The EMID Board packet for next week’s board meeting includes a “Summary of Vision and Organizational Changes” from Dr. Brenda Cassellius, Superintendent of EMID. The board meets at Harambee on Tuesday 8/24 at 6pm and we urge parents who care about this issue (or anything else on the board agenda) to attend. Cassellius is recommending that 9th and 10th grades be removed from Crosswinds.
Under a section labeled “Restructuring the Schools for Academic Achievement” she writes:
I am proposing two changes—a change in grade structure and configuration and changes in academic programming. We need to have “one vision—one school” with a lower and upper campus, Harambee PK-4 serving grades and the Crosswinds serving grades 5-8, and implementing both the IB Primary Years Programme and the IB Middle Years Programme. This will allow for a focused implementation of the arts and environmental studies through the IB Areas of Interaction as required by IBO. I am also proposing discontinuing the ninth and tenth grades at Crosswinds for many reasons. The first is to focus on the PK-8 and in order to do that well. We have a need to build confidence in our community and deliver on results for students. We can’t be everything to everyone. We need to focus, and I believe we can be the best in the world at providing a quality IB PK-8 school that celebrates diversity at its core.
I know this will not be popular at first. I know parents want a high school option for their children, and I believe we can offer not only excellent HS options for our children moving from EMID but also that we can expand that vision. Let me explain.
I would like to recommend a service arm of EMID that supports student success beyond Crosswinds that is called “Alumni Services.” This office will help students in 8th grade choose the best high school to meet their unique learning and cocurricular needs. The Alumni Counselors will not only help our EMID graduates pick the best high school but will be there when they are juniors and seniors to ensure they choose the right college. Furthermore, my Vision is that these alumni services will continue into college helping students first to navigate those difficult applications and FAFSA, securing scholarships, and persisting those first years. It is a grand vision but the kind of vision that is about relationships, commitment, and doing whatever it takes so students are successful.
These Alumni Services will be a special service of being an EMID student. They will provide support to our students as we design and develop our larger vision of a state of the art high school that truly is a reimagining of what high school should and could be for these future generations. It isn’t something to rush. We need time to put the right thought into it and develop programming together.
The full board packet this month is in two parts, each is a large PDF: part 1, part 2.
[This is an email from Patty Sargent, posted here with permission for the record. …Eric]
I wanted to respond to Eric’s e-mail quickly, so I will confirm what I can and ask that we all take a collective breath. First, there is no done deal anywhere in this. We continue to explore options that are first and foremost the right thing for our children and the students of EMID that will come after our own children have moved on. We are also having to balance in this the needs of the staff, the vision of the EMID leadership, desires from the EMID Board and member districts , and the wishes of parents here at Crosswinds and those with students in Harambee.
Now for confirmation of what is known at this point. Yes there is conversation with St Paul leadership, EMID leadership, and leadership at Washington Middle School to discuss the possibility of crafting a cooperative relationship between what is now Washington Middle School and Crosswinds. Washington Middle School is planning to add over the next years grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 to make it a 7-12 program. This school is and will continue to be housed in the building that was Arlington High School, located just off Rice Street in St Paul about 1.5 miles south of Harambee Elementary school. The principal of Washington, Mike McCollor, plans to have the IB Diploma program as part of the curriculum as he expands to high school. Currently, this is an open enrollment site and draws students from across St Paul. Those are the known facts.
Everything else at this point is still in discussion. These are some of the items that have been addressed to date, but no decisions have been reached. When could the change become effective? As early as 2011-2012, which would provide a Crosswinds option for current 10th grade students. This is also the year that Washington would add 9th grade, so it is feasible that Crosswinds 9th graders (this year’s 8th grade students) would make the move as well. For both classes this would be the first year in Washington for their 11th grade students and their 9th grade students, so all students would be starting “new.” With the participation of Crosswinds in the program, bussing would continue for all students as it has for Crosswinds in the past. Staffing is still an area of discussion with many complex issues that will need to be addressed and worked out before a definitive answer can be given. It has been very clear from parent, staff and student conversations that the culture, climate and relationships that are the heart of Crosswinds must be sustained for a program change such as this, and this issue is being held central in all discussion around this idea.
Some elements that contribute to the EMID mission would also be housed in the Washington facility. The OEI student support staff has already relocated to Washington to support SPPS and Washington High School’s development, and the EMID Multi-cultural Resource Center is already located there. EMID’s plans are to incorporate these into Washington’s integrated culture and celebrate diversity as a core school value.
The intention of this option is not to build a school within a school, but to integrate the two schools (Washington and Crosswinds) to create a single entity. Per Brenda, Mike McCollor is eager to provide an enthusiastic welcome and devote his high energy to our EMID families. I am in the process of trying to set up a meeting with him that Crosswinds parents can attend. He is said to be very excited about the possibilities in this partnership. Also, Washington became an award winning school under his leadership. Brenda is committed to the idea that this wouldn’t be a “hand-off” of our schools, but rather would be a true partnership and collaboration.
Finally, there are many more questions to which there are no answers at this time, and we will not be able to answer them until some of the items above have been discussed further and resolved. How many students will be involved in the new school? What will the curriculum look like? Who grants the diploma for graduates? What say does EMID have in the structure of the school? How much of the EMID identity is retained? If this doesn’t work what do our students do? In regards to this last item: Brenda Cassellius has met with parent groups several times to discuss these issues, and is trying to be transparent in exploring all options as stated in the Task Force report. Whether we move forward with Washington, or add 11/12 in the existing Crosswinds building, some parents still will not choose EMID High School as the best option for their child. Brenda realizes that and has indicated that she is also strengthening the pathways from Crosswinds to member high schools, and has dedicated a full-time position to work with this design and outreach for supporting student transitions in/out of our districts. This was a big concern for families, that they feel welcomed “back” into home districts, and so she is addressing that as well.
The truth is at this point there are far more questions than answers because this is an idea in its infancy, but one that will need to grow quickly or perish as time is critical for all of us.
Please know that we are all working hard together to do what is right for our children. Your continued support is critical to this process as we work to shape a superior education for our children and those that come after. Thank you all very much for your concerns, thoughtful questions and all of your hard work.
Patty Sargent
Crosswinds SIte Council Parent Member