MMILL S aPRINtGtS AeCADrEMsY - Mill Springs Academy · War dinner theater where they were treated...

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MILL SPRINGS ACADEMY

MattersIN THIS ISSUE

Founders’ Day . . . . . . . . .Cover

CommArts Values Class . . . . .2Making Root Beer . . . . . . . . .2Soles4Souls . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2CommArts Chattanooga Trip .3Students Learn from GuestSpeakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3, 4

Lake Lanier Field Trip . . . . . .4Family Fun Run . . . . . . . . . .5GISA All-Select Band & Chorus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5PVA Beautification Day . . . . .5Alumni News . . . . . . . . . . . . .6College Acceptances . . . . . . . .6The Big Thank You . . . . . . . .6Governors’ Honors Program . .7College Counseling News . . . .730th Anniversary T-Shirts . . . .7Reimagine: ED Workshop . . . .7HOPE Scholarship Workshop .7Rock Eagle Field Trip . . . . . . .8Mustang Mania . . . . . . . . . . .8Cross Country’s Special Guest .8MSA Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9Scarecrows in the Garden . . .10

National Anthem Day . . . . .10

Teen Drivers’ Safety Week . . .10

Pages & Pixels . . . . . . . . . . .10

One-Act Play . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Order Your 2012 YearbookOnline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Gardening With Mateo . . . . .11

MSA Mini Day . . . . . . . . . .12

Students Learn About Friendship . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Blind With a Mat . . . . . . . .12

Student’s Volunteer ServiceProject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Science & Robotics Club . . . .13

The Boxer Rebellion . . . . . . .13

Annual Fund Donors . . . .14, 15

Founders’ DayEach year students, parents, alumni, faculty and staff all gather to celebrate both our Founder, Tweetie

Moore, as well as the rest of Mill Springs’ Staff and Faculty—some of whom have been with theschool for 30 years. Families turned out in droves this year to take in the beautiful weather and enjoy a

catered lunch by Sonny’s BBQ. A big thanks to Communication Arts’ student, Jasmine Steinway for startingthe day off with an invocation; MSA Boy Scout Troop 6955 for their help with the flag ceremony andPledge of Allegiance; MSA student, Dylan Porper for entertaining the crowd with his piano skills; and KateMcElliot, and the GLEE/Chorus for leading everyone in the Star Spangled Banner as well as their oral rendition of Desiderata—one of Tweetie Moore’s favorite poems.

Students on the “red” team pose for a shot (no pun intended) before a game of laser tag courtesy of Games2U.

Mill Springs’ GLEE/Chorus sings the National Anthem accompanied by Dylan Porper on piano.

Angel Murr, Julie Karner and JoEllen Smith all wear their MillSprings’ 30th Anniversary t-shirtswhich were given to everyone whomade a gift to the 2011–2012Annual Fund.

Alumni Andy Baxter (class of1990 standing left) and PamelaWhite-Maddox (previous MillSprings student) join DevelopmentCoordinator, Leila Smith (right)for a picture at the Annual Fundtable on Founders’ Day.

2 Mill Springs Academy Matters millsprings.org

Have you ever wondered how “rootbeer” got its name? Well, originally itwas brewed from the roots of the

Sassafras tree (Sassafras albidum), a commontree here in the southeast, though today’sversions are much more likely to be a combi-nation of artificial flavors and extracts. In Matthew McConnell’s (Mateo) fifth

period Science class, students recreated theoriginal root beer using roots found on theMSA campus by boiling them down with a

bit of vanilla bean while adding brown sugar.After cooling the mixture down to roomtemperature, students added yeast to generatenatural carbonation.“The lesson taught everyone how yeast

cells operate as well as how the process offermentation works,” said Mr. McConnell.Throughout the two days it took for the yeastto generate enough carbonation for the bever-ages, students witnessed first-hand how theyeast affected the liquid as the containersexpanded with the pressure generated by themetabolic process of the yeast. “They got tohear the sound of the carbon dioxidereleasing as the bottles were opened and theycould feel and taste the subtle differences inflavor and texture brought about by themicroorganisms,” added Mateo. In addition to making root beer, students

conducted another yeast experiment bymaking two loaves of bread—one with andone without yeast. Students are continuingtheir learning as they try to capture nativeyeasts in the air to make a culture.

Garrett McCarthy holds a sassafras root thathe found on the Mill Springs’ campus.

Students in Communication Arts aregiven an opportunity to make an oralpresentation to their classmates on a

topic of interest in their Values Class. Historyteacher O.B. Stokes stated, “It’s so great to seethe students excited about a subject, and they

are learning some really great speaking skillsat the same time.” The presentations, whichare strictly voluntary, are done on a widerange of topics such as pollution in the worldand what can be done to change it; thetragedy of human trafficking; as well asstrictly fun topics such as the principlesinvolved in making “slime”. “I’m amazed athow many students choose to participate,”said Mr. Stokes. “It just goes to show you thatkids will work really hard on somethingthey’re interested in.”In addition to student presentations,

guest speakers are also welcomed to speak tostudents from time to time during ValuesClass. For example Mike Webber, father ofSenior Ace Webber, spoke to students in theCommunication Arts school about theimportance of giving to others. As one of thefounding members of The Star Project, hedescribed how a group of six people makes abig difference in the lives of people who arestruggling by giving people a place to live andassistance with after-school programs.

Soles4Souls

Teacher, Keith Muma’s Ecologyclass discovered that every year,Americans throw over 300

million pairs of shoes into landfills.They also found that every year, over300 million people go without shoes.Because of this an organization calledSoles4Souls was created. Why throwaway your perfectly good shoes whenyou can give them to someone in need?So throughout the month of October,the science departments for all Schoolsat MSA collected nearly 900 pairs ofused, but still wearable, shoes anddonated them to Soles4Souls. A bigthanks to all the MSA students, faculty,and parents who participated in thisvery worthwhile project!

