Mounds Park Academy

August 25, 2022

from Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School

I was taken aback yesterday morning when I drove into the north parking lot at 6:10 AM and saw it was filled with cars. I am used to being the first one at school in the morning and was completely disoriented. Then I remembered that this year’s senior class began a new tradition, gathering in the Benz Courtyard together at sunrise to launch their senior year. My first reaction was, “Only at MPA!.” This new tradition, initiated by the seniors, is a wonderful example of what makes MPA such a special school.

I want to officially welcome you to a new school year! I especially welcome our new families who have recently joined the MPA family. It was wonderful to meet and greet so many of you at the Back To School and New Family Orientation event. The deep-seated spirit of joyfulness and community was palpable, and although I was exhausted, it was hard for me to fall asleep Monday night. After two years of health and safety restrictions, it was gratifying to be back together and in person.

In my welcoming remarks to new families, I spoke of the strong partnership between parents and the school. In many independent schools, this special relationship tends to be transactional, built upon the expectation of reciprocity, of both parties getting what they want from one another. I have long felt that the relationship between MPA parents and school is more transformational. In a transformational relationship, there exists a mutual trust built upon shared values and a belief that an MPA education is a partnership in our children’s ongoing growth and development.

Welcome to MPA, Samah Fahmy!

August 25, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Middle and Upper School visual arts teacher

From what school/organization are you coming?
Woodbury Leadership Academy / St. Croix Prep

Tell us about your education and past experience.
I hold a B.A. in Fine Art. I have worked for the past 17 years in the South Washington County School District as a community ed. art teacher, for levels K-Adult. I have designed a curriculum that both pleases students and follows state art standards.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
MPA has a wonderful community and is known for its outstanding academics and development of the student holistically.

What’s your big dream?
To see my daughters prosper in a diverse and equitable world.

What are you (and your family, if you so choose) passionate about?
We are passionate about travel, art, music, swimming, golf and various felines. We feel strongly about giving back and volunteering at school, and spend on average 20 hours a month volunteering.

What’s a fun fact about you that our community would love to know?
We have traveled to many countries and love to share our experiences.

Welcome to MPA, Meem Fahlstrom!

August 25, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Middle School Spanish Teacher

Tell us about your education and past experience.
My favorite job was being a 2-week program facilitator for a Spanish camp, El lago del bosque, Concordia Language Villages. I got my masters in World Language Instruction through Concordia College. I’ve taught at Armstrong High School, Totino-Grace high school, The Churchill School and Center (For Students With Language Based Learning Disabilities), and Wayzata public schools. I’ve led trips to México, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and France. I’ve lived in Chile and Ecuador.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
MPA feels like home. Everyone that works here is here for the students and there is a high degree of innovation. I worked with K-5 students last year and knew it was the place for me.

What’s your big dream?
My big dream is to write a Minneapolis-based dystopian YA novel.

What are you (and your family, if you so choose) passionate about?
I love plants, biking, improv comedy, reading fiction, and writing short stories. My partner and I love Minneapolis and knitting. I grew up surrounded by Croatian elders. I only have one great aunt left who lives in Leetonia (near Hibbing) and I enjoy spending time with her up north. I am passionate about my two nieces (one from each of my brothers).

What’s a fun fact about you that our community would love to know?
I am a licensed Biology teacher, but each year I choose to teach Spanish. Also, I’m trans non-binary and my pronouns are they/them.

Welcome to MPA, Justin Quam!

August 25, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
College Counselor

From what school/organization are you coming?
St. Paul’s Schools, Brooklandville, MD

Tell us about your education and past experience.
I have been working in education for a year as an English teaching assistant in Austria in 2010. After finishing graduate school at Georgetown, I taught German and global politics at the St. Paul’s Schools near Baltimore, where I also served on the college counseling team. I just wrapped up my first summer co-directing Waldsee, the German summer camp at the Concordia Language Villages in Bemidji where I have taught since 2005.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
I was struck by the earnest curiosity of the students I met at MPA; they seemed intrinsically motivated by their own desire to learn and grow, rather than by external markers of success.

What’s your big dream?
At the moment, I’m most excited to connect (and reconnect) to communities I was isolated from throughout the pandemic, and to help students do the same.

What are you (and your family, if you so choose) passionate about?
Singing fills the gaps in my soul. I joined a choir when I first moved to DC in 2011 (before even finding an apartment), and that community has been the one constant in my life through a decade of moves, grad school, teaching, and job hunting. I hope to find a similar musical avenue in MN!

What’s a fun fact about you that our community would love to know?
I can fold just about any origami creature out of one square of paper, given detailed instructions. (Hedgehogs are my white whales, so to speak–too many spines–but almost any other animal is fair game.)

Welcome to MPA, Patti Meras!

August 25, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Middle School Dean

From what school/organization are you coming?
Georgetown Day School

Tell us about your education and past experience.
I have been a middle school English and social studies teacher for the majority of my career, and I hold a BA in English and an MA in Special Education. I began in southern California in 1996 teaching English in public schools. In 2005, my native MN called me back (as anyone who has left MN knows, it has a way of bringing you back). Shortly after returning, I joined MPA. I spent the next 15 years embedded in the joy and delightful quirkiness that is the MPA middle school community before embarking on a new adventure. For the past two years, I was the Middle School English Department Chair at Georgetown Day School in Washington, DC; then I lived abroad in Germany. Once again, I returned to my native MN, and I am so happy to be back in this welcoming community.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
The first day I toured the halls of MPA in 2005, an upper school student looked up from their computer with a genuine smile and greeted by name the 4th grade teacher who was walking with me. I immediately knew this was a special place. MPA is home. It is my village. My colleagues, my students, and the families make this a magical place that celebrates the individual and nurtures creativity, curiosity, and collaboration. I am challenged and supported every day.

