Dear Jane and Matt,

The ultrasound pictures you sent us today, showing the miracle of our first grandchild, fills me with joy. I am agonized more than ever by the distance between us! Florida seems far away. I know you would really like to move back to Minnesota, where you both grew up.

You know I long for you to be here, but I wonder if I can encourage you to return to a state that is rushing toward average. We lived in Florida once, and while it was nice not to pay income taxes we soon realized that you got what you paid for. As you know, Jane, we enrolled you and your brother in a private school, something I thought would never happen in our family.

If our granddaughter went to school in Northfield, you could count on the public being supportive of you and wanting to make education a priority. In return for proving we had done everything possible to trim budgets, and for increasing transparency and accountability, the community here passed a levy referendum in 2006 that allowed us on the school board at least to maintain programs. I’d like her to be able to go to a school that has, in addition to the basics, an orchestra, arts programming, Advanced Placement and physical education. Other towns in Minnesota are cutting those things because they cannot pass levies.

Can Minnesotans rebuild a consensus around equity for our citizens, or will we continue to slide into competition, where some citizens (like those in Northfield who do come together in support) have more…. more educational opportunity, better infrastructure, a better standard of living?

Before you two were born, a consensus emerged about funding education. The 1971 “Minnesota Miracle” came from that consensus among the Governor, the Legislature, and the people. This guaranteed each and every student in Minnesota the same basic education funding, distributed by the state.

What came from that agreement is pretty amazing:

* Minnesota’s income followed the investment in education. Our per capita income dramatically increased until 2000, after which it has fallen in comparison with other states.

* Minnesota’s economy thrived. Our compound annual growth rate during the 1990s, compared to the national average, was nearly an entire percentage point above what it is now. Minnesota employment rates and employment growth are now declining.

* Minnesotans with high school diplomas and college degrees increased dramatically, and that brought industry and research capital into the state. But by the time my granddaughter is in middle school, at the current rate of regression, the rates for the majority of students will have reverted back to national averages, while our minority population will be less educated than the rest of the nation!

* Minnesota’s per pupil funding in 1970 was sixth in the nation. And do you know what? In 2007 we were twenty-third! In one particularly alarming statistic, out of the 38 states that provide some preschool funding, Minnesota ranks #37. Fully half of Minnesota kids are deemed not ready for kindergarten.

Building the consensus to reform school funding in a time of budget crisis seems impossible, right? I mean, it seems counterintuitive to argue that our public schools deserve a bump up in 2009, while we’re in recession. But I believe this is exactly the time to rebuild the consensus. When I was a child, after all the ugliness of World War II, our country funded the Marshall Plan, which in no small degree stabilized Europe. It’s time for a Minnesota Marshall Plan, a new Minnesota Miracle. There are brave folks in the Legislature who have authored a bill (Mindy Greiling taking the lead) that would allow this to happen. They’ve done the research and know what works for schools, so it wouldn’t be like just increasing the money supply without accountability.

Recently, Minnesota has pushed funding down to local responsibility, even while increasing state and federal accountability measures. I will argue that such a local control has wasted a ton of local district resources, produced confusion and increased inequality. Minnesota invests less now in state and local government than under Governor Carlson.

I’d dearly love to see you all come back to live in the Midwest…. but the truth is perhaps North Dakota would be a better choice, unless we can create a new public awareness that all of the kids here belong to everybody and they all deserve to be given the best.

Love you both!

Diane Cirksena has been a Northfield School Board member since 2004. This letter is addressed to her daughter Jane, a graduate of the College of St. Benedict and the University of Minnesota Law School.

]]> http://dianecirksena.wordpress.com/2009/01/03/legislative-session-lets-unite/feed/ 0 dianecirksena http://dianecirksena.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/why-im-running-again/ http://dianecirksena.wordpress.com/2008/08/08/why-im-running-again/#comments Fri, 08 Aug 2008 17:27:10 +0000 Diane Cirksena http://dianecirksena.wordpress.com/?p=42 ]]> After four years on the Northfield board, and having achieved more than retirement age, I was fairly sure I would not run again.  But the more I thought about it the more I realized that, if the voters allow me to serve again, I can contribute to the stability of the district.  I don’t have single issues that drive me, and I pretty much do my homework in a timely way.

So what is my platform?

