Board Bulletin

November 7, 2023

It’s Election Day!

Today is Election Day. Voters in our community are asked to consider two referendum questions to update and improve 13 school sites across our community. Question one focuses on safety & security; early learning access; and learning + wellness spaces. The second question would improve outdoor activity spaces at East and West high schools. This referendum focuses on safe and modern facilities that will help ensure a high-quality education for today’s students and generations of learners to come.

Polls are open today from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. Your polling place may be different than what you’re used to. You can find your polling place here: https://pollfinder.sos.state.mn.us/

Voters can get full information on the proposed facilities referendum by visiting our website here: https://www.isd77.org/vote2023

Hear from Our Board Members on the Facility Referendum

Our School Board spent years hearing from experts and community members on the priority needs for our school buildings. Below are thoughts from our board members on why we voted unanimously to place two referendum questions in front of voters.

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Kristi Schuck

Putting the question to the community to support a bond referendum doesn’t happen for all who serve as a board member, and considering it’s been 10 years since our last referendum, this will be my second time going to the voters. This action is one I consider with great measure, and stand behind fully as I am certain every child in our community will reap the rewards, but more than that, this bond reflects what our community members have voiced is important… safety and security in our schools. This referendum answers, equitably, across the district, the call to create safe and secure schools for our community, and that reflects what I hold dear as a board member, the opportunity to listen to my community members and respond to their needs.

Additionally, Mankato has a long history of investing in early learning, we know the importance and understand the need to support our earliest learners in getting them ready for Kindergarten, this will translate to dollars well spent and I’m proud that our board understands the value of that long term investment for our children.

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Christopher Kind

I support making 10 unsecured entrances to our buildings secured & supervised single-entries, adding 6 special education & student support services spaces for unique learners, creating 3 additional academic & learning spaces to expand flexibility, and 3 renovated & replaced student activity spaces to serve the whole educational experience for all students.

Simply put, completing these basic infrastructure improvements are a necessary requirement for ISD77 to increase our student's quality of education and experience.

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Erin Roberts

Too many children have been endangered, injured or even died within the walls of their school. The time has arrived for us to do everything we can to keep our most precious gifts safe while they learn. It is not just the responsibility of building staff, it is the responsibility of the entire community to ensure that happens.

Additionally, the research shows early interventions and education can have significant impacts on the success of children. Access can be a barrier for families to receive these services. As a community, we can help mitigate those barriers to ensure the best outcome of our youngest community members.

Mankato West High School Improvements

Previous Board Bulletins have highlighted the impact of the proposed referendum on academics, school safety & security, and addressed misinformation being distributed by a Minneapolis special interest group.

As voters head to the polls, we want to highlight the referendum’s proposed improvements at Mankato West High School.

Now 70+ years old, Mankato West is in significant need of improvements to continue serving students into the future. Mankato East received substantial updates about 10 years ago. The proposed referendum would ensure that our community is providing students in our West territory a similar learning environment as their East side peers. Specifically, the referendum would:

Upgrade security at West by constructing a new main entrance in front of the building.
Improve student's academic experience by adding several flexible classroom spaces, renovating the music area for band, choir and orchestra, replacing the current gym, and constructing a new community and competition pool at Dakota Meadows Middle School to replace the current pool at Mankato West (which was decommissioned three years ago).

Safety & Security

Mankato West currently has several access points and the office is located on the 2nd floor. The proposed referendum would construct a new secure main entrance at the front of Mankato West and relocate the office on the first floor at the front of the building. The new entrance would require visitors to pass through the office before accessing the school.

A rendering of the proposed new secure entrance at Mankato West High School. Flexible academic and student learning spaces will occupy the 2nd and 3rd floors of the addition.

Flexible Academic Space

The improvements at West High School will include several flexible student learning spaces. Research is clear that collaboration is a key component to student learning. When collaborative school spaces exist, teachers can design learning experiences accordingly. When they aren’t available and staff is confined to the traditional classroom of the previous century, there are simply fewer opportunities for students to collaborate, critically think, and communicate with each other.

Hear from Allison, a Mankato West student, about the importance of flexible learning spaces:

Student Video Flexible Academic Space

A site plan of the proposed improvements at Mankato West.

Music Suite

The music facilities for band, orchestra, and choir at Mankato West are significantly outdated and undersized. For example, there is currently only one functioning practice room for 300 student musicians, inadequate storage space and virtually nowhere for students to hold small group rehearsals. Should the referendum pass, the current gym at Mankato West would be renovated to serve as the music space, providing an updated space for student musicians in band, choir and orchestra.

