Upper School

MPA Students Share Their Voices On Podcast

February 6, 2020

kindergartners sharing their initiative with upper schoolAs part of Design For Change’s Earth Day Network Plastic Pollution Design Sprint, two MPA Kindergarten students and Ms. Koen were featured in a blog post and on one of their podcast episodes! The Kindergarten students’ recent project selling reusable canvas grocery bags at Kowalski’s Market gave them the knowledge and confidence to take what they  learned about preserving the environment, eliminating plastic use, and global citizenship on air. Take a listen to what they have to say here!

While you listen, take a look at the Design For Change blog post, “A Look Behind the Scenes: Collaborating with Earth Day Network,” to see photos of the MPA Kindergarteners putting their passion to work. The blog expresses the importance of youth involvement, stating that “the biggest leaders in this fight are young people.” Right below that powerful statement is an image of MPA Kindergarteners marching into the Upper School commons to talk about why their efforts to save sea turtles and ocean life is so important. Further down in the story is another photo of MPA fifth grader Brooklynn J. beaming with her Kindergarten buddy while holding up the canvas bag they made in the Makerspace. Read More

Three Panthers Move On To State

February 6, 2020

isak at the alpine ski meetCongratulations to MPA’s Alpine Skiers! The girls team placed sixth out of 17 teams and the boys team placed ninth out of 17 teams in the Section 4A Meet at Wild Mountain. MPA Senior Emma Finch, MPA freshman Margo Nightingale, and MPA sophomore Isak Nightingale have advanced as individuals and will participate at the State Meet next week at Giants Ridge. Let’s go, Panthers!

Introducing The Martin Lenz Harrison Library

February 5, 2020

Ingrid cutting the ribbon to the libraryThank you to our generous and kind community for helping us unveil the brand new Martin Lenz Harrison Library yesterday! Martin Lenz Harrison was a member of MPA’s first graduating class. His memory and legacy will live on for generations of Panthers as they read, learn, and grow in their beautiful library.

His surviving parents Alfred and Ingrid Lenz Harrison and members of the first graduating class joined us on campus for the ribbon cutting and celebration. Thank you to our donors, volunteers, and community members!

Feeling Supported And Strong At School

February 4, 2020

Lilly Ramalingam '20The following essay is adapted from MPA Class of 2020 member Lilly Ramalingam’s Senior Speech.

I started preschool at the age of two at my family-owned Montessori school, Ramalynn Montessori Academy. My parents, my grandparents and my uncle have all taught at the school and it is a four-minute walk away from my house, so it was almost quite literally a home away from home. Before graduating from Ramalynn after eighth grade, I was a confident and happy girl, with none of the worries I would quickly take on during my first two years of high school.

After eighth grade, I didn’t have much of a choice on where I would attend high school, since my parents and grandparents had already decided to send me where my uncle had gone before he went to college at Brown back in the 90s. This high school I attended for two years before coming to MPA will rename nameless.

I went into this new school as a freshman, while the majority of students in my grade had been together for many years before high school, so I knew I was already at a slight disadvantage, but because I’m generally a very social person, I wasn’t too worried about finding new friends. Read More

Be Part Of The Fiber Friends Quilting Project

January 30, 2020

the mpa fiber friendsThe MPA Fiber Friends are currently working on a community-wide quilting project and want your masterpieces to be part of it! Bring your artistic vision and voice and be a part of something special. Anyone may be part of the community quilting. The Fiber Friends meet on Fridays from 11 AM to 12:30 PM. This group of knitters, crocheters, and textile gurus is open to all parents, alums, grandparents, students, staff, and faculty. Beginners are always welcome!

And don’t miss the Fiber Friends at Maker Fest 2020!

Born Of A Dream And A Shoestring

January 29, 2020

lower school boys reading in the new libraryJoanne Olson, MPA’s first Lower School director, is fond of saying that MPA was born “of a dream and a shoestring.” What started as the dream of founders Bob Kriescher and Sandy Kriescher Smith, quickly became the dream of parents and educators from across the Twin Cities. Bob, Sandy, our founding teachers, board members, and parents pooled what resources they could muster to make their dream a reality on a shoestring budget that would have a lasting impact.