Students Devin Hazzard and James York presented a class on rowing, complete with a detailedPowerPoint.

CommArts Values Class

Students Get to the “Root” of the Issue

Mill Springs Academy Matters 3

As part of their annual fall trip toCamp Lookout near Chattanooga,Tennessee, sixteen Communication

Arts students visited The Children’sHolocaust Museum in Whitwell, Tennessee.The students had wanted to visit the actualsite of the museum after learning about it in adocumentary they watched in their valuesclass called “The Paper Clip Project”. “Thismuseum just goes to show you that peopleour age can really make a difference,” said 8th grader Mason Taylor. The trip to Whitwell also included visits

to the Coal Miner’s Museum where studentslearned about how coal is mined and used forenergy; as well as a lovely meal at the CivilWar dinner theater where they were treated to

a dramatic encounter between a “Yankee”and a “Rebel”. After watching a film about the “Battle

Above the Clouds”, which chronicles thefamous Civil War battle at LookoutMountain in November, 1863, the studentshiked from Point Park to Craven’s House,both notable locations in the Battle for

Chattanooga. Later they traveled in the“River Gorge Explorer”, a naturalist-led boattrip which highlights the ecology of theTennessee River. Other highlights of the tripincluded a bike ride along Chattanooga’swaterfront, a four-hour kayaking trip downthe Hiawassee River, and a visit to theChattanooga Nature Center.

Communication Arts students enjoy live dinner theater based on actual events which took placeduring the Civil War at the Buttonwillow Church in Whitwell, Tennessee. Back row from left:James York, Corinne Davenport, David Flamini, actors Steve and Allison Gibson, Sean Brinkley,Paul Jarvis, Meredith Langford, Robert Golden, Tim Hebert, and Johnny Ray. Front row from left:John Chisholm, Yaakov Drukman, Thomas Chiu, Mac Morris, Jacob Cutchin, and Mason Taylor.

CommArts students, Robert Golden and TimHebert, try to avoid being pinched by a crawdaddy they’ve found while kayaking on theHiawassee River.

Communication Arts Visits Chattanooga

As part of their Values class curriculum,the students of Communication Artswere treated to a speech by Randy

Hain, father of 8th grade student, Alex Hain.Mr. Hain is the managing partner of BellOaks Executive Search and the Co-Founderof Integrated Catholic Life eMagazine. Hespoke to the students about what employersexpect in an interview, and how to impresspeople to get the job you want. Randy is alsoa Co-Founder of the Annual Atlanta CatholicBusiness Conference and leads the St. PeterChanel Business Association Ministry. Hislatest book, “The Catholic Briefcase,” gives thereader tools for integrating faith and work.Student Paul Jarvis remarked, “I got somereally cool ideas on what to do and say in ajob interview.”

(back row): Mitch Norris, Tim Hebert, John Chisholm; (front) Sean Brinkley, Randy Hain,Emily Chastain, Meredith Langford. (Kay Morrison, CommArts).

Author Randy Hain Speaks to Communication ArtsStudents


HolocaustSurvivor Speaksto Students

Holocaust survivor, Murray Lynn,recently spoke to Upper School andCommunication Arts students about

his incredible life story. Mr. Lynn was sent tothe Auschwitz Concentration Camp and hisentire family was murdered in Poland by theNazi’s during World War II. He worked as aslave laborer for two years before his campwas liberated by the Russians in 1944. Afterwatching a documentary film based on Mr.Lynn’s life, he spoke with the students abouthis experiences and answered student’s questions. Communication Arts student Devin

Hazzard asked Mr. Murray what his numberwas in the camp. When Mr. Murray toldDevin that his number was 83,000 Devinsaid, “Then that will be my number for therest of my life.” Mr. Murray stated that hewas impressed by the sensitivity and depth ofthe questions the students asked, and hopesto visit the MSA campus again soon. Communication Arts Principal, Kay Morrison, and Holocaust survivor, Murray Lynne.

Communication Arts students recentlyvisited the Lake Lanier AquaticLearning Center (LLALC) to learn

about water quality and lake ecology throughhands-on activities aboard a 40-foot custom-built boat, named the Chota Princess II.Students performed chemical, biological, andphysical tests to measure the lake’s waterquality; studied the various watersheds inGeorgia and the importance of Lake Lanier asa water source for several states; and learnedhow water is cleaned to make it suitable fordrinking. After hearing that Lake Lanier wasformed by flooding houses and a small town,senior Yaakov Drukman stated, “Now I wantto go diving and exploring to see everythingthe water is covering.” The Lake LanierAquatic Learning Center is a non-profitcenter devoted to the protection of LakeLanier and is operated in partnership with theUpper Chattahoochee Riverkeepers and theElachee Nature Science Center.

CommArts students Brandon Pike and Paul Jarvis conduct acidity tests on the Lake Lanierwater.

Students Visit Lake Lanier Aquatic Learning CenterWhat’s a better way to learn about ecology than reading about it in a book? How about a trip to theLake Lanier Aquatic Learning Center?

