In this edition
Important Announcements
Academic Updates
School Events
Volunteer Central
Extracurricular Activities
Student Council
Kudos Corner
Support MPA
Upcoming Dates                     
 
January 
1/31 (Tomorrow!)
Career Day (school hours); Upper School Winter Dance 

 

Save the dates....

2/10/14 - Group Photo Day for Yearbook

2/21/14 - Invention Convention

2/22/14 - MPA night @ the Lake Erie Monsters

3/14/14 - MPA K-4 Math/Pi Night, 6:30 pm 

4/5/14  -  3rd Annual MPA Quiz Night: Revenge of the Quizmaster!

 

Hot Lunch next week:
Tuesday-Mac and Cheese; Thursday-Sloppy Joes

Important Announcements 
The latest news from MPA

Severe Weather and School Closures 
Since the start of the New Year, the extreme weather conditions have made the return to school much more unpredictable than in recent years past. MPA always budgets additional contact hours into the school calendar to address this potential need. Currently there is not anticipated need to add compensatory days to our end of school year.
 
Per our board policies, MPA is required to close when the Cleveland Metropolitan School Districts closes. The complete policy can be found at menloparkacademy.com/parents, under the tab labeled "Resource Center".  
 
Dress Code Reminders
As the school year progresses, students are being reminded more often about a variety of dress code policies. Please take a moment to refresh these policies with your student. 
  • Any solid color shirt with a collar; long or short sleeved.
  • Khaki, black, or navy blue "dress-style" pants.
  • Khaki, black, or navy blue knee length skirts, jumpers, or polo-type dresses.
    Note: Skirts and dresses must be no shorter than the tips of the girl's fingers when girl's arms are extended at her side.
  • Any color socks, tights, or under-skirt leggings.
  • "Dress-style" or athletic shoes; no open-toed or backless shoes. 
  • Snow boots may be worn to school, but must be removed during school hours.
  • Any solid color sweaters.
  • Any solid color turtlenecks may be worn under shirts, sweaters, or jumpers.
  • Navy blue, black, or khaki knee-length shorts or capri-style pants may be worn in appropriate weather.
Elective Survey -- Please Participate
We would really value parent and student feedback in helping to determine the full-length elective course offerings for next year.  If you have not done so, please turn in your elective surveys.  If you need another copy, you can download the form here. We have extended the deadline to next Friday, February, 7th.
Academic Updates                    

February Parent Teacher Conferences
Parent Teacher Conferences will be held on February 13th and 14th. While the Lower School conferences will be conducted in same manner as before, the Upper School conference schedule is being re-worked to better serve individual needs. 

Upper School conferences will be conducted in the cafetorium, art room, and volunteer lounge with all of the middle school teachers set up in stations throughout the room. Parents will be able sign up for a particular time block, and then will have the opportunity to meet with as few or as many of your students' teachers as desired.  We hope this "buffet" style option will help families spend the time and attention where they have the most questions.
 
Please look for an upcoming email with the sign-up links.
School Events

There is always something wonderful around the corner!  

 
Parent Book Club Resumes
The MPA Parent Book Club will be returning under the leadership of Dr. Susan Rakow. The first meeting will be held on Thursday, February 6, from 3:45-4:45 p.m
 
Group discussions will, in part, come from A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children. New participants may wish to purchase a copy, but it is not required for attending the first meeting. Parents should RSVP to Dr. Rakow.  
Volunteer Central - MPA Needs You!
 
Invention Convention Support
Mr. Kiddey and Mr. O'Donnell will be working with students on Tuesday afternoons from 3:15 to 4:30 p.m. helping prepare them for the upcoming Invention Convention. If you can volunteer time to help with students needing support around this process, please contact Mr. Kiddey
 
Invention Convention is on Friday, Feb 21st. Although we do not need judges, we do need parent volunteers to make the day a success! If you are available, please consider signing-up to help with this fun and educational experience. If you have questions, please contact Chris Whitman or Carol Scheuer. Sign-up here to volunteer.
 
Volunteer from Home for Boosters
The MPA Boosters needs a volunteer parent to take over the coordination of the Labels for Education program. This important fundraising program helps MPA to purchase recess and Field Day supplies throughout the year. This is an excellent opportunity to log volunteer hours from home and requires a minimum time commitment. If you are interested, please email MPA Boosters. 
 
Extracurricular Activities                     

MPA at the Monsters!
MPA's night with the Lake Erie Monsters is on Saturday, February 22nd, and we hope you can join in on the fun! 
 
Tickets can be purchased now for just $10 each through Tuesday, February 18th at 3:00 p.m. Each MPA student who attends will be entered into a raffle to participate in the intermission broomball show. In addition, the student who has sent in the MOST Box Tops by January 31st will win a ride on the Zamboni and 2 free tickets to the game! 
 
Please send money in an envelope labeled Monsters Game. Download Registration Form.
Cash or checks to be made out to MPA Boosters. Questions? Contact Boosters.
 

Come out for the Wizards

The Varsity Boys and both MPA girls' team games were postponed because of the weather last weekend. However, there are 5 great opportunities this upcoming weekend to catch the Boys and Girls Wizards in action. Please come out and support your terrific teams!

