Student Standouts: Adkins ’26, Coleman ’26, Falk ’26, Hofer ’26, Kellner ’26, Mariappan ’26, and Cyclocross
Faculty Feature: Barker
Congratulations to this week’s standouts below. Way to go #RamNation! And as always, if you have a story to share, please email weeklynews@micds.org.
Senior Participated in Unforgettable Boys State Experience Over the Summer
Senior Lewis Adkins ’26 had the unique opportunity to participate in Boys State over the summer. The American Legion Boys State of Missouri is a week-long, immersive civics and leadership program where rising seniors build and run a simulated state government. Delegates ran the program and counselors played a minimal role, refraining from interfering with students’ governance. It took place during the last week of June at Lindenwood University. The days ran roughly from 6:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., with classes, elections, courts, and city/county/state activities. About 800 students from across the entire state attended.
Adkins applied to the program through MICDS and was sponsored with help from Dr. Tanya Roth, Upper School History Teacher.
After the program, Adkins shared that he experienced collaboration with people from very different backgrounds, public speaking, how to organize large groups, and he learned about time management. “The biggest takeaway was hearing perspectives from students across Missouri, such as small towns, Kansas City, and St. Louis, learning how different their lives and perspectives are, and harnessing those differences to govern effectively.
“I served as my county’s State Fair coordinator (around 120 delegates). I organized our booth, planning, recruiting, and operations, and our county did extremely well in terms of the number of festival tickets. Yet, the biggest highlight for me was hearing from an incredible lineup of speakers, including Barbara Pierce Bush, Kyle Carpenter, Asa Hutchinson, Donna Brazile, Anthony Robles, Brady Cook, and Major General Charles F. Bolden Jr. Their leadership lessons and life stories were unforgettable.
“Boys State was a unique experience, granting me the opportunity to learn, engage, and have fun with other students who have similar interests. Learning different perspectives from students from all around the state—from small towns to big cities—taught me to harness individuals’ strengths and weaknesses to help form something together as a collective community. The program ultimately resonated in an unforgettable experience, and I am thankful to have been selected to play a small part in the community.”
Miles Coleman's Dream to Score a Touchdown
Miles Coleman ’26 is featured in an article by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that highlights his dream to score a touchdown. He has done just about everything else you can do on the football field, so this is a goal he has this season. The article describes Coleman’s powerful contribution to the MICDS Football team, his friendship with Noah Menneke ’27, and shares that he’ll play football at West Point next fall. This season, Miles is fueled to reach the state championship game after being close to it but coming up short last year. As the Rams continue to play this 2025 season, be sure to cheer on Miles and all of the Rams!
Senior and Spanish Teacher Showcase Magic Talents on KSDK
This morning on KSDK, Magician and Upper School Spanish Teacher Christopher Barker and MICDS senior and young magician Ash Falk ’26 were interviewed by Michelle Li P’37. Cards in hand, they appeared in a segment about Barker’s journey into magic, his Magic at the Link youth and adult classes that start in October, and Falk, as one of Barker’s magic students over the summer at his Young Wizards Academy, skillfully demonstrated a set of magic tricks with a deck of cards. In addition to teaching Spanish here at MICDS, Barker also finds time to lead a magic course during MICDS’ Winter Term. We can’t wait to watch even more students and adults in the community connect through magic thanks to Mr. Barker!
Three Rams Experience Running "Girls State"
Three Rams—Claire Hofer ’26, Kaitlyn Kellner ’26, and Ramya Mariappan ’26—participated in Girls State this past summer. Girls State is a one-week program at Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, where girls from across the state create their own governance systems and form cities. There are Girls State sessions in every state, however, Missouri Girls State has historically been one of the strongest programs, and there was even an Apple TV documentary made about the 2022 session.
Like the name sounds, Girls State is a mock state where girls can run for state, county, and local elected positions through campaigns, start businesses, pass a Bar Exam and become lawyers, work on the tourism commission, become journalists, and much more! “We all got randomly selected into 16 different cities and all stayed in the same dorm together,” explains Hofer. “We also attended classes in one of nine schools that related to the positions we held, taught by Girls/Boys State alumni and professionals in their fields.”
Additionally, Girls State attendees had the opportunity to hear from many guest speakers, such as Barbara Bush, daughter of George W. Bush, and Asa Hutchinson, former governor of Arkansas. “It was really interesting to hear Barbara Bush speak about her experience with her father’s presidency, specifically during the war on terror,” reflects Mariappan. “Hearing her life story and how she got into her career path with the NBA was very inspiring.”
Over 800 girls across the state were selected by their schools to attend, and it took place from June 23-28 on Lindenwood’s campus at the same time as Boys State. The three MICDS attendees were selected through an application process that was reviewed by a group of MICDS faculty who nominated the students.
Every girl is encouraged to have some role during this week, whether that be a city or state-level role or simply a non-governmental role. “I chose to run as a House Representative for my city and got elected,” shares Hofer. “Typically, during the day, we would attend Legislative and Executive Policy school, where we heard from current and former Missouri House Reps. In class, we had discussions, learned the complexities of the legislative branch, and learned the process in which bills get brainstormed, voted on, and eventually passed. After that, the House and Senate would have Session, where we got the opportunity to draft, debate, and pass both real-life bills and Girls State bills using Parliamentary Procedure, which is the real script and format that the Missouri and US House uses. We also fortunately got the opportunity to travel to Jefferson City for the day and debate our bills on the real House Floor, and got advice from current House reps. The bill I drafted focused on the opioid epidemic in our country and proposed required opioid education in all public schools and requiring Narcan to be accessible in all public buildings.”
“I learned a lot about local governance since that was the school I chose to attend,” explains Mariappan. “We learned about the roles of a mayor and how an ordinance works, and specifically what needs to happen in order for it to be passed. We also had guest speakers every night who had some really unique experiences to share.”
What a remarkable experience for these three Rams! “I would truly recommend Girls State to anyone,” states Hofer. “It really gets you out of your comfort zone, and it was such a unique experience to get to know girls from all over Missouri that I would’ve never met otherwise. There are so many different paths you can take depending on your interests and there really is something for everyone!”
Cyclocross Kicks Off Season with Second, Third, and Fourth-Place Finishes
