Upper School Archives

March 25, 2021

by Samantha Forgosh ’22, team captain

Would you like to have a snowball fight on open water, or race across a lake to the nearest ice cream shop? You can do all of that, and so much more on the MPA sailing team! Here at MPA, we offer 7-12 graders a one-of-a-kind opportunity as both a fall and a spring sport. Through White Bear Sailing School, students compete for MPA at the city, state (and often national!) level as a sailor. No experience is necessary, and boats and coaching is provided.

Sailing is certainly a group effort. You will sail 420s, each with a skipper and a crew, and compete against other schools in regattas. Since MPA practices with Mounds View, Hill Murray, White Bear, and Mahtomedi, you’re bound to make friends with those you end up competing against. Read More

Save The Date For Book Festival!

March 25, 2021

Save the date to join us for the annual treasured Virtual Book Festival!

Mark your calendar for Monday, April 19 through Saturday, May 1 to encourage the love of reading and to support local bookstores, MPA teachers, classrooms, and the library. Books will be available for purchase from two local booksellers, Usborne Books and Valley Bookseller. Our theme this year is Earth Day, which occurs during Book Festival on April 22. There will also be opportunities to participate in book and Earth-related fun activities, including story times and prize giveaways!

If you have any questions about this year’s Virtual Book Festival, please contact Michelle Mick at michelle_wessely@yahoo.com.

March 25, 2021

Upper School Grandparents and Special Friends is Wednesday, April 28! Although campus is still closed to outside visitors, that won’t stop us from connecting with the people we hold near and dear to us! We have some fun things in store leading up to the “event”. Just one example, a card writing activity wherein your student will write to their grandparent or special friend to share their reasons why this person is so special to them. The cards will then be mailed upon completion!

To register, please provide the name(s) of the grandparent or special friend along with their address, email, and an uploaded photo of your student with the person(s) you register! The uploaded photo(s) can be emailed to agerstner@moundsparkacademy.org. Registration ends Friday, April 23! Click here to register.

Thank you for participating in this year’s Virtual Grandparents and Special Friends Day!

Finding Solace In A Challenging Week

March 25, 2021

by Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School

I’m particularly thankful to have our students back on campus this week. The positive energy radiating from their return has uplifted our entire community and helped us find joy in an otherwise tragic week of national headlines. From Atlanta, to Philadelphia, to Boulder, gun violence and hate have dominated the news and taken the lives of far too many, while altering the lives of countless more.

Though much is still being uncovered about each of these devastating events, I’d like to share my thoughts on the broader narrative that has emerged from the March 16 Atlanta area spa shootings. At the time of this writing, these shootings have not officially been designated a hate crime, but the fact that six of the eight victims were Asian Americans brings up an important point that all of us must reckon with: egged on by the dangerous, false ideals of white supremacy, anti-Asian hate is far more prevalent than many have previously acknowledged.

I’d like to pause here and affirm that MPA firmly stands with our Asian, Asian American, Southeast Asian, and Pacific Islander students, parents, alumni, and community members. We wholeheartedly condemn anti-Asian racism, hate, and violence in all forms. To our international students from China and South Korea, we value the experiences and perspectives that you bring to our community and we recognize the particular challenges you have faced throughout the pandemic. Read More

MPA Transportation Options in 2021-2022

March 24, 2021

MPA is excited to announce additions to the 2021-22 transportation options! Ridership pending, families from five Twin Cities communities will be able to take advantage of this safe and reliable way for students to get to and from school. MPA provides extra care, especially for younger students, to ensure that every student boards the correct bus safely. MPA plans to offer bus transportation with group stops to St. Paul (Highland Park/Mac-Groveland neighborhoods), North Oaks/Roseville (with a possible bus stop in the North Oaks neighborhood of Rapp Farms), Woodbury, Stillwater/Lakeland and Southwest Minneapolis. In addition, families living within the bounds of North St. Paul, Oakdale, Maplewood can sign up with District 622 to arrange transportation.

MPA Math League Ties For Second At State

March 15, 2021

Congratulations to the MPA Math League Team! MPA finished in a tie for second in the state with Mahtomedi in Class AA at the Math League State Tournament.