 

- Varsity Boys (3-1) vs. Rockets (0-4) at North Olmsted HIGH SCHOOL at 9:45 a.m.

 

- JV Boys White Team (2-3) vs. Longhorns (5-0) at Middleburg Hts Junior High at 12:30 p.m.

 

- JV Boys Blue Team (4-2) vs. Hurricanes (1-4) at Middleburg Hts Junior High at 1:30 p.m. 
   (Court #1)

 

- Girls Orange Team (3-2) vs. Wolves (4-0) at Brookpark Rec. Center at 9:00 a.m.

 

- Girls White Team (0-4) vs. Columbia Red (3-2) at Middleburg Hts Junior High at 1:30 p.m.     

  (Court #2)

 

Also, the Varsity team will play next Tuesday night (Feb 4th) at 8:30 p.m. at Middleburg Hts Junior High against the Sharks.


Don't Forget to order your Favorite Cookies
Girl Scout Cookies will be on sale now through February 12, 2014! All the same great flavors for just $4.00 a box. Please give your name, phone number, preferred email, type of cookie(s), and quantity. All email orders sent will be divided among the girls for their order counts. Thank you for supporting MPA Girl Scouts! Place Order Here.
Student Council Update           
                                       
Upper School Dance
The Student Council-sponsored Upper School Winter Dance will be held on Friday, January 31st from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.  
 
To help offset the cost of providing pizza and the DJ, the Student Council has decided to sell tickets to the Winter Dance for $3. Tickets will be sold tomorrow during the Upper School lunch periods and for the first 15 minutes of the dance on Friday.
 
In order to keep costs low, students are encouraged to bring a healthy snack to share with the group.
There is still room on the Parent Volunteer and Refreshment sign-ups!

Dance Schedule

5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
  • Pizza and snacks; all grades together
6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
  • Dance; all grades together
7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
  • Dance; 7th and 8th grades only
  • Game/Hang-Out Room: 5th and 6th grades only
 8:30 p.m.
  • Dance ends; all participants to be picked up promptly
    Students will need to be signed out at the end of dance. Students riding home with another family will need to have pink slips from both families turned in by Friday morning, per MPA policy. 
Kudos Corner
 
Boys Basketball Shoots and Scores
The MPA JV Boys Basketball team played two different games on Saturday, but each came away with a big win.

 

The JV White team trailed by 6 points in the second half, then after playing great team defense to tie the game late, Alex G. (who led all scores with 11 points) hit the go-ahead basket with 3 minutes left and the defense held the Knicks scoreless the rest of the game to win a thriller 21-19! Dylan C. scored 6 points and 6th grader Logan C. grabbed a career high 6 rebounds.

 

The JV Blue team left no doubt in their game to lead by 16 points at halftime and they went on to crush the Timberwolves 28-11. Sam P. led the team by scoring 16 points and grabbing 14 rebounds in a dominating performance. Also, Jacob L. scored 5 points along with 5 steals and 3 rebounds and Miles M. had 5 assists and 2 steals. Congratulations to everyone for great games!

 

Wonderful Words 

Creative Flair

Congratulations to the following students for their creative writing efforts: 
  • Isabel V. received an Honorable Mention for the Scholastic Writing and Art Awards.
  • Erika H.'s poetry has been selected for publication in Creative Kids Communications.
Power of the Pen
Congratulations to the following students who placed at the district Power of the Pen competition on Saturday, Jan. 18th:
  • Claire F. (8th) placed 6th.
  • Emily C. (8th) placed 14th and was the Best of the Best round winner.
  • Jasmine F. (7th) placed 18th.
The following students will advance to the Regional Level Power of the Pen Competition on Saturday, March 15:
  • Kaela R.
  • Natasha D. 
  • Jasmine F. 
  • Grace K.
  • Emily C.
  • LiIy S. 
  • Deirdre O. 
  • Claire F. 
All of these students will advance to the Regional Power of the Pen competition in March. We can't wait to see what you all do next! 
 
Cheer-ific News!
Kalysta C. took first place January 25th for her individual routine at the Great Lakes Cheerleading Competition in Akron, OH. On January 26th, she took 3rd place at Cheerpower Nationals in Cleveland and won a paid bid to "Nation's Best" Individual Cheerleading Competition on May 18th in Las Vegas, NV where she can win scholarships. Be sure to congratulate her for these wonderful successes! 
Support MPA                    

 

Last Box Top Turn-In for the Contest is Tomorrow!

Tomorrow ends the Box Top Challenge! If you have any box tops at home be sure to send them in to be counted. The student with the most box tops at the close of the contest will receive 2 free tickets to the Monsters game in February and get to ride the Zamboni!

Please be sure to send box tops in a plastic baggie or envelope with your child's name and grade/teacher written on it. Also write "boy" or "girl" as some names are gender neutral.
 
Annual Fund Appeal
It is not too late to support the Annual Fund at MPA. Annual Giving plays an important role in helping meet the needs of our students and school. Every gift of every size makes a positive difference! If you have not contributed to the annual fund, please consider donating today. 
Have Something for the Newsletter?
Information can be submitted via email to: [email protected] for review and inclusion in the weekly update. Submissions are subject to Director approval.