ATHLETICS1. Windows cleaned2. Outside gym doors needs raking,

pruning of bushes3. Rug in the gym lobby needs cleaning

LOWER SCHOOL1. Sand for sandbox2. Carpets steam cleaned3. Mulch in front of lower4. New sod on the left side of lower school5. Fall/Winter flowers planted in bed in

front of lower

MIDDLE SCHOOL1. Restain playground equipment—

Lower and Middle2. Dust and windex windows3. Wash student desks4. Raise the swings5. Restain the bench in the Middle

play area6. Add mulch between Middle 1 and 2

and two beds behind Middle 27. Walls cleaned and/or painted8. Carpets cleaned9. Air vents cleaned

PRE-UPPER1. Raw materials to expand the garden

beds2. Complete the shed and potting areas

FINE ARTS1. 6 flower boxes with full sun flowers

for trailers2. 6 large flower pots with flowers for

entrance3. Trim branches over new art table4. Plant garden near outdoor tables to

paint and draw

ALL LEVELS1. White Chairs and Tables—power

washed

FALL 2011 Mill Springs Academy Matters 5

OVER-ALL FIRST PLACEFINISHERSMale—Matt McNaughtonFemale—Julie Phillips

AGE GROUP FINISHERSGirls’ 13 & under1st—Sarah Palm2nd—Alissa Garguilo3rd—Nicole Silbert

LADIES 19 & UP1st—Julie Phillips

2nd—Rhonda Smith3rd—Judy Norris

BOYS’ 10 & UNDER1st—David Phillips2nd—Zachary Smith3rd—Daniel Garguilo

BOYS’ 13 & UNDER1st—Cole Landy2nd—Isaiah Volcy3rd—Steven Phillips

BOYS’ 18 & UNDER1st—Matt McNaughton2nd—Tylor Johnson3rd—Michael Palmer

MEN’S 19 & UP1st—Mike Garguilo2nd—Dan Smith3rd—John Christerson

MOST DISTINGUISHEDSENIORNancy “Nanna” Foltz

Liz Parks (mom of 7th grader, Brett Parks) stains the steps behind the Middle School on thePVA’s Beautification Day.

PVA Beautification Day

Mill Springs Parent Volunteer Association (PVA) organized a Community Work Dayon Saturday, September 17. Over 40 volunteers showed up with shovels, wheelbar-rows and work gloves in hand for a day of planting, pruning, mulching and power

washing. “We were able to do everything on the level request lists,” said PVA President, JulieKarner. And that was no small list…just take a look at the items that were requested andcompleted by this very hard working group.

Second Annual Founders’ DayFamily Fun Run

Prior to the Founders’ Day picnic, a group of 43 runners gathered by the track for theSecond Annual Founders’ Day Family Fun Run. “We had walkers, joggers and babystroller-pushers of all ages,” said Victoria Jones, who coordinated the Fun Run. T-shirts

were given to all participants and Booster Club Mustang bags (filled with goodies) wereawarded to all the top finishers. Congratulations and a big thanks to all who participated.

The following is a list of the runners who placed in each category:

GISA 2011 All-SelectBand and Chorus

Congratulations to Alex Davis and PaulBain on their selection as participantsin GISA's 2011 All-Select Band, as

well as Mason Taylor, AndrewWalker, Courtney Jones, andNicole Thomas on their selec-tion as participants in GISA’sAll-Select Chorus! The All-Select Band and Chorus iscomprised of the finest musi-cians and singers in Georgia’s

independent school system,and these outstandingyoung men and womenwill be representing MillSprings at the event.

These 6 students will alsorepresent MSA on November5-6 in Kennesaw for aMusic Festival.


Alumni NewsPeter Santoro (2004)Peter graduated with aBachelor’s in Business Administration fromLaGrange College and was accepted to AuburnUniversity on a full scholarship to pursue aMaster’s in Economics. He has recentlycompleted all of his graduate coursework and isnow writing his thesis with an expected gradua-tion date of Spring, 2012. In August of thisyear, Peter moved to China after being hired byXinjiang University to teach English to collegestudents. In his spare time Peter is learning tospeak Chinese and spends time with friendstrying various Chinese cuisine.

Timothy Jacob Brown (2006) Jakeattended this year’s Founders’ Day celebra-tion where he graciously assisted as a parkingvolunteer. He is currently attendingChattahoochee Technical College where he isstudying auto mechanics and is working atKohl’s.

James Stell (2008) James recently gradu-ated from Georgia State in midtown Atlantawith an Associate’s degree in computer engineering. James has been accepted toGeorgia Tech where he will continue studyingcomputer engineering.

Patrick Marco (2009) Congratulations toPatrick Marco who recently graduated fromthe Connecticut School of Broadcasting onSeptember 9th, 2011.

Kahla Lewis (2007)& Jim Verner (2005)Congratulations to Kahla Lewis and JimVerner who got married on October 15,2011.

Cameron McIntosh (2009) Cameronrecently made his off Broadway debut in a re-vamped version of The Wizard of Oz asthe Scarecrow.

Jordan Demers (2009) Jordan starred inColumbus’ “Blues Clues” over the summer!She is entering her junior year at ColumbusState University.

Zack Yurfest (2009) Zack worked at theAtlanta Workshop Players summer camp.

Elliott Austin-Keating (2010) Elliott hasFINALLY heard his calling and is off to studyart – he will be studying different types of artand probably focusing on design and is alsolooking into welding as an art form.

Cassie Kanelos (2010) Cassie will graduatein October from the American School ofMusic and Drama. She will be joining theWilliamsburg Theatre summer stock programand then continue her studies at The NewSchool in NYC.

Cullen Jacobs (2010) Cullen now managesseveral Five Guys restaurants in Baton Rougeand loves it.

Jessica Vosburgh (2010) Jessica is a recentgraduate of the ASHA School of Massage andshe is working in the Gainesville, GA area.Many of her clients are recovering from diffi-culties, such as car accidents or athletic dehy-dration, or diseases like scoliosis andfibromyalgia. “I love helping people,” shesays. A short 18 months ago, Jessica’s SeniorProject was based on therapeutic massage,and she told us then that her dream was tograduate from the top massage school in thestate. And she has done just that!

Alex Syrett (2011) Alex was accepted intoBerklee College of Music in Boston, one ofthe best music programs in the country and avery hard school to get into.

Brent Sheppard (2011) Brent currentlyattends Chattahoochee Tech and is studyingwith the goal of eventually earning a degree inbio-medical engineering.

Max Intner (2011) Max spent his summerworking at the Jewish Community CenterSummer Camp where he had served asProduction Coordinator for Sunday shows aswell as Office Assistant. He is currently takingon line courses at Full Sail University, whichis located in Orlando, FL.

