Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart was represented by 15 students at this year’s Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics (ICTM) state competition held at Illinois State University in Normal on April 26.  

Individual event highlights include an eighth-place finish by junior Taraneh Ragerdi Kashani out of approximately 150 students facing off in the state meet’s Algebra 2 contest.

Team competition highlights include a fifth-place finish for Woodlands Academy’s Frosh/Soph Eight-person team (Juliette Hopman, Kian Kaz, Eloise Li, Alyssa Mann, Kate Barnes, Rei Chew, Madeleine Lillis and Evie Twohig). A total of 29 teams competed in this event. Fifth-place honors also went to Woodlands’ Oral team of Juliette Hopman and Maggie Glunz out of 25 competing teams.

The “MathCats” six-member Algebra 2 squad (Kate Barnes, Maggie Glunz, Taraneh Ragerdi Kashani, Chloe Mensah, Alice Vu and Maya Whiteman) competed against 37 other teams in the ICTM state meet and finished in eighth place.

Woodlands Academy’s five-member Algebra 1 team (Juliette Hopman, Kian Kaz, Eloise Li, Alyssa Mann and Rei Chew) placed 10^th among the 40 teams competing in this event.

Elsewhere, 11^th-place finishes were achieved by Woodlands’ Frosh/Soph Two-person team (Rei Chew and Emanay Piracha) from a field of 22 and by the Lake Forest school’s Junior/Senior Two-person team (Maggie Glunz and Taraneh Ragerdi Kashani) also from a field of 22.

Overall, “MathCats” team members from the all-girls college-preparatory high school finished 14^th out of the 57 teams competing in Division 1A.

Associate Head of School for Academics Rocco Gargiulo, a former Woodlands Academy math teacher, is proud of his school’s participation in this year’s ICTM state meet. “This confirms Woodlands’ commitment to STEM education,” he said. “It also acknowledges the dedication of our ‘MathCats’ co-moderators and the entire math department to leading our students along the way to becoming empowered young women.”

Woodlands Academy has been named the #1 Best All-girls High School in Illinois by independent research firm Niche in its latest rankings. This is the eighth consecutive year that Woodlands has achieved this rating, and the sixth year in a row it has received an overall grade of A+ from Niche.

According to organizers, the purpose of ICTM’s math competition is to recognize outstanding mathematical achievement, encourage independent study, stimulate interest in mathematics, and provide a wholesome meeting ground for students and teachers of mathematics through academic competition. It has been an annual event since 1980.