxide Emissions Activity", Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

Your goal for this activity is to compare the different sources of carbon dioxide emissions, stemming from the consumption of fossil fuels, in Illinois. To do this you will be working with data spanning from 1980 to 2012.

3: "The Current Extinction: Defaunation & Ecosystem Disruption", Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

Information taken from: Dirzo, R. et al (2014). Defaunation in the Anthropocene. Science, 345(401).

Scientists estimate, conservatively, that there are 5 to 9 million different animal species on the planet. But that number is continually changing, and unfortunately, dropping, as we are likely losing 11,000- 58,000 species annually, and evidence suggests that on average, there has been a decline of about 28% in terms of numbers of individuals within a species over the last four decades. Both of these statistics are vitally important. The critical nature of the first is perhaps more obvious, as total loss of a species is …

The Greenhouse Effect: Does The Concentration Of Carbon Dioxide Affect The Air Temperature In A Closed Environment?, Climate Science Investigations - Nasa

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

The purpose of this lesson is to investigate the effect of carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration on air temperature in a closed environment.

Imsa360: 2016, Imsa Fund

IMSA Fund Reports

About ten years ago I tried to explain to my wife what made IMSA such an important, life-changing place for me. That explanation turned into a 329 page novel (my first published young adult novel), that I still think only scratched the surface of what makes IMSA such a wondrous, rare, and crucial place.

Excerpt: From the President

2016 Intersession Catalog, Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy

Intersession Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Recipient Of The 2015 Alumni Titan Award, Michael Suh '97

Alumni Titan Award

Mr. Suh currently serves as the treasurer and chair of the Finance Committee for the IMSA Fund Board of Directors. Mr. Suh has been a loyal and generous donor to the IMSA Fund for 10 years. In 2006 he became an advocate for the IMSA Fund to establish an endowment program. His advocacy for “stability and investment” was a critical factor in influencing IMSA and the IMSA Fund to establish its first endowment. Mr. Suh graduated from the University of Chicago with a BA in Economics, Mathematics and Statistics and an Administration MBA from the University of Chicago in Analytic …

Recipient Of The 2015 Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award, Gabriel Demombynes '89

Alumni Distinguished Leadership Award

As an economist at the World Bank, Dr. Gabriel Demombynes works on issues of poverty and inequality in developing countries. He is best known for his work arguing for the greater use of the scientific method in evaluating international development programs. Together with co-author Michael A. Clemens, he published a groundbreaking critique of the Millennium Villages Project, a high-profile rural development project implemented in several communities in sub-Saharan Africa. Dr. Demombynes holds both a BS in Civil and Environmental Engineering and a BA from the Plan II Liberal Arts Honors Program at the University of Texas at Austin, as well …

Topic 6: Aristotelian Ethics: The Virtue Of Success, Lee Eysturlid

Considerations in Ethics

No abstract provided.

Issues In Modern Genomics, Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll

Considerations in Ethics

Breaking News or Science Fiction?

• CRISPR technology, a way to use bacterial proteins to make precise, targeted changes to the DNA of living cells, is under development by multiple scientists.
• The subsequent release of the process and data surrounding it has scientists around the world proclaim that a “new era” of in Molecular Biology has begun.

Big Ideas “Ted” Talk Session: Inspiring Innovation And Inquiry, Lawrence Bergie, Britta W. Mckenna

Publications & Research

The day will begin with six stories from innovative school districts, told in a short, engaging, “TED” talk format. After each story, David Chan and Henry Thiele will lead a time of reflection, sharing ideas, thoughts and connections. School professionals will share their stories about themes including: Inspiring Innovation and Inquiry.

Moving Education In2 The Future: Creating The Next Generation Of Innovators, Lawrence Bergie, Britta W. Mckenna

Publications & Research

What started as planning for the next generation of inquiry-based learning led to an entirely new center for innovation and entrepreneurship! Hear how this innovative idea moved to the design of a physical innovation hub and see how IMSA has transformed a former computer lab IN2 a working prototype of their future space.

Dive into the many aspects of creating innovation spaces: design process, STEM foundation and entrepreneurship cornerstone, Makerspace development through a student leadership and service initiative, collaboration potential with community partners and local/regional business entities, student inquiry and research potential and the ability to showcase area emerging technology …