Also seen at Founders’ Day were Jenny Gold(2011) and former MSA teacher, Chet Burnsand retired faculty member, Errol Sanders.

The Big Thank You

In September, Lower and Middle Schoolstudents participated in the Bert Show’s“Big Thank You”, a project in which they

are trying to gather over 400,000 letters tosend to every single soldier overseas who can’tbe home for Thanksgiving. “Not only wasthis an important project, the kids reallyenjoyed writing the letters,” said LowerSchool teacher, Carissa Nelson. “It was greatto see them so excited about saying “thankyou” and showing appreciation and sympathyto those that won’t be able to see their families for the holidays.”

College AcceptancesCongratulations to the following seniors on their earlycollege acceptances:

Bekah Bowers — Reinhardt UniversityGarrison Brown — Young Harris College,

Reinhardt UniversityMeredith Langford — Young Harris CollegeJessica Lowenstein — Young Harris College,

Reinhardt UniversityJake Northrup — Young Harris College, East Carolina University,

Middle Tennessee State University, Berry CollegeMichael Palmer — Georgia Southern University, University of GeorgiaAce Webber — Young Harris College, North Georgia College and State University


College Workshop onHOPE ScholarshipMSA’s next college workshop willbe held on January 26th , 2011and will feature Hal Wilkersonfrom the Georgia Student FinanceCommission which is the organi-zation that administers the HOPEScholarship. Mr. Wilkerson willbring parents up to date on allthe latest information regardingchanges to the program.

MSA Student Nominated forGovernors’ Honors Program

MSA’s LibrarianAttends Reimagine: ED Workshop

Mill Springs’ new Librarian, Brittany Emge, recently attended the “Reimagine: Ed”conference held at the the Lovett School. This year’s 3-day conference was focused onexploring the role of the library and its potential as a center of learning and engage-

ment in our communities. In an age of information abundance, rapid technological change,social-construction of knowledge, and a debate on the definition of literacy, the library has anunprecedented opportunity to lead our communities. “WOW was it amazing!,” said Brittany. “There were librarians, architects, technology staff,

administrators, students, and business professionals all passionate about education and ofcourse, where our libraries are going! It was a very hands-on, idea-heavy weekend that endedwith a very bright-looking future for school libraries.”

CollegeCounselingNews

Mill Springs’ Counselor, Susan Day,attended the National Associationof College Admissions Counselors

(NACAC) annual conference in NewOrleans. NACAC contains college and highschool counselors devoted to helping studentsmake plans for postsecondary education. While there, Susan met manywonderful people, renewed professional rela-tionships, and attended informational confer-ence sessions. One session that Susanattended was of particular relevance to MillSprings Academy—Achieving Excellence:How high schools without an AP or IBcurriculum succeed in College Admission.During the session, the Dean of Admissionsat Sewanee: University of the South (TN)and the Director of UndergraduateAdmissions at Columbia University (NY)gave an important message: These highlyselective colleges are looking for students whohave taken the most rigorous curriculumoffered at their high schools. “But if AP or IBclasses aren’t offered, the students are NOTat a disadvantage as long as they have pursuedoptions their school offers such as honorsclasses, joint enrollment, or advanced foreignlanguages,” said Susan. “It was nice to haveMSA’s values affirmed by these collegeadmissions professionals.”

Congratulations to CommArts student, Emily Chastain, who is Mill Springs Academy’snominee for the 4-week summer Governors Honors Program (GHP). Emily has beennominated in the area of Communicative Arts (English) and will now compete at the

County level to participate in GHP. The Governor’s Honors Program is a four-week summerinstructional program designed to provide intellectually gifted and artistically talented highschool students challenging and enriching educational opportunities not usually available duringthe regular school year. Activities are designed to provide each participant with opportunities toacquire the skills, knowledge and attitudes to become independent, life-long learners.

30thAnniversary T-Shirts are IN!

If you have donated to the AnnualFund come by the DevelopmentOffice to pick up a T-Shirt. If you

haven’t yet donated to the Annual Fundyou can still come by, make a donationand pick up a shirt as well. Thank youfor donating and … Happy 30thAnniversary Mill Springs!


Cross Country’s Special Guest

The MSA Varsity and JV Cross Country teams had a guest visit with them, Mr. TimWillis. Tim is the first blind cross country runner to compete in NCAA Division 1College races. He also holds 12 National and 2 World records and is a Paralympic Gold

medalist (multiple gold, bronze and silver medals as well). Tim’s competitive career ranked himas one of the top track athletes in the world. Following the 1996 Paralympics he enrolled inMercer University’s Law School. While competing in the 2000 Paralympics in SydneyAustralia, he received word that he had passed the Georgia Bar exam on his first attempt. Hehas since retired from competitive running and spends time on his law career and gives time toorganizations with a focus on athletes and individuals with disabilities.

Mustang Mania

This year’s Mustang Mania was ahuge success with one of ourbiggest crowds ever—100

students attended overall! The LowerSchool was this year’s winner of theout-of-uniform day with the highestpercentage of attendance (59%). A bigthanks to all the coaches and parentvolunteers who assisted with this year’sevent.

PARTICIPATION BY SCHOOL:Lower 59%

WINNER OF THE OUT OFUNIFORM DAY!!!!!

Middle 43%PU 43%CA 12%UP 10%

Middle School Visits Rock Eagle 4H Center

The Rock Eagle mound.

In September, Middle School level L and R students participated in a 3-day environmentaleducation program at the Rock Eagle 4-H Center located north of Eatonton, Georgia. “Thetrip was so much fun,” said Middle School student, Maridy Moore. “The first day we went

canoeing and played a pirate game on the water. We got to dissect a fish and it almost made mesick. The second day, we got to see reptiles and amphibians. We also got to see the Rock Eagle.” Shaped like a prone bird, the Rock Eagle Mound is a stone effigy. Measuring eight feet high

at the breast and consisting entirely of milky quartz rocks, it was probably built about 2,000years ago by Native Americans. Many believe it was built for religious or ceremonial purposes.“I liked the herpetology class the most because we saw different kinds of snakes,” said

student, Taylor Bunker. Opened in 1955, Rock Eagle is the largest of five centers operated bythe University of Georgia as support for the state’s 4-H Program. Thousands of young peopleannually participate in the Georgia 4-H Environmental Education Program, as well as theSummer Camping Program made available through Georgia's County Extension Offices.

