Alumni Archives

October 23, 2025

from Dr. Lori-Anne Brogdon, head of school

As I reflect on the past two weeks, the theme that stands out most to me is connection. The foundation of Mounds Park Academy’s community rests on the deep and meaningful connections developed among our students, families, faculty, staff, and alumni.

Last Monday, before taking a deep dive into our ISACS work for MPA’s upcoming re-accreditation, most of our faculty and staff spent several hours in the Manitou Forest. This time was dedicated to appreciating the opportunity to be outdoors, where we could connect with nature and each other. The results of our time together were seen in the smiles, heard in the songs faculty and staff sang as they walked the leaf-covered paths, and felt in the warm sunshine and crisp air. The experience filled everyone with cheer and levity.

The week continued with an incredible Grandparents and Special Friends Day, where classrooms and hallways were filled with students beaming with pride as they shared MPA with their loved ones, further deepening the connection between their school and home lives. Read More

Alumni Update: Kristen Bourne ’13

October 18, 2025

After graduating from MPA, I went on to get a bachelor’s degree in sports science from Northern Michigan University and a master’s degree in exercise physiology from The College of Saint Scholastica.

I’m currently a World Cup Coach for the US Cross Country Ski Team. I work with the top athletes on the national team as we prepare for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano/Cortina in February. My job takes me all over the world, from New Zealand to Scandinavia and anywhere in Europe that has snow. I coach many athletes on the national team, including Julia Kern, a two-time World Championship medalist and individual World Cup podium athlete.

Much of my love for coaching and high performance came from the wonderful coaches I had throughout my time at MPA. My passion for elevating women in sport came from having head coach, Bev Docherty, as a role model and example of the power of women in leadership roles. Much of my coaching philosophy comes from the coach-athlete experience with her.

I currently live in Truckee, California. When I’m not traveling, I’m running in the mountains with my corgi, Pico.

Why I Coach At MPA From Nick Gardner ’14

October 17, 2025

Why did I choose to return to MPA to coach?

I chose to return to MPA as a coach for so many reasons. First, the coaches I had in high school left a huge impact on me. Dan Ethier and Bev Docherty. It makes a huge difference to have coaches who believe in you, who value you as a student, an athlete, and as a multi-dimensional person outside of MPA, but still push you to be your very best when you compete.

This is what I was blessed to have in them, and I wanted to pay that forward and be a cheerleader and supporter in other people’s lives. Second, I love working with young people. At the time, I had a job without a lot of social interaction, AND there was a pandemic which really restricted the new relationships we formed—I found the team SO energizing to work with. I think for all of us, the ski team (both the camaraderie and the training regimen) became a real source of uplift every day. Relatedly, I love a challenge! Learning to ski is hard, and so is teaching it.

What does it mean to me to mentor the next generation of student athletes?

To mentor the next generation of athletes feels like the least I could do—my own experience as a Panther athlete left such a significant impact on me. I felt honored to endeavor to bring about personal growth, facilitate friendship, and help students hone their abilities. Read More

Then & Now: MPA’s Multigenerational Educators

October 17, 2025

“I worked at MPA for five years before Emma was born,” Deedee recalls. “When she joined our family, it was obvious only a parent could tend to her. She was ‘full blast,’ as one of her five-year-old friends put it.”

Deedee stepped away from her classroom to embrace life at home, nurturing Emma’s energy and individuality.

“When she reached school age, I was worried about how she would navigate the large class sizes and stricter rules in a public-school setting,” Deedee said. “Emma started kindergarten at MPA because we realized she needed a place where she could be feisty and still survive the adults she would encounter.”

Growing up surrounded by MPA’s mission and community left a lasting imprint.

“Being raised at MPA, Emma knew she was charged with making the world a better place,” Deedee said.

