This Friday, December 14th, is the annual MPA Spirit Night. Everyone is welcome. Here are some of the events that will take place that night. Basketball games vs. Concordia Academy: - Boys C team game – 4:15 p.m. - Boys Junior Varsity – 4:15 p.m. - Girls Varsity – 6:00 p.m. - Boys Varsity – 7:30 p.m. Raffle prizes galore! Debut of the MPA Dancers at halftime of the Boys’ Varsity game Return of the “Deal or No Deal!” shooting contest A chance to see many alumni! I hope everyone can come and show your SPIRIT! Grade 10 Respect Retreat On Friday, November 30th, the sophomores went off campus to the North Saint Paul Community Center for a grade-level retreat. The organization that ran the event is called “Youth Frontiers” and they are known throughout the Twin Cities for their work on character development through thematic retreats. The current 8th and 9th graders have done the Courage Retreat through Youth Frontiers. The 10th grade was selected for this retreat because all of the other Upper School years have seminars attached to them that allows character development to take place internally. The day consisted of some large group experiences, as well as some small group sharing and discussion all centered around the central theme of respect. Eight MPA junior and senior Peer Leaders also participated to help facilitate the small group sharing and give their wisdom and insight to the 10th graders. Finally, in order to bring this important work back to the entire MPA community, the students were asked to commit to either respecting themselves, other people, or stand up for something they believe is important. Overall, the students reported that the experience was very valuable and they learned a great deal about each other in the process. What’s happening in the Upper School: Saturday, December 15th, is the 9 – 12 Semi Formal Dance at the Cinema Ballroom in St. Paul. The dance is from 8:00 – 11:30 p.m. and all students must purchase tickets by Friday afternoon. Also, all non-MPA guests must pre-register by Friday – no exceptions. Parking is limited so please carpool if possible. Senior Performances are Friday, December 21st, at 2:30 p.m. in the Nicholson Center. Robbie Seum Upper School Director