Author: Sarah Cooke

Parents and other Minnesotans interested in the cost of fully funding several essential programs in their local school districts are now able to consult an online dashboard developed by Education Minnesota.

ST. PAUL, Minnesota. March 23, 2021 – The Minnesota House of Representatives presented budget targets Tuesday that includes significant new investments in E-12 and higher education. In response, Education Minnesota President Denise Specht released the following statement.

The cumulative number of COVID-19 infections associated with Minnesota schools has surged to over 16,000 and a fifth school staff member has died of an infection linked to their work in a school, according to data from the Minnesota Department of Health released Thursday. 

A student debt crisis of epic proportions is causing stress and strain for Minnesotans who are struggling to repay their loans and putting off other bills, according to a Morning Consult survey commissioned by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and Education Minnesota.

After the shooting deaths of eight people, including six women of Asian descent, in the Atlanta area this week, Education Minnesota President Denise Specht released the following statement.

Education Minnesota supports new language governing teacher layoffs introduced Friday in the Minnesota House because it will accelerate racial diversity in the teaching corps while preserving due process rights.

Education Minnesota President Denise Specht said the union of educators welcomed the spotlight Gov. Tim Walz and leaders in the Minnesota Legislature are putting on the urgent need to design and fund expanded learning opportunities, including summer school. 

Educators are wishing Mary Cathryn Ricker, a nationally board certified teacher, success in her next endeavor after she announced Tuesday that she will resign as the state’s education commissioner effective April 1. 

The state budget forecast released Friday predicts a $1.6 billion surplus in the next budget cycle, even as unemployment soars for low-wage workers and amid news reports that demand at food shelves in Minnesota has reached record levels. 

The public schools of Minnesota will not be able to offer the same quality of education to its students next fall if the state Legislature fails to approve additional funding to compensate for students that parents held back or transferred out during the pandemic, said Denise Specht, president of Education Minnesota.