Hear from Saarah, a Mankato West student, about the challenges in our current fine arts spaces:

Student Fine Arts Video

Gym & Wellness Spaces

The current gym at Mankato West is undersized for today’s needs and the gym floor is deteriorating. It is unable to accommodate West physical education classes and doesn’t have enough seating for spectators. The proposed referendum would construct a new three-stall gym where the current music area and decommissioned pool currently stand. New locker rooms and a multi-purpose space for wrestling and flexible classrooms would complete the addition. Along with the benefits to West students and families, these improvements would also allow the school to host larger tournaments and section final games, increasing the economic impact in the community.

The current wrestling room is in the basement at Mankato West High School.

Pool

The current pool at Mankato West hasn’t held water for three+ years and is unable to be repaired. During that time, West attendance area students have not had access to swimming lessons as part of their academic curriculum, and West High School swim & dive teams have not had a home pool - sharing space at Mankato East. This has resulted in very late and very early practice times and has closed off most community access to the pool due to a lack of available hours. The referendum proposes constructing a new competition pool with community access at Dakota Meadows Middle School. This pool would be used by physical education classes at Dakota Meadows, and would be the home pool for West swim teams. In addition, the community would have access to the pool for recreational use - an opportunity currently lacking in our community. The new pool at Dakota Meadows would also be designed to accommodate tournaments and other larger regional events, adding further economic vitality and impact to our community.

A rendering of the proposed new pool at Dakota Meadows Middle School. The pool will include a zero depth entry, making it accessible for community members of all ages and abilities. The current pool at Mankato West is decommissioned and unable to be repaired.

Outdoor Fields

A second referendum question proposes renovating and upgrading our outdoor activity spaces at Mankato East and West. The current grass fields limit their use as they cannot be used in many conditions without damaging the playing surface. In recent years, our district has added new field sports and activities like lacrosse and Mankato 77 Lancers, further straining our field capacity. The proposed referendum would install new multi-purpose artificial turf surfaces, and upgrade the track, seating, bathrooms, entries etc. This would enable physical education classes to use the fields during the day as well as allow all of our football, soccer and lacrosse teams to play their games at the stadium. Similar to the pool and gym improvements, the stadium improvements would also allow the district to host tournaments, section games and other outdoor activities with a regional draw to boost our community’s tourism impact.

Hear from Gage, a Mankato West student, about the current challenges with our outdoor fields: Student Outdoor Spaces Video

World's Best Workforce

The state of Minnesota requires school districts to report on progress in meeting student achievement goals that are part of creating the World’s Best Workforce in the state. The World’s Best Workforce goals are:

All children are ready for school.
All racial and economic achievement gaps between students are closed.
All students are ready for career and college.
All students graduate from high school.

At our Board meeting on November 6, district leaders presented on MAPS results in each of these areas. There were several promising and positive signs, including increased student achievement at numerous grade levels and content areas, increased graduation rates, and a significant increase in the number of students accessing work-based learning experiences as part of their education.

Prairie Winds Middle School & Bridges Community School Updates

The School Board at yesterday’s meeting heard reports from our leaders at Prairie Winds Middle School and Bridges Community School on how the start of the school year has looked like for staff and students and key initiatives they are pursuing to advance learning and the student experience in their schools.

Prairie Winds Middle School

Principal Jason Grovom is in his first year as the leader of Prairie Winds. Jason previously served as principal at Kennedy Elementary and Eagle Lake Elementary. It was clear from the Prairie Winds presentation that there is a renewed focus on academic achievement at the school. Jason highlighted how the school is centering student learning and improving achievement levels.

Link to presentation

Bridges Community School

Jody Rittmiller is in her second year as principal at Bridges Community School. Prior to her role at Bridges, Jody served as the MAPS Online Academy principal during the 2020-2021 school year, and was the principal at Hilltop Elementary in Henderson in 2021-2022. Jody shared the uniqueness of Bridges as a ‘community school’, and the adult actions in place at the school this year to improve student results in reading, mathematics and science.

Link to presentation

MAPS Student Spotlight

This month’s MAPS Student Spotlight is Farhiya Idle. Farhiya is a student in the Adult Basic Education program. On Monday night we heard about Farhiya’s resilience over the years and commitment to family, education and community. Congratulations Farhiya!

New MAPS Help Line Phone Number

During the winter months, the MAPS Help Line is used by many members of our community to learn whether school is on time, delayed or canceled. The school district recently installed a new phone system, and the Help Line number has changed. See below for details!