Pictured back L-R: Tim Willis signs an autograph for MSA student, Mitchell Philips. QuintFoster is pictured behind Mitchell.

Students enjoy a game of “booger wars”at this year’s Mustang Mania.

Mill Springs Academy Matters 9FALL 2011

MSA RunnersAttend SummerTeam-BuildingCamp

On July 17th the athletesfrom Mill Springs Academyand the Weber Cross

Country teams loaded up a bus andheaded to the mountains ofBrevard, North Carolina to partici-pate in one of the longest runningand best loved distance runners’camps in the nation—The BrevardDistance Runners’ Camp. The MSA runners were given a

new awareness of what it takes to be a winner by seeing how far andfast actual winners are running; participated in hardcore training;listened to various motivational speakers; and took part in lots of funteam building activities. “It was an awesome experience and everyonereceived invaluable training advice,” said Coach Victoria Jones. “Theexperience allowed them to set some goals for the season, becomestronger runners, and make friends with other runners that they stillkeep in touch with.” MSA runner, Michael Palmer, said "The campwas a great bonding experience for the team. It really helped usdiscover our strengths and learn how to apply them to our running."That was seconded by fellow runner Matt McNaughton who said, “Ireally liked being able to have Captains meetings in the evening withour coach to kind of talk about what we were seeing from the otherkids during the day and how the team might grow from year to year."

Swimming

The Mill Springs Academy 2011–2012 swim team is back for itssecond season and is practicing on Saturday and Sunday after-noons at Swim Atlanta’s indoor facility on Post Road in

Cumming. The team currently has six swimmers (3 boys and 3 girls)and hopes to add a few more at both the Varsity and JV levels to fieldrelay teams for competition. “We have several swim meets in the lateFall and Winter and are looking forward to a fantastic season,” saidCoach Todd Karner.

Cross Country

The 2011 Mustang Cross Country team recently completed its6th and most successful season ever. The JV team placed in thetop ten at their State Championship and the girls’ varsity team

won the AAC League Championship. The varsity boys not only mettheir goal of qualifying for State but also won the AAC ConferenceChampionship, took second place as the Runner-Up in the GISARegion Championship, and broke into the Top Ten for at the GISAState Championship.

“Everyone on the team worked incredibly hard and nearly everysingle member set all-time personal records this season,” said CoachVictoria Jones. “We even ended up with a scorable girls’ team in theAAC Championship for the first time ever! With a very young squad,this team has a very bright future ahead of them. We will be losing ourSenior Captain, Michael Palmer, but there is quite a bit of leadershipand energy to follow in his footsteps so I know they will continue todo well next year.”

Volleyball

The relatively new LadyMustang Volleyball team(4 returning players and 6

new) spent a good portion oftheir season working on basicvolleyball skills and teambuilding. “While we didn’t winany matches, we saw remarkableimprovement each time wecompeted,” said Coach LisaBrown. The team’s hard workdefinitely showed by tournament time when the team held their ownagainst third place Brandon Hall by staying ahead until the very end.“We made them work for their win,” said Coach Karen Bradley. Thefinal scores in the tournament were 23–25 and 20–25.

Soccer

Mill Springs’ soccer Mustangs started the season with a re-builtteam having lost seven seniors from last year’s Second PlaceTeam. The team finished with a 5–4–3 record and showed

great resolve battling to secure a consecutive Championship Gameappearance and Second AAC overall finish. The 2011 Mustangsposted a 5–4–3 record and added another key block to ourChampionship Foundation. “This team is very special to me and has agreat deal of potential,” said Coach Phil Hanson. “I love this team andwill reflect with great pride on what we were able to accomplish. Wewill be back, and we will finish big in 2012.”

MSA Sports

Michael Palmer, Colin Nelson,Matt McNaughton. Bottom:Johnny Ray, Cole Landy, QuintFoster.

Madison Orr and JasmineMcDow celebrate a successfulpoint.

Oops…we forgotIn the Spring/Summer 2011 issue of MSA Matters,under the section titled, “MSA Athletes Honored atSports Banquet” we failed to list the following awardsgiven out for swimming and soccer.

SWIMMING AWARDS Varsity MVP | Jason KarnerMost Improved Varsity Swimmer | Alex MassonJunior Varsity MVP | Cole Felton

SOCCER AWARDS Mustang Award | Holly ThilletCoaches Award | Chris ClaugusCoaches Award | Austin ColemanMost Improved | Chandler Holt


Scarecrows Inthe Garden

Janet Fords’ Sculpture Class, with thehelp of teachers Brian Buxton and JohnWright, as well as Judy Shurling (Upper

School Parent), helped create a fantasticsculpture for the Atlanta Botanical Gardens“Scarecrows in the Garden” exhibit. Thesculpture’s name is Pedro the Festive Skeletonof Life and plays off the Day of the Dead—aMexican holiday celebrating the lives of thosewho have died. Pedro was on display at theBotanical Gardens for the month of Octoberand was brought back to Mill Springs to serveas a decoration at the CommArts Mexicofestival in November.

Students in Janet Ford’s sculpture class visit“Pedro” at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens.Front row from left: Doug Marcotte, LeviSmith. Back row from left: Hannah Scott,Michael Antonucci, Jessica Lowenstein, JessLublin, Michael Flanigan, Scott Collins, JulieBrandt, Jeremy Border, and Sam Lyndis.

