Auction Items Needed and Appreciated!
March 8, 2018
Items ranging from themed baskets and event tickets to extravagant weekend holidays are needed and very much appreciated. Your contributions are what make this event possible! All items may be dropped off in the Development Office. auction wish list >
Making Change In Labor Trafficking
March 8, 2018
Mounds Park Academy Seniors Pranay Somayajula and Kate Van Hecke met with State Senator Chuck Wiger last week to seek (and receive!) his co-authorship for a bill that they and Ryan Guggenheim, Alayna Fox, Sierra Klein, and Nashad Mahamoud are writing for their senior service project.
The bill allocates $700,000 over two years to the Department of Public Safety for statewide training of law enforcement on the issue of labor trafficking and how to combat it. These students are dreaming big and doing right and we are so proud of them.
Another Way to Support Mounds Park Academy
March 8, 2018
What are Planned Gifts?
Planned gifts, sometimes called “deferred gifts,” are charitable gift commitments made today, but from which MPA does not benefit until a future date. Planned gifts may be made from a donor’s estate at death or may be established now with the transfer of assets that will create a gift that provides an income stream to the donor with the remainder passing to MPA at the donor’s death. Gifts from estates can preserve lifetime flexibility (allow you to retain use of the assets and make changes during life), reduce your taxable estate, and help you to achieve a charitable purpose perhaps not possible during your lifetime. Life-income planned gifts, such as charitable gift annuities and charitable remainder trusts, may also produce immediate income tax benefits.
Why choose to make a Planned Gift?
Planned gifts can be an attractive way for donors to make a lasting impact by allowing them to make a larger, more substantial gift than they would otherwise be able to make during their lifetimes. Also, some donors are concerned about what happens to their annual support of MPA after they’re gone. A planned gift can be the answer. The nature of your future gift depends upon several factors: your age, total assets, estate and income tax situation, family inheritance concerns, timing, current income needs, and last but not least, your philanthropic goals: what do you want your legacy gift to accomplish at MPA? Read More
Rotary’s MPA Student of the Year
March 8, 2018
Senior William Thao was recognized at a breakfast last week as the Mounds Park Academy Student of the Year for the North St. Paul/Maplewood/Oakdale Rotary Club. William was honored with his name on a plaque in the Upper School office, a certificate, and the opportunity to apply for a Rotary Club college scholarship. His parents, Sam Thao and Mee Vang, were present and given a gift certificate to the Lake Elmo Inn as well.
In partnership with each school, the Rotary Club annually recognizes one high school student from each school within District 622. Our criteria has been based on the type and amount of service that the student has done and their overall engagement with the ideals of both Rotary Club and MPA.
Randy Comfort, director of guidance, spoke on William’s behalf and introduced him to the Club. He shared that William has completed more than 100 hours of service in his career at MPA, he is an Eagle Scout, a Peer Leader, and an MPA Ambassador, and he participates in speech and debate. William selects and succeeds at very challenging courses and has had a job since he was 15. William’s teachers describe him as engaged, optimistic, determined, and service oriented toward his school and the world community.
We are so proud of William and so is the Rotary! Congratulations!
This Is Why I Give. How About You?
March 6, 2018
by Vance Ryan ’08
Mounds Park Academy was integral to making me who I am today. Even in kindergarten, we were asked to give presentations to our classmates on countries in South America. That presentation was just the beginning of the approach MPA takes towards preparing students for the world not only after grade school, but also after college. While I have yet to give a presentation on Suriname in my career, I still use the public speaking and critical thinking skills I learned at MPA as a part of that mentality every day in my career.
Every Panther can make a gift of any amount during today’s Alumni Challenge! moundsparkacademy.org/donate
This Is Why I Give. How About You?
March 6, 2018
by Nate Bander ’09
I give back because MPA gave me a lifelong community. I remember returning to campus for the first time after I graduated, at the Alumni Basketball Tournament when I was freshman in college, and realizing right then and there as I walked into and was greeted by friends, and former teammates and coaches, that MPA was worth supporting with whatever I had to contribute.
Every Panther can make a gift of any amount during today’s Alumni Challenge! moundsparkacademy.org/donate
This Is Why I Give. How About You?
March 6, 2018
by Annie Stewart ’11
Donating during the Alumni Challenge is my way of saying thank you. I may not be able to give a large donation, but I know that every dollar that I give goes to supporting great teachers, amazing facilities, and a school that continues to help me grow.
When classmates have asked me why I give, I tell them that I remember back to my Middle School drama class when Mrs. Bradley gave me my first part in a class play. I never would have guessed that my experiences in her class would lead me to pursue a degree in theater in college. I give because I want to ensure that the next generation of MPA students are able to have their own transformational experiences, and be mentored by exceptional faculty and staff.
Every Panther can make a gift of any amount during today’s Alumni Challenge! moundsparkacademy.org/donate
March 6, 2018
Today, Tuesday, March 6, we are calling on our alumni community to participate in our annual 24 hour giving challenge! As a nonprofit institution, we rely on financial contributions to support the programs and opportunities that our students take part in.
When alumni show their support by participating in the Alumni Challenge, they not only affirm their faith in the teachers that supported them, but they show the community the reach and impact that MPA alumni can truly have on the world—from Youth Ambassadors to the United Nation to socially conscious business owners to MPA Panthers running through Times Square!
We are beyond excited to see how you challenge each other and the collective impact you will have on this day!
To make a gift, visit moundsparkacademy.org/donate!
This Is Why I Give. How About You?
March 6, 2018
by Jeremy Drucker ’97
When I started at Mounds Park Academy in sixth grade I lacked academic confidence. Not only did I struggle with subjects I didn’t have an aptitude for, but I was also oblivious to the things I did well. MPA helped me realize not only how to master those things I had difficulty with, but also how to embrace and bring to bloom those areas where I did have a knack.
Whether it was reciting the first 18 lines of Chaucer’s Canterbury tales in Old English for Richard Meacock’s sophomore English class, or doing improv in Mrs. Poehling and Mrs. Bradley’s drama classes, or researching and writing history papers for Mrs. Conway, or having Mrs. Docherty yelling encouragement to finish strong down the final stretch of a two mile race in the rain at the conference track meet, MPA prepared me for and put me in challenging positions where I needed to push myself past where I thought I could go, but with the support I needed until I learned how to do it myself.
These experiences gave me an exceptional educational foundation that has served me well ever since, be it in college, graduate school or my professional life. It is an incredible advantage for which I am grateful to this day, and hope that every person should be as fortunate as I was.
Every Panther can make a gift of any amount during today’s Alumni Challenge! moundsparkacademy.org/donate
Planning For A Regular School Day March 6
March 5, 2018
We are monitoring the forecast and road conditions closely. Mounds Park Academy is planning for a regular school day tomorrow, Tuesday, March 6. If this changes, we will notify families as soon as possible via email, text, voicemail, the website, and social media.
Conditions tomorrow will be less than ideal. Please use great caution when traveling to campus and know that tardies are excused in inclement weather. As always, if you determine that your commute is too difficult or unsafe, the absence will also be excused.
Please take good care and we hope to see you tomorrow morning!