Barcelona Dance Grand Prix: Congratulations Preethi and Shri Krupa
Kudos and congratulations to Mount Madonna School 10th grader Preethi Balagani, who along with other dancers from the Shri Krupa Dance Company won three awards at the prestigious 26th annual international Barcelona Dance Grand Prix held earlier this month.
Founded and guided by choreographer and artistic director, Guru Vishal Ramani, students at Shri Krupa learn and perform in the Bhartanatyam tradition, south India’s classical dance form.
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Outside an open doorway of Mount Madonna School’s (MMS) upper campus greenhouse, three sixth grade girls fill small plastic garden pots with soil and compost. The team works efficiently, one passing pots to the next, who fills it and then passes it on to be placed on a nearby wooden table, in preparation for planting some native seeds they gathered earlier in the school year. Nearby some of their classmates work together on refurbishing an irrigation system, carefully piecing together plastic water pipe and fittings. 
Yoli Cueponi , or “live to grow” in the language of Catalina Island’s original human inhabitants, the Pimungan people, is a sentiment dear to the minds and hearts of 9th grade students at Mount Madonna School (MMS). It is also the name the class has given to their upcoming marine science learning journey to the popular island located off the southern California coast..jpg)
Recently Mount Madonna School’s (MMS) second grade students attended three classes through the “Growing Kinder” Humane Education Program of the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter (SCCAS). The program is founded by Jen Walker, an experienced animal welfare advocate and humane education specialist. The first session began with Walker guiding the students on a behind-the-scenes tour at the animal shelter. For their next couple meetings, Walker offered lessons at MMS with her cat, Guido, and dog, Moon.
“It is very important to learn how to save our ecosystems,” comments fifth grader Jules Barivan. And for the past several months, the class has been doing just that – engaging in extensive research, public speaking, local habitat restoration and community outreach and education, all as part of their project “Give A Hoot: It’s Foul to Hurt the Burrowing Owl.”
Congratulations to inspired young scientists Lekha Duvvoori, Sara Bautista, and Addy Catterall-Pendleton, each of whom won awards in the recent Santa Cruz County Science Fair!.jpg)
Once again, the Creative Writing Reading was a great success, thanks to the fantastic work of our wonderfully talented high school students and also the dedication of many parents and staff.
Eighth grade students at Mount Madonna School are developing engineering skills in preparation for building their own solar cars to race at the 6th annual Summit for the Planet Walk-a-thon and Celebration on April 28.