National TeenDriver’s Safety Week

On October 17th the UpperSchool’s 10th and 11th graderscelebrated “National Teen

Driver’s Safety Week.” The people fromDrive Smart, who are affiliated withAAA, are committed to making sureTeen Drivers stay safe and keep otherssafe while driving. They discussed childpassenger safety, distracted driving andthe students signed a pledge promisingto drive “smart”. The studentsanswered trivia questions related todrugs, alcohol and driving and wonprizes. They worked with students on adriving simulator and had students weargoggles which made them appear to bedrunk in order to show how impaired aperson may be when driving anddrinking. At the end of the day duringcarpool “Gecko” checked to see ifeveryone was wearing seatbelts incarpool; if they were they received acomplimentary car wash card and aChick-fil-A courtesy card.

Pages & Pixels

Senior, Meredith Langford, has organizeda fund drive named “Pages and Pixels” toraise money for the 2012 senior class

gift. It is a tradition for every Senior Class tobuy a gift for the school at the end of the year.Meredith is selling books, movies, video games,and CD’s. Books sell for $2.00 and all otheritems cost $5.00.

National Anthem Day

In response to a 2004 Harris Interactive survey that showed two out of three Americans didn’tknow the words to our national anthem, MENC: The National Association for MusicEducation created the “National Anthem Project: Restoring America’s Voice” campaign in

March 2005 to re-teach the anthem whileraising awareness of the importance of schoolmusic.On Wednesday, September 14 all MSA

students, faculty and staff gathered in thegymnasium to celebrate National Anthem Daywhich is recognized and celebrated by schoolsall across the country. Highlights of this year’s event included a

skit by Lower School students written byMSA’s songwriting/playwriting class; remarksby the Mayor of the City of Milton, JoeLockwood; and singing by the NGCSU PatriotChoir—a military men’s choir.

Fine Arts Director, Janet Ford, presents MiltonCity Mayor, Joseph Lockwood, with a patri-otic painting done by MSA Senior, MeredithLangford.

Senior and Communication Arts student,Meredith Langford.


Order Your 2012YearbookOnline!

Check the websitehttp://shop.jostens.com/,find Mill Springs Academy

and choose Yearbooks, ADD TOCART! The cost is $70, whichincludes the name of the studentimprinted on the book, if orderedbefore January 20th.

YearbookRecognition Ads Deadline January 20. Checkthe websitehttp://shop.jostens.com/.Find Mill Springs Academyand choose YearbookRecognition Ads. Select thesize (up to 8 pictures for fullpage, up to 5 pictures forhalf page, and up to 2pictures for quarter page).Full Page $300 Half Page$200 Quarter Page $150.Send pictures and text(copy) to Carolina Ayerbe([email protected]).

One-Act Play—“The Chronicles of Jane, Book 7”

The cast of our One Act Play, “TheChronicles of Jane, Book 7” wascrowned 2nd place within our

Region at the GISA competition inOctober! The cast now heads to DartonCollege to compete at the state level onWednesday, November 9. One of thejudges felt like the cast members, “Werea team, a true team.” WOW! And ZachGoodelman was awarded one of the“Best Performance” awards. Only five ofthese were awarded throughout all of thecasts competing. Kudos to Jamie

Fambrough and John Wright, our new Theatre Director and Technical Director, respectively,for their first visit to One Act.

Gardening With Mateo’s Class

Matthew McConnell (Mateo’s) 5th period Science class is taking advantage of the awesome opportunity afforded by the space on ourcampus to study agriculture. But instead of just reading it out of history books, they are putting their hands in the dirt and getting areal first-hand look at the process. The class is growing several crops from seed, including carrots, turnips, lettuce, and two types of

radishes. Through the process of trial and error, the class is learning what grows well during which seasons, and why. They learn how to properlywater and fertilize plants, and how to see signs of stress from environmental factors such as weather and insects and how to take care of thoseproblems. Also, they learn a greater appreciation for the process of raising food and greater respect and admiration for the farmers that do thedifficult work of providing sustenance for the entire human population.“In the modern world it is often easy to forget that our very existence is tied to the land,” said Mateo. “We sit in our air-conditioned houses

and surf the internet and eat pre-packaged food from the supermarket, and often we fail to remember that none of this would be possible withoutthe most important of human inventions - agriculture. And, as it turns out, farming can be a fun experience. Who couldn’t use a little more funin their lives!?”

Johnny Ray and Garrett McCarthy with the radishes they studied, planted, watered, fertilized,and finally harvested.

MSA’s One Act Play cast holds their 2nd placetrophy from the GISA regional competition.


MSA Mini Day

On September 23rd, parents of students in PreUpper,Communication Arts and Upper

flooded the Mill Springs campus to spend the day with their child and their community.Parents followed their child’s schedule;attended their classes; learned about pointsheets; and had an opportunity to meet andexperience their child’s teachers and class-mates first-hand. At the end of the school day many families stayed on campus for theannual Mustang Mania celebration put on by Mill Springs’ Booster Club.

Blind With a Mat!

As an enriching and experientiallearning activity for their currentbook, “The Cay,” Middle School

students in Connie Floyd and JessicaConnell’s Language Arts classes wove matsout of construction paper…blindfolded! The activity was modeled after a particularlymemorable scene in the novel where “Philip”,one of the main protagonists, became blindafter an accident. He was then shipwreckedwith “Timothy”, the other protagonist, on anuninhabited island. “Phillip” was chargedwith the task of weaving sleeping mats,which, of course, is very difficult because he is blind.

Parents and students both experience UpperSchool teacher, Keith Muma’s, science class.

Middle School student, Maridy Moore, weaves a mat out of construction paper as fellow student,Alex Comis, looks on.

