msba journal sept-oct 2014

MINNESOTA SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION

September-October 2014 Volume 67, No. 2

Developing A Comprehensive Superintendent Evaluation We Remember Brown v. Board – Now What?School Vote Yes Committees Need to Consider an Early-voting Strategy

2014 Summer Seminar

Scrapbook page 28

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SChOOL VOTE YES COmmiTTEES NEEd TO CONSidEr aN EarLY-VOTiNg STraTEgYGreg Abbott

14WhY arT iS COrEDebra Hannu 18

a CaLL fOr rEfOrm iN SChOOL CONSTrUCTiON fiNaNCiNgBruce A. Klaehn

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WE rEmEmbEr brOWN V. bOard – NOW WhaT?Tracine D. Asberry, Ed.D.10

dEVELOpiNg a COmprEhENSiVE SUpEriNTENdENT EVaLUaTiON Amy Fullenkamp-Taylor and Sandy Gundlach

8

prESidENT’S COLUmNWalter Hautala, MSBA President6SUmmEr SEmiNar SCrapbOOkMSBA Staff28VENdOr dirECTOrYPierre Productions & Promotions, Inc.32

STraighT TaLkKirk Schneidawind, MSBA Executive Director5

QUOTES Of NOTEMSBA Staff4

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 41Labor Day (no meetings)2First Day School Can Be Held11 Fall Regional Meeting (St Paul) 15 Fall Regional Meeting (Marshall)17 Fall Regional Meeting (Rochester)18 Fall Regional Meeting (North Mankato)18 Fall Regional Meeting (Staples)23 Fall Regional Meeting (Fergus Falls)24 Fall Regional Meeting (Thief River Falls)25 Fall Regional Meeting (Mountain Iron)25 Fall Regional Meeting (Sartell)28–30 MASA Fall Conference

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 41Last Day for Submitting Legislative

Resolutions2MSBA Insurance Trust Annual

Meeting10 MSBA Legislative Committee Meeting13 Columbus Day Observed

(optional holiday)16–17 Education Minnesota Conference22–24 Minnesota Association of Educational

Office Professionals Conference 25 MSBA Charter School Training

N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 42Daylight Saving Time Ends4Election Day (no meetings or

activities 6 pm – 8 pm)6–7MSBA Board of Directors’ Meeting11 Veterans Day (no meetings)12 MSBA Pre-Delegate Assembly Meetings13 MSBA Pre-Delegate Assembly Meetings13–14 MASBO Fall Conference15 MSBA Pre-Delegate Assembly Meetings16–22 American Education Week19 Minnesota School District Liquid

Asset Fund Plus Annual Meeting27 Thanksgiving Day (no meetings)28 Optional Holiday

September/October 2014 3

The MSBA Journal thanks the students of Tri-City United Public Schools for sharing their art in this issue.COVER ART: Michelle Vlasak

mUSiC EdUCaTiON mEETS ONLiNE TEChNOLOgY: aUgmENTiNg prOgramS ThrOUgh ONLiNE SChOOL parTNErShipS Paul Babcock

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Quotes of Note captures some of the more interesting statements MSBA staff have read in local, state and national publications.

Fair school funding“We still have a need to have fair funding throughout the state. It’s still an issue. We want to make sure every child in the state has an equal opportunity to have a good education.”

Minnesota Rep. Bob Barrett during a visit with the North Branch Area School Board

A change of plate“It’s not a short-term deal, the health of our kids. Just because we’ve been doing the same thing forever doesn’t mean it’s the best thing.”

New Prior Lake-Savage Area Food Service Director Adam Simmons on his plan to introduce healthier school lunch menus

Enhancing black male achievement“We need to be engaging the community broader stakeholders. I need to connect with black fraternities, churches – to have some extensive community engagement. We need to start talking to students as well. The one thing I don’t want to do is go out and start up initiatives and programs without talking to youth.”

Michael Walker on targeting outreach first at his new post as head of Minneapolis’ Office of Black Male Student Achievement

Consolidation consideration“We’re being proactive, now that we’re in a position of financial stability. We want to keep moving forward and plan for the future. They say ‘Nobody plans to fail, they just fail to plan.’ So we’re planning, and it’s exciting.”

Carlton Superintendent Peter Haapala on his school district exploring consolidation

Bullying in the social media age“Bullying has plagued our society for years. We all have horror stories. Social media plays a bigger part now and kids don’t understand what they’re doing. Back in the good old days, if you wanted to tell 50 people you don’t like a person, you had to make 50 phone calls. After six calls, you probably got tired and went on to something else. With places like Facebook, it’s so easy for 100 people to see something terrible written about one of their classmates. This is what needs to change the most.”

Crookston Superintendent Chris Bates

National honor“There has always been a tradition of excellence in our public school system, which has been cultivated by a very supportive community. We are proud of that tradition, and are honored to receive this recognition.”

Delano Superintendent Matthew Schoen, on his school district awarded with top honors for the “Best Places for Families to Live: Top School Districts with Most Affordable Housing” award by ZipRealty

Teacher redistribution“Unfortunately, there are a lot of kids around the country who are not getting the kind of teaching that they need – not because there aren’t a whole lot of great potential teachers out there, but because we’re not doing enough to put a lot of our teachers in a position to succeed. Typically, the least experienced teachers, the ones with the least support, often end up in the poorest schools.”

President Barack Obama regarding his plan for states to come up with a plan for equitably distributing talented teachers among schools by April 2015

Officers

President: Walter Hautala, Mesabi East President-Elect: Kevin Donovan, Mahtomedi

District DirectOrs

District 1: Kathy Green, Austin District 2: Jodi Sapp, Mankato Area District 3: Linden Olson, Worthington District 4: Betsy Anderson, Hopkins District 5: Missy Lee, Columbia Heights District 6: George Kimball, White Bear Lake Area District 7: Melissa Sauser, Farmington District 8: Carla Bates, Minneapolis District 9: Karen Kirschner, Mora District 10: Michael Domin, Crosby-Ironton District 11: Tim Riordan, Virginia District 12: Ann Long Voelkner, Bemidji Area District 13: Deborah Pauly, Jordan

staff

Kirk Schneidawind: Executive Director Kelly Martell: Executive Assistant John Sylvester: Deputy Executive Director Tiffany Rodning: Deputy Executive Director Greg Abbott: Director of Communications Denise Dittrich: Associate Director of Governmental Relations Denise Drill: Director of Financial/MSBAIT Services Amy Fullenkamp-Taylor: Associate Director of Management Services Sandy Gundlach: Director of School Board Services Barb Hoffman: Administrative Assistant to Governmental Relations/Finance/Meeting Coordinator Sue Honetschlager: Administrative Assistant to Management, Legal and Policy Services/MSBAIT Donn Jenson: Director of Technology Bill Kautt: Associate Director of Management Services Grace Keliher: Director of Governmental Relations Katie Klanderud: Director of Board Development Gary Lee: Associate Director of Management Services Bruce Lombard: Associate Director of Communications Bob Lowe: Director of Management Services Cathy Miller: Director of Legal and Policy Services Sue Munsterman: Administrative Assistant to Board Development/Communications Sandi Ostermann: Administrative Assistant to Association Services and Finance/Receptionist Tim Roberts: Production Room Manager The MSBA Journal (USPS 352-220) is published

bimonthly by the Minnesota School Boards Association, 1900 West Jefferson Avenue, St Peter, Minnesota 56082 Telephone 507-934-2450 Call MSBA office for subscription rates (Opinions expressed in the Journal are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent MSBA policy)