MPA’s top individual scorer was senior Sean Park, who earned a perfect score of 14. Junior Amy Xiang earned 12 points in her events, including a perfect score in the geometry event. Junior Leo Yu earned eight points, senior Amit Manicka earned six points, senior Lareina Gu and freshman Ella Li both earned four points. Sophomore Anthony Troullier earned three points. Senior Steve Min earned one point. Steve also contributed a couple of answers (worth eight points) in the team round. The team earned 16 points in the team round total.

Congratulations to the team, which adapted so well to doing Math League online, and performed so consistently all season!

MPA Shines At NSDA National Speech & Debate Tournament Qualifier

March 15, 2021

This past weekend, MPA competed at the NSDA National Speech and Debate Tournament Qualifier. MPA advanced the following two students to the semifinal round: senior Ryan Ghose in Humorous and Drama, and senior Hana Miller in Humorous and POI! Additionally, senior Salmah Elmasry qualified for the National Tournament in Extemp Speaking! MPA has one of the hardest districts to qualify out of, and Salmah advanced through most of the tournament as the #1 seed, ending in third.

We are so proud of these teams! NSDA is very difficult to qualify to, and these exciting results are on top of the seven students MPA has qualified to a separate national tournament, NIETOC. Let’s go Panthers!

Two MPA Students Named MN Escape The Vape Finalists

March 9, 2021

MPA ninth graders Trevor Lien and Akshay Somayajula were named finalists for the recent Minnesota Youth Council Escape the Vape video contest! Escape the Vape is a vaping and e-cigarette prevention video contest for Minnesota high school students. The top five finalists (of 110 statewide entries) were selected by the Minnesota Youth Council (MYC), a statewide group of youth leaders who work to create equitable systems through youth-led outreach, education, and advocacy.

Watch and vote for their submission here! The first place winner receives $500 for the entrant and $500 for their school or organization and second place receives $250 for the entrant and $250 for their school or organization Public voting closes on March 23 at 11:59 PM.

To find out more about the contest, visit MNEscapeTheVape.com.

March 4, 2021

We are pleased to be offering an expanded summer program with a larger choice of academic programs, enrichment classes, athletic clinics, full and half day Panther Camp, and much more for students of all ages! As always, our goal is to provide our participants with the highest quality program in the context of a safe and healthy environment.

Register at moundsparkacademy.org/summer. All Lower School classes and camps are currently open for registration. More Middle and Upper School options will be added in the coming days.

If you have any questions, please contact Russ Purdy, extended day program coordinator, at 651-748-5571 or rpurdy@moundsparkacademy.org.

Summer Athletic Camps
Register for our great athletic camp options this summer! MPA is excited to offer a basketball, soccer, and volleyball camp this year. Panther Boys and Girls Summer Basketball Camp is open to students in grades 4-9 from June 14-17. Panther Boys and Girls Soccer Camp is open to students in grades K-6 from June 21-24. Panther Boys and Girls Summer Volleyball camp is July 12-14, and Panther Girls Volleyball Camp for grades 9-12 is July 19-21. Learn more and register here!

MPA PA Hosting Virtual Movie Event

March 4, 2021

Thank You!
In this time of re-enrollment, the Parents Association wishes to thank you for your contributions through TADS. In a normal year, because of your donations, we are able to foster a sense of community through events both on and off campus. This year has been more challenging and we have been limited to Zoom socials, Faculty and Staff Appreciation, online movies, and virtual educational events. It is important to us to be good stewards of your funds. Thank you to all the wonderful families that make up MPA!

Virtual Movie Event for MPA, Saturday, March 6
We’ve made it to Spring Break! Please join the MPA Parents Association for a showing of “Inside Out” (Rated PG). It’s been quite a year, with all kinds of emotions and stressors. If you tuned in to Dr. Hudson’s Town Hall, then you may have heard Dr. Jules Nolan speaking about emotions, stress and anxiety and her key point was to talk about your feelings…”Name it to Tame it”. That can be hard. Maybe this movie can help. Common Sense Media calls this movie, a “beautiful, original story about handling big emotions”. Look for an email coming on Friday with the Watch Link and Pass Phrase. The movie can be accessed all day Saturday March 6, so tune in at your convenience. If you don’t get an email by Friday evening please contact Tara Lafferty at tmattrn@aol.com.