''Middle School Moguls'' is a 2019 American animated television

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

created by Gina and Jenae Heitkamp. The series stars Laurie Hernandez,

Daniella Perkins Daniella Orion Perkins (born June 13, 2000) is an American actress and internet personality. She gained prominence through her main role as Ciara in the Nickelodeon series ''Knight Squad''. Early life Daniella Perkins was born at the Anaheim Re ...

Haley Tju Haley Alexandra Tju () (born February 15, 2001) is an American actress. She is known for her role as Pepper in the Nickelodeon television series '' Bella and the Bulldogs'', and Marcy Wu in the Disney animated television series ''Amphibia''. Earl ...

and

Jade Pettyjohn Jade Pettyjohn (born November 8, 2000) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as McKenna Brooks in '' An American Girl: McKenna Shoots for the Stars'', as Summer on the Nickelodeon television series ''School of Rock'', as Lexie Rich ...

. The series premiered on September 2 on

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

, and aired through September 29, 2019. Gina and Jenae Heitkamp originally started the idea for the series as "a doll and book line" sold in

Target Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, fi ...

stores in 2016, and they were contracted by

afterward.

Plot

Mogul Academy is an entrepreneurial school where its students work to make their businesses come true. Students Valeria, Winnie, Yuna, and Celeste work to establish their businesses and make them come true.

Characters

Main

* Valeria (voiced by Laurie Hernandez) is a budding

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

of sports gear. * Winnie (voiced by

) is an aspiring

chef A chef is a trained professional cook and tradesman who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term ''chef de cuisine'' (), the director or head of a ki ...

of food for pets. * Celeste (voiced by

) is an inventor of " smart tech." * Yuna (voiced by

) is an aspiring

multiracial Mixed race people are people of more than one race or ethnicity. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mixed race people in a variety of contexts, including ''multiethnic'', ''polyethnic'', occasionally ''bi-eth ...

fashion design Fashion design is the Art (skill), art of applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction and natural beauty to clothing and its Fashion accessory, accessories. It is influenced by culture and different trends, and has varied over time and plac ...

er who has two moms, one who is Chinese and another who is White.

Guest stars

* Wren (voiced by

Tim Gunn Timothy MacKenzie Gunn (born July 29, 1953) is an American author, academic, and television personality. He served on the faculty of Parsons School of Design from 1982 to 2007 and was chair of fashion design at the school from August 2000 to Ma ...

) is a professor at Mogul Academy who runs a fashion contest in the episode "Mo'gul Money, Mo Problems". They have been confirmed as a

non-binary Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...

character. Wren is also the head of the school's fashion department. * Victoria Steele (voiced by

Jane Lynch Jane Marie Lynch (born July 14, 1960) is an American actress, comedian and author. She is known for starring as Sue Sylvester in the musical comedy series '' Glee'' (2009–2015), which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award. Lynch also gained recog ...

) is the headmaster of Mogul Academy and former businesswoman. * Josie (voiced by

JoJo Siwa Joelle Joanie "JoJo" Siwa (; born May 19, 2003) is an American dancer, singer, actress and YouTuber. She is known for appearing for two seasons on '' Dance Moms'' along with her mother, Jessalynn Siwa, and for her singles " Boomerang" and "Kid ...

) as a communications business person and the head journalist for ''The Daily Juice'', the school's blog. * Finn (voiced by

Ricardo Hurtado Ricardo Javier Hurtado (born August 22, 1999) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Freddy on the 2016 Nickelodeon television series ''School of Rock'' and his voice over role as High Five on the 2020 Netflix TV series ''Glitch Techs'' ...

) is a student and athlete. * Ethan (voiced by Alex Wassabi) is the Resident Advisor for the story's four protagonists. * Kheris (voiced by Kheris Rogers) is a fashion mogul and a beautiful woman. * Marci Stern (voiced by

Nicole Sullivan Nicole Sullivan (born April 21, 1970) is an American actress and comedian best known for her six seasons (1995–2001) on the sketch comedy series '' MADtv''. She also played Holly Shumpert in five seasons (2001–2005, 2007) of the CBS sitcom ...

) is the head of the athletic branch at the academy. * Winnie's parents, Mrs. Pierre (voiced by Garcelle Beauvais) who is

Haitian-American Haitian Americans (french: Haïtiens-Américains; ht, ayisyen ameriken) are a group of Americans of full or partial Haitian origin or descent. The largest proportion of Haitians in the United States live in Little Haiti to the South Florida are ...

, and Mr. Pierre (voiced by Sean Patrick Thomas), who is also Haitian.

Episodes

Reception

Emily Ashby of

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

described the show as likable and praised its "themes of diversity and perseverance." She also pointed out that the values of "thinking big and working hard" can apply to any situation, with any "failures" as an opportunity for success in the future as a major theme in the show, along with characters which challenge stereotypes. This includes, she argues, a female student is a "tech whiz," one character has two mothers, a

teacher, and a new designer who draw inspiration from herself to "create fashion choices for body types that run the gamut," meaning that the show shares the message of "being unique, challenging stereotypes, and following your dreams." Producer, writer, and teacher Gina Catanzarite noted that show's scripts "are peppered with business terms," with the teenage characters using their skills to solve problems, and celebrates smart girls who "exhibit the skills, vision, and persistence" to achieve career goals.

References

External links

Official website
* {{Former Nickelodeon original series 2010s American animated television miniseries 2010s American animated television series 2010s American school television series 2010s Nickelodeon original programming 2019 American television series debuts 2019 American television series endings American children's animated action television series American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated comedy television series American children's animated fantasy television series American computer-animated television series English-language television shows Nicktoons Middle school television series 2010s American LGBT-related animated television series