Parents Association News & Events May 25, 2023

All-School St. Paul Saints Game!
Sunday, July 30, 2:07 PM at CHS Field
Join us for a midsummer Saints game! Reconnect with school friends and enjoy America’s favorite pastime. You’ll see the St. Paul Saints vs. the Toledo Mud Hens at CHS Field. This is an all-school event. Tickets cost $16 for students and $17 for adults. Tickets can be picked up at Will Call before the game under the name “MPA Panthers.” We’ll be seated together in section 115. You can see the section here.

End of Year Grade Events
The end of the year is coming soon! Watch your email for all the details from your grade representative.

  • Pre-K: Details coming soon
  • Kindergarten: Wednesday, June 7, 11 AM-12:30 PM at Richard Walton Park, Oakdale
  • Grade 1: Wednesday, June 7, 1-3 PM at Richard Walton Park, Oakdale
  • Grade 2: Details coming soon
  • Grade 3: Wednesday, June 7, 3:30-5:30 PM at Richard Walton Park, Oakdale
  • Grade 4: Wednesday, June 7, 10:30 AM at Seaquest, Roseville
  • Grade 5: Sunday, June 4, 2:30 PM arrival time, St. Croix Riverboat at Taylor’s Falls,
  • Grade 6: Wednesday, June 7, 4 PM, at Can Can Wonderland, St Paul
  • Grade 7: June 7, 10:30 AM-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
  • Grade 8: June 7, 10:30-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
  • Grade 9: June 7, 10:30-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
  • Grade 10: June 7, 10:45-12:45 PM, Wakefield Park Community Building, Maplewood
  • Grade 11: June 7, 10:30-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
Vote for Next Year’s PA Board Members
  • Co-Presidents: Staci Banks and Christine Larson
  • Vice President/Community Grants: Seema Anwar
  • Secretary:  Cristin Moran
  • Treasurer: Adi Boeder Risner
  • Lower School Division Lead: Michael Soto
  • Middle School Division Lead: Molly Oliver
  • Upper School Division Lead: Julie Bixby
  • Communications Lead: Susan Knapp
  • Staff Development Lead: Tara Lafferty
  • Grade Rep Coordinator: Open

You may vote here.


Parents Association News & Events May 18, 2023

Voting for Next Year’s PA Board Members
Watch for the ballot in next week’s Panther Post.

End of Year Grade Events
The end of the year is coming soon! Watch your email for all the details from your grade representative.

Pre-K: Details coming soon
Kindergarten: Wednesday, June 7, 11 AM-12:30 PM at Richard Walton Park, Oakdale
Grade 1: Wednesday, June 7, 1-3 PM at Richard Walton Park, Oakdale
Grade 2: Details coming soon
Grade 3: Wednesday, June 7, 3:30-5:30 PM at Richard Walton Park, Oakdale
Grade 4: Wednesday, June 7, 10:30 AM at Seaquest, Roseville
Grade 5: Details coming soon
Grade 6: Details coming soon
Grade 7: June 7, 10:30 AM-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
Grade 8: June 7, 10:30-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
Grade 9: June 7, 10:30-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
Grade 10: June 7, 10:45-12:45 PM, Wakefield Park Community Building, Maplewood
Grade 11: June 7, 10:30-12:30 PM, Casey Lake Park, North St Paul (sharing with grades 7,8,9 & 11)
Grade 12: Details coming soon


Parents Association News & Events May 4, 2023

Panther Party
Friday, May 5, 3:45-5:45 PM
Volunteer at the Panther Party, Friday, May 5, 3:45-5:45 PM. Interested in taking some time to welcome newly admitted families to MPA? We need your help. The Panther Party is looking for folks to welcome new families, answer questions, and socialize. Please sign up here, under the first item: Parent Volunteers to Welcome and socialize with new families in the Family Commons.

Staff Appreciation
Tuesday, May 9 in the Teaching Kitchen
Join the Parents Association for the final Staff Appreciation event of the school year! We will be making fruit cups and handing out fudge samples to all teachers and staff for National Teachers Appreciation Day! All supplies will be provided by the Parents Association.

If you would like to volunteer, please sign up here.