Lower School Girls Learn About Friendship

Mill Springs’ teachers are alwaystrying new ways to teach key socialconcepts so that students can

understand and internalize them. As acreative way for young girls in the LowerSchool to learn about how to be a goodfriend, they were engaged in a lunch andlearn where they played “”FriendshipBINGO”. The fun game allowed students

the opportunity to learn about and discussfriendship characteristics such as being kind,considerate, trustworthy, loyal, cooperative,and dependable. Everyone had a wonderfultime sharing stories and examples of positivefriendship experiences and also learned someways to handle difficult situations that mightarise between friends.


CommunicationArts StudentsCollect Food forAnimal RescueCenter

As part of her volunteer service project,7th grade student CorinneDavenport volunteered at Our Pal’s

Place, an animal rescue shelter. Corinneheaded up a food and supplies drive for thecenter, and many other students pitched in tohelp. “I can’t stand the thought of any animalgoing hungry,” stated Corinne, “so I wantedto make sure that the shelter wouldn’t runout of food. It’s been great to have so manykids help with this.

The BoxerRebellion

This semester, Lower and Middle Schoolcomputer classes are working onlearning touch typing with their

laptops. The students cover their keyboardswith boxer shorts (worn only by laptops) anduse our new keyboarding program, TypingPal, to improve their typing skills. It is not aseasy as you would think. The students arereally excited about being able to win thebattle with the boxers and meet their personalgoal of typing without the boxers over thekeys.

Science & Robotics Club

In addition to the much enjoyed Lego Club, YarnClub, Model-building Club, and Pet Club, MiddleSchoolers are actively engaged in the Science &

Robotics Club taught by teachers Gretchen Beck andJessica Connell. Students made toothpaste fit forelephants; learned a few science magic tricks to amazefamily and friends; and worked on some projects topresent at the Elementary Science Olympiad (ESO).

One of theevents in theESO competi-tion involvesbuilding atower out ofspaghettitaller thanany other team, but that tower must also holda marshmallow on its’ highest point! Teamswere given 20 pieces of spaghetti, a yard ofmasking tape, and one jumbo marshmallow.After 20 minutes of creating, student TyHarrell’s team, won with a tower that was 15 inches tall which is the average height ofthe engineer or architect competing in thisactivity. Students are now working onprogramming their robotics challenges(launching water bottle rockets and investigating a “crime” scene).

Middle School student, Ty Harrell, sits next tospaghetti and marshmallow tower.

Pictured L-R: Matt Haverland and AtaOzisik

“It’s been great to have so many kids help with this,” said Corinne (pictured right) with fellowstudents: from left: John Chisholm, Emily Chastain, and David Flamini.


Annual Fund 2011–2012

Rhonda AcarkanCarol and Tarpley AdamsMichael and Kim AdamsIvan Allen IVMargaret AllenJoseph and Frances ArenaBrian and Julie ArmentaJayson and Jackie AttawayCarolina Ayerbe and Damian FarrierTim and Leigh Ann AyresRalph BagwellDavid and Janet BainPaul and Mary BarkleyJanice BartonNathan and Ann BeardGretchen BeckDonna BerkowitzMark and Cathy BermanMatt and Virginia BillipsGregory BodeepJohn and Kelly BonannoRussell and Jill BondsBruce and Deena BowersKen and Debbie BowersMike and Bette Rose BowersJohn and Barbara BowlerSteve and Trish BoyerKaren and Justin BradleyRichard Brandt and Carmen NeyraMark and Pam BrasherJohn and Rita BreenJudith Brick

Margaret and Robert BritoJeffrey and Jessica BrownJeff and Traci BrownLisa BrownScott and Michele BrownBruce and Marie BrownlowJames and Coleen BryantIan Buda and Bari CalaisBill and Lori BudwitzChet BurnesDerek and Mindy BushRon and Sharon BushBrian and Lisa BuxtonMonte and Pam CagleGrier and Ashley CampbellAndrew and Jinny CarterDon and Bev ChapmanHeidi ChisholmClaire and John ChristersonMark and Heather ClarkRaymond and Devonda CobbEd and Jill CocoMark and Sheila CohenJim ColemanJoyce ColemanFrances CollinsJoe and Judy ComisClarence and Anne ConkinJessica and Mark ConnellGreg and Frances ConnorKarla and Donald CoopStevi Cordie and Sheldon Glorit

Virginia CorwellCharlie and Laura CovertAlan and Cathy CrowleyTom and Martha DallugeJesse and Sharon DavisBarbara DaySusan DayBrian and Lara DolanJim DolanLarry and Karen DomenicoMark and Monique DroegeRichard and Laura DrukmanDon and Barbara DurocherJae and Lee Ann EarlyJodi Easter-Smith and Bruce SmithDexter and Kimpy EdgeDoug and Julie EidsonBrittany EmgeBob and Mary Elizabeth EtheridgeTom and Virginia EwartJamie and Valerie FambroughKris and Scott FarrellDavid FeeleySheila and John FitzGeraldTom and Gail FlaniganHugh and Robyn FlaxConnie FloydJanet and Scott FordDonna FosterJim FosterLance and Susan FriedlandGerry and Sue Garrick

Hilda GoodelmanLeonard and Deborah GoodelmanPete and Leigh GoodwynSusan GossDaniel and Maritza GraciaFred and Lauren GreenWilhelmina GreenMichael and Meredith GriffethJerry and Sally GrossRael and Vicki GrosswaldJaime GutierrezKatie and Mike HadawayBrad and Tracy HahnJohn and Marlene HaighRandy and Sandra HainDavid and Paula HallowellRebecca HallowellMark and Lindell HannaPhil HansonStacie HardestyGary and Annette HarmonDonald and James HarrisAnn HartinCheri and Jim HarwoodMr. and Mrs. John L. HatfieldJim and Judi HaverlandMichael and Kari HaverlandScott and Linda HaymanPaul and Dawn HazzardAndrew and Karen HebertBill and Katie HendersonWayne and Brenda Herrington

Annual Fund 2011 –2012The Annual Fund is the most important gift our parents, board, and faculty/staff are asked to make to the school each year. This year’s goals are:

n Raise $250,000n Receive 100% participation from our entire

school family (parents, board, faculty/staff )Please join the following list of families and individuals who have already shown their supportto the school by making a gift or pledge.

