Parents Association News And Events May 1, 2025

May 1, 2025

Upper School faculty members participate in the Ice Bucket Challenge. Help us assemble and deliver goodie bags for faculty and staff! Your help is needed next week to celebrate the MPA adult community during National Teacher (faculty & staff) Appreciation Week. Sign up to help on May 5.

Tend The MPA Gardens!

A small group of parent volunteers is getting organized to refresh and care for the school gardens, including the areas near the library, front entrance, and kindergarten door. We’re looking for a few more helpers for upcoming clean-up days and ongoing maintenance. No green thumb required—just a willingness to pitch in! Fill out this form to receive more information.

May 3: Upper School Parents Social

Gather with fellow Upper School parents on prom night to enjoy some adult camaraderie as the students set sail on the St. Croix. We will meet at Lucky Guys Distillery in downtown Hudson from 8-11 PM. Light appetizers will be provided. Please RSVP here! All Upper School parents are welcome.

Come Sail With Us!

April 30, 2025

Members of the MPA spring sailing team man a boat.

Students in first through sixth grade from Mounds Park Academy are invited to experience the excitement of sailing—for free—during a special introductory event hosted by White Bear Sailing School just for MPA!

The event will be held Saturday, June 7, from 12:30 to 2:30 PM at the White Bear Sailing School! Participants will have the opportunity to meet coaches, learn new skills, and get out on the water.

Sailing is offered at Mounds Park Academy as a club sport beginning in seventh grade, with activities in both the fall and spring. The club is coached and hosted by White Bear Sailing School.

White Bear Sailing School also offers a variety of summer camps for youth of all experience levels, ranging from beginner Opti camps for ages seven to 11, to advanced racing programs for teens up to age 18. Programs include all-day camps, learn-to-race sessions, and competitive race teams.

Students and families interested in participating in the June 7 event can sign up here! Or, if interested in a summer camp, find more information and register online by clicking here.

 

 

Music And The Brain

April 29, 2025

Middle School students playing instruments in orchestraAt Mounds Park Academy, music is much more than an extracurricular activity. It plays a vital part in a child’s cognitive and emotional development by engaging the brain in ways few other disciplines can. It sharpens memory, strengthens attention, and boosts language skills. But beyond academic growth, music also nurtures empathy, creativity, and social and emotional intelligence through composing, performing, or simply listening. This is why music plays an essential role in Mounds Park Academy’s whole child, progressive, college-preparatory curriculum, PreK through grade 12.

In a time when standardized testing is heavily emphasized and there are rising concerns about math and science scores within our nation, parents might question MPA’s emphasis on the arts. From the school’s founding, our curriculum has reflected an intentional balance between academics and the arts. Through new and emerging research, we now know they were correct.

Cognitive Benefits of Music

The Frontiers in Neuroscience article, “How Musical Training Affects Cognitive Development,” states that children exposed to musical training have better verbal memory, language pronunciation and accuracy, reading ability, and executive functions, because of how the brain processes sound. Nina Kraus, author of “Of Sound Mind,” said “People think of the hearing brain as being a silo within the brain. In fact, our hearing engages our cognitive, sensory, motor, and reward systems.” Music learning is so powerful because it engages every one of the above systems into a single activity. Kraus asks us to consider playing the violin. “To play the violin, a student coordinates their motor, cognitive, and sensory system to be able to put their fingers on the correct strings and move the bow at the right time; to read musical notes on a sheet of music and know what sounds they represent; and to hear if the pitches and rhythms are correct and coordinating with other players at the same time,” she goes on to say that this elicits a certain feeling from the student playing the music, which triggers the reward system within the brain. Engaging these different systems makes learning how to play music one of the richest and deepest brain activities humans can perform. Simply put, “Teachers resoundingly tell me that children who participate in creating music do better in school,” Kraus states. Read More

MPA Speech Team Wins State Again!

April 25, 2025

We’re thrilled to share that the MPA speech team has won the state championship for the third year in a row—an incredible achievement and a perfect springboard into the national season ahead! Highlights from the state tournament include:

  • A new school record of 69 points, breaking our own previous best.
  • 16 students earned individual medals, tying the school’s all-time record set in 2004.
  • Paul Fertig became MPA’s 50th individual state champion, the most in Class A history and third-most in Minnesota history overall.
  • Esteemed judge Roxy Janke, with over 40 years of experience, praised our team, saying: “I feel like I could just sit down across from them, and they would teach me everything about their piece.”

