Megan Boldt wrote a story in the Pioneer Press this morning: “2 east metro magnet schools face closing in Maplewood, Woodbury.”

“There is a significant sense in many of us that our kids are doing well in these schools when they didn’t do well in others,” said St. Paul resident Mary Hess, who has sent her two sons to the schools.

“What it means to be successful in the world we live in now is way more than just how well students perform on standardized tests. It means being able to participate in a largely multicultural and multiracial world. Day to day, it’s a culture of integration at these schools.”

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Robicheau said operating the two schools consumes about three-quarters of the special district’s $12 million annual budget. But the schools serve only 880 students, fewer than 1 percent of the 122,000 students in the East Metro Integration District’s member districts.

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Robicheau said the money spent on the two schools could be directed to early childhood and literacy programs, magnet programs in member districts and more training to address the achievement gap.