March 28, 2023 Business Meeting

Superintendent Report Highlights

Kevin Martinez Herrera provides powerful testimony at the capitol - High School Senior, Kevin Martinez Herrera provided two powerful testimonies at the capitol this month. On Friday, March 17 he testified on HF 2258 a bill for an act relating to workforce development; appropriating money to Greater Twin Cities United Way for grants to partner organizations to provide workforce training using the career pathways model that helps students gain work experience, earn experience in high-demand fields, and transition into family sustaining careers. Kevin described his experiences in our Health Science Career Pathway. Kevin shared how those experiences helped him find his passion for a career in health care through the lens of race equity. Kevin expressed his appreciation for SLP HS Health & Sciences Career Pathways Classes. (Health Care Core, Certified Nursing Assistant, & Adulting & Wellness). On March 21, Kevin has also agreed to testify for SF 687; Race Equity in Higher Education and Student College Completion Bill. Kevin shared about his experience as a senior looking to college and why it’s so important to him and future generations that college is affordable.

Kindergarten Welcome Night - Superintendent Osei expressed gratitude to everyone who participated in Kindergarten Welcome events on March 21. It was exciting to invite incoming kindergarteners and families to visit our schools and preview what the kindergarten experience will be like next year. We had a good turnout across the district with 152 families participating. As of March 28 we had 249 kindergarteners registered for the 2023-24 school year.

eSports Team Wins UW-River Falls Invite - Congratulations to the eSports Valorant Team that took first place in the UW-River Falls Kinnickinnic Clash Invite! (Pictured Left to Right below: Ian Thon, Joseph Hager, Adam Frahm, Nolaan Kouame’, Gregor Tobias)

Any game in which players virtually compete in an organized competition qualifies as an eSport. As long as a metric for performance exists, virtually any game can be used. eSports athletes compete in activities either as individuals or as part of a team.

Minnesota State High School Mathematics League - Congratulations Jason Jensen, High School Senior who competed at the Minnesota State Math League Tournament on March 13. The League exists to identify students who have unusual mathematical ability or interest, to give them recognition and encouragement, to bring them together with similar students, and to give them the opportunity to study topics not commonly taught in the high school curriculum. League activities are designed to challenge students with high and unusual mathematical ability, but also seek to influence general mathematics education. We believe that a program like ours is shortsighted if it is not also developed in a way that strengthens mathematics education for all students.

Design Team Update: Multilingual Learner

Patrick Duffy, Director of Curriculum and Instruction and the Multilingual Learner Design Team - Elizabeth Guzman, Mayumi Huynh, Maurna Rome, Molly Kukowski, and Cory Litzow-Lorentz- presented an update on Phase 3 of the team's curriculum review process. The team shared their Racial Equity Purpose statement, beliefs of what Multilingual Learners have access to within our schools, and their prioritized benchmarks. Those benchmarks are:

Improved Communication
Professional Development
Continued Implementation of WIDA ELD Standards
Cultivate Elementary and Secondary MLL Leadership

Watch the Multilingual Learner Update

World’s Best Workforce & Every Student Succeeds Act Presentation

Silvy Un Lafayette, Director of Assessment, Research and Evaluation presented the District's World's Best Workforce report and Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) update. The presentation provided an overview of World's Best Workforce and ESSA goals, the assessments used to measure progress, and a in-depth review of the District's data on connection to the goals.

Watch the World's Best Workforce & ESSA Presentation

Expenditure Reductions

Astein Osei, Superintendent, discussed the timeline and total number of expenditure reductions and redirection of full-time equivalents (FTEs) to meet the expectation of building an expenditure budget that maintains an unreserved fund balance of 8%. Superintendent Osei's presentation reviewed the budget planning timeline, FY24 approved operating budget assumptions, FY24 expenditure reduction and structural change timeline, and a high-level overview of the reductions.

Watch the Expenditure Reductions Presentation

Consent & Action Agendas

Consent Agenda - The evening's Consent Agenda was approved as presented.

Approval of Trade Package 1A Bids - The School Board approved the Trade Package 1A bid for High School Classroom renovations as presented.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Statement of Acceptance - The School Board approved the International Baccalaureate (IB) Statement of Acceptance accepting the process dictated by the IB Programme regarding compliance of IB rules and regulations as presented.

March 28 School Board Meeting Materials

April 11, 2023 Study Session Agenda Preview*

Design Team Update: Phase III Recommendations
FY2023 Mid-Year Budget Update & Approval
Policy Development
Approval of the Self-Funded Insurance Plan for 2023

*Although changes are infrequent and typically minor, School Board meeting agendas are subject to change. Agendas are posted three days prior to the meeting date and are approved by the School Board at the beginning of each meeting.

Save the Date: April 18 Board Listening Session

The SLP School Board invites families to join them for the upcoming listening session on Tuesday, April 18. The listening session will be held at 6:30pm in the High School Library Media Center. This is a great opportunity to ask questions and have a conversation with school board members. It is important to note that this is not an official meeting and no official action will be taken. Please be aware that the school board members will end the listening session 30 minutes after the posted start time if there are no stakeholders in attendance.

Get in touch with the School Board

Board members welcome your input. Email the entire School Board at schoolboard@slpschools.org. You can also call the School Board message line with your questions or comments: 952-928-6040. The Board also holds Open Forum at each Business Meeting, which occur on the fourth Tuesday of every month. To participate in Open Forum, please complete this sign-up form by 3 p.m. on the day of the meeting at which you would like to address the School Board.