AT THE LOCAL LEVEL:

1.  We must continue to carefully review budgets so that a recommended reserve is obtained and maintained.  We do not want to go back to the “Statutory Operating Debt” status of two years ago, which was the result of educational funding being frozen at the state level AND irresponsible spending of a previous administration.  Superintendent Chris Richardson demonstrated great leadership in facing the financial problems of the district and managing an open public process in making cuts.

2.  Continue to support/stabilize building leadership.  All principals now support data driven decision making and personal learning communities (study teams as the basis for staff development).  With no turnover in administrators this year the personal learning communities should be even more prepared to review the data on student performance in their buildings in order to improve student achievement.

3.  We must address more precisely (through the things itemized in #2) the student achievement lags in our special education and limited English proficient student body.  Being on the Adequate Yearly Progress watchlist is not pleasant, but does provide us with more incentive to target achievement in these populations.  And we must celebrate how well our entire student body performs.

AT THE STATE LEVEL:

1.  Pressure our state representatives and senators to demand that school funding be reformed along the lines of the original 1971 “Minnesota Miracle.”  That was created following a court case (Van Dusarte v. Hatfield) which ruled that, “The level of spending for a child’s education may not be a function of wealth other than the wealth of the state as a whole.”  That worthy effort has been eroded by budget freezes, the continued “No New Taxes” pledge of the Governor, and a lack of willingness to revise the calculation formula for property tax equalization.

*  They should expect (nay, demand!) that the ’04 funding taskforce be reconvened and its work completed with specific recommendations.

*  They should demand equalization in that funding formula.  All students should receive equal opportunities.

*  They should demand that funding be targetted towards meeting local, state and federal standards.

Consternation about city government, frankly, and maybe about the news media.   Who was doing what to whom is far from clear, but we have a police chief on medical leave, a city administrator who is being investigated, and a town newspaper that is less than helpful in presenting the information.

I’ve decided that all the stuff happening at the city just has to be ignored in the short term. It will work itself out, somebody or somebodies will resign or get indicted, and eventually we will elect a council that takes some action to do something to someone.

In the meantime, let’s also say that Northfield Schools is pretty much doing what it needs to do:

1. We’re all in agreement that if there is even ONE school kid taking heroin it is too many. While there are certainly not 250, as the first reports appeared to indicate, there are a handful of high school students who need further support.

2. We are in agreement that we will use drug-sniffing dogs in ways that are appropriate. Dogs can be used to scope out potential problems with certain kids. They will not be used to intimidate or as a scare tactic. But use them we will sometime.  As I write this post I am aware that baseline data has been collected about the high school, collected using drug sniffing dogs used last evening.

3. We are in agreement that our drug awareness curriculum needs to be reviewed and updated. If kids say it doesn’t do the job, we need to listen.

4. We are in agreement that all school property should be managed in such a way as to discourage drug activities. Wetlands, marshes, and parks must be watched over, burned over when necessary, and neighborhood watches established.

5.  We agree that we can never sit back and assume we are “above average” in this area of drug use.  Parents need to be vigilant, neighborhoods must cooperate, and schools must establish an environment where every kid is known and cared for.

That is my commitment as a leader in this district.  I am sure it is also yours.

The credit starts with a White Bear Lake school board member, Sandy Rummel. Now a new (elected 2006) State Senator, Sandy believed that the best way to help schools across the state, and to help those who were hurting most, was to remove the cap on the special ed growth factor.

When the fiscal analyst for education ran the numbers, a map of the state showed virtually every district needed between $250 per pupil to $500 per pupil in order to free up their general funds for regular education. In other words, in 2003 the state “capped” the growth factor to help balance the budget. In 2005 that meant school districts picked up the state’s $61 million unpaid bill; by 2007 that unpaid bill was $132 million and by 2011 it would have grown to $353 million. If the cap would not have been removed most districts would be bankrupt in a short time. Money on the formula was simply going in one door and out the other.

This information then went to Larry Pogemiller, who signed on. Sandy Rummel carried the bill. I’d like to thank her and other Senate leaders who made this happen. Sandy made a big difference in this legislative session with true leadership.

* When Northfield Schools established budgets for this year (2006-07) we made reasnable projections for all line items. We did pretty well except for special education costs. New enrollments over the summer shattered our assumptions. (For example, at the high school alone 10 more students with IEPs were registered, some with severe needs.) We must and want to serve these students, but the additional costs are crushing. Special education costs in Northfield this year are 9.4% above projections of our budgets.

