Haunted Halls - October 2023

 Hello to all parents, guardians, families, friends, and students of 1504!

October marked a very exciting time in our hall, with large events happening almost every week, keeping things fun and engaging not just for our 1504 students, but for the entire campus as the 04 Hall Commons became the place to be many nights this past month. Between cultural organizations hosting their dinner nights in 1504 to our annual Halloween Party (as well as some notes about the upcoming November Break), this blog post will get you all up-to-date on the latest happenings in 1504!

Cultural Organization Nights: Dosas and Dumplings

On October 19, 1504 hosted Dosa Night for our Indian Student Association (ISA) on campus. The purpose of Dosa Night is to spread awareness and educate students about Indian culture. The celebration consisted of music and the students cooking Dosas of different flavors for all of campus to try. The celebration was a success with a line out the door! This was just one of many events that occur around campus to celebrate our different cultures. For example, later in the month, on October 26, our hall also hosted the Asian Students in America (ASIA) organization's Dumplings Night. Same idea - the students used our hall commons as a space to cook a variety of dumpling types and serve them to the entire student body with music playing and good spirits vibing. 

1504's central location on campus makes it a prime spot for events geared towards the entire campus, and we are happy to continue hosting such events in our space. Many students often say that their experiences with student organizations is what really makes their IMSA experience special, and our cultural organizations in particular do amazing work spreading recognition and appreciation of their home cultures and cuisines, so allowing them to host their events in our hall commons is just one of many ways that we try to continue the education of our students in the residence halls.

1504 Halloween Party: A Hall(-oween) Tradition

In another installment of a 1504 tradition, our hall hosted its annual Halloween Party on the night of Sunday, October 29. For the evening, the 1504 hall commons was done up in our spookiest decorations, and we provided all of our students with an impressive display of snacks, candies, and refreshments - all provided by you, the parents and guardians of 1504!

We RCs have to take this opportunity to express our utmost gratitude for all of the donations we received in preparation for our Halloween Party. This event would not have been possible if not for the support we received from all of you, and we deeply appreciate all the donations you made! Special thanks must also go out to Lidia Granger and Chhavi Saxena for organizing a mass pizza and cupcake order for the party, to Beth Osmund for once again providing made-to-order caramel apples, and to Rebeca Garcia for her on-site assistance with setup and distribution! We would also like to give thanks to the following individuals for their contributions to this event:

• Piyush Swain
• Nimesh Bakshi
• Amy Thiery
• Diana Sorescu
• Veerendra Pesala
• Giribabu Polu
• Nageswara Dulam
• Bilikis Yussuf
• Freddy Igbinosa
• Jami Wong
• Rohini Mehta
• Chhavi Saxena
• Justin Davis

This year's Halloween Party was a massive success thanks to you all, and for yet another evening, our hall was the social center of the entire IMSA campus. The candy and snack supplies lasted us well into the night, and everyone who came by was able to take their fill. Once again, our sincerest gratitude to everyone who donated or helped out for this event!

November Fall Break: 11/18 - 11/26

Link to Fall Break Presentation: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D_HA9w1l7mLsFA8WxVI9-AJa0pfgaDGu/view?usp=sharing

As you are hopefully aware, in a few weeks, the Academy will be closing once again for our November Fall Break. The halls close at 1:00 pm on Saturday, November 18th, and reopen on Sunday, November 26th at 3:00 pm. (There will be a $25 fee for every 5 minutes a student is here after 1:00 pm on Saturday, November 18th, so please plan accordingly!)

In an effort to make sure all of our students are ready for November Fall Break, we have created a presentation containing all of the relevant information for signing out for break. This presentation is linked above, and we very strongly implore everyone  give it a thorough read. Please review the slides thoroughly, as we want to ensure everyone has time to ask follow-up questions, submit permissions, and meet the expectations before leaving for fall break.

To list some of the most important parts, however:

• All students must sign up for a sign-out slot with their RC! Sign-up sheets will be posted in each wing by the first floor entrance/bulletin board by Friday, 11/10.
• All students must pass a room inspection conducted by an RC before departing campus. Room Inspection guidelines will be posted to each student room door by Monday, 11/13.
• All students must complete their Wing Clean assignment and have it checked by an RC before departing campus. Wing Clean assignments will be posted in each wing by the first floor entrance/ bulletin board by Monday, 11/13.
• Parents or guardians must give permission (by emailing 04staff@imsa.edu for the following reasons:
• If the student is taking the ATC shuttle.
• If the student is carpooling with another IMSA family (Please provide the family name!).
• If the student is signing out with grandparents, siblings, family friends, etc.  (Please provide the name of the individual!)

More information about everything related to November Fall Break (Downstate Bus, ATC Shuttles, other sign-out information) can be found in the presentation linked above, so please give it a thorough read!

Otherwise, that's all from us for now! Reach out to us at 04staff@imsa.edu with any questions or suggestions!