Red Lake School Board members Roy Nelson, Michael Barrett help set legislative policies for the statewide Minnesota School Boards Association

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - Director Roy Nelson and Chairman Michael Barrett of the Red Lake School District #38 -- together with more than 124 school board members from across Minnesota -- debated and voted on potential statewide policies that will be the focus of education legislation during the upcoming legislative session at the annual Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA) Delegate Assembly, held Saturday, December 7th in Minneapolis.

Good grassroots policy making begins when we as a school board or a school board member identifies an issue that needs to be resolved or a new idea to be considered and submits a proposed solution to MSBA in the form of a resolution. A resolution is a written motion adopted by a deliberative body -- in MSBA's case, the Delegate Assembly. More than 60 proposed resolutions were submitted in September, vetted through a process and the final 28 resolutions were presented and voted on at the Delegate Assembly.

Noteworthy resolutions debated this year included school safety and mental health funding, Youth Skills Training programs and school district facilities maintenance funding.

Resolution 1: Resolution urging the Legislature to increase school funding to 3 percent each year FAILS.

Resolution 2: Resolution urging the Legislature to increase the basic funding allowance by an additional 2 percent FAILS.

Resolution 3: Resolution urging the Legislature to make permanent the one-time School Safety Aid allocated in the 2019 special session E-12 Education Finance Bill and to include cooperative school districts to enhance safety for students and staff PASSES.

Resolution 4: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow students in correctional and care-and-treatment programs to access extended day and extended year resources PASSES.

Resolution 5: Resolution urging the Legislature to modify the compensatory formula to provide more stable funding for districts that are experiencing decreases due to undercounting of eligible children PASSES.

Resolution 6: Resolution urging the Legislature to restore the fundraising sales tax exemption of school board-controlled extracurricular activities PASSES.

Resolution 7: Resolution urging the Legislature to: (1) allow school districts to use lease levy for cooperative facilities, even if they once owned the facility; (2) allow Long-Term Facility Maintenance to be used to enhance leased facilities from public and private owners; (3) provide Greater Minnesota school district members of cooperatives the authority to levy up to $65 per pupil for cooperative facilities, the same as school district members of metro intermediates; and (4) allow school districts to form joint powers boards to bond for improvements and new facilities PASSES.

Resolution 8: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow districts who are assessed non-member access fees by intermediates or cooperatives to levy to recover the cost of those fees and further, to allow member districts of an intermediate and cooperative to levy for membership fees PASSES.

Resolution 9: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow the amount of the Safe Schools Levy to be determined by the local school board and to include school districts and cooperative school districts to enhance safety for students and staff PASSES.

Resolution 10: Resolution urging the Legislature to increase the Long-Term Facilities Maintenance Levy for all school districts PASSES.

Resolution 11: Resolution urging the Legislature to increase the Local Optional Revenue by indexing it to the basic formula PASSES.

Resolution 12: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow elected school boards to bond for school building projects without having to go to the public for referendum approval FAILS.

Resolution 13: Resolution urging the Legislature to oppose legislation that defines Adult Basic Education and Early Childhood Family Education teachers as “teachers” in continuing contract and tenure statutes PASSES.

Resolution 14: Resolution urging the Legislature to align the whistleblower statute, with the Minnesota Tort Claims Act, to clarify that “no award for damages on any such claim shall include punitive damages” PASSES.

Resolution 15: Resolution urging the Legislature to modify the current process for a bargaining unit to move to: (1) clarify that a bargaining unit can only move to PEIP upon expiration of the current health contract and (2) require that a majority of the bargaining unit’s full membership vote to move to PEIP PASSES.

Resolution 16: Resolution urging the Legislature to fully fund, with state aid, the premiums and associated costs for the proposed paid Family and Medical Leave Bill for school districts, should this become law PASSES.

Resolution 17: Resolution urging the Legislature to modify the Wage Theft Law to exempt an employer from the obligations of required statement of earnings by employer; notice to employee, if the employee is covered under a contract with a collective bargaining agreement; and extend notification period to 30 days from hire date or change PASSES.

Resolution 18: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow a hiring school district to utilize its background check that meets or exceeds the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension standards until the PELSB application process is complete PASSES.

Resolution 19: Resolution urging the Legislature to repeal statutory provisions related to fair share fees PASSES.

Resolution 20: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow the development of a pilot program that creates an alternative path to receiving a short-call substitute license wherein applicants would complete a district-sponsored training program PASSES.

Resolution 21: Resolution urging the Legislature to retain a school district’s local authority in determining curriculum, course offerings, graduation requirements, and other locally developed standards, where applicable PASSES.

Resolution 22: Resolution urging the Legislature to require school boards to pass a combined polling place resolution only if the combined polling places have changed since the previous resolution PASSES.

Resolution 23: Resolution urging the Legislature to allow for expansion the number of e-learning days from five up to 20 days, as determined by the school board PASSES.

Resolution 24: Resolution urging Legislature to provide one-time funding to the Minnesota State High School League — for the purpose of updating its data systems, website, and interactive web conference equipment FAILS.

Resolution 25: Resolution urging the Legislature to reclassify the seat time requirement to include other options, such as internship hours, standards-bases credits, and flexible learning FAILS.

Resolution 26: Resolution urging Legislature to equitably fund public school early education programs for 4-year-olds PASSES.

Resolution 27: Resolution urging the Legislature to support expansion of Youth Skills training programs and other student work-based learning opportunities PASSES.

Resolution 28: Resolution to urge Legislature to allow districts to pilot replacement of high school MCA with a nationally recognized assessment PASSES.