A Message from Phillipe Thao ’14

October 17, 2025

In March 2018, I visited Richard Meacock at his home above Squire House Gardens. To no one’s surprise, his walls were adorned with eclectic paintings, and the tea was already brewing by the time I walked up the steps. In a way, it felt like being back in his classroom at Mounds Park Academy. For the next few hours, we caught up with one another—discussing everything from queer literature to making the best peach cobbler.

Before leaving, I made sure to thank him for helping me find my voice and love for writing. “Please send me your stories as you write,” he said to me. I still wonder what snarky comments Richard would leave as I write to this day.

When I think about dreaming big, it’s not just about changing the world. Dreaming big is also about making a difference within your community, whether that’s on your block or at your school. From Richard Meacock’s English classroom to Barbara Bradley’s Black Box Theatre to KaTrina Wentzel’s yearbook room, each of these educators taught me how to dream fearlessly. It was in these classrooms where I had many firsts that would lead me to my current career in film and writing: my first time using Adobe InDesign, my first time writing a one-act script, my first time producing a show.

Maureen Conway always taught us that history repeats itself. I can vividly hear her cheers soaring through the halls when Governor Mark Dayton signed the same-sex marriage bill in 2013. As a closeted teenager, I was afraid to openly celebrate who I was, but I drove to the State Capitol with my friends after school to rejoice with thousands of other Minnesotans. Twelve years later, LGBTQIA+ rights are still under attack, with our trans community being dehumanized through harmful legislation. Our black and brown neighbors are being targeted and kidnapped from their families. These are the very same atrocities that we learned about in Conway’s lectures and textbooks. Read More

School Spirit Is Everywhere

September 25, 2025

from Dr. Lori-Anne Brogdon, head of school

On Monday morning, I made my usual right turn from Beebe Road onto the school grounds. Seeing “We. Are. MPA.,” not only brought a smile to my face but also evoked an incredible sense of school pride. I must admit, I was caught by surprise. As a new member of the MPA community, it’s a magical experience to feel school spirit. In so many ways it felt like I was arriving home.

I do not take school spirit for granted. It doesn’t magically appear. Rather, school spirit is the energy that grows from the pride, traditions, and shared experiences left in the form of memories and artifacts from years past, and the voices and actions of those who currently move throughout the campus.

I frequently turn to my Responsive Classroom training and seek to define experiences and goals by asking: What does it look like, sound like, and feel like?

This week, school spirit looks like our students wearing themed clothing and hallways decorated with streamers and colorful posters throughout the building. School spirit sounds like our teams clapping and cheering for our Lower and Middle School students during arrival and standing in the hallway, eagerly planning for an upcoming debate tournament. School spirit feels like the surge of warmth that fills my cheeks with joy when I see students across divisions learning a school chant or reading books—together. And it’s not exclusively created by our students. I see it in the ways our faculty and staff create spaces that foster curiosity. I hear it when a family member says “I love you” to their student at the classroom door. I feel it when someone takes a minute to share with me a special moment they had learning from their colleague. Read More

An Update From Zachari Wetz ’99

September 15, 2025

I attended Mounds Park Academy from 1995 to 1999 (9th through 12th grade). After MPA, I earned a degree in elementary education from the University of St. Thomas. I also studied American Sign Language at the College of St Catherine.

I own Pas de Deux Dance Studio in Falcon Heights, MN. We offer ballet classes and performing opportunities for ages three through adult. Like most dance studios, we have an annual spring recital. We also kick off the holiday season each year with a full-length story ballet on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. We rotate between four different ballets: our take on the classic “Nutcracker” ballet, an original fairy tale combining ballet and Irish dance in “The Enchanted Forest,” our version of “A Sleeping Beauty,” and a look at what goes into putting on a ballet production in “Backstage Nutcracker.”

Our dancers also have opportunities to participate in dance competitions, perform in a dance festival in Disney World, and this year dance alongside professional dancers as the youth cast of Classical Arts Entertainment’s “Swan Lake” when it comes to Minneapolis.

