Foundations — Grade 12 • Jackson, Mississippi
Saints at the Mississippi Book Festival
St. Andrew’s took part in the Mississippi Book Festival in a major way! Not only did our students enjoy eye-opening forums with best-selling children’s book author and illustrator Dav Pilkey and United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Saints alumni and faculty served as featured panelists at the festival. Ben Wynne ’79 was part of a discussion about the Civil War, Michelle Purdy ’97 discussed civil rights and education, and English teacher Taylor Kitchings presented a session titled PG-13. The links in the previous sentence go to clips of CSPAN's coverage of the authors thanking St. Andrew’s!
For Pilkey, Reading is a Superpower
St. Andrew’s second through fourth graders celebrated the Mississippi Book Festival in a big way on Friday by joining hundreds of other students from around the Jackson Metro area to hear from author and illustrator Dav Pilkey! Best known for his Captain Underpants and Dog Man series, Pilkey talked to students about his struggles in school, particularly with ADHD, as well as the numerous rejections from editors when he set out to publish his first book. By following his three P’s of positivity, practice, and perseverance, Pilkey made it through school and became an international bestselling author and illustrator. During the presentation, St. Andrew’s own Penny Pace won an autographed drawing and prize bag after answering a question about characters from one of Pilkey’s books. But no one left empty-handed! Through generous donations to the Book Festival, each student was given an autographed copy of Pilkey’s brand new book Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls and a $20 gift card to Lemuria Books.
Sotomayor Speaks of Formative Experiences
27 students representing a number of Upper School history classes were accompanied by Dr. Foley, Mr. Maier, and Mr. Roach to Galloway United Methodist to hear Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor speak as part of the Mississippi Book Festival. Justice Sotomayor spoke on her life experiences that formed the basis of her book My Beloved World, after which she took questions from the approximately 400 students and teachers in attendance. St. Andrew’s senior Vinson Lu put forth a question to Justice Sotomayor about school desegregation while senior Amy Zhang asked for the justice’s advice for women who seek to become involved in politics and are interested in leadership. After the end of the presentation, all the guests in attendance were given a signed copy of My Beloved World before returning to the North Campus.
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For Pilkey, Reading is a Superpower
St. Andrew’s second through fourth graders celebrated the Mississippi Book Festival in a big way on Friday by joining hundreds of other students from around the Jackson Metro area to hear from author and illustrator Dav Pilkey! Best known for his Captain Underpants and Dog Man series, Pilkey talked to students about his struggles in school, particularly with ADHD, as well as the numerous rejections from editors when he set out to publish his first book. By following his three P’s of positivity, practice, and perseverance, Pilkey made it through school and became an international bestselling author and illustrator. During the presentation, St. Andrew’s own Penny Pace won an autographed drawing and prize bag after answering a question about characters from one of Pilkey’s books. But no one left empty-handed! Through generous donations to the Book Festival, each student was given an autographed copy of Pilkey’s brand new book Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls and a $20 gift card to Lemuria Books.
Sotomayor Speaks of Formative Experiences
27 students representing a number of Upper School history classes were accompanied by Dr. Foley, Mr. Maier, and Mr. Roach to Galloway United Methodist to hear Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor speak as part of the Mississippi Book Festival. Justice Sotomayor spoke on her life experiences that formed the basis of her book My Beloved World, after which she took questions from the approximately 400 students and teachers in attendance. St. Andrew’s senior Vinson Lu put forth a question to Justice Sotomayor about school desegregation while senior Amy Zhang asked for the justice’s advice for women who seek to become involved in politics and are interested in leadership. After the end of the presentation, all the guests in attendance were given a signed copy of My Beloved World before returning to the North Campus.
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Foundations — Grade 12 • Jackson, Mississippi