Thank You!
Thank you to all who helped make Cultural Diversity Day possible. Chef Chris Pula and his staff, Roy Timm and the Custodial team, Bakari Jackson, Lauren Hernandez, and Natalie Waters Seum in Communication, Keith Braafladt in the Makerspace, Cherie Honan, Mark Segal, Lamar Shingles, Samantha Sanchez, Marisue Gleason, Yamini Kimmerle, Kristine Petersen, Cory Becker-Kim and parent volunteers: Ishmael and Moira Duverneau- Salifu, Samah Fahmy, Annie Kouri, My Nhia Vang, Staci Banks, Reema and Shama Anwar, Ryan Klein, Karlyn Peterson, Mindy Ruane, Briana Rist, Adi Risner, Vonda Schertz, Tara Lafferty, Sue Knapp, and students: Soumya Raman, Pahwa Yang, Yuhan Zou, Annika Dahiya, Peter Clementson, Zaara Nayak, Zoya Nayak, and Koichi Tatsumuru for a beautiful piano performance. A special shout out to Daphne and Zayna Norman in fifth grade and Silvia Ruane in second grade for helping clean up the Makerspace. Read More


Parents Association News & Events April 27, 2023

Panther Party
Friday, May 5, 3:45-5:45 PM
Volunteer at the Panther Party, Friday, May 5, 3:45-5:45 PM. Interested in taking some time to welcome newly admitted families to MPA? We need your help. The Panther Party is looking for folks to welcome new families, answer questions, and socialize. Please sign up here, under the first item: Parent Volunteers to Welcome and socialize with new families in the Family Commons.

Staff Appreciation
Tuesday, May 9 in the Teaching Kitchen
Join the Parents Association for the final Staff Appreciation event of the school year! We will be making fruit cups and handing out fudge samples to all teachers and staff for National Teachers Appreciation Day! All supplies will be provided by the Parents Association.

If you would like to volunteer, please sign up here.

Join Next Year’s PA Board
The Parents Association is looking for a few board members for the 2023-24 school year. Please consider getting involved. It’s a great way to meet people and contribute to enriching your child’s education. Our mission is to enrich the MPA experience through community building, continuing traditions, supporting faculty and staff, and acting as a resource for all families. It’s fun, and time commitments can be minimal.

If you’re interested in getting involved or have questions, please contact Staci Banks Herberger (sbhehe42@icloud.com).


Parents Association News & Events April 20, 2023

Cultural Diversity Day
Wednesday, April 26, 3-7 PM

Take a gastronomic tour around the world as we share sweet and savory delicacies from around the world and an international drinks bar. Sign up here to attend a cooking demonstration in our wonderful new teaching kitchen.

Go home with some cool body art from an expert henna artist. Try your hand at global crafts like French decoupage, Brazilian carnival masks, and Taíno petroglyphs. Enjoy musical performances by our talented MPA community! And chat with community members who will have booths set up to share their culture and/or offer samples of their cuisine.

Food and drink tickets ($1 each) will be sold at the event. Zabiha, vegetarian, gluten-free, and dairy-free options are available.

If you would like to volunteer, please sign up here.

Panther Party
Friday, May 5, 3:45-5:45 PM
Come volunteer at the Panther Party, Friday, May 5, 3:45-5:45 PM. Interested in taking some time to welcome newly admitted families to MPA? We need your help. The Panther Party is looking for folks to welcome new families, answer questions, and socialize. Please sign up here, under the first item: Parent Volunteers to Welcome and socialize with new families in the Family Commons.


Cultural Diversity Day At MPA

Take a gastronomic tour around the world as we share sweet and savory delicacies from around the world and an international drinks bar. Attend a cooking demonstration in our wonderful new teaching kitchen, go home with some cool body art from an expert henna artist, and try your hand at global crafts like French decoupage, Brazilian carnival masks and Taíno petroglyphs. You will also be able to enjoy musical and dance performances by our talented MPA community! Chat with community members who will have booths set up to share their culture and/or offer samples of their cuisine. Please sign up to volunteer here.

Would you like to share your culture through cuisine, music, dance or art? We invite you to be a part of our cultural showcase—please email seema_anwar@hotmail.com.


Parents Association News & Events April 13, 2023

Upper School Parent Coffee, This Friday!
Friday, April 14, 8-9:30 AM
Join us for our quarterly Upper School Parent Coffee in the PCR. In addition to all Upper School parents, rising ninth-grade families are warmly invited to attend! Two topics will be covered: “If I knew then what I know now” and the scheduling/registration process and questions. Please join us!

Please note: Due to low turnout, the Thursday, April 13, 5:30 PM, Gluten-Free Cooking Class with Kate Thrane has been canceled.

