December 8, 2019
MPA Debate had a very successful weekend at the State Tournament. Forty three students represented the school, and Mounds Park Academy received the second place team sweepstakes award. That’s an award based on the top two performances across each of the three divisions of competition—novice, junior varsity, and varsity. That’s MPA’s highest team finish in the 20 years of the tournament.
The tournament is called the Classic Debate Championships in novice and junior varsity. Three MPA teams advanced to the quarterfinals (top eight) among the 47 teams in the junior varsity division. Meera Dear and Beldaja Jama advanced to the quarterfinal round, as did the team of Charlotte Bergh and Ruby Schweiger. Emma Cohen and Salmah Elmasry won the junior varsity division with a perfect 8-0 record, defeating a team from Eastview in the final round.
The varsity division is called the Minnesota State High School League Classic Debate State Festival, as the MSHSL sponsors the awards for this event. Charlie Galicich and Garrett Hollihan advanced to the semifinals, and Charlie received all-state honors for his outstanding performance over the course of the season. Ryan Ghose and Elli Carlson reached the finals of the tournament, where they were defeated by the state champions from Mankato.
A special thank you to all the alumni who helped the team. Meg Wilkening ’18 is a brilliant coach, and numerous alumni judged for the team over the course of the season.
Go Panthers!
As a recent graduate of the University of Utah’s Entertainment Arts and Engineering program, MPA Class of 2015 alum Logan Erickson has a lot on the horizon. From designing games with Octothorpe, to leading the design and development of neurological rehabilitation assessments and training at Stronger Brains Inc., he is making an impact and inspiring others to do the same. One of Logan’s 
MPA Music Teachers, Mari Espeland and John Habermann, have been wanting to create an Alma Mater for MPA for years. But as the 2019-20 school year began, our campus went through many changes, Mr. Habermann gained more experience composing music, and MPA entered its 38th year; the timing just felt right.
by Jeremy Drucker ’97
The following essay is adapted from MPA Class of 2020 member Elli Carlson’s Senior Speech. Elli joined MPA as a sophomore in August 2017.
On January 14, 2020 we will be hosting a networking meet and greet event for our seniors at MPA. This will include alumni who participated in the mentorship program but we also would like all alumni and parents of alumni to join in this great opportunity. The event will take place in the Hart Commons on January 14, 2020 from 9-10 AM.
Don’t miss out on the chance for your business or restaurant to be featured in the MPA Holiday gift list. This year, one of the ways we would like to connect our current families to the great things our alumni are up to is through a holiday gift list. This list will be shared with our community for ideas to complete their holiday shopping that also support MPA graduates and parents! The list is not exclusive to gift buying for PreK through 12th grade students, it is all inclusive of the whole community, including purchasing gifts for other adults.
After graduating from Rice University, Laura Nicholson ’14 spent six months researching pollinator declines in the Ecuadorian cloud forest through a fellowship sponsored by Rice. She is now pursuing a Masters in Wildlife Ecology and Evolution at the University of Florida researching the endangered Florida Bonneted Bat in the Florida Everglades. 
As the colors of the leaves change and the temperature decreases, we are reminded that winter is near. In the season of Fall we find ourselves thinking of what we may be thankful for.
Meet 2019-20 Alumni Association Board member Lindsey Metcalf Kenyon ’08!