4 MSBA Journal

BBoard members wear many hats All are important, but the advocate hat in a year where the state sets its budget is really important Whether it is for a home, a school district or a state government, a budget is about priorities There are many competing interests when it comes to setting the state’s budget If there is ever a time to advocate for investments in our public school students, it’s before and during a budget-setting year like the 2015 session An increase on the general fund for schools can give board members more flexibility in meeting the needs of students A lack of funding usually ends with board members making decisions on what to cut, not how to improve student achievement

That’s why your MSBA is making a push this year to inform board members about key funding and policy issues coming up in the 2015 session by bulking up our Fall Regional Meetings Throughout September, we’ll talk about what you can do to support investments in our public school students at the state level

The first step is always face-to-face advocacy Invite your legislators (and candidates for those seats) to meet with your board and discuss what challenges your districts face, and tell them about key issues you’d like to see pass in 2015 With 134 seats up for election in the Minnesota House of Representatives, my guess is your board will have some takers From what you’ll learn at our Regional Meetings, you can pass that information on to your local legislative candidates It is also information you should pass along to school board candidates If elected, they’ll be up to speed on the issues If they are not elected, they will still be well-informed members in your community It’s a win-win

At MSBA, we give you many different ways to be involved The first is to help us set our legislative platform by being a delegate to the Delegate Assembly Individual board members and entire boards in a district can propose a resolution in an effort to fix a problem

or seek support for a policy or funding issue And current board members can be nominated to fill open spots in the Assembly We use your issues to set our agenda for the session This is a very grassroots approach that we should be proud of MSBA can also help you with your efforts by providing our electronic Capitol Compass newsletter each week, our MSBA Legislative blog, and weekly conference calls during the session to keep you informed on upcoming legislative issues

We also offer an advocacy day at the Capitol for you to meet with your representatives during the session One of the core missions of your Association is to advocate for legislative positions that were adopted by our members Our Government Relations staff do that and do it well, but legislators also need to hear those stories from their school board constituents Why? Because we know how important it is to advocate for students Legislators need to hear your stories They need to hear from YOU about what is working and what is not working for your students It’s one thing to have one of MSBA’s lobbyists talk to legislators about an issue But what carries even more influence is for a legislator to hear from a constituent and a board member in the trenches I can’t tell you the number of times that superintendent and school board member testimony has swayed a committee to push through legislation

The entire process begins with board members being informed, so we hope to see everyone at our Regional Meetings this month And the follow-through ends with each of your board members passing that knowledge on to your local representatives and telling your own story about what works for students in your district Your public school students need your voice at the Capitol and back in your district They know how important it is for you to speak with one voice in standing up for public education

If there is ever a time to advocate for investments in our public school students, it’s before and during a budget-setting year like the 2015 session.

Straight talka little advocacy during upcoming SeSSion

will go a long way to help SchoolS

Kirk Schneidawind MSBA Executive Director


During your term on the board, you will – sooner or later – be faced with the all-too-familiar task of cutting the budget. Sometimes, it is easy to target things like extracurriculars. But I’m hoping boards think long and hard before automatically going down that path.

Walter HautalaMSBA President

6 MSBA Journal

want StudentS to do better in School? offer a variety of extracurricularS!

preSident’S column

SSometimes in the push to help students achieve in reading, writing and math, it’s easy to overlook the importance extracurriculars play in motivating students to stay in school

Study after study shows that having sports or a math league or music and theater programs can give students a huge boost in academic life

Working as a team – In many jobs today, people don’t work in isolation in a cubicle to produce a specific item Usually they work as a team to produce cars, advertising campaigns, orchestral music or whatever project a company is hoping to sell There are skills people need to learn about working in teams – how to work together when other employees may disagree with you, how to learn from mistakes and come back with a stronger plan, focusing on moving forward instead of pointing fingers

Those lessons are all part of what extracurriculars can offer Whether on the basketball court or a mock trial court team, employers want to hire people who prove they can work together

Time management – Our students live in a very busy world Sometimes I wonder how they can keep up with homework when so many other things are going on in their life One might think that adding extra activities after school would take a toll on academics, but most research has found this NOT to be the case In fact, as long as parents don’t overschedule their children in too many activities, studies find that those activities actually help students to understand time management Have homework, but a night tournament that will take up most of your homework time? The answer: Studying on the bus ride to the tournament and making better use of study halls in school or down time at the tournament

That ability to prioritize what needs to be done is a skill that comes in handy during college, when Mom and Dad aren’t around to tell their child to do homework before jumping into a game on the computer

Graduating from school – Students who participate in sports or work on the school yearbook or do some sort of after-school activity are much more likely to stay in school and graduate Those activities provide an important social aspect to a student’s life Schoolmates can connect with each other, and that connection is a strong motivator for them to stay in school Participating in activities sponsored by the Minnesota State High School League also helps deter them from using drugs and alcohol Students know that violating the MSHSL contract will endanger their chances to continue in any extracurricular activities they enjoy

Higher-level thinking and health – The simple physical activity in sports after school also has huge benefits for the health of your students Instead of going home to watch television or turn on a computer screen, the physical activity cuts down that screen time and promotes better health As for activities not sports related? Studies are showing over and over how music and the arts promote higher-level thinking in math and critical thinking overall

So how does this apply to school boards? It’s a simple matter of your budget priorities During your term on the board, you will – sooner or later – be faced with the all-too-familiar task of cutting the budget Sometimes, it is easy to target things like extracurriculars But I’m hoping boards think long and hard before automatically going down that path

Those activities might be the reason some students stay in school It might be the reason some are excelling in school And when you think of educating the whole child, employers and colleges are looking for students who excel beyond academics They want to see students with teamwork, critical-thinking skills and good time-management behaviors These skills are why extracurriculars are important These skills make students better people

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8 MSBA Journal

Developing A Comprehensive Superintendent Evaluation

Adria Domine


WWhen searching for a new superintendent, school boards rightly spend a great amount of time developing the position hiring criteria and reviewing the job description School boards know that hiring a new superintendent is one of their most important responsibilities, and they want to get it right

Amy Fullenkamp-Taylor and Sandy Gundlach

Once the school board hires a superintendent, the school board should work with the superintendent to cultivate a positive school board-superintendent working relationship, which is critical to accomplishing the school district’s mission and priorities Having an effective, constructive evaluation process and procedures in place is one way to both develop a positive school board-superintendent relationship and drive forward the school district’s improvement efforts

