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At Mounds Park Academy, our community is built upon shared values, strongly committed to freethinking and collaboration, diversity and connection. Right now, our shared commitment to each other is helping us collectively get through today\u2019s uncertainty with understanding and compassion. Our whole-child approach that attends to the intellectual, social and emotional growth of our students is apparent now more than ever, even though we are not physically together.<\/p>\n
MPA’s distance learning classes are continuing to challenge and engage our students intellectually (see example at Innovation & Student-led Learning Enhance Online Science at MP<\/em><\/a>A<\/a>). At the same time, our students are connected to each other and their teachers\u2014and to our school counselors, a critical lifeline to both our students and parents who are guiding us on how to persevere during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our connected community, built on our small classes, means that our children are known and understood, which is critical given current levels of stress, fear and uncertainty, as is our collective creativity to meet the social, emotional, and intellectual needs of our students.<\/p>\n Ashley Cooper is the Middle and Upper School counselor, and is a licensed professional clinical counselor. In many schools a role like Cooper\u2019s focuses at least in part on college counseling. But MPA has a dedicated director of college counseling, Lisa Pederson.<\/p>\n Consequently, Cooper focuses \u201cpurely on the social and emotional health of MPA students,\u201d and feels \u201clucky\u201d to dedicate her time to this critical role. Dr. Jules Nolan, a licensed, nationally certified school psychologist and president of Minnesota\u2019s Association of School Psychologists, concentrates her support and guidance on parents and faculty, though she works directly with students as well. The expertise that Cooper and Nolan bring has been invaluable during the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n Mental Health Awareness Month Activities<\/strong><\/p>\n Cooper took particular care designing this year\u2019s programs for May\u2019s Mental Health Awareness Month given the current reality.<\/p>\n \u201cOverall, I have been so impressed with our students and their ability to adapt and stay engaged in an online learning environment and to be respectful with their technology,\u201d says Cooper. \u201cIn many ways the kids have enjoyed the break from their highly involved and scheduled lives, as one of the benefits of MPA is that you can be a three-sport athlete, an accomplished musician and strong student.\u201d<\/p>\n But as social distancing continues, Cooper sees the social isolation piece \u201ckicking in,\u201d given their developmental desire to be with their friends.<\/p>\n \u201cMany students are struggling with how to connect and find time with their friends,\u201d says Cooper. \u201cWe have to brace ourselves for how long-term isolation will impact them and do what we can to support them.\u201d<\/p>\n For Cooper\u2019s part, she initiated these efforts for Mental Health Awareness Month and recommends that students and parents pursue similar activities into the summer months, if possible.<\/p>\n \u00a0A C<\/strong>ollective Push To The End<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re on mile 22 of a marathon,\u201d says Nolan, \u201cand to get to the end, we need to cheer for our kids and ourselves. We all perform better when we are coached in a positive way, not lectured or scolded. We don\u2019t get to the finish line by being critiqued, but by being recognized for the huge undertaking.\u201d<\/p>\n Dealing with COVID-19 and all that entails is a huge undertaking, and we\u2019re all exhausted. But our neurocircuitry strengthens when we\u2019re under stress, according to Nolan. So while the current situation is hard, we\u2019re growing our brains. On January 2, 2020, we posted an article titled, \u201cBumpy Roads Build Skills<\/a>\u201d that prominently featured Nolan\u2019s advice in this area. Little did we know at the time how high those bumps would be! Consider your skills built.<\/p>\n\n