Next up: Nationals! The team will travel to Kansas City on May 15 for NIETOC, followed by a trip to Des Moines for the 100th anniversary of the NSDA. Good luck, Panthers!

Full MPA Results From State:

  • Paul Fertig: State Champion, Extemporaneous Speaking
  • Guy Schwieger and Nico Bergh: Second place, Duo
  • Amal Sastry: Second place, Extemporaneous Speaking
  • Mina Kim: Second place, Great Speeches
  • Nabila Artan: Third place, Original Oratory
  • Oslo Norcross: Third place, Informative Speaking
  • Rowan Mulrooney: Fourth place, Great Speeches
  • Alyona Vietrova: Fourth place, Poetry
  • Mari Minear: Fifth place, Great Speeches
  • Warner Reid and Hazel Reid: Sixth place, Duo
  • Sidd Sastry: Sixth place, Extemporaneous Speaking
  • Zainab Lodhi: Sixth place, Informative Speaking
  • Ash Klann: Sixth place, Original Oratory
  • Kelvyn Boddipalli: Seventh place, Humorous Interpretation

Lower School Division News April 24, 2025

April 24, 2025

Lower School brain pathways science labfrom Jennifer Le Varge, Lower School director 

Mark Your Calendars

  • Tuesday, April 29: LS Quarterly Coffee, 8:15-9:30 AM, Martin Lenz Harrison Library
  • Tuesday, April 29: LS/MS Swim Team Awards, 3-4 PM, Family Commons
  • Thursday, May 1: MS/US Rising G5-9 Parent Meeting, 6-6:45 PM, MPA Campus
  • Thursday, May 1: MS Vocal Concert, 7-8:30 PM, Nicholson Center
  • Friday, May 2: New Family Panther Party, 4-5:30 PM, MPA Campus
  • Wednesday, May 7: LS CHAMP Assembly, 8:15-8:45 AM, Family Commons
  • Tuesday, May 8: LS Duty-Free Lunch with Parent Volunteers, 11:40 AM-12:40 PM, Playground and Family Commons
  • Wednesday, May 14: MPA PA Gender Inclusive School Parent and Ally Meeting, 6-8 PM, Family Commons and Panther Center

Spring fever has struck, and we’ve got some active kiddos here at school who are excited about being outdoors as much as possible. Read on for more updates, as we’ve got lots going on!

Express Yourself Friday: April 25
Our next Express Yourself Friday will be held on April 25!

Lower School CHAMP Updates
At our last CHAMP assembly on April 16, we launched our positive behavioral interventions with the students, along with a new CHAMP Challenge with emphasis on the CHAMP attributes of accountability and self-control. With the help and input of our first graders, we have determined that our expected CHAMP behaviors are:

Be Safe

  • Use safe hands and feet
  • Use whole body listening

Be Kind

  • Be mindful of voice levels
  • Honor all community members

Do Right

  • Be a first-time listener
  • Respect out classroom/school spaces

The students were presented with a CHAMP Challenge of showing the expected behaviors as much as possible over the next few weeks. Students will receive a CHAMP sticker when they demonstrate these behaviors and we will celebrate this positivity at our next CHAMP assembly from 8:15-9 AM on Wednesday, May 7.

Lower School Parent Coffee: Tuesday, April 29 (Library)
Our next Lower School Parent Coffee will be held in the Library on Tuesday, April 29 from 8:15-9:30 AM. We will host our special guest, Lower School parent Dr. Audrey Wells, who will share a snippet of her latest presentation on sleep and technology from the recent MPA Students and Screens initiative. We will also engage in a mini workshop about the lower school positive behavior initiative and go over some positive ways to end the year and look forward to a productive summer. We hope to see you there!

Lower School MAP Assessments for Grades 2-4: April 28-May 9
Spring MAP assessments will be held on April 28-May 9 for our students in Grades 2-4.

Lower School FastBridge Assessments for K and Grade 1: May 12-23
Spring FastBridge assessments will be held from May 12-23 for our students in Kindergarten through grade 1.