MSBA and Minnesota Association of School Administrators (MASA) have been working together to improve the superintendent evaluation process With new principal evaluations and teacher evaluations on the way, MSBA convened a workgroup comprised of both MSBA and MASA representatives to review MSBA’s evaluation forms and evaluation process The group reviewed several superintendent evaluation forms and processes gathered from other states and organizations and identified effective superintendent evaluation processes and procedures which it used to create a resource aptly titled “Superintendent Evaluation: A Resource for School Board Members and Superintendents”

The new evaluation resource is much more goal-oriented and aligns much better with requirements in the World’s Best Work Force requirements School board members and superintendents may wonder, “What are the components of a comprehensive, effective superintendent evaluation process and procedure?” In the evaluation resource, the group identified seven principles of a comprehensive evaluation process A comprehensive superintendent evaluation process must:

1 provide opportunities for both the superintendent’s personal and professional growth;

2 be intended to improve performance, not prove incompetence;

3 provide legal, realistic, accurate, useful, and measurable criteria reflective of the competencies in Minnesota Rule 35120510;

4 be ongoing and connected to school district/school improvement goals;

5 connect the school district’s goals with its community’s vision for its schools;

6 link to academic, social, and emotional growth for all students in the school district; and

7 recognize the importance of a superintendent’s leadership work to facilitate a better quality of life for all groups, both inside the school community and in the community at large

School boards and superintendents would be wise to keep the seven principles in mind when developing superintendent evaluation processes

In addition to the seven principles, the evaluation resource includes a variety of tools to aid school boards and superintendents with the evaluation process:

•asampletimelineforconductingevaluations;

•asamplejobdescriptionbasedontheMinnesotaRule;

•sampleforms(e.g.,establishmentofgoals,mid-yearformative evaluation, end-of-year summative evaluation, and superintendent self-evaluation); and

•reminderstocomplywithrelevantMinnesotalaws.

As a reminder, in order to help keep school boards and superintendents focused, the parties should limit the number of goals, and ensure the adopted goals are simple, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely (SMART)

The “Resource” is available on MSBA’s website at http://wwwmnmsbaorg/SuperintendentEvaluationResources

Amy Fullenkamp-Taylor is the associate director of management services and Sandy Gundlach is director of school board services for the Minnesota School Boards Association. Contact the work group members, Amy, Sandy or MSBA Deputy Executive Director John Sylvester with questions. Watch for details for upcoming training opportunities, including at the 2015 Leadership Conference in January.

10 MSBA Journal

SSaturday, May 17, 2014, marked the 60th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. This landmark Supreme Court decision determined separate schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional As I reflect on this case and subsequent decision, attention must be paid to the “v” or “versus” that connects an eight-year-old African American student, Linda Brown, to public education during that time This detail serves to remind us of the oppositional history that existed for African American students but should not continue if all kids are truly our kids; and equally important, why this history is American history that requires constant critical analysis

My commitment is to a #BelovedCommUNITY where we work collectively to prevent even the hint of backsliding into beliefs, thinking, policies, and practices reminiscent of life for African American students just 15 years before I was born With this goal in mind, I offer these personal insights along with opportunities to remember Brown v. Board of Education as an African American parent, teacher, and policymaker

Remembering requires critical thinking Each day I communicate with neighbors via e-mail, telephone, and social media who share a commitment to Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Last spring, I reached out to several constituents to gain their perspectives around the Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 Budget In each

Tracine D. Asberry, Ed.D.

We Remember BRown v. BoaRd –Now What?

Marty McGuire


conversation, there were questions raised around how we think about the budget and the vision that guides funding decisions It became clear that the budget issue is not simply a lack of school funding Rather the issue extends to the critical thinking necessary to determine budget priorities, and incentives to engage in creative problem-solving and innovation conversations

“Vision, Passion and Imagination are kinfolk” and essential for every student to thrive at MPS (Chaun Webster, Curator of Literature at Ancestry Books and MPS parent) Funding rooted in critical thinking responds wholeheartedly to the vision at MPS without apology Conversations start with the end in mind – every child college and career ready – school-dependent learners, students of color, thriving learners, and learners who need the foundational programming plus additional services and support – while simultaneously imagining how to ensure that the best practices necessary for a quality educational experience are identified, replicated, and scaled up for greater impact In short, based on critical thinking surrounding the national beliefs, federal laws, general public beliefs, and education practices just 60 years ago, public school budget decisions become conversations surrounding conditions that ensure African American students have the platform to be who they were created to be from Pre-K through Grade 12

oPPoRTUnITY: View the video Cultural Criticism and Transformation, Part 1 by bell hooks at https://wwwyoutubecom/watch?v=KLMVqnyTo_0

aCTIon: Review the previous legislative agenda for your school district How can the agenda this session create better conditions for African American students? What is needed to ensure high expectations and high support? Think about the surrounding conditions that need to change to nurture, develop, and invest in the beauty, brilliance, and boldness of African American students

Remembering requires sustainable funding I have heard a few times during the recent Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) budgeting cycle that “school budgets are moral documents” This statement is intriguing on many levels – specifically, when it is followed by an explanation of the moral disposition that drives the budget beyond merely balancing line items, covering a traditional checklist, and allocating resources

As of this time, I have yet to hear (or see) a direct alignment between the strategic plan and the vision for African American students who are the group singled out for most disparaging data – suspensions, special education, dropout rates and poor attendance I have yet to see bold decisions made without struggle or a last-minute gesture of good faith I have yet to see the accountability and transparency to ensure integration programs and funding specifically designed to ensure African American students (among other groups of color) receive more than a seat in the classroom, but an earned path across the graduation stage with options beyond basic survival

oPPoRTUnITY: Examine your school budget to determine the fiscal and moral commitment to African American students (and their families) Do budget decisions respond substantially to the vision for African American students based on gaps identified in achievement, belief, and opportunities?

aCTIon: Review the budget Identify budget allocations designated for African American students (and their families) Develop a timeline that aligns with the expected outcomes and the indicator of effectiveness If these evaluation details do not exist, be sure to ask why How will you know if the intentions are met?

This data will be a platform to continue to fund what works (as well replicate and scale up) and cease funding programs and strategies that are not demonstrating and documenting effectiveness with urgency

Remembering requires a paradigm shift We must not underestimate the beliefs, thinking, and practices that required a Supreme Court decision to change the faces of public education to reflect the demographics of the public When we are committed to all students, we must ensure that we imagine all students along with their race, class, gender, ability, sexual orientation, religion, and language realities

Merely imagining who has the right to a quality education, extracurricular activities, advanced courses, special education, exposure to arts and culture, support services, English as a Second Language services, travel locally and nationally, and leadership opportunities may require a paradigm shift if we truly believe all students deserve the right to thrive at MPS This simply makes sense due to the lengthy United States history of violations through education (boarding schools for Native American students, segregation of African American students, English-only movement, etc) Still, I believe we have the will for a paradigm shift!