What’s your big dream?
I want to participate in the McMurdo Station Antarctic Austral Summer program (If you have not seen A Year on Ice, go watch it).

What are you (and your family, if you so choose) passionate about?
I am passionate about serving others, and I want to instill this passion in those around me. When my children were school-aged, we would spend our summers overseas working at English immersion camps, volunteering in orphanages in Peru, working with youth in Nicaragua, and other such service opportunities. As a member of the MS community, I have loved being a part of many service projects and activities over the years. It is a joy to witness our young people giving of themselves and volunteering their time while expanding their worldview and learning about perspective taking, compassion, and empathy.

What’s a fun fact about you that our community would love to know?
I am a Peanuts fanatic and Snoopy is my favorite. You can usually find me with a Snoopy coffee mug.

Welcome to MPA, Lukas Skrove!

August 22, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Middle School Band Director

From what school/organization are you coming?
Robbinsdale Area Schools

Tell us about your education and past experience.
I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Music and Secondary Education Certification at the University of Minnesota Morris. After graduating in 2014 I acquired a multi-building teaching position in the Robbinsdale Area Schools District and the Mount Olivet School of Music. Over the last eight years I have worked both as a music educator and freelance musician in the greater Minneapolis/St.Paul area. Teaching and performing music has been a dream of mine since I was in Middle School. It brings me great joy to share my experiences and stories with students. Read More

Welcome to MPA, Chad DeBruzzi!

August 20, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Upper School Math Teacher

From what school/organization are you coming?
Anoka Hennepin Public Schools

Tell us about your education and past experience.
Nineteen years of teaching in public and charter schools, as well as higher education. I hold a Masters in education focused on teaching math. I also hold a principal license and an education specialist degree.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
I fell in love with MPA when I saw my children start to flourish for the first time in their school careers. Before MPA they couldn’t tell you what their strengths were. Now, they know their strengths and how to help others with those strengths!

What’s your big dream?
I always wanted to travel the world and meet wise people from different cultures and record their wisdom.

What’s a fun fact about you that our community would love to know?
My family and I love playing board games, video games, jackbox tv: anything that involves playful banter and unpredictability! I am also passionate about Minnesota sports!

Welcome to MPA, Jackie Lynch!

August 19, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Substitute Teacher

From what school/organization are you coming?
Minneapolis Japanese School

Tell us about your education and past experience.
Originally from Japan, I studied abroad at the College of St. Benedict in Minnesota for my Bachelor’s Degree (2000), and earned my Master’s in Early Childhood Education from the University of Sheffield in England (2008). I relocated to Japan in 2001 and had extensive experience teaching PreK classrooms, leading teams, and directing international schools. I moved back to Minnesota in 2015 and have been a lead teacher at Minneapolis Japanese School since 2018.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
Walking the halls and exploring the website, I was struck by the positivity, inclusion, and diversity of the students, staff, and curriculum. There is an energy within the MPA community that I want to experience and contribute to. Read More

Welcome to MPA, Dinah MacPhail!

August 17, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Fifth and eighth grade social studies teacher

From what school/organization are you coming?
Saint Paul Academy

Tell us about your education and past experience.
I fell into teaching as a summer job in 2008, and then kept coming back to it until I realized how much I loved it. I started at the Carroll School in Lincoln, Massachusetts, and have since taught in Massachusetts and Minnesota, and in almost every grade (except pre-k). Before I became a licensed teacher, I also taught wine tasting classes as a wine sales rep and cheese monger.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
The incredible positivity, the honest and vulnerable reflective practices, and the authentic emphasis on community.

What’s your big dream?
To love what I do, and to do what I love, both without reservation. Read More

Welcome to MPA, Jane O’Halloren!

August 16, 2022

What position will you be holding at MPA?
Part-time Upper School English Teacher

From what school/organization are you coming?
Rosemount High School

Tell us about your education and past experience.
I taught in Chicago for six years before relocating to Minnesota for my partner’s job, and I taught for five years in District 196 at Rosemount High School. My undergraduate degrees are in English and French from St. Olaf College, and my M.A. is in Rhetoric and Composition from DePaul University.

What did you find appealing about MPA?
The pairing of intellectual ambition and global responsibility appeals to my sense of idealism. What is our responsibility to ourselves and others as we become better readers, writers, and thinkers? I’m excited to see what this looks like in the classroom.

What’s your big dream?
Chasing curiosity–staying thirsty for knowledge and connection.

What are you (and your family, if you so choose) passionate about?
I’m passionate about going on adventures. This might look like family adventures (road trips, camping trips, day trips) or intellectual adventures (reading a challenging book, taking a new job) or physical adventures (running challenging races, joining a new workout class).

What’s a fun fact about you that our community would love to know?
I make my kids’ birthday cakes every year from scratch.