December 17, 2020
Invite a friend, neighbor, colleague, or family member to join us for MPA’s final PreK-12 preview event of the year. Held virtually on Sunday, January 31 starting at 2 PM, this event will be a structured program that allows prospective students and parents to get a sense of what makes MPA an exceptional place to learn and grow. From participating in hands on classes offered by our expert educators, to seeing 17 campus spaces via a virtual tour, prospective families will get a detailed overview of Mounds Park Academy.
Kindly invite your friends and neighbors to RSVP in advance for this engaging program at moundsparkacademy.org/RSVP. If you have any questions, contact the Office of Admission at 651-748-5577 or admission@moundsparkacademy.org. We can’t wait to meet them!
Sixteen faces appear on Zoom as Upper School English teacher Lauren Drake begins her Western and Global Literature course. It’s a Wednesday afternoon and these tenth graders listen patiently as Drake explains how the main item on today’s agenda will work; the class’ first Socratic Seminar of the quarter. Today’s Socratic Seminar is a comparison of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, Plato’s “Allegory of the Cave”, Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay “Nature”, and a collection of William Wordsworth poetry. Drake explains the grading rubric, recaps the seminar’s norms, and reminds students to think about the space they inhabit in group discussions. Then it’s go time and students jump right in, starting with an examination of prompt one, a comparison of the uses of light and dark imagery in “Allegory of the Cave” and “Frankenstein”.
The MPA Math League team participated in their third virtual meet this week, scoring very well with 89 points overall! MPA’s top individual scorer was sophomore Anthony Troullier, earning 12 points, including a perfect seven in event A. Four team members earned ten points: junior Amy Xiang (including a perfect seven in event B), senior Lareina Gu (including a perfect 7 in event B), senior Sean Park, and senior Steve Min (filling in nicely for Qiya Zhang, who was unable to attend). Freshman Ella Li also earned a perfect 7 in event B. The team overall did extremely well in event B, earning 26 out of a possible 28 points.
Reconnect with former classmates
The realization for Mike Velin ’06 came over several weeks in 2002. An excellent student in his elementary and early middle school years, school stopped coming as easily when Mike entered eighth grade. “I was getting straight As all the way through middle school, and then all of a sudden, I was getting Ds,” he says. “Something just switched where I wasn’t engaged. I wasn’t happy or passionate anymore.” In response, the Velin family started thinking about Mike’s education as an investment, and recognized that part of his struggles could be attributed to the fact they weren’t investing in Mike’s education as much as they could be. “Going through that experience was very transformative for our family,” he says. “Because in the end we found MPA, and it influenced the rest of my life, the way that I approach my career, my relationships, how I view the world.”
This past Saturday, the MPA Upper School Quiz Bowl teams couldn’t take celebratory pictures together quite like the one featured here from 2019, but their smiles were just as big! Three MPA teams competed at the RATRACE tournament (Really Awesome Thumb-Racing Academic Competition Event) Quiz Bowl competition, which was held virtually.
Thirty-nine years ago this week, 13 people from throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul gathered with Bob and Lois (now Sandy Kreischer Smith) Kreischer to articulate their shared dream of founding an independent school in the east metro of St. Paul. In his introduction that evening, Bob said, “We are aware that this could be the start of something big and equally aware that this could totally end in a month or so.” At the end of the meeting, a vote was taken to officially establish Mounds Park Academy. The Articles of Incorporation were filed on December 11 with the State of Minnesota designating Mounds Park Academy as an educational nonprofit on December 14, 1981.
Each year, nearly nine out of every ten newly enrolled families have some previous connection to MPA. It could be that their colleague is an alum, a neighbor has kids here, or a friend from dance goes to MPA. Word of mouth is an incredibly important way to share MPA, and here are three easy things that a busy parent can do to help spread the word.
This interview
The Student Council is hosting a winter clothing drive in a contactless drop-off to collect warm winter coats and clothing for families in North Minneapolis. Similar to when you’ve picked up school supplies from the North Entrance, you will be able to drive up with your donations and drop them off without getting out of your car. After placing them in your trunk, a volunteer will pick your donated winter clothing with gloves and a mask. To contribute, please drop-off your materials at one of the following times: