This is the link to the video
Here is the link to the Agenda and Minutes
Open Forum Discussions:
Participants addressed concerns about Masks and Covid Spread, Equity Policies and discriminatory practices, retention concerns among Para’s and support staff as well as Violence and Safety concerns within our schools. Violence and safety included weapons on school premises and children behaving like animals and making animal sounds.
Ms. Schuck asked for the link to the article The CDC’s Flawed Case for Wearing Masks in School, that was mentioned by an open forum participant.
Mr Grovom said Eagle Lake started about three years ago with the Life Journey, where teachers question the lens they look through. Each month they have racial equity conversations together, which has occurred over the last couple years. There is also a racial equity team that meets together.
It sounds like the equity team is separate and in addition to the equity conversations.
Board member Shuck asked about the 124 minors, and how many students were involved with getting these minors? The Principal responded that 4 students accounted for about 75% of the minors.
SOAR is a reward system at Eagle Lake that catches students being helpful and behaving well.
The book in the above picture is made with the students image, so that students can see themselves succeeding.
There is additional equitable school experiences. The monthly racial equity team was mentioned again.
Mr. Reid asked what the system wide equity team focuses on? Mr Grovom responded, that they focus on classrooms that are culturally responsive and that the students see themselves represented in the books they read. Bukatah Hayes has come speak to the staff about questioning their lens.
Eagle Lake schools Principal spoke about how teachers are recording their lessons, so that they can be replayed at home. One teacher might record Math, the other English/Reading, then the next day the teachers would play the others recorded lesson while they were able to walk around the room. This is a lot of extra work up front because teachers need to work on editing and uploading videos that they have recorded, but they expect big payoffs in the long run.
- I am asking more questions about this program. It sounds interesting.
- This is a new program so they do not have data about its success yet.
- It should allow for more time to engage with students.
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Roosevelt
Roosevelt has extra focus on developing Joyful readers. Ms. Schuck asked what a joyful reader looks like, and the answer was, when an adult walks in a room and the kids are so enthralled with the book they are reading, that they do not look up.
PLC consists of 3 questions that are given three times through out the year. These are equity guided questions
Empathy is the core of their SEL curriculum for the first half of the year. They talk about resisting revenge. They will start unit two after the new year.
The School has identified spread being the biggest factor at lunch times and they are trying to keep kids 6′ apart. I have provided a photo of what that looks like, the photo was not from our district, it was a photo published in a national article.
It would be helpful to have a chart of schools with lunchroom policies vs covid spread and absences, for more insight. If anyone is willing to work on that project let me know.
I did ask the district for this information, but I am unsure if this data will be provided.
There will be three quarantining options. On January 3rd they hope to have more test kits available for the seven day quarantine option.
Ms. Schuck asked more about the process. Mr. Hogan replied that they do test on site with trained staff and they have not hired the staff they need for all the testing, yet.
Mr. Kind, is there a goal for vaccinations? Mr. Hogan, there is no goal for vaccinations.
Ms. Sapp, Is there a deadline or rubric for dropping mask mandate for K-8. Mr. Peterson responded that he thinks August 2022, when everyone has had the opportunity to be vaccinated and perhaps looking at county transmission rates.
A teacher will be discharged. They had an opportunity to request a hearing and they did not make the request.
At the end of the meeting, Paul Peterson said that there was never a gun in Mankato West School, in response to an open forum comment
I try to make these note as unbiased as possible, but what I am hearing from parents, is that they want the school to address steps they are taking to ensure weapons do not end up in our schools.
After the meeting:
Darren Wacker also resigned. You can apply to be appointed to the school board and serve out the rest of his term, through the end of 2022. You must go into the district business office to pick up an application.
I also want to thank Kristin Goodrich at the Mankato Freepress, as I did link and refer to some of her articles.