News Briefs: HP woman’s state honor; Math team’s state finish; Dancers’ big show

Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs on Thursday, March 12, celebrated a Highland Park woman as one of eight honorees to commemorate Women’s History Month and pay tribute to the enduring impact of women in shaping history and benefitting society. 

The event, in the Illinois Room at 555 W. Monroe St. in Chicago, reflected on the achievements and ongoing contributions of women leaders in Illinois, and the honorees were organized by category.

Highland Park’s Desirée Ruhstrat was selected for outstanding achievement in arts and humanities. Ruhstrat is a violinist and adjunct professor of violin at the Northwestern University Bienen School of Music.

Other recipients were: Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America; Julie Yurko, CEO of Northern Illinois Food Bank; Dr. Carmen Ayala, former Illinois superintendent of education; Diane Blair-Sherlock, Illinois state representative; Michelle Stiff, director for the Workforce Center of Will County; and Mallory Marvin, athlete and spokesperson with Special Olympics Illinois.

“We celebrate these eight individuals who are dedicated to helping others through education, mentorship and service,” Frerichs said in a press release. “Through the years, women have made essential contributions to our state, and they are still doing that today. Illinois history is rich with women activists, including those who fought more than 100 years ago for women’s right to vote and those who today continue to work tirelessly toward the goals of equity, equality, and justice.”

The Wilmette Junior High School MathCounts team placed sixth out of 30 teams at the statewide competition on March 7 in Oswego.

Viyan Singh led the team with a fourth-place finish to earn a spot in the national meet, which will be held in May in Orlando. Isaac Wu (32nd) and Daniel Wu (33rd) also placed highly in the pool of more than 200 competitors. 

“I could not be more proud of our MathCounts team,” said Jessica Radcliffe, Wilmette District 39 educator and MathCounts coach, in a press release. “This is a talented and dedicated group of students that worked extremely hard to prepare for this competition. It is incredibly gratifying for me to see them rewarded for their work and for Viyan to advance to the national meet.” 

According to Wilmette District 39, MathCounts is a nonprofit organization that uses a mathematics-based competition to engage middle school students in engineering and science. Each MathCounts competition consists of four rounds: sprint, target, team and countdown.

“Congratulations to our MathCounts team and coach Radcliffe!” Superintendent Dr. Kari Cremascoli saie in the release. “I know how hard our students and staff work to prepare for these competitions and this is a fantastic celebration of their hard work and dedicated effort. We are all extremely proud of their accomplishments.” 

Regina’s ‘Dance Your Heart Out’ brings in a crowd

Regina Dominican High School welcomed 770 attendees to its orchesis spring showcase between Feb. 26-28, an attendance record for the Wilmette school.

A press release from Regina said the program’s theme centered on bringing love, energy and heart to the stage and used hit songs such as “Somebody to Love,” “Heart of Glass,” “Crazy in Love” and “Love Shack.”

Nearly 80 student dancers participated in the performances, which showcased a wide range of genres including modern, jazz, contemporary, hip hop, musical theatre, tap, and Irish dance. A majority of the pieces were student-choreographed, highlighting the creativity and leadership that define Regina’s performing arts program, the release says.

Orchesis captains Grace Harris and Madelyn McNamara “provided exceptional leadership throughout the year, playing an integral role in planning and guiding the production,” according to Regina Dominican.

“Our dancers have been rehearsing for this show five days a week over the past two months, and it was a joy to see all of the pieces come together on stage with costumes and lights,” said Ally Valadez, orchesis director and dance teacher.

She added, “A majority of the show was student choreographed, but it also featured choreography by both Orchesis directors, myself and Katie Lyons,  as well as Joshua Brumm from Giordano Dance Chicago.

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