Katy Rabenberg

In the state of Minnesota, we made a paradigm shift with the success of bills such as the Dream Act, Same-Sex Marriage, Safe Schools, and Minimum Wage The positive impact of these paradigm shifts on MPS students, families, teachers and staff is irrefutable We must shift again and quickly when we remember Brown v. Board, and recognize what life was like for African American students prior to 1954 These realities should be nearly paralyzing when we confront the heartbreaking realities our African American students face as residual effects of institutional racism, especially when we confront the overidentification in school suspensions and the under-identification in advanced courses, school leadership, and traveling opportunities only 60 years since Brown v. Board

I believe wholeheartedly that we can welcome a paradigm shift that allows us to (1) think critically about the construction of race, (2) change the course of outcomes at our schools predicted by race (as well as the interlocking realities of class, gender, and ability), and (3) honor the dreams of every student with respect to the intentional and/or unintentional policies, practices, and procedures that may perpetuate racism

oPPoRTUnITY: I am proud to live in a state that passed both the Safe Schools and Minimum Wage bills last session I believe it was the right thing to do Now, I look forward to the work the Legislature will do to provide and protect working-class Minnesotans and all children

aCTIon: Call your legislators Ask them what they will do this session to invest in the educational conditions of African American students, Pre-K through Grade 12 Tell them that you are ready to support their efforts and will call five voters to do the same

Remembering requires action After nearly a decade as a MPS teacher and rounding the corner of my second year on the MPS Board of Education, I am constantly reminded as George Santayana (1863–1952) contends, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”

I agree that remembering the past can serve to prevent the same mistakes done with African American students However, remembering for African American people was/is focused on the struggle and the value of “Emancipation and Education” (Dr Josie R Johnson) There is a sense that both formal and informal education are inextricably linked to our overall freedom As

Bayard Rustin reminds us, “The proof that one truly believes is in action” Further, Paul Wellstone urges, “We all do better when we all do better”

oPPoRTUnITY: Attend and participate in YOUR school board meetings

aCTIon: Be a vocal champion for African American students by speaking during school board public comments What do you believe about African American students and how will you act on this belief?

Remembering requires reciprocation I grew up in Detroit, Michigan, as the youngest of eight children Education, both formal and informal, was a primary value in my home My father was illiterate, but an organic intellectual He worked for 30 years as an assembly line operator at the first Henry Ford Motor Plant, engaging in Civil Right activities in his free time When I was four, my mother earned a GED and went on to complete her undergraduate degree to become a state social worker Modeling resilience throughout their struggles, my parents instilled in me a firm belief that education is a gateway out of poverty; academic achievement in school determines who thrives and who survives outside of school Understanding education as the means to transform the world gave me strength to rise to my full potential and called on me to reciprocate Raised with high expectations and high support, my parents taught me to give to family and community based on the love, will, and vision of so many before me To this day, I believe it is everyone’s duty to lift each other up

oPPoRTUnITY: I share my insights along with opportunity and action ideas for your consideration My hope is that you will be moved by my article to act individually to start a movement for African American students I also invite you to go to http://wwwtcdailyplanetnet/profiles/tracine-asberry to read my Why We Can’t Wait blog Thank you for your time and consideration; and please feel free to share your comments, questions, and words of wisdom

Tracine D. Asberry is a board member on the Minneapolis Public School Board. You can contact her about this article at [email protected].

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12 MSBA Journal


A n y t h i n g i s P o s s i b l e

Jus t Ask Your K ids . . .

D e s i g n i n g f o rt h e P o s s i b i l i t i e s

I want to conduct a symphony.

Lila, 5th grade

Jus t Ask Your K ids . . .

Contact David Maroney [email protected] www.atsr.com

PLANNERS / ARCHITECTS / ENGINEERS

14 MSBA Journal

SChool VotE YES CommittEES need to consider an early-voting strategy

IIn the mountains of laws passed during the “Unsession” this year, a small provision was changed that allows for people to cast an absentee ballot without having to give a reason such as “I have an operation scheduled for that day” or “I spend winters in Arizona” Basically, if people want to vote early, they can

This changes strategy for school district Vote Yes groups as they prepare to get out the vote for a bond or levy referendum this fall The strategy now should be: One campaign for early voters and one campaign for the rest of the people voting on Election Day

When do people make a decision about your referendum?Dr Bill Morris, of Morris Leatherman Company, had some interesting statistics about when people make decisions about referendums and candidates Morris’ survey results showed 45 percent of people have already made up their mind about ballot questions before Sept 1 rolls around And another 20 percent make their decisions in September

Absentee ballots are available Sept 19 this year for the General Election In the past, people have had to give a reason why they would not be able to vote in November With the law change, no reason is needed Anyone can vote early This provides a window of opportunity for Yes committees to put in place a strategy to capture more of the parent vote and youth vote by encouraging them to vote early

The strategy: Target parents who didn’t vote in the past electionAny good Vote Yes campaign starts with getting the voting rolls from the past election (or the past referenda election) Compare that list to your list of parents and see how many parents voted Then, start a list of parents who didn’t vote That list of parents who didn’t make it to the polls contains your targets in your campaign for early voting

Greg Abbott

Allie Trnka

Again, Morris Leatherman found that four out of five parents will vote in favor of any reasonable tax increase The problem is, according to Morris: “In some districts in 2013, the parent turnout rate dropped below the general turnout rate”

Whether parents thought the issue would pass without their vote or thought it might fail so they didn’t turn out, the numbers of voting parents are dropping

The beauty of an early voting campaign is that you can locate those parents who are not showing up at the polls and get an absentee ballot in their hands

Absentee voting is easyPeople can vote absentee in person or by mail The law allows for a voter to ask a person they know to pick up and deliver an absentee ballot for them It starts by requesting an absentee ballot application This can be done online or you can request one from the county election office – even if you are not a registered voter (If you are not a registered voter, the county will send the absentee application and a voter registration application) To complete a voter registration form, the person must have a proof of residence

County offices – and some city offices – will be open during normal business hours for people wanting to vote early by absentee And for those with transportation issues, they can also request an absentee ballot and vote by mail

Banking your votes early saves time at the end of the campaignAn early voting campaign can be a good way to increase the faltering turnout rates for parent voting Once you have targeted parents who didn’t vote in previous elections, you can turn to 20-somethings who haven’t voted The more people you can check off your list for parents who voted early, the fewer your campaign will have to target down the stretch

The district can help start the early voting campaign by making sure that everyone is notified about the Early Voting Law and the time period of Sept 19 through Nov 3 The information can also list where to vote (the county and any city location) and how to get an absentee voting application form online The key for district communications is to not encourage a Yes vote Only the Yes Committee can send out information that includes a pitch for the referendum

The second strategy targets recent graduates and 20-somethings A Yes Committee can have friends or classmates contact the people in that age group and make sure they know about voting early Remembering to vote and saving time to vote on a specific day can be somewhat problematic for young families who have to run to jobs, get their baby to daycare or get to the polls if bad weather hits on Election Day Recent graduates might be at college and need to receive information about voting early in their hometown So again, the more targeted people voting early, the greater the percentage of voters in favorable categories who might not otherwise get to the polls

