The EMID Board held a “community input session” at Crosswinds on 14 September 2011. They split the participants into small groups and had them write their input on flip-chart sheets. These are our unofficial transcripts of these sheets (thanks, Mary!). The official EMID transcription of these sheets are now available as a PDF.
Notes from table discussions held at Crosswinds/EMID meeting September 14, 2011
Important to know:
Where EMID families would go if schools close? [indecipherable] its about $ for home district
Please consider more than #s (test scores, $, etc.)
Listen to students
We value integration for our kids! More than #s
We need to share this with member districts
Integration and support leads to success for ALL students (even those who don’t succeed in traditional way)
Ideas – what do we have to do to be self-reliant?
- How can we replace integration $ ? (1.9 million)
- Other bodies (non-profit, university, companies, etc.)
- Our own entity
- Could we change budgeting to only use per pupil $
- How can we strengthen our schools?
- “lab” school/showcase
Decide carefully – don’t rush the decision
Does the board represent EMID or home districts?
How does WMEP do it?
Why decide by Nov. 16th?
What happens to the fund balance if we close the schools?
There is distrust of boards stated focus on students
How can we spread the value of integration to member districts so they value membership [indecipherable]
Who was the consulting firm? What did the bard ask for? Can we do another survey?
EMID strengths and why to keep open
Student and teacher retention rate
Student attendance rate is high
Address all learners at their learning level
District of choice for parents and students
Strong focus on academics and relationships
Student centered philosophy
Everyone is accepted for who they are
Freedom to discover who they are
Understanding that integration is beyond ethnicity
Teach students to be independent life long learners
Strong passionate parents and teachers
Parents that sought for something different
Collaborate with teachers from member districts, ie. IB, TERI, responsive classroom, and developmental designs
Developed reading intervention program between Harambee, Crosswinds and member districts
Informal collaborations
Able to have conversations about race, gender, gender preference, religion that are organic
Integration is the air we breathe, not something we try
Need to publicize strengths – if areas need improvement, make stronger. Fight for it, don’t give up!
- Why the rush?
- What were 3 options? Listed only 2 in presentation
- What has been outreach to families who speak languages other than English?
- How will we get REAL input from ALL families (eg. meetings in their preferred language)?
- Does the board assume students will go to home school districts?
- What are other creative ways to solve the financial problems (raise EMID funds)?
- What will my local district do to meet my students’ needs?
- If home districts take $ back for integration, what will they do with it?
- Why did they not involve students in decision-making?
- What are board members’ educational backgrounds, or are they business-focused?
- What would it take to follow others options? (Perpich is one, other charter, business, etc.)
- How can we work with parents from the home schools?
- Who do talk to to help with strategic process, parents, …?
- What differences are there between students pre-EMID attendance, grades, and scores vs. current EMID performance?
- Is there input from students about how they feel about themselves, the school, teachers, etc.? We [indecipherable]
- What percentage of budget is spent in staff, teachers, [indecipherable] etc.?
- When decided to stay open will the district continue focus on k-10, or are they [indecipherable] to change focus to k-k or possibly add 11th and 12th?
- Why doesn’t St. Paul pay integration $ per student?
- Can we get St. Paul to pay integration $ per student?
- Follow up with post Crosswinds students (attitudes toward race, test scores, self confidence)
- Where does 5K go if EMID closes?
- Will it go back to integration programs?
- What do the districts expect and want from EMID?
- If they are expecting more why are they not participating more?
- Where does the state and the commissioner of ED stand on the issues about EMID?
Ideas for the process
(1) [indecipherable]
(2) year round increases education
(3) achievement gap vs. attendance
(4) [indecipherable]
(5) [indecipherable]
(6) [indecipherable]
(7) District Management Consul looked at achievement
(8) [indecipherable]
Questions to the Board
(1) could there be more surveys sent to a) parents b) students
(2) legislative campaign to keep funding
(3) how can schools continue to keep integration in the forefront
(4) why is the information/collaboration not working in other schools?
(5) how measure cultural awareness/understanding, getting along
(6) where do kids go that don’t fit into regular school
(7) if member districts pull out how do we keep the schools open
(8) Perpich/state agency take over governance (Sue Mackert)
(9) How EMID serves all the families in member district, ow to see it to home districts
Why is the parent input meeting so late in the process?
Will you be surveying the students?
If the member districts goal is integration – what has changed to make them reconsider?
WHEN will you get STUDENT input?
Isn’t your primary duty to your home district?
1. If you’re going to close the two schools, what are you planning to do with the EMID O.E.I.?
2. We believe students and families’ voices should be considered when discussing the future of EMID
3. It is vital for you to consider the voices of the children/students who are affected by this decision
* students and families from the two schools and from the other member districts
4. What process are you going to use in order to get student input?
5. If the two schools are closing, how will this effect EMID in general?
Questions:
What’s the rush?
Why be closed in a year (if funding exists for two years)?
Perpich School interested?
Can we stay open?
Would lunch price go up with no integration money?
What can we do as a school/community to change the mind of stakeholders?
How can we keep the schools open?
We need suggestions.
The assumption that kids would go back to their home district seems to be false.
Parents/community feel blindsided.
If a decision is made to close the schools, [indecipherable] will take legal action.
Information to consider
The fund could sustain [indecipherable] for 1 year
Staff [indecipherable]
Chose to send children to Harambee because of the philosophy
Difference between integration and desegregation
Community, relationship, celebrate [indecipherable]
Ideas
Put “brakes” on until legislature makes a decision
Apply for innovation funding (Bus $)
O.E.I.
Questions
Are we looking at the progress of how students are achieving from before they [indecipherable] the EMID until after they have been here
Is there a conflict of interest by [indecipherable] school board [indecipherable] connection and making
Info to be considered
Families want to provide more input for the purpose of strategic planning
Test scores are not the only measure of success
How will integration revenue that is “removed” be reflected in the programs of member districts?
How will we know that our member districts will address our concerns about integration?
Ideas
Provide additional/same survey again
Families of member districts provided with survey about how they want integration revenue used
Wait until February decision is made before making decisions about future
What was the question that the board had I mind when they hired the DMC? Why did they choose the DMC?
What are the major deciding factors when deciding the three possible plans?
What would lead you down each of the 3 roads?
Can our voice truly make a difference?
(this is the sheet from one of the tables that was largely students – does anyone have a better picture of these notes?)
[indecipherable]
Ideas
[indecipherable]
Have a Q&A session
Fundraisers
Students perspective
[indecipherable]