* For every dollar spent on special education in Northfield, we only receive PART reimbursement. This reflects continuing reductions in dollars from state and federal sources. The formulas are very complicated, but let’s give an example. When we hire a new special education teacher, as we have had to do this year, and total compensation for that teacher is $54,000.  We can expect to recover less than half that amount from special education funds that flow through from the State. (Contact me for more detail on this if you really want to have more detail!!)  Since the passage of the Education of All Handicapped Children Act in 1975, the federal government has promised to provide 40% of the excess costs of special education.  That promise has never been fulfilled.  This current year federal funds will account for approximately 17.5% of the excess costs.  So let’s agree that a major part of the problem is the broken promise from Washington.
* And here is the kicker: For all the money spent on special education (a 10% increase per year) the reimbursements come TWO YEARS later! This is an unacceptable lag time

LEGISLATORS:

1. Address the lag time. Reimburse real time expenditures. Stop the two year lag in reimbursement!!

2. Reimburse ALL the extra costs of special education, not just part.  Even the part that was promised would be better than what we have now.

Addressing special education costs is far more important than looking at some kind of reimbursement scheme pegged to the MDA Report Care Start Ratings. The Star Ratings are a broad indicator of success, but are subject to many statistical aberrations. So start talking about special education costs and don’t pass go without doing something about this. The Northfield School Board has been diligent about cutting every possible line item and is ready to come out of Statutory Operating Debt, but special education funding issues make this a very precarious and tenuous victory.

http://www.psminnesota.org/

While you may not actually see those signs lined up like that, you very well believe it could happen, for all four candidates are supporting the levy.

Ray Cox: “I wouldn’t think of not supporting it. Our schools are what makes the Minnesota economy move along the way it has.”

David Bly: “I do support the levy and when ever I am asked I have said so.”

Jessica Peterson: “I absolutely unequivocally support the levy referendum.”

Tom Neuville: ” I do support the levy.. . You may
also state publicly that I support the levy.” He would also like to see the Northfield School Board reassure the public that during the life of the levy reserve funds are maintained and spending remains prudent.

For complete statements from the candidates I would refer you to the candidates themselves, starting with their respective websites. All the candidates have much more to say about this topic and should be heard. In the meantime, I thank them all for their careful consideration of this important issue and ask that they continue to not make it a partisan issue. Our kids need that.

The signs of our status are multitude:
* We are drowning every week in a load of paper, posted through snail mail.
* We print out and edit things on paper. Heck, we even print out important emails just for the sake of having a copy.
* We think of encyclopedias as a static bound series of books, filling a single library shelf, with “yearbooks” to fill in the gap since publishing.
* We consider textbooks an important part of the capital budget.

I worry a lot about how much we might miss the mark on many things technological, just because we are adapting to a whole new language, the digital language the natives speak. I suspect we will, in the next generation, need to redefine how we look at classrooms, buildings and materials.

If you are up to reading a whack on the side of the head article, try “Ths Future of Schooling: Educating America in 2014.” You’ll find it at http://www.mcrel.org/5052IR_Future of Schooling.pdf (Note that you’ll have to ask for this by title)

After you explore those scenarios, let’s talk. I’m worried about a lot of things that are on the horizon. The paper above concentrates on projecting what will happen between now and 2014. Some things are obvious. Some are not. Below I list just some of my worries.

I worry that our school libraries may not change rapidly enough to keep kids coming in. In the last year, 5 exabites of written content were created….. enough to fill 37,000 Libraries of Congress. And the Wikipedia (the online encyclopedia, created by the folks who use it) would weigh a ton if it were printed out, not the hundred plus pounds of static Brittanica. Wikipedia expands daily, is edited daily, and studies show it is no more prone to mistakes than the staid Brittanica.

I worry that we still think of textbooks as the biggest investment for curriculum. Wow. I am not sure our grandchildren will even know what a textbook is.

I worry that we are being stingy with technology resources. If our kids don’t learn about the expanding world of information at school, we are not providing a world class educational opportunity. And let’s face it.. we have been stingy. The State of Minnesota declares that we will be “On-line by ’09″ for science testing. I sure hope so, but have an uneasy feeling that the resources to make it possible for schools to participate are lagging far behind.

I worry that our general attitude about technology, especially as board members, may be as bad as learning a foreign language at our age. In 2007, the small country of Slovenia will pass the United States in the percentage of people who have broadband internet access in their homes!!! We have rested on our laurels as a country, and it has not served us very well.