Strategy change also requires an earlier district informational campaignIf the Vote Yes group is going to be successful at increasing the parent and youth vote, it means the district also has to adjust their schedule of when information on the referendum goes out From Morris’ findings, that information campaign should really start in July And it should definitely be in place by the time absentee ballots are available Sept 19

If the information is available, it makes it easier for the Yes committee to encourage early voters to support the referenda because an informed voter is usually a Yes voter An uninformed voter is usually a No voter

Another plus for early information is that you avoid the glut of nasty political ads that dominate governor races, legislative races and some local county and city races Before the media is clogged with other races, the district has a golden opportunity to get information out and help the Yes Committee start to bank votes If early voting efforts can increase parent turnout or youth turnout by just 20 percent, you could see a much more positive result when ballots are cast in November The key is to make sure your Yes group has funding for an early voting campaign and has a strategy set for targeting young people and parents who didn’t vote in the past election

Greg Abbott is the communications director for the Minnesota School Boards Association. Information on voting decision percentages and parent voting rates are courtesy of Morris Leatherman Company.

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18 MSBA Journal

TThose of us who have the gift of sight take it for granted, yet we are making thousands of decisions daily via our eyes Some are conscious, many are not – how many times have you driven home, responding to various stimuli such as stoplights and oncoming cars, while your brain was somewhere else? Your eyes and brain worked together to get you home, even without your analyzing each and every move on that TV screen in your head

Many of us don’t really “see” – we are, like the driver, on “autopilot” An art education hones our abilities to really “see” what our eyes are pointed toward – an awareness that contributes to all learning; indeed, enables it

My husband will often joke how funny we “art people” are when we get together: we seem to just get a kick out of so many things Why? We’re conscious of what’s around us, probably more than most folks

Debra Hannu

Why Art is Core

Allie Trnka

So it’s true: artists do have more fun! Like reading and language arts classes in school, art courses teach decoding and creating or “re-coding” Our companions in literacy generally garner a much larger piece of the education pie, but the literacy of the visual is no less important; perhaps even more After all, you’re only reading and writing at certain times in your daily life, but you’re looking and seeing all the time – and making decisions based on the information coming in

This became very clear to me during a summer camp experience, where I had students from a school district that had no elementary art specialists, and students of the same age from my own school district, who had a moderate dose of professional art education in their school diets While both of these groups of students were looking at the same things, they could not SEE the same things or make the same observations It was quite a startling revelation, especially considering that as the brain develops, certain neural pathways are closed, and malleability is forever changed Just think of the implications for all other learning, in all content areas!

Our brains resort to symbol systems as a form of “shorthand” for everyday life, a sort of visual glyph We know without analysis which restroom to walk into, for example, by a pretty basic visual cue Make that image many degrees more realistic, however, with a particular expression or colorized or postured in a specific way, and “reading” it becomes more complex and emotional – requiring noticing, nuance, an understanding of what organizational principles do in art, context, and the full range of skills that a quality art education provides Kind of like the difference between understanding a STOP sign versus a novel

Lest anyone out there might still believe that art class is just about “making stuff” or “self-esteem” (comments that will surely raise the ire of your friendly local neighborhood art teacher), please be aware Art education is firmly rooted and wrapped in cognitive development, and children go through predictable stages in their development in “markmaking” which coordinate with their development in language, in physical abilities, and so on

Your art teacher doesn’t just play with stuff and color; he or she is an expert in cognition and brain development – in knowing when and where to guide children in their visual understanding of the world around them Your art teacher isn’t just showing students cool pictures; he or she is helping them learn to discern, to read images, and to figure out how to create images to get specific effects – all the while opening doors to a world of history, culture, and interconnectedness

No matter the art form or the delivery – be it aesthetics, visual culture, graphic design, media arts, art criticism, or teaching artistic behavior – a quality art education is hyper-relevant to today’s schooling Our society is increasingly image-focused – indeed, we respond to an image 10,000 times more readily than to words in our televisual society; yet visual and media arts education take a decided backseat to reading/language arts in schools Images, with a potency that goes far beyond the written word, rule our worlds, while quality arts education programs are demoted in schools With all that we now know about multiple intelligences and brain development, we still stubbornly hold to standardized tests as measures of intelligence

While we are adamant about having licensed reading teachers, we find loopholes to staffing arts courses professionally Perhaps it’s time to reconcile the differences

Debra Hannu is a visual/media arts educator and curriculum coach in the Duluth Public Schools. She serves on the new National Coalition for Core Arts Standards Visual Arts Writing Team, and was awarded Minnesota’s Art Educator of the Year for 2013–14.


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22 MSBA Journal

TThe past decade of tight school budgets has taken its toll on the arts As the 2014–15 school year approaches, Minnesota students will be headed back to schools that have 25 percent fewer music teachers than in 2004

For many schools, creating a robust music program can be a challenge Kerkoven-Murdock-Sunburg Schools Director of Bands, Pam Diem, is in charge of more than 10 different bands from elementary level to senior high pep band, wearing multiple hats as the sole director The opportunity for support in rural areas is especially difficult to come by After learning of an Online School Partnership opportunity with MacPhail Center for Music, she learned that she could augment her program and support the needs of the 80 to 90 students in the room with top-level instruction tailored to her curriculum

Martin Heidelberger, Superintendent of KMS Schools, knows the importance of supporting the teachers “We’re a small rural school, and we’re isolated,” said Heidelberger “We see that with inherent advantages and challenges

Paul Babcock

Music Education Meets Online Technology:

Augmenting Programs Through Online School Partnerships

Marty McGuire


So as we look forward, how do we optimize? How do we capitalize on those? What we want are opportunities for our students, when they’re learning to achieve at their highest level, to attain their potential”

That’s where we at MacPhail come in With advances in technology, teaching music is no longer limited to face-to-face interaction In 2011, our school set out to combine a successful background in providing collaborative music school partnerships with the use of new technology to bring music to rural areas of the state that would otherwise have limited access We wanted to work with music directors to provide the resources and support needed to help their students achieve their highest potential With KMS Schools, we were able to provide clinics, sectionals and 1-on-1 lessons online while enhancing their established program

How it worksThe technology: Our Online School Partnerships (OSP) use state-of-the-art video conferencing to bring high-level learning in real time right into the classroom Many schools already have sophisticated video conference equipment established, which makes for easy adoption As an alternative, some schools use simple desktop video-conferencing technology such as Skype

The partnership: MacPhail works with the local music teachers and/or band directors to identify what could be most helpful to them and their students Working within their curriculum, the program is able to pinpoint areas that help support a school’s ultimate goals, providing esteemed faculty and technology resources to supplement a student’s classroom experience where needed During their scheduled class, MacPhail links up via live feed to share faculty expertise

Nicole Boelter, instrumental music director for Yellow Medicine East School District in