The most rewarding part of owning Pas de Deux is the community that has formed at the studio. The dancers have become like family, with many classes spending time together outside of the studio, the parents enjoying socializing as families, and dancers creating connections across different age and ability levels. It is also rewarding to watch the dancers grow up at the studio. The majority of dancers start lessons between the ages of three and seven, so I get to watch them go from being the “littles” learning how to follow directions and doing things like kissing the mirror, to the “bigs” as they take on leadership roles in the studio and become role models for the newest group of littles.

Owning a dance studio has its own unique set of challenges. As a business owner, I am involved in web design, marketing, scheduling, finances, and communications. I also teach classes, choreograph dances, direct performances, and mentor student interns. Like most businesses, my biggest challenges were in 2020 and 2021 with the ever-changing restrictions caused by COVID. We moved classes to Zoom during the various stay at home orders (silver lining—dancers can now join class via Zoom when they’re sick,) and had a variety of unique performance experiences as we navigated theater restrictions—an outdoor performance, a videotaped performance for “on demand” viewing instead of a live audience, and mini recitals with reduced capacity audiences.

Although I didn’t officially start my studio until 2006, Pas de Deux Dance Studio has its roots in my time at MPA. One of my projects to earn community service hours for graduation was teaching a summer ballet class through St Paul Community Education. By the time I graduated from MPA, I had a small group of dancers who returned to my classes each summer. I continued the program through and past college for a total of 10 summers, ending in August of 2006, with the studio opening that September.

A variety of experiences at MPA have influenced me as a studio owner. Participating in the spring musicals as a member of the chorus has influenced how I use background characters to help set the scene in my story ballets. Art classes developed skills in peer critiques, which I pass on to my dancers. One of my 2025 graduates recently mentioned how much doing peer critiques in ballet helped her in school. Because she was used to giving and receiving feedback from a young age in ballet, she welcomed similar feedback and the opportunity to grow from it in school, while many of her school classmates disliked peer critiques.

When I’m not teaching, choreographing, or working on the administrative side of the business, I enjoy Irish dancing, traveling, and reading.

There are a variety of ways to support Pas de Deux Dance Studio:

Take a class. We offer trial classes so dancers of all ages can make sure the studio is a good fit before committing to the season.
Come see one of our performances. Our studio production of “Backstage Nutcracker” will be on Saturday, November 22, at the Ives Auditorium in Bloomington, MN. Tickets will be on sale in October. You can get more details here.
If you are attending “Swan Lake” at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis on November 18, register your tickets with the studio. We get credit for all tickets registered with us. Simply send your seat information to studio@pasdedeuxdance.com.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram and interact with our posts. Liking, commenting on, saving and sharing posts are all easy ways to support any small business.

A Message From Beth (Larson) Fewing ’08

September 15, 2025

There’s something truly special about Homecoming at MPA. The energy on campus in the fall is unique—it’s fresh, full of anticipation, and rooted in traditions that unite our community. For me, Homecoming has always been more than just a weekend – it’s the unofficial start of the new year, a chance to come together, celebrate our Panther pride, and look forward to all the amazing memories ahead.

When I think back on my Homecoming experiences, my clearest memories are tied to the tennis courts. We’d arrive early on those chilly fall mornings that always seemed to come too soon, ready for a full day of matches. Parents and friends always showed up eager to cheer us on and found creative ways to show their support. My favorite was always the tennis balls spelling out “MPA” and “Panthers” along the fence, which provided the perfect backdrop for us to celebrate our wins in the mini round-robin tournament.

What made the weekend even more memorable was how all the fall sports teams came together and supported each other. Despite their busy schedules, players from different teams always took the opportunity to cheer each other on. It never felt like we were competing as separate teams—we were one community, and that spirit of encouragement has stayed with me ever since.