Do I have answers? No, I don’t. But I am uneasy. I want us to integrate technology literacy, not integrate technology. There is a difference. Our students are going to have more than ten job changes in their lifetimes. Are we sensitive to the fact that information for them is a different commodity? Are the teachers in Northfield keeping pace with the demands of the “Digital Natives”

I leave you on this reading with a quote from David Warlick:

“I’m getting tired of hearing people continue to ask for the evidence that technology helps students learn. It doesn’t matter. We know — that good teachers help students learn. We need technology in every classroom and in every student and teacher’s hand, because it is the pen and paper of our time, and it is the lens through which we experience much of our world.”

More about David Warlick at http://landmark-project.com/index.php

* You’re to be commended for seeing the school funding issue as your own.

* You offered critical insights about how important it will be to craft the message for the public, and how we will have to really be “out there” in the community garnering support for a levy referendum vote.

* You quickly grasped the various funding categories, the part played by the State, the Feds and the local levy… and you got right down to the business of debating the issues surrounding those various streams.

* You got it…. that in order to just keep the level of programming we have now we’ll have to go for a levy vote this fall. Without that, we can look forward to further pain through budget cutting.

* Best of all, you encourage me to continue fighting for a comprehensive curriculum and fine programs.

Thanks, and I wish you all the best. A bright future is waiting for all of you!!!

1. THE ISSUE OF CURRICULUM RIGOR
I can just hear you say, “Oh, give me a break. I’m a senior. I’m not interested in anything more rigorous than getting out of here.” But are you aware that Governor Pawlenty and a sizable number of other legislative leaders are saying you haven’t had enough hard challenges? Are you aware that many people believe that we are losing out to other countries in a big enough way so that your children will have menial jobs while the high paying jobs go to where the brains are in India and China? are you aware that one-third of all Minnesota college kids are in need of remedial classes — classes they must pay for but for which they recieve no credit? Are you aware that these same leaders are asking for the following curriculum increases:
* All kids taking Algebra I by the end of 8th Grade
* All kids taking Algebra II before graduation
* More emphasis on the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) discliplines
* All kids taking chemistry before graduation
* Rewards for kids, schools and teachers who undertake more Advanced Placement classes or International Baccalaureate Programs (there will even be a grant program announced soon that will reward whole schools for doing nothing but Advance Placement.

SO HERE IS MY QUESTION FOR YOU:

HAS YOUR HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE BEEN RIGOROUS ENOUGH FOR YOU TO AVOID REMEDIAL COLLEGE CLASSES OR TO AVOID A DEAD END JOB?

2. THE ISSUE OF OPTIONS FOR FAMILIES AND STUDENTS:

Have you benefitted from some of the many ways that policy options have been created for you? Have you open enrolled in this school? Have you participated in Post Secondary Education Options (PSE0)? What about College in the Schools? Have you considered attending or attended a charter school? In all of these options, Minnesota policy makers have been leading the way. They believe that families should be making more choices so that students can have a better experience that is suited to the student. Many people say that these options simply drain valuable resources away from the regular schools while opening up confusion for parents.

SO HERE IS MY QUESTION FOR YOU:

SHOULD WE TRY TO INFLUENCE POLICY MAKERS TO REDUCE OR REMOVE SOME OF THESE “OPTIONS” POLICIES? ARE THE INCREASED OPTIONS HELPING YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS OR ARE THEY MAKING THINGS WORSE?

3. THE ISSUE OF FUNDING RESPONSIBILITY:

Are you aware that the State of Minnesota has promised to provide funding equity by providing 85% of school funding? That leaves local levies and other sources, including money from Washington, to make up the difference. One of the problems is that the portion the State promised has not continued to be funded at the rate promised. And, the Federal laws (Special Education and No Child Left Behind among others) are mandates but are very much underfunded.

Look at this link and study the information. It will help you understand why we have had to cut budgets here in Northfield the last two years. (In fairness, I want to point out that prudent spending was not exercied by the district between 2000 and 2003. Generous budget reserves were depleted until there was nothing left, which is something like you spending every last penny you have in savings when you know you are going to college soon! )http://parentsunited.org/SchoolFunding

SO HERE IS MY QUESTION FOR YOU:

DO YOU BELIEVE THE STATE OR fEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR WHAT THEY MANDATE? AND, DO YOU BELIEVE IT IS IMPORTANT TO CONTINUE TO MOVE TOWARD LESS LOCAL CONTROL?

I’m looking forward to talking about these things