Granite Falls, had initial concerns about an online school partnership with MacPhail After a year of working together, she says: “I am proud of how far I can push my students to help them improve, but the resources of MacPhail with their professional musicians and specific expertise help students achieve to the best of their ability”

Innovation and leadershipWhile a few collegiate organizations have previous experience in their respective field using online technology, MacPhail is the first to use video conferencing as a community-based organization for music education We have grown to have powerful relationships with our partners that far exceed just business The results have been great, with both music directors and students appreciating what it adds to their experience

“When you ask about priorities, as we saw in working with MacPhail’s service, it is really about excellence,” said Heidelberger “MacPhail now has fulfilled a need”

Jackie Schanus

24 MSBA Journal

Music

Educa

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nline T

echnol

ogy:

Aug

men

ting

Prog

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s Th

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h On

line

Sch

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Partn

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The end resultMacPhail’s partnerships have created collaborative platforms in which faculty and technology support an established music program at any level It has worked by creating more resources for the musical director to use that support the curriculum, giving him or her complete control with added expertise At the same time, it helps create a more diverse classroom setting with opportunities to experience a new environment with differing skills and expertise from musicians who are experts on their instruments

There are two main concerns new partners have before creating a successful program The first is uncertainty about how effective online lessons can be in a large classroom setting The second is a concern that MacPhail’s program might replace the local teacher, rather than provide resources to enhance their music programs Fortunately, both obstacles are quickly overcome

Victoria, a high school flute student from Kerkhoven, summed up her feelings about online lessons: “At first I was really afraid and uncertain about doing music lessons online But it took about 30 seconds to see this was incredible!”

Paul Babcock is President and COO of the MacPhail Center for Music. For more information on Online School Partnerships, contact Kristin Shoemaker at [email protected].

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A Call for Reform in School Construction Financing

26 MSBA Journal

PPerhaps my eye was attracted to the total cost figure of $87 million After all, the Dover-Eyota school electorate had just passed a bond issue referendum for $865 million, approving two school construction projects Perhaps I was surprised over the relatively small amount of media attention given to this other $87 million public construction project compared to that given to our identically priced school project Or perhaps it was just the contrasting process needed to approve such an expenditure for a publicly funded construction project

Whatever the reason, reading the news of construction beginning on a new $87 million fire station in northeast Rochester again raised a nagging question in my mind, one being continually asked by education leaders all around the state: “Why are school districts the only public entity required to hold a referendum to levy for construction costs?” It seems that no matter when, or where, or of whom I ask that question, I have gotten no better answer than

Bruce A. Klaehn

Ashley LeBrun


the infamous, “Because it has always been that way”

We don’t consider that answer acceptable very often in our society today In all walks of life, we are asking why, and we expect a pretty good reason If not, we begin the process of change Today, I call upon state government leaders to “begin the process of change” for school construction funding

The current system is a glaring discrepancy to how we otherwise go about taxation and representation School boards, it seems, are the only publicly elected officials who, for whatever reason, cannot be entrusted with the authority to build as they see fit, even though they are held accountable in the same election process as legislators, county commissioners, city councils and township boards

“Checks and balances” you say? In addition to a referendum, school districts are already required to proceed through a process called “Review and Comment,” a lengthy report submitted to the state Department of Education This report contains extensive information about the school district, its current facilities, current debt, details of the proposed plan, projected property tax impact of the project, enrollment history and projections, and a host of other details used for a thorough review by department officials An approximate waiting period of 60 days passes while school leaders wait for the response, which could come as an approval, a denial, or a request for further information I am not sure if any “Review and Comment” is required to build a similarly priced fire station

Schools aren’t asking for a credit card without a limit We know we answer to our taxpayers We respect that responsibility every year when we set our levies, just like the Legislature and all the other public entities What we seek is equality Equality for all kids across the state Equality among all public boards and commissions There are a lot of educational infrastructure needs throughout this state and nation, and one of the reasons those needs are ongoing and worsening is the referendum requirement

The current process is expensive and damaging Thousands of dollars are expended in these referendums, dollars from the same fund a school uses to upgrade technology, buy buses, and pay the electric bill Communities are split, and school effectiveness is bruised by the emotional blows delivered within these campaigns Anyone calling these referendums a healthy part of the democratic process hasn’t been close enough to one to see what really goes on

We can do this better, Minnesota We can set school debt limits We can allow levies that “save up” for future construction needs, spreading the tax burden more fairly We CAN entrust our school boards to make these decisions and prevent the divisions in communities that take years, if ever, to mend, negatively impacting the local education process along the way Let’s sit down and figure out a better way, with a better reason than “the way it’s always been done” I’ll be glad to help, and I’ll be glad to work with those who might be suspicious of such a change

Bruce A. Klaehn is superintendent of Dover-Eyota Public Schools. To comment on this article, you can reach him at [email protected].

Lexie Franek

28 MSBA Journal

2014 Summer Seminar Scrapbook

William Morris – president of the Morris Leatherman Company – shares tips on what school boards, school staff and Vote Yes committees should do to make their referendum campaigns successful.

Attorney Peter Martin talks about the Safe and Supportive Schools Act and how it will affect school districts this fall.


Summer Seminar attendees try out a listening exercise with Dr. Alan Zimmerman moderating.

Minnesota School Boards Association’s Grace Keliher runs through a few statistics about the 2014 Legislative Session.

Minnesota Department of Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius talks about department initiatives and answers questions from seminar attendees.

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32 MSBA Journal

Architects/Engineers/Facility Planners

Architects Rego + Youngquist, inc. (Paul Youngquist) 7601 Wayzata Blvd, Suite #200 St Louis Park, MN 55426 952-544-8941, Fax 952-544-0585 wwwaryarchcom pyoungquist@aryarchcom

Arvig 888-992-7844 wwwarvigcom answers@arvigcom

ATS&R Planners/Architects/Engineers (Paul W Erickson) 8501 Golden Valley Road, Suite 300 Minneapolis, MN 55427 763-545-3731, Fax 763-525-3289 wwwatsrcom perickson@atsrcom

Clark Engineering Corporation (Douglas Fell) 621 Lilac Drive N Minneapolis, MN 55422 763-545-9196, Fax 763-541-0056 wwwclark-engcom dfell@clark-engcom

Cuningham Group Architecture, Inc. (Cuningham Group®) (Judith Hoskens) 201 Main Street SE, Suite 325 Minneapolis, MN 55414 612-379-3400, Fax 612-379-4400 wwwcuninghamcom jhoskens@cuninghamcom

GLTArchitects (Evan Larson) 808 Courthouse Square St Cloud, MN 56303 320-252-3740, Fax 320-255-0683 wwwgltarchitectscom elarson@gltarchitectscom

Hallberg Engineering, Inc. (Richard Lucio) 1750 Commerce Court White Bear Lake, MN 55110 651-748-1100, Fax 651-748-9370 wwwhallbergengineeringcom rlucio@hallbergengineeringcom

