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Dear John,

After hiding the ball for three years, MPS administration hit families and educators last night with a playground sucker punch. They unveiled three options for ‘school transformation’ that would each close 15-16 schools - roughly 27% of schools in the district.

We are clear: this is NOT the moment to further destabilize our families–especially after last school year. School transformation should focus on enrollment and strengthening our district. Closing schools will only drive families away.

🚨CALL TO ACTION🚨

This week is a critical moment to make our voices heard.

👉 Join our mass call on Sunday, September 20 from 4-5:30pm. [[link removed]]

👉 Take our survey to shape the MFPS Family Agenda. [[link removed]]

Wait, catch me up - what is the “transformation plan”? Glad you asked. The Transformation Plan [[link removed]] is an initiative led by MPS district leadership around programming and building usage.

Many of us have been led to believe school transformation is about addressing MPS’s budget deficit. But when district leadership presented the plan options last night, Deputy Superintendent Ty Thompson stated, “What we know about school consolidations and closings across our nation is that it’s not something that’s a huge cost savings.” Ok, so why close schools? 🤔

Families are tired of year after year of budget cuts. We need a real plan to stabilize and strengthen the district that prioritizes building trust and buy-in from families. Instead, all we got was a list of school closures and attendance boundary changes - and a very small window to share our input. The school board is set to vote on the plan in mid-November.

The future of our district is at stake. Families want investments to increase enrollment – not closures that drive families away. Families don’t want another repeat of 2020’s Comprehensive District Design (CDD) – which led to sharp decreases in enrollment. With every student that leaves the district, $21K in public funding goes with them. It’s time to act.

Join our mass call on Sunday, September 20 from 4-5:30pm. [[link removed]]

In solidarity,

Jesse Meisenhelter (they/them)

MFPS Organizer

P.S. We want to hear from you. Take our fall issue cut survey and let us know what back to school has been like for your family. [[link removed]]

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PO Box 14122
Saint Paul, MN 55114
United States

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