MMI News

National speaker Becky Savage, co-founder of the 525 Foundation, visited MMI Preparatory School and spoke to students during an all-school assembly in the cafeteria as part of the 525 Foundation’s mission to educate teens and families and raise awareness about the dangers of alcohol and prescription drug misuse and abuse. 

Thirty of MMI Preparatory School’s 42 participants earned first awards in the 59th annual Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science (PJAS) regional competition and will advance to the PJAS State competition May 17-19 at Penn State’s University Park campus.

MMI Preparatory School sophomore Rachael Betz earned a First Award and perfect score and was recognized with an Excellence Award in Microbiology at the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science (PJAS) Regional Competition at Wilkes University on Feb. 29 after receiving MMI’s 2019-2020 Science National Honor Society grant that she used to fund her research project on the respiratory distress caused by vaping.

MMI Preparatory School’s Mock Trial team defeated Blue Mountain High School in a trial and had four students receive awards during the recent District competition at the Luzerne County Courthouse.  The Honorable Thomas Burke and The Honorable Correale Stevens were in attendance for the competition.

Three MMI Preparatory School seniors received recognition in the Scholastic Writing Awards. Adam Tron won a Gold Key in the Personal Essay & Memoir category for “The Dichotomy of Masculinity and Femininity” and will advance to the national awards competition. Gold Keys are awarded to the very best works submitted to Region-at-Large programs and are automatically considered for national-level recognition. Paige Machulsky received an Honorable Mention in Poetry for “A Tourist’s Sehnsucht” and Maya Rizkalla was awarded an Honorable Mention in the Critical Essay category for “Police Brutality.”

Ninth grade students at MMI Preparatory School held a bake sale at the Laurel Mall on January 25 and donated their proceeds to Brandon’s Forever Home. The sale was organized as part of a community service project. 

Eighth grade student Caylee Herseim won first place in MMI’s school competition of the National Geographic GeoBee and will move on to compete for the chance to represent MMI in the Pennsylvania State GeoBee. Fellow eighth grader Nathaniel Neidlinger was the runner-up in the contest.

Senior Benjamin Putnam captured first place in MMI Preparatory School’s “Best of the Best” competition for the first semester of the 2019-2020 academic year. As part of the biannual competition, 10th and 12th grade students delivered presentations during an all-school assembly. Ninth and 11th grade students will make their presentations in the second semester.

MMI Preparatory School announced its Students of the Quarter for the second quarter of the 2019-2020 school year. 

MMI Preparatory School senior Alexander Jordan, seated center, will continue his baseball and academic careers at Marywood University. Also pictured are, seated from left: Robert Jordan, Teresa Jordan, and Zachary Jordan. Standing are, from left: Vincent Vella, MMI Athletic Director; Justin Kleinheider, MMI Head of School; and Ryan Jastremsky, MMI Head Baseball Coach.

Bryce Radzwich captured first place in MMI Preparatory School’s sixth grade science fair for his project “Protect Your Melon.” David Yamulla captured second for his presentation entitled “Making Graphite Glow” and Frederick Blaine finished third for his demonstration of “What Kind of Potato Conducts Electricity Best?”

Fifty-nine MMI Preparatory School students earned certificate awards in the top 10 of their respective events at the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Regional Leadership Conference and 38 students will advance to the FBLA State Leadership Conference in Hershey in April. 

MMI Preparatory School received a $500 grant from the ExxonMobil Foundation that the school will use to purchase a new 3D printer for the science department. Liberty Petroleum Distributors nominated the school for the grant.

MMI Preparatory School sophomores Alain Benitez and Connor Spencer were selected to represent MMI at the 2020 Central Pennsylvania Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) Seminar, which will be held May 14-17 at Shippensburg University. Sophomore Andrew Blasko was selected as an alternate.

The MMI Upper School Drama Club will present An Evening of One Act Comedies V this Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. in the MMI Cafeteria. The show is rated MA-13 and is appropriate for adults and children ages 12 and up.

Students at MMI Preparatory School honored their school’s founder, Eckley Brinton Coxe, and his wife, Sophia Georgianna Coxe, during an assembly at the school and graveside service on Wednesday, giving thanks for the Coxes’ contributions to the school and the area. An all-school assembly was held in the MMI cafeteria, where senior class officers presented information about MMI’s history. At the conclusion of the assembly, the senior class traveled to the grounds of St. James Episcopal Church in Drifton, where they held a wreath-laying ceremony at the gravesites of Mr. and Mrs. Coxe, more than 120 years after Eckley Coxe’s death.

Members of MMI Preparatory School’s English Department participated in the National Council of Teachers of English Annual Convention in Baltimore, Maryland.