I+S Group (ISG) (Rod Schumacher) 115 E Hickory Street, Suite 300 Mankato, MN 56001 507-387-6651, Fax 507-387-3583 wwwis-grpcom rodschumacher@is-grpcom

ICS Consulting, Inc. (Pat Overom) 5354 Edgewood Drive Mounds View, MN 55112 763-354-2670, Fax 763-780-2866 wwwics-consultcom pato@ics-consultcom

Johnson Controls, Inc. (Kathleen Donovan) 2605 Fernbrook Lane N Plymouth, MN 55447 612-554-5160, Fax 763-566-2208 wwwjohnsoncontrolscom kathleenmdonovan@jcicom

Kodet Architectural Group, Ltd. (Ed Kodet) 15 Groveland Terrace Minneapolis, MN 55403 612-377-2737, Fax 612-377-1331 wwwkodetcom ekodet@kodetcom

MSBA Playground Compliance Program (in partnership with National Playground Compliance Group, LLC) (Tim Mahoney) PO Box 506 Carlisle, IA 50047 866-345-6774, Fax 515-989-0344 http://nssi-usacom tim@playgroundcompliancecom

Nexus Solutions (Mike David) 11188 Zealand Avenue N Champlin, MN 55316 612-747-1003, Fax 763-201-8410 wwwnexussolutionscom mdavid@nexussolutionscom

TSP Architects and Engineers (Gary Sabart) 18707 Old Excelsior Boulevard Minnetonka, MN 55345 952-474-3291, Fax 952-474-3928 wwwteamtspcom sabartgw@teamtspcom

Unesco, Inc. (Kevin McGauley) 584 Woodland Drive Mahtomedi, MN 55115 952-486-7854, Fax 952-487-9389 wwwunescocorpcom kevinmcgauley@unescocorpcom

Wendel (Jim Wilson) 111 Washington Avenue N, Suite 300 Minneapolis, MN 55401 612-332-1401, Fax 612-332-1405 wwwwendelcompaniescom jwilson@wendelcompaniescom

Widseth Smith Nolting (Kevin Donnay) 7804 Industrial Park Road Baxter, MN 56425 218-829-5117, Fax 218-829-2517 wwwwidsethsmithnoltingcom kevindonnay@wsnuscom

Wold Architects and Engineers (Vaughn Dierks) 305 St Peter Street St Paul, MN 55102 651-227-7773, Fax 651-223-5646 wwwwoldaecom mail@woldaecom

Athletic Facilities

I+S Group (ISG) (Rod Schumacher) 115 E Hickory Street, Suite 300 Mankato, MN 56001 507-387-6651, Fax 507-387-3583 wwwis-grpcom rodschumacher@is-grpcom

Athletic Sports Floors/Surfacing

Fisher Tracks, Inc. (Jordan Fisher) 1192 235th Street Boone, IA 50036 515-432-3191, Fax 515-432-3193 wwwfishertrackscom jfisher@fishertrackscom

Midwest Tennis & Track (Brian Launderville) 22 South Main Street Denison, IA 51442 712-263-3554, Fax 712-263-5110 wwwmidwesttennisandtrackcom brian@midwesttennisandtrackcom


Attorneys

Kennedy & Graven, Chartered (Neil Simmons) 470 US Bank Plaza, 200 S 6th Street Minneapolis, MN 55402 612-337-9300, Fax 612-337-9310 wwwkennedy-gravencom contactus@kennedy-gravencom

Knutson, Flynn & Deans (Thomas S Deans) 1155 Centre Pointe Drive, Suite 10 Mendota Heights, MN 55120 651-222-2811, Fax 651-225-0600 wwwkfdmncom tdeans@kfdmncom

Pemberton Law (Kristi A Hastings) 110 N Mill Street Fergus Falls, MN 56537 218-736-5493, Fax 218-736-3950 wwwpemlawcom khastings@pemlawcom

Ratwik, Roszak & Maloney, P.A. (Joseph J Langel) 730 2nd Avenue S, Suite 300 Minneapolis, MN 55402 612-339-0060, Fax 612-339-0038 wwwratwiklawcom info@ratwiklawcom

Construction Management & Consulting Services

ICS Consulting, Inc. (Pat Overom) 5354 Edgewood Drive Mounds View, MN 55112 763-354-2670, Fax 763-780-2866 wwwics-consultcom pato@ics-consultcom


Knutson Construction (Todd Vigil) 7515 Wayzata Boulevard Minneapolis, MN 55426 612-600-4464 or 763-525-3085 wwwknutsonconstructioncom tvigil@knutsonconstructioncom

Kraus-Anderson Construction Company (John Huenink) PO Box 158 Circle Pines, MN 55014 763-792-3616, Fax 763-786-2650 wwwkrausandersoncom johnhuenink@krausandersoncom


Stahl Construction (Josh Schultz) 5755 Wayzata Boulevard St Louis Park, MN 55416 952-931-9300, Fax 952-931-9941 wwwstahlconstructioncom jschultz@stahlconstructioncom

Educational Programs/Services

Minnesota State Academies for the Deaf and Blind (Brad Harper) 615 Olof Hanson Drive Faribault, MN 55021 507-384-6602, Fax 507-332-5528 wwwmsastatemnus bradharper@msastatemnus

The Minnesota Service Cooperatives (Jeremy Kovash) 1001 East Mount Faith Avenue Fergus Falls, MN 56537 218-739-3273, Fax 218-739-2459 wwwlcscorg jkovash@lcscorg

Electrical Engineers/AV Systems

Widseth Smith Nolting (Kevin Donnay) 7804 Industrial Park Road Baxter, MN 56425 218-829-5117, Fax 218-829-2517 wwwwidsethsmithnoltingcom kevindonnay@wsnuscom

MSBA’s Vendor Directory helps connect school districts with the products and services they need. The directory is always at your fingertips. You’ll find it printed in the back of every Journal magazine as well as on the MSBA Website at www.mnmsba.org. Most listings in the Web version of this directory include a link so you can head instantly to a Website or e-mail address. The directory includes everything you need to know to contact a company quickly—phone numbers, fax numbers and addresses—in an easy-to-read format. If you have a service or product you would like included in this directory, please contact Erica Nelson at 763-497-1778 or [email protected].