PA LGBTQ+ Affinity Parent Group
Sunday, April 16, 1 PM at the Unity Cafe
Join other parents and caregivers at the Unity Café at 843 Rice St, Saint Paul, MN 55117. If you have any questions, please contact Melissa Andretta at 651-329-4255 or email her at garbowmelissa5@gmail.com. Read More


Parents Association News & Events April 6, 2023

Kate ThraneMPA All-School Gluten-Free Cooking Class with Kate Thrane
New Date: April 13, 5:30-7 PM

Please join us in the Teaching Kitchen for some hands-on cooking, as well as learning about the joy of cooking gluten-free. You can learn more about Kate and her recipes on Instagram at @theglutenlessmaximus. Please RSVP to Staci at sbhehe42@icloud.com so that we can have plenty of ingredients prepared! Hope to see you there!

Cultural Diversity Day
Wednesday, April 26, 3-7 PM

Save the date for the Cultural Diversity Day celebration at MPA! Enjoy an evening of food, music and crafts from around the world. Get a henna tattoo from a very talented henna artist!

Would you like to share your culture through cuisine, music, dance or art? We invite you to be a part of our cultural showcase—please email seema_anwar@hotmail.com.

US Quarterly Parent Coffee
Friday, April 14, 8-9:30 AM

Join us for our quarterly US Parent Coffee in the PCR. In addition to all Upper School parents, rising ninth-grade families are warmly invited to attend! Two topics will be covered: “If I knew then what I know now” and the scheduling/registration process and questions. Please join us!


Parents Association News & Events March 30, 2023

The MPAPA Spring Reading Book Club with Dr. Hudson
April 6, 6:30-8 PM

Looking for something great to read this spring? Try The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict! This historical fiction novel tells the story of a not-so-famous scientist who not only loved Albert Einstein, but also shaped the theories that brought him lasting renown. This is a great pick for Women’s History month. Dr. Hudson will host a discussion of the book. The MPAPA will be providing copies of the book to those who would like to participate. Child care will be provided. Please fill out the following form to sign up for the book club and request a book.

MPA All-School Gluten-Free Cooking Class with Kate Thrane
New Date: April 13, 5:30-7 PM

Please join us in the Teaching Kitchen for some hands-on cooking, as well as learning about the joy of cooking gluten-free. You can learn more about Kate and her recipes on Instagram at @theglutenlessmaximus. Please RSVP to Staci at sbhehe42@icloud.com so that we can have plenty of ingredients prepared! Hope to see you there!

US Quarterly Parent Coffee
Friday, April 14, 8-9:30 AM

Join us for our quarterly US Parent Coffee in the PCR. In addition to all Upper School parents, rising ninth-grade families are warmly invited to attend! Two topics will be covered: “If I knew then what I know now” and the scheduling/registration process and questions. Please join us!

Cultural Diversity Day
Wednesday, April 26, 3-7 PM

Save the date for the Culture Day celebration at MPA! Enjoy an evening of food, music, and crafts from around the world!

Would you like to share your culture through cuisine, music, dance, or art? We invite you to be a part of our cultural showcase or host a cooking demonstration. Please email seema_anwar@hotmail.com.


Join The Parents Association For Upcoming Events

The MPA Parents Association Spring Reading Book Club with Dr. Hudson
April 6, 6:30-8 PM
Looking for something great to read this spring? Try The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict! This historical fiction novel tells the story of a not-so-famous scientist who not only loved Albert Einstein, but also shaped the theories that brought him lasting renown. This is a great pick for Women’s History month. Dr. Hudson will host a discussion of the book. The MPA PA will be providing copies of the book to those who would like to participate and child care will be provided. Please fill out this form to sign up for the book club and request a book.

Kate ThraneMPA All-School Gluten-Free Cooking Class with Kate Thrane ’16
New Date: April 13, 5:30-7 PM
Please join us in the teaching kitchen for some hands-on cooking, as well as learning about the joy of cooking gluten-free. You can learn more about Kate and her recipes on Instagram at @theglutenlessmaximus. Please RSVP to Staci at sbhehe42@icloud.com so that we can have plenty of ingredients prepared!  Hope to see you there!

Culture Day Cultural Diversity Day
April 26, 3-7 PM
Save the date for the Culture Diversity Day celebration at MPA! Enjoy an evening of food, music and crafts from around the world! Would you like to share your culture through cuisine, music, dance or art? We invite you to be a part of our cultural showcase or host a cooking demonstration. Please email seema_anwar@hotmail.com.