Sandy Kriescher Smith once shared with me that she used a small bequest from her grandmother’s estate to buy books for the new library. In the year before MPA opened, Sandy would crisscross the cities, utilizing her inheritance to purchase the books from public schools that were closing, or the inventory cast from public libraries. Little by little, she filled her garage with boxes of books so that when (or if!) the school opened, it would have a library.

Sandy’s story is just one of the many stories of our humble beginnings. MPA would not exist without the vision of the founding families and generosity of time and resources of so many. Over the years, generous gifts have resulted in beautiful campus and school community. A commitment to the school guided parents and supporters to invest in the needs of the time but also to invest in the school’s future. Read More

Maker Fest 2020: Debbie LaChapelle

January 29, 2020

Debbie in the makerspace with her classWe’re interviewing the Makers you’ll meet at at Maker Fest 2020 on Saturday, February 22 so you can get to know them ahead of time! Debbie LaChapelle is MPA’s PreK teacher who loves to use the Makerspace to channel her students’ and her own creativity.

What (or who) inspires you to make?
I like to learn new things and have wanted to be crafty. I sewed in junior high and my mom made most of my clothes and draperies–I guess my mom inspires me.

What do you enjoy making?
Infinity scarves, oven mitts, tissue holders, bags, baby blankets, cord keepers, placemats, and coasters.

What are the most rewarding challenges?
Doing something over and over again, not giving up, and finally getting it right. Not being afraid to make mistakes. Not being afraid to use your seam-ripper; it is your friend. Read More

See You At Pajamarama On Thursday!

January 29, 2020

pajamarama 2019Pajamarama is Thursday, January 30! From 5:45-6:45 PM, Lower School students will enjoy a short concert of their favorite Disney music, meet our musicians, and enjoy story telling in a new and imaginative way. Following the Disney performance, the children are led in interactive activities designed to spark excitement and curiosity about music. To finalize our program we will have a reading of a popular children’s book performed by a narrator while being accompanied by the MPA Upper School Orchestra. Students will receive a snack while they cozy up to hear this famous story come to life! Wear your pajamas or your comfy clothes!

MPA Girls Nordic Ski Wins IMAC Championship

January 29, 2020

IMAC champion teamCongratulations to the 2019-2020 Girls IMAC Nordic Champions, the MPA Panthers! The MPA Girls Nordic Ski team of seniors Mari Bohacek and Izzy George, juniors Katie Dahiya, Izzy Quam, Eva Benson, and Emma Cohen, freshmen Eleanore Haas, Sophia Spisak, and Margo Nightingale, eighth grader Abby B., and North Heights seventh grader Sienna S. finished first at the Conference Championship Race with a final score of 550.

The Boys Team of senior Henry Snider, juniors Ian Snider, Collin Steinberger, and Peter Manolis, sophomores Isak Nightingale and Grant Steinberger, eighth graders
David S., Eilam D., and Logan M., and seventh graders Eddie S. And Joe W. also put in great effort and finished second behind Minnehaha Academy with a score of 552.

The MPA Nordic Ski program provides students with the opportunity to learn skills necessary to compete successfully. Skiers are encouraged to achieve their maximum potential in practice and in competition–students work hard, have positive attitudes, and are the best teammates they can be. Great job to all of you, Panthers!

The Ability To Choose A New Path

January 27, 2020

Ceci Driano '20The following essay is adapted from MPA Class of 2020 member Ceci Driano’s Senior Speech.

I have always been a planner. The color-coded schedules and to-do lists kind of planner. Yet somehow my life has not gone according to plan. Eighteen years in the making, I now understand that change is constant and life is not always fair, but through it all, the most important thing is how I view change when my best laid plans go awry.

I went to elementary school in rural Minnesota and loved the small-town life. I was able to walk to school and recognize a familiar face everywhere I went. I have many fond memories partaking in events that would only happen in a small town. One of my favorites was walking in the Homecoming and Glows Parades, where the high schoolers were able to ride floats for their sports team and then run back to the beginning of the parade and do it all over again with another extracurricular. Whether it was running my make-believe Screwball Café where I took real money for fake food, or playing chip-it-over the river, where I just kicked a soccer ball over the wheelbarrow in my backyard–I found a way to have fun. My imagination seemed to run wild, and as my dad liked to say, I was basically a free-range chicken. I thought I had my whole life planned out: I would graduate, go to the college down the street so I could live at home with my parents, and then I would become President. What could go wrong? Read More