MSBA’s vendor directory


Energy Solutions


Unesco, Inc. (Kevin McGauley) 584 Woodland Drive Mahtomedi, MN 55115 952-486-7854, Fax 952-487-9389 wwwunescocorpcom kevinmcgauley@unescocorpcom

Facilities Maintenance & Supplies

Clark Engineering Corporation (Douglas Fell) 621 Lilac Drive North Minneapolis, MN 55422 763-545-9196, Fax 763-541-0056 wwwclark-engcom dfell@clark-engcom

Financial Management

Ehlers (Joel Sutter) 3060 Centre Pointe Drive Roseville, MN 55113 651-697-8514, Fax 651-697-8555 wwwehlers-inccom jsutter@ehlers-inccom

Eide Bailly LLP (Ross Manson) Fargo, ND;

Minneapolis, Mankato, MN 855-220-8634, Fax 507-386-6268 wwweidebaillycom nationaltaxoffice@eidebaillycom

MSBA-Sponsored Administration and Compliance Service (A&C Service) Administration and Compliance Service (Paige McNeal, Educators Benefit Consultants, LLC) 888-507-6053 or 763-552-6053 Fax 763-552-6055 wwwebcsolutionscom paige@ebcsolutionscom

MSBA-Sponsored MNTAAB (Minnesota Tax and Aid Anticipation Borrowing) Program (Patty Heminover, Springsted, Inc) 800-236-3033 or 651-223-3058 Fax 651-268-5058 wwwspringstedcom pheminover@springstedcom

MSBA-Sponsored P-Card (Procurement Card) Program 800-891-7910 or 314-878-5000 Fax 314-878-5333 wwwpowercardpfmcom

MSBA-Sponsored PaySchools-Data Business Systems (Andy Eckles) 17011 Lincoln Avenue Parker, CO 80134 303-779-6573 or 855-210-8232 X 130 wwwpayschoolscom wwwdatabusyscom andyeckles@databusyscom

MSBA-Sponsored SchoolFinances.com (Jim Sheehan, Ann Thomas) Sheehan: 952-435-0990 Thomas: 952-435-0955 wwwschoolfinancescom jim@schoolfinancescom ann@schoolfinancescom

PFM Asset Management, LLC - MSDLAF+ (Donn Hanson) 800 Nicollet Mall, Suite 2710 Minneapolis, MN 55402 612-371-3720, Fax 612-338-7264 wwwmsdlaforg hansond@pfmcom

Fire & Security


Fitness Equipment

2nd Wind Exercise Equipment (Shon Hartman) 7585 Equitable Drive Eden Prairie, MN 55344 952-224-1240, Fax 952-906-6905 www2ndwindexercisecom/ commercial shartman@2ndwindexercisecom

Floor Coverings

Hiller Commercial Floors (Dave Bahr) 2909 S Broadway Rochester, MN 55904 507-254-6858 or 888-724-1766 Fax 507-288-8877 wwwhillercarpetcom dbahr@hillercarpetcom

Food Service Products & Services

Taher, Inc. (Erin Hove) 5570 Smetana Drive Minnetonka, MN 55343 952-345-2891, Fax 952-945-0444 wwwtahercom ehove@tahercom

Health Insurance

PreferredOne (Mike Thielen) 6105 Golden Hills Drive Golden Valley, MN 55416 763-847-3549, Fax 763-847-4010 wwwPreferredOnecom mikethielen@preferredonecom

Insurance

Bullis Insurance Agency - Assured Risk Protection (Marc Bullis) 407 East Lake Street #201 Wayzata, MN 55391 952-449-0089 mbullis@bullisagencycom

Minnesota School Boards Association Insurance Trust (MSBAIT) (Denise Drill, Gary Lee,

Amy Fullenkamp-Taylor, John Sylvester) 1900 West Jefferson Avenue St Peter, MN 56082-3015 800-324-4459, Fax 507-931-1515 wwwmsbaitorg ddrill@mnmsbaorg glee@mnmsbaorg ataylor@mnmsbaorg jsylvester@mnmsbaorg

Riverport Insurance Company (Dave Kyllo) 222 South Ninth Street, Suite 1300 Minneapolis, MN 55402 612-766-3227, Fax 612-766-3397 wwwriverportinsurancecom dkyllo@riverportinsurancecom

Labor Relations


Playgrounds


Public Finance


Roofing

North Central Insulation (Brett Geboy) PO Box 91 Eau Claire, WI 54702 715-210-4307, Fax 715-835-8830 brett@northcentralinsulationcom

Security/Communication Systems


Software Systems


Technology



Technology Education

PreciouStatus (Julie Gilbert Newrai) 275 Market Square, Suite 519 Minneapolis, MN 55405 888-959-8982 wwwprecioustatuscom support@precioustatuscom

Transportation

Hoglund Bus Co., Inc. (Jason Anderson) PO Box 249 Monticello, MN 55362 800-866-3105, Fax 763-295-4992 wwwhoglundbuscom salesmanager@hoglundbuscom

Minnesota School Bus Operators Association (Shelly Jonas) 10606 Hemlock Street NW Annandale, MN 55302 320-274-8313, Fax 320-274-8027 wwwmsboacom shellyj@msboacom

National Bus Sales (Paul Thompson) 8649 S Regency Drive Tulsa, OK 74131 800-475-1439 wwwnationalbuscom paul@nationalbuscom

North Central Bus & Equipment (Sandy Kiehm) 2629 Clearwater Road St Cloud, MN 56301 320-257-1209, Fax 320-252-3561 wwwnorthcentralinccom sandyk@northcentralinccom

Telin Transportation Group (Dave Mohr) 16290 Kenrick Loop Lakeville, MN 55044 612-850-6348, Fax 952-435-9066 wwwtelingroupcom dmohr@telingroupcom

Wireless Communications


AdvertisersATS&R Planners/Architects/Engineers Page 13

Eide Bailly LLP Page 7

I+S Group (ISG) Page 17

Johnson Controls, Inc Page 30

Kennedy & Graven, Chartered Page 7

Knutson Construction Page 21

Knutson, Flynn & Deans, PA Page 35

Kraus-Anderson Construction Company Page 16

MLA Architects Page 15

MSBAIT Page 36

MSDLAF+ Page 17

Nexus Solutions Page 16

North Central Insulation Page 30

PreciouStatus Page 13

PreferredOne Page 2

Ratwik, Roszak & Maloney, PA Page 31

Riverport Insurance Company Page 20

Rupp, Anderson, Squires & Waldspurger, PA Page 25

Scholastic Achievement Partners (SAP) Page 25

Taher, Inc Page 21

Telin Transportation Group Page 35

Widseth Smith Nolting Page 20

34 MSBA Journal

Named

2009, 2010 & 2012 Best Print

Publicationby the Minnesota School

Public Relations Association

Cited for“Comprehensive Coverage”

“Impressive Student Artwork”

Brought to you by YOUR MSBA

Molly Tiede


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General LiabilityExcess Liability

Protection assurance when you need it. The Minnesota School Boards Association

Insurance Trust (MSBAIT) endorses companies with a proven record of service.

Your MSBAIT contacts

Denise Drill

ddrill@ mnmsba.org

Amy Fullenkamp-Taylor

ataylor@ mnmsba.org

Gary Leeglee@

mnmsba.org

John Sylvesterjsylvester@

mnmsba.org

MSBAIT — addressing the needs of public schools’ risk-management programs since 1972

Quality Coverage and Service Tailor-Made For School Districts

Find out what MSBAIT can do for your district.Call 800-324-4459 or visit www.msbait.org.

msba journal sept-oct 2014

Documents

regional meeting staples23

regional meeting rochester18

meetings2first day school

regional meeting st

fair school fundingwe

msba journal thanks

labor day

time ends4election day