September 13, 2024
Launched in 2023 as a way to celebrate MPA’s rich athletic tradition, MPA is proud to announce the 2024 Hall of Fame inductees: the 2006 State Golf Team; Beth Larson ’08, alum athlete; Daniel Ethier, teacher and coach; and Mike Scinto, teacher and coach. Please take a moment to read about Daniel Ethier!
What was your greatest accomplishment in your 29 years as a teacher and 24 as a coach at MPA?
Hopefully, having a positive influence on the many students and athletes I have worked with. I have probably taught or coached close to a thousand students and athletes in my 29 years of teaching and 24 years of coaching. If I have had even a little positive influence on each of them, that adds up to a large positive influence on the world.
What is your happiest memory of your time at MPA?
The 2008 Boys Cross Country Team qualifying for state. That moment when they learned that they had qualified for state was so incredibly joyful. They had worked so hard for that moment and it was incredibly satisfying to see them realize that audacious goal.
What is one piece of advice that you would share with MPA athletes?
Success in cross country, like success in anything, requires challenging yourself consistently over a long period of time. There are no shortcuts. And the only way to see what you are ultimately capable of is to commit and make the journey.
In what ways did the school support you during your time at MPA?
The success of the cross country team over all these years was never just my doing. I worked with great assistant coaches who made it possible to have every runner doing a workout that was right for them. Our athletic directors (Joe Kordosky and Dan Haase) always made sure we had the resources we needed and took care of a lot of details like fees and buses so I could focus on the coaching. Especially during COVID, Dan Haase had to do a LOT of extra work to allow our athletes to be able to do their sports.
What is something about you or your time at MPA that few people know?
It is really an accident that I got into running at all. In ninth grade at Cleveland Junior High, a friend asked if I was going out for track. I didn’t know what track was! But I signed up. A few days before our first meet, the coach said there were five of us,including me, who had not signed up for an event, and there was nobody signed up for the 4×200 relay or the 800-meter run. He said the five of us would sprint down the block and the first four would be the relay and the fifth would do the 800. I was fifth. The 800 went pretty well for me. During our last meet, the Johnson High School cross country coach approached me and got my info. And that is how I got into running and coaching.
Launched in 2023 as a way to celebrate MPA’s rich athletic tradition, MPA is proud to announce the 2024 Hall of Fame inductees: the 2006 State Golf Team; Beth Larson ’08, alum athlete; Daniel Ethier, teacher and coach; and Mike Scinto, teacher and coach. Please take a moment to read about the 2006 State Golf Team!
from Dr. Bill Hudson, head of school
from Paul Errickson, Middle School director
from Jennifer Le Varge, Lower School director 
from Mark Segal, Upper School director 
Connection is brewing! You don’t have to drink coffee to take advantage of the way coffee brings people together. Throughout the school year, the MPA Parents Association hosts social events that build community between families and between families and school staff.
A liberal arts education is one of the many benefits of a private school. But looking deeper, the philosophy behind it reveals why a liberal arts education is so important in our technology-driven world. Education is more dynamic and multifaceted than ever, responding to the demands of a rapidly evolving global landscape. Amidst this transformation, the advantage of liberal arts education stands out as both timeless and increasingly relevant. Traditionally associated with studying subjects such as humanities, literature, philosophy, history, and the arts, liberal arts education emphasizes a broad-based approach to learning that fosters critical thinking, effective communication, and ethical reasoning.
Did you know Mounds Park Academy is a place for parents, too? The MPA Parents Association (MPAPA) is your place to directly build community, continue traditions, support faculty and staff, and find resources as an MPA family. Each year, the MPAPA is looking for volunteers to give their time to lead, support, and assist with the following events:
from Dr. Bill Hudson, head of school