Middle School Division News April 24, 2025

April 24, 2025

Middle School students working on the CO2 dragster science projectfrom Paul Errickson, Middle School director

Mark Your Calendars 

  • Friday, April 25: MS/US Robotics Team Banquet, 5-8 PM, Family Commons
  • Tuesday, April 29: LS/MS Swim Team Awards, 3-4 PM, Family Commons
  • Wednesday, April 30: MS G7/8 Affinity Group Meeting, 2:30-3 PM, Panther Center
  • Thursday, May 1: MS/US Rising G5-9 Parent Meeting, 6-6:45 PM, MPA Campus
  • Thursday, May 1: MS Vocal Concert, 7-8:30 PM, Nicholson Center
  • Friday, May 2: New Family Panther Party, 4-5:30 PM, MPA Campus
  • Monday, May 5: MS/US Students & Screens Parent Meeting, 1:45-3 PM, Recital Hall
  • Thursday, May 8: MS/US Orchestra Concert, 7-8:30 PM, Nicholson Center
  • Friday, May 9: MS G5/6 Service Day, 8-11:30 AM, Off Campus
  • Friday May 9: MS G8 Field Trip, 9 AM-1:30 PM, Off Campus
  • Monday, May 12-Friday, May 16: MS G5/8 MAP Testing
  • Wednesday, May 14: MS G7/8 Affinity Group Meeting, 2:30-3 PM, Panther Center
  • Wednesday, May 14: MPA PA Gender Inclusive School Parent and Ally Meeting, 6-8 PM, Family Commons and Panther Center
  • Thursday, May 15: MS/US Band Concert, 7-8:30 PM, Nicholson Center

There is so much good stuff going on during this part of the year, I don’t even know where to start! During this week alone, we’ve had author visits, pairing assemblies, athletics competitions, and the opening night of our spring musical, “The Wizard of Oz!” Our students are busy, busy, busy, so please keep a close eye on our calendars and Schoology to keep up with all the upcoming concerts, field trips, and events.

For our students next week, we have the Middle School Vocal Concert on Thursday night, May 1 at 7 PM. We ask all families to come at 6 PM that evening so our faculty can talk with you to get you excited for the 2025-26 school year. The following week is our Orchestra Concert on Thursday night, May 8 at 7 PM and field trips and service learning for our grade five, six, and eight students on Friday. And, the following week, we will have our Spring MAP assessments and our Band Concert on Thursday night, May 15 at 7 PM. Read More

Upper School Division News April 24, 2025

April 24, 2025

Dorothy in the MPA Spring Musical "The Wizard of Oz"from Mark Segal, Upper School director 

Mark Your Calendars

  • Friday, April 25: MS/US Robotics Team Banquet, 5-8 PM, Family Commons
  • Friday, May 2: US Art and Pop Fair, 3:30-6 PM, US Hallway and Commons
  • Friday, May 2: New Family Panther Party, 4-5:30 PM, MPA Campus
  • Saturday, May 3: US Prom, 8-11:30 PM, Lakefront Park, (Hudson)
  • Monday, May 5: MS/US Students & Screens Parent Meeting, 1:45-3 PM, Recital Hall
  • Tuesday, May 6: Senior Project: Empty Bowls, 4:30-6:30 PM, Family Commons
  • Thursday, May 8: MS/US Orchestra Concert, 7-8:30 PM, Nicholson Center
  • Wednesday, May 14: MPA PA Gender Inclusive School Parent and Ally Meeting, 6-8 PM, Family Commons and Panther Center
  • Thursday, May 15: MS/US Band Concert, 7-8:30 PM, Nicholson Center

In almost three decades of working with students I would like to think that I have seen almost everything. Early in my career I helped a student who “accidentally” had a pencil stuck through their tongue and needed to convince their parent that they should see a doctor even though they believed “that the mouth heals quickly,” I got a student from their athletic practice to let them know that their parent had been in a plane crash (one that they were flying) and needed to “protect” them from the media frenzy that would soon follow the accident, and I convinced a student to hand over multiple sets of brass knuckles that were in their possession as they would not need them “for protection.” I, however, recently found myself wrapped up in and deeply affected by the four-part Netflix series, “Adolescence,” as it hit home not just as a school administrator, but also as the parent of a teenage boy.

