April 21, 2022
From Dr. Jenn Milam, Middle School Director
A Sprint to the Finish!
The next thirty-two days of school (yes, we’re counting) are some of the busiest, most fun, and most full days in our school calendar. I encourage you to keep up to date with what’s happening in our community and try to be a part of as much as you can. The MPA experience holds community and joy as cornerstones of our mission—you won’t want to miss out!
Grade 6 and 7 Overnights
We are excited to share that we have been able to (re)schedule the overnight class excursions for sixth and seventh grades at Eagle Bluff. The seventh-grade class will travel to Eagle Bluff (Lanesboro, MN) on Monday, May 23 and return Wednesday, May 25. Similarly, the sixth-grade class will leave on Wednesday, June 1 and return on Friday, June 3. We will send more information as the dates get closer!
Spring Concerts and Performances
There are several upcoming spring concerts and performances, and you’ll want to be sure you’ve marked these on your calendar as they are part of the MPA curriculum and serve as a major assessment milestone in the fine and performing arts. All students are required to attend and perform who are in music, choir, band and orchestra.
- Thursday, May 5 Middle School Vocal Concert (grades 5-8), 7-9PM
- Thursday, May 12 Orchestra Concert (grades 5-12), 7-9PM
- Thursday, May 19 Band Concert (grades 5-12), 7-9PM
Let’s Dream: See You There!
We’re excited for the 2022 MPA Spring Auction: Let’s Dream, which will be held tomorrow Friday, April 22 at A’bulae in Lowertown. This is an opportunity for our entire community to gather safely together and celebrate the year. The event will feature an amazing meal, fun games and prizes, and the chance to bid on and win wonderful auction items, all in support of the MPA community. The event raises more than $200,000 in support MPA students, staff, and teachers.
If you have any last minutes questions or wonderings, please contact Jennifer Rogers-Petitt, director of development and community engagement, via email at jrogers@moundsparkacademy.org or at 651-748-5532 with any questions.
Quarter 3 Grades and Placements for 2022-2023
Grades for Quarter 3 are officially posted and can be accessed through Schoology and placement letters have been mailed and you should be receiving your student’s placement for mathematics and world language. Please note that these decisions are collaborative and consider a student’s work habits, assessment average, and potential for success. It is important that we work correctly to place students in the appropriate classes where they are adequately challenged and have the most opportunity to be successful.
If you have specific questions, concerns, or want to discuss the next school year, please reach out to your student’s current advisor or me or send an email with your thoughts and wonderings.
Spring Sports are in Full Swing!
Spring is a great time for Middle Schools sports and between practices, games, matches, and meets, all of us are running in a hundred different directions. You can always access the weekly athletic schedule here by clicking on “Weekly Schedule.” Checking in regularly throughout the week, especially if the weather is questionable, will help you stay informed of delays, reschedules, cancellations, locations, and times of events.
As an added notice, please pay particular attention to the end times of events and practices. Students are not allowed to “hang out” unsupervised until you arrive. This is a safety issue and to which I hold very firm. If you are not able to be at school when a practice or game is over, your student must go to Panther Den or you must make other arrangements for them to be picked-up/driven home. If you have questions or concerns about this, please reach out to the Middle School office.
Save The Date: Middle School Family Dinner and Transition Meetings
Please mark your calendars for Thursday, May 5, for the Middle School family dinner and Transition Meetings immediately preceding the Middle School Vocal Concert. We will share dinner, hosted by the Parents Association, and then when the students move to prepare for the concert, parents and families are invited to meet with teachers of their students next grade level to learn about events, what to expect, and next year’s challenges and possibilities! More details to follow with a request to RSVP! We hope to see you there!
Why American Teens Are So Sad:
Four Forces are Propelling the Rising Rates of Depression Among Young People
I recently happened upon this article in The Atlantic that shares a perspective of what is driving American teens to higher incidences of depression and anxiety. The author, Derek Thompson, offers four primary forces acting upon and through our young people and shares some insights and wisdoms about how we might counter these forces to build stronger, more resilient, and more well-balanced young people.
He also identifies fallacies that often plague our understanding of teenage mental health and depression, in the current moment. By scapegoating things COVID, offering overly simplified explanations of poor behavior, or attributing depression to typical “moodiness” among this age group, we miss the opportunity to help our young people.
Thompson suggests the following four forces have the most significant impact on teenage depression:
- Social Media Use
There is significant evidence to suggest that when personal device ownership increased, so too did rates of social media usage by teens. This also correlates with a dramatic increase in anxiety, depression, feelings of social isolation, and sadness.
- Sociality is Down
Thomspon explains that the increase of social media, in and of itself, may not be to blame, but that because young people are less social, in person/face-to-face, that the retreat to devices, digital gaming, and social media are also a culprit in teenage depression. Add in the lack of socialization over the last two years due to Covid, and we have missed opportunities to engage in the most important part of teenage development – being with other teens!
- The World is Stressful – and there is more news about the world’s stressors
No doubt our young people are impacted, and so is their emotional state, as they seek to regulate to the adults and the world around them, which at any given moment seems to be in a constant state of distress. Financial fears, climate change, pandemics, war, violence, and increased racial tension in a complex political climate, all serve to stoke the flames of worry, sadness, anxiety, and depression.
- Modern Parenting Strategies
Parents have nearly doubled the amount of time we spend with our children – chauffeuring, coaching, tutoring, supporting, driving, and managing. More, Thompson notes, our increase in “accommodative” parenting is becoming unhealthy and hurting our young people. As we seek to remove all heartache, anxiety, struggle, worry, failure, consequence, or negative outcomes from our children’s lives, even with the best intent, it teaches them that they are not capable, that we do not trust them, that we do not believe they can manage on their own, and they miss the opportunity to learn how to process negative emotions, individually and with others in their lives. And when young people don’t learn to process, they become overwhelmed and mired in sadness, unable to find the way out.
Thompson shares that of course it isn’t any one of the above factors that is to blame, and certainly there are others, but I believe the take-away is that perhaps by understanding the things that are making our kids sad, even if it’s our own doing, we can work to counter these forces and help our young people learn to navigate the hard stuff alongside the really, really, really good things. We can all do hard things.
I hope you’ll read and reflect upon the full article, available here. Be well and take care of each other!
Important Dates
- April 22: 5th Grade Math Masters Competition
- April 27: Grandparents and Special Friends Day, 12:30-2:30PM
- May 5: Middle School Family Dinner (with Rising Fifth Graders)
- Middle School Vocal Concert, 7 PM
- May 12: Middle School/Upper School Orchestra Concert, 7 PM
- May 19: Middle School/Upper School Art Show, Opens at 6 PM
- Middle School/Upper School Band Concert, 7 PM
- May 23-25: Grade 7 Overnight, Eagle Bluff
- June 1-3: Grade 6 Overnight, Eagle Bluff
Microfunding in Action
Martha B. Castellanos
MPA is starting the onboarding process for more than 100 new students enrolled so far for the fall of 2022 and we are seeking volunteers to be buddy families! The opportunity involves connecting with the family over the summer months, helping them integrate into the social fabric of the class, and being a resource as they transition into a new school. You and your child will be a very warm and welcome friendly face on their first days of school! If you are interested in this meaningful volunteer opportunity, please contact Angie Gerstner, development coordinator, at 
from Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School
Thank You!
Meem Fahlstrom
from Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School
Faculty and Staff Appreciation Day
from Natalie Waters Seum, director of admission and communication