January 21, 2021
The upcoming webisode series “Some Good News,” created by the cast and crew of this year’s Middle School play, premieres tomorrow, January 22 at 7 PM on YouTube! Inspired by John Krasinski’s “Some Good News” series, the Middle School students (with Upper School students mentoring) were responsible for pitching ideas, collaborating, and writing stories, interviews, jokes, and sketches to produce four webisodes in the series. This approach allows the cast to go beyond acting, but to be involved in writing, filming, and directing.
The Middle School Theatre Department is proud to offer students and community members meaningful theater experiences year after year. Given the unique challenges with the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Middle School production is fully virtual so all community members far and wide can experience the joy of the students involved in this special project.
If you love and support the Middle School Theatre offerings every year, please consider making a gift that is right for you to help offset lost revenue from ticket and concessions proceeds this year. Every dollar you give will directly support the students and staff making these experiences a reality. Click here to make your gift and help us reach our goal in support of the Middle School Theatre Department. Simply add Middle School Play in your gift designation on the easy giving form. If you have questions or want to learn more about giving opportunities at MPA, please contact Jennifer Rogers-Petitt director of development and community engagement at jrogers@moundsparkacademy.org.
The Alumni Association Board is seeking members for its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion subcommittee! Led by the Board’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion officer Sidney Carlson White ’17, this subcommittee, which meets every other month, is for alumni looking to impact and guide antiracism efforts undertaken by both the Alumni Association Board and the broader MPA community.
MPA’s Legacy Society Committee welcomes you to join MPA alumnus Ty Johnston ’04 for a special presentation on wealth management and creative giving vehicles to benefit important causes you care about. You will learn and gain perspective on tax implications, practical steps you can take, and a variety of giving vehicles you may benefit from. Save the date for January 27, 2021 to join us at 4 PM.
The MPA Mentorship Program entered its third year with MPA Alumni being paired with a member of the senior class. The MPA Alums and seniors exchange three emails throughout the months of November and December. A survey was sent to both the seniors and alums to determine what their interests, career goals, college choice, etc. Work then began to recruit mentors who matched with the interests of our seniors. The program is proving to be successful and gain traction as for the second year in a row we had more alumni interested than seniors enrolled. Engagement continued to be at a high level and many connections were made that will continue far beyond the seniors’ last year at MPA.
MPA’s Legacy Society Committee
The 2021 Minnesota Scholastic Art Awards (MSAA) have been announced, and we have multiple MPA Upper School artists to congratulate this year! Award winners will have their work included in a virtual gallery and will be invited to an online awards ceremony hosted by the Weisman Art Museum in late February. Gold Key artwork will be submitted into competition at the national level of judging. Congratulations to these ambitious artists! Learn more at 
MPA’s Board of Trustees collaborates with the Head of School to guide the school’s strategic direction, to protect its mission, to support the school’s development efforts and to safeguard the school’s financial stability.
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.
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.