Today the EMID Joint Powers Board (our version of a school board) voted to affirm that: “After significant listening and gathering of stakeholder input, it is recommended that the Board not conduct a feasibility study to expand grades 11 and 12 at Crosswinds.” Chair of the Board, Bruce Hagerty, emphasized repeatedly that this action was not intended to shut the door on the notion of 11-12 at Crosswinds, but was only a “very narrow” action to kill the feasibility study. Read on for the gory details, including a few other bits of news from the board meeting.
Author Archives: Eric Celeste
EMID Board to Decide on 11-12 at Crosswinds, 10/20
The next EMID Board meeting is, fittingly, at Crosswinds School this Wednesday, 10/20, at 5:30pm. It is fitting that this is one of the rare board meetings at Crosswinds because the board is actually making a decision of vital importance to Crosswinds’ future. On the action agenda is the “High School Feasibility Study.” Dr. Cassellius is asking the board to drop the whole idea of 11th and 12th grade at Crosswinds
After significant listening and gathering of stakeholder input, it is recommended that the Board not conduct a feasibility study to expand grades 11 and 12 at Crosswinds. It is further recommeneded that the Board discuss the overall grade configuration for the EMID schools within its upcoming strategic planning.
The full board packet (PDF) is available on the EMID website.
Other items of interest to families may be an update on the Statewide Task Force on School Integration, the approval of the permanent contract for Crosswinds Principal Bryan Bass, and the Annual Report on Curriculum, Instruction and Student Achievement.
All in all, an ambitious agenda, well worth attending if you have the time during this break-week. Remember, the meetings now start at 5:30pm and this one will be at Crosswinds!
Notes from 9/15 EMID Board Meeting
[Thanks to Jeff Syme for sharing these notes. …Eric]
Very interesting meeting tonight, and very long… 5:30 to nearly 8:30, and then an hour-long work session on strategic planning. All 10 Board Reps were present as well as a dozen parents and additional staff. Here is a quick summary for those who couldn’t attend. (One man’s opinion from 10 pages of notes, but please talk with many others to gain the broadest insight on all these affairs.)
The headline is: Nothing was voted on or off the table, and the next four weeks will be crucial. Read on for the details. Continue reading
Dr. Cassellius Wants to take 11-12 at Crosswinds Off the Table: Notes from 9/13 Crosswinds Site Council
[Please note: these are not official minutes, they are just the jottings of one parent with a bit of ranting thrown in. I hope they may be helpful to parents who were not able to attend the meeting tonight, but please don’t treat this as in any way official or the last word. Ask around and talk to other parents for a more complete picture. …Eric]
First, what I consider the headline of tonight’s meeting: Dr. Cassellius Wants to take 11-12 at Crosswinds Off the Table.
A lot else was talked about, but the meeting really heated up when it became clear that Brenda would, as Superintendent, ask the EMID Board this Wednesday to cancel plans to consider adding 11th and 12th grade to Crosswinds. She considers it a matter of “capacity and effort,” and thinks “we would have a really difficult time building a solid high school program.” She is also concerned that we have not, even in years of trying, been able to maintain enrollment numbers from 8th to 9th grades. Her vision for EMID, she made very clear, is as a preK-8 set of schools. While she has not ruled out 9th and 10th at Crosswinds, those grades are also clearly not part of her vision for the district. When asked about the span of IB Middle Years from 6-10 she said there were approved IB Middle Years schools that were just 6-8.
Needless to say, this was a revelation to many of the parents at the meeting and generated significant conversation. I heard a lot of disappointment and distress, a few even questioning whether Crosswinds could survive as 6-8. I may have missed it, but I didn’t hear any parent support for this vision, but frankly the meeting got quite (appropriately) emotional and I don’t know that anyone sympathetic would necessarily have stepped up to offer their support. The clarity with which Brenda stated her case was actually quite courageous, but it was certainly not what this site council wanted to hear.
If you want to be a part of this conversation, you should consider attending the EMID Board Meeting this Wednesday (9/15) at 5:30pm at Harambee.
Aside from that very big news, there were many other tidbits from this meeting. Read on to see a list in roughly the order they were discussed
Continue reading
Crosswinds Principal Interviews, 9/16
Some parents have gotten an email notification that interviews for Crosswinds Principal candidates will be on Thursday 9/16 from Noon to 4pm. All are welcome. Please RSVP, details below.
Superintendent Cassellius starts a blog
Superintendent Brenda Cassellius has started a blog on the EMID website. The first post appears to be a note from Crosswinds Interim Principal Bryan Bass, so it appears she may share this blog with other administrators of EMID. In any case, go check it out, and if you use a newsreader, subscribe to the RSS feed. Unfortunately the blog does not seem to accept comments or supply “permalinks” for each article, but that may change as time goes on.
EMID on Facebook and Twitter
You can now follow official EMID news on Facebook and Twitter!
On Facebook, just “like” the “East Metro Integration District 6067” page.
On Twitter, just “follow” the “emid6067” account.
These both seem to be efforts by Superintendent Brenda Cassellius to increase the channels of communication between the district and families and friends. Bravo!
Working with Washington on 9-12
Patty Sargent, Crosswinds Site Council parent member, writes with the following update about a meeting with the Washington School principal to consider merging Crosswinds 9-10 with Washington 9-12. Note, she is asking for participation from both Crosswinds and Harambee parents, please let her know if you are interested!
Cassellius Recommends Removing 9th & 10th Grades from Crosswinds
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.
Welcome Reception for Crosswinds Interim Principal, Bryan Bass, 8/18
There will be a Welcome Reception for our new Crosswinds Interim Principal, Bryan Bass.
Wednesday, August 18
6:30 pm
Crosswinds School
Please come to meet Bryan and, as importantly, have him meet you. Pass the word to all Crosswinds parents, friends and families. If you want some background reading, MinnPost ran a story about Bass back in June.