REMEMBER… participation means a gift of any size!

Thank you to the following families and individuals for your support:


Anne and Jeff HollandMichael and Vicky HoltDarren and Stacy HorstJay and Vicki HudsonBranigan and James HughesSirka HummelAmy HurstBarry and Sylvia HymanBryant and Kim IsaacsWalter and Theresa JaneczkoDick and Janna JanesSteve and Wendy JensenTodd and Lori JensenDavid and Patricia JohnsonStan and Cristy JohnsonHank Jones and Saisai ZhangLaurie and Will JonesTaniah JonesVictoria Jones and Dave FairleyKaty Kane and Keith RateliffTodd and Julie KarnerShilpee KathuriaStanley and Rosalyn KayeBetty and Danny KellenbergerMartin and Bobbie KiteShannon and Patrick KochAndy and Lori KogoyJoan KottlerJennifer and Lou KramerPaul and Gail KreherSteve and Deb KushnickPaul LandyJack and Margaret LangfordRon and Carol LarroAndy and Helaine LaskyRachel LaskySally A. LeFevreDrew LehrRosie LehrLaura LinkArthur and Barbara LiskerEd and Laura LittleWilton and Martha LooneyJuan Lopez-CarrionJason and Stephanie MackPamela and John MaddoxTom and Edye MahaffeyAndrew and Kim MaichleRichard and Colleen MarshallPhil and Carol MartensJudy and Henry Martin

Michael and Ashley MartinRafael and Leyda MartinezLarry and Susan MatsumotoMichael and Nancy MattoxMichael and Barbara McCarthyMatt McConnellHershel and Carolyn McCroanAlan and Roxanne McDonaldKate and Don McElliottErin McGeeDoug and Melanie McNaughtonBill and Jane MengelJohn and Liz MinozziBob and Addie MonetteCarl and Robin MooreDonna and Patrick MooreDoug and Donna MooreRobert MooreRobert and Laurie MorellaKaren MorrisScott and Caroline MorrisKay and Cliff MorrisonAndreas and Lynn MowinckelMartha A. MuirKeith and Kathy MumaMark and Karen MurphyAngel and Dan MurrJosep Nam and Sarah LeeJeff and Leah NedblakeCarissa and Kevin NelsonEric and Cheryl NelsonRob and Winona NewmanA.E. and Georgia NivisonJackie NoonanJim and Judy NorrisBill and Katherine NorthEd and Sally NorthRochelle and Vic NorthrupDanny and Cinda O'KeefeAdam and Amy OrkinMetin and Nalan OzisikCatherine PalmerChris and Beverly PalmerDarla ParkeyMatthew ParkeyJohn and Liz ParksEugene and Ute PartainMatt Partain and Yoke Ching WongAndy and Lynn PaulMichael and Janine PearmanScott and Amy Peeples

Steve and Brooke PenaElizabeth and Ivan PlastiakSteve and Kim PlatnickDavid and Luanne PorperShawn and Tracey RaeAngela and Corey RagsdaleAlex and Connie RajiVaidehi and Murthy RallapalliMary and Felipe RamirezTimothy RayKenneth and Sherrie ReishMartin and Ralda ReishJoe and Judy RepparRob and Amy RichardsLavone RippeonCliff and Stacy RobinsonGene and Edna RobinsonShelley RobinsonSherry and Terry RobinsonEdward and Marsha RoepeTom and Ellen RoperEd and Tanya RosenblattEric and Stacey RothbergRuth and Irwin RothchildCarol and Rick RothschildJames and JoAnn SampsonBrett and Louise SamskyDavid and Lana SamskySusan and Errol SandersJeff and Anne SargentTom and Nancy SchmidtStephen SchuetzAndy and Jeanette SchultheisJason and Janel SchwartzDonna ScottJack and Susan SellPat and Patricia ShannonNorma ShearerRonnie and Paulette SherrillStuart and Cameron SherrillJohn and Lynn ShipesBrian and Patty ShortRussell and Traci ShusterDaniel and Becky SilbertMarlyn SimpsonDon and Beth SingletonBob and Beryle SlaydenMark and Wendy SmallDan and Rhonda SmithDavid and Caroline SmithGil Smith and Judy Shurling

Joe and Jill SmithLee and JoEllen SmithLeila and Rusty SmithPaul and Pam SmithMitch and Paulette SolisWalter and Myra SorrowGene and Virginia SparlinJohn Starr and Maria BaxterMerna and Allen SteinOB StokesHarold and Donna SupperJohn and Alison SweeneyEric and Therese SwensonKathleen SwiftBill and Cheryl SyrettDenise TaylorMichael and Monica TempelNeil and Norma ThelenPatrick and Renee ThomasCindy ThorneRoberto TijerinaCynthia Traylor and

Daniel DeleveauxWilliam and Molly TurnerHector TurradoVincent and Adrianne TurturroMarianne VelezJerry and Judith VolcyHoward and Kathy WaitsJohnny WalkerTom Walker and Suzanne MoonKeith and Angela WalshMichael and Shellie WatsonMike and Rita WebberJon and Ruthann WeissCharlotte WheelerMark Whitfield and Kim IrelandGeorge and Carole WilsonSkip and Dixie WilsonRichard and Melanie WingBrad and Betsy WolffJohn WrightGary and Krista YagerBrian and Holly YorkPaul and Jennifer YurfestZack YurfestSandra Zelley

13660 New Providence Road Alpharetta, GA 30004-3413(770) 360-1336 www.millsprings.org

MSA administers a non-discriminatory policy of admissions.

“If a student can’t learn the way we teach…we should teachthe the way a student can learn.”

MILL SPRINGS ACADEMY

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