Welcome to Superintendent’s Spotlight – a periodic and brief e-newsletter from Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Superintendent Bill Green highlighting news and information about our schools and our students.
* * *
On April 28, I will send a comprehensive plan to the Board of Education that seeks to create financial sustainability and build a new foundation for academic success. Changing School Options represents our best thinking after weighing all factors and competing values and priorities.
We face a $28 million budget shortfall that could potentially grow if state reductions occur. To make our academic vision a reality, we must realign our resources to keep more money in the classroom to serve students.
While change is never easy, this plan is necessary for us to achieve our vision of Every Child College Ready. We are seeking to make our schools better for the children of Minneapolis, and we will do everything in our power to serve them and to increase excellence in our schools. We have the experience to do this well. We are going to deliver.
Community engagement has been central to this work. We hosted more than 2,500 people at meetings in February, March and April. More than 1,200 responded to our online feedback form and more individuals contributed their thoughts through email. We thank all of these participants for their passion and commitment to helping us build a new foundation.
Overall, this system-wide plan has five clear objectives:
·        Get students closer to home to reduce transportation costs.
·        Reduce but maintain choice for families.
·        Ensure adequate program size for efficient use of limited resources.
·        Maintain flexibility for growth.
·        Uphold commitments to the North Side Initiative.
The board will vote on the whole plan on May 26. Changes, if approved, would be implemented for the 2010-2011 school year. This is a comprehensive, system-wide plan for change. The plan’s pieces are interrelated and the administration’s recommendation is for the board to vote on the entirety of the plan.
Prior to the board vote, school communities will be invited to attend citywide town hall meetings by area. They will be announced on April 28. This will be the community’s chance to learn more and to share their comments and opinions with the board. All public comment will be compiled in a report for the board prior to its vote.
Changing School Options is just one of the action steps in our ambitious Strategic Plan. I invite you to visit our website (www.mpls.k12.mn.us). Specific recommendations are available online along with a feedback form and an extensive collection of data that informed our work.
This recommendation is not the end of the process, but the beginning. Much planning will occur leading up to the fall of 2010. We value you and your input, and hope that you will continue to be involved in planning for the future of the Minneapolis Public Schools.
* * *
Additional information about the Minneapolis Public Schools can be found at http://www.mpls.k12.mn.us  There are great things happening every day at MPS!
Â
Please contact me any time with questions or feedback about our schools.
Bill Green, Minneapolis Public Schools Superintendent
, 612.668.0230