The series was released in late March and since then, according to IMDb, has become third most watched Netflix series ever with more than 120 million views in over 80 countries. Parents of teenagers across the world are taking notice of the hard-hitting drama that offers a compelling and chilling lens into the world of male teenage identity. The series, each episode shot in one take, has garnered significant attention from educators and mental health professionals and presents an unflinching look at how young men navigate their high school years and construct their identities in today’s challenging social environment. An article in Parenting magazine this week shares, “the story is framed around online radicalization, it also forces us to confront below-the-surface things we overlook: what happens when boys are taught to hide what they feel, to bury their hurt, and to mistake detachment for strength.”

The series’ strength lies in its ability to showcase how a young adult isn’t being deliberately ignored; rather he is just flying under the radar. It explores his relationships with his peers, teachers, and the massive disconnect between Generation X parents and their Generation Alpha children. A 2022 study in Educational Psychology Review shared, “that when adults understand and acknowledge the complexity of male adolescent experience, boys are more likely to seek help when faced with emotional or social challenges.” Read More

Parents Association News And Events April 24, 2025

April 23, 2025

An Upper and Lower School student on a scavenger hunt. Parent Survey deadline is coming up! Help us reimagine the MPA Parents Association to better meet the needs of our parent community. Please fill out the MPA Parents Association survey by Monday, April 28!

Upcoming Opportunities To Join In

Division Quarterly Coffees

  • Tuesday, April 29: Lower School Quarterly Coffee, 8:15-9:30 AM, Martin Lenz Harrison Library

May 3: Upper School Parents Social

Gather with fellow Upper School parents on prom night to enjoy some adult camaraderie as the students set sail on the St. Croix. We will meet at Lucky Guys Distillery in downtown Hudson from 8-11 PM. Light appetizers will be provided. Please RSVP here! All Upper School parents are welcome.

May 5-9: National Teacher (Faculty & Staff) Appreciation Week

Nurturing Cross-Age Connections

April 23, 2025

An Upper and Lower School student walks outside together.from Dr. Bill Hudson, head of school

When I’m asked what I love most about my job, the answer comes instantly: the kids! Their joy, curiosity, and kindness infuse every corner of our campus and every moment of the school day. One of the greatest sources of that joy is the cross-age relationships we nurture here at MPA. Whether it’s a simple high-five between students passing in the hallway, Upper Schoolers reading with Lower Schoolers, or a schoolwide Pairing Assembly, these moments—both intentional and spontaneous—are among the most meaningful parts of life at a PreK–12 school under one roof.

This week’s Earth Day Pairing Assembly beautifully reflected two of our school’s guiding values: our responsibility to care for the planet and our deep belief in the power of connection across ages and stages. In so many ways, this event captured the heart of what it means to dream big and do right—to imagine a better world and then work together to bring it to life.

Earth Day is a moment to pause, reflect, and recommit to the well-being of our planet. But at MPA, it’s more than a moment. It’s a mindset. Our curriculum, our projects, and our partnerships all reflect our commitment to sustainability, stewardship, and preparing students to thrive in an interconnected world. Read More

Teaching And Learning

April 22, 2025

Dr. Brogdon in the Teaching and Learning conversationThis message is from MPA’s Office of Admission from the April 22 issue of Inside MPA. Click here to get in touch with Admission and learn more!

A few weeks ago, we shared the first video in our Head Of School Conversation series featuring both Dr. Bill Hudson and Dr. Lori-Anne Brogdon. They continue to work together closely as the head of school transition approaches in July, and we’re thrilled to share the second video in the series where they candidly talk about their work together.

Watch “A Head Of School Conversation: Teaching And Learning” here >

Set in the Makerspace, they cover the importance of curiosity, rigor with purpose, independent thinking, innovation, learning by doing, supportive teachers, and dreaming big.

“I think about soft skills that are now the necessary skills, and we talk a lot about challenge, and being able to fail, and being able to get picked back up again by those who are around you or even yourself,” says Dr. Brogdon. “We’re not willing to explore things that might seem scary or challenging if we don’t know somebody’s going to be around or that we have the stamina within us that someone has helped us to develop to move forward.” Read More