Last year, I had the privilege of returning to MPA in a new way as an inductee into the MPA Hall of Fame. Walking back onto campus, I was amazed at how quickly the memories returned. I loved having the chance to reconnect with teachers who had once guided me, coaches who had pushed me, and classmates who had shared those unforgettable seasons. I also really enjoyed meeting current student-athletes and seeing firsthand how they carry forward the same traditions of hard work, support, and pride that shaped my own experience. I was reminded that Homecoming isn’t only about sports and competition; it’s about being part of a vibrant community that continues to grow. MPA has always been a place that balances excellence with heart, and my fellow teammates and I were incredibly fortunate to be shaped by that.

This year’s Homecoming will once again be a full day of celebration. I encourage you, whether it’s been years since you’ve visited or you just graduated, to consider making your way back for the weekend. From morning matches to afternoon games, families, alumni, and students will gather across campus to cheer on the Panthers. You can watch tennis, volleyball, and soccer in action, stop by for lunch from the grill, and enjoy the opportunity to reconnect with classmates and friends. There’s something for everyone, whether you want to watch a competition or soak in the atmosphere. Still, most importantly, it’s a chance to celebrate our history and support the Panthers of today.

Homecoming was a highlight of my time as a student and returning as an alumna made it even more meaningful. I hope many of you take advantage of the chance to reflect on your time at the school, share stories and laughter, and re-experience that undeniable MPA spirit.

Happy Homecoming and go Panthers!

Beth (Larson) Fewing ’08

MPA Athletics Hall of Fame Member

Setting & Maintaining Routines In A New School Year

September 11, 2025

from Dr. Lori-Anne Brogdon, head of school

This week marks our first full week of the 2025-26 school year. Typically, the start of the school year is filled with both excitement and nerves. For some, returning to a typical school day is easy, while for others, transitions can take time.

Being in a PreK-12 community provides all of us with the opportunity to be part of our students’ most formative years of growth and development. As adults, we know that students move along a curve of academic, emotional, and physical growth that allows for the strengthening of skills that foster independence, communication, and self-awareness. At the start of a new school year, we know most students need time to adjust to new and familiar faces, daily schedule, and movement patterns throughout the building, and managing the influx of information coming their way within and outside of the classroom setting. Whether your student is age three or 18, there is a lot to absorb, process, and respond to throughout the day. As an adult, I certainly know the same is true for myself, and perhaps you can relate! Read More

2025 Hall of Fame Inductee: Olivia (Lansing) Herrick ’06

September 9, 2025

Launched in 2023 to celebrate MPA’s rich athletic tradition, MPA is proud to announce the 2025 Hall of Fame inductees: David McGaha, longtime coach and mentor; Lauren LaRoche ’99, alum athlete; and Olivia (Lansing) Herrick ’06, alum athlete. Please take a moment to read about Olivia (Lansing) Herrick ’06!

What was your greatest accomplishment during your time as an athlete at MPA?
Technically, it was probably getting runner-up at the state tournament, but I would argue that seeing the girls on my golf teams make it to state was even more rewarding.

What is your happiest memory of your time at MPA?
I have so many positive memories of my time at MPA—I remember the thrill of two-a-day soccer practices in August. Running sprints to the fence at the track. I truly don’t have a lot of memories of wins—or losses—but I remember the feeling of working towards something together, as a group. I remember the way the soccer field felt in the fall or the Kreischer Gym felt in the winter. I remember bus rides and laughter and the pure elation (and heartbreak) that only sports can capture.

When you look back on your time at MPA, what is one thing you would change or do differently?
I appreciated my time at MPA in the moment and recognize how lucky I was, but I wish I had just sat in that a bit more. And, I may have swapped in cross-country skiing for a winter sport in my last two years now that I enjoy it a lot as an adult.

How did your time at MPA shape your future?
MPA had an incredible impact on my future by setting me up for success in life, not even necessarily academically, but just as a steward of the world and someone who seeks to understand others. MPA athletics taught me the value of teamwork, respect, delayed gratification, and the discipline of showing up and giving your all with no promise of success— all of which have served me well in life. Read More