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In the News
Thu, 05/03/2012
Star Tribune

By Rachel E. Stassen-Berger

With a veto Thursday of a proposal to upend schoolteacher layoff rules, Gov. Mark Dayton wiped out one of state Republicans' top priorities.

Dayton said the measure was an example of "prejudice against public school teachers" that singled out hard-working teachers by negating long-establishing bargaining rights, replacing them "with only vaguely formulated ideas."

The veto heightens the tension between the DFL governor and the Republican-dominated Legislature.

Thu, 05/03/2012
MPR

By Jon Collins

Gov. Mark Dayton vetoed a bill Thursday that would have forced school boards and teachers unions to consider teacher performance when making layoff decisions, rather than just seniority.

The bill was described by supporters as a reform of the "last in, first out" system that puts priority on preserving the jobs of senior teachers during layoffs. It passed the State Legislature along largely partisan lines.

Wed, 05/02/2012
Star Tribune

By Bernadeia Johnson and Al Fan

This week, Gov. Mark Dayton signed an omnibus education bill with a provision creating a powerful incentive for school districts and charter schools to work more closely to boost student achievement.

With the support of a broad coalition of education advocates, this no-cost, voluntary collaboration signals the beginning of a much larger paradigm shift.

Mon, 04/30/2012
Minnesota Journal

By Vallay Varro

In 2018, 70 percent of all Minnesota jobs will require some level of higher education. For Minnesota students, the stakes and demands are high.

Sun, 04/29/2012
Pioneer Press

Gov. Mark Dayton has an opportunity to advance one of Minnesota's most important education reforms. He should sign into law the measure that would end the so-called "last in, first out" practice of laying off teachers based on seniority, rather than performance.

It's time for this change: A recent poll by the Minnesota Campaign for Achievement Now found that teacher-tenure reform has 90-plus-percent bipartisan support among Minnesotans. The Minnesota branch of the reform advocacy group Students First released similar results last week.

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$45 million for Minnesota preschoolers

Posted Sat, 12/17/2011 at 13:26
 in

Today U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan made an announcement that makes me prouder than ever to be a Minnesotan: as one of only nine states to win the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge, Minnesota will receive $45 million in federal dollars to support our pre-K reform plan. A few short months ago, the Minnesota Department of Education called upon MinnCAN to drum-up community support for the state’s application. Thanks to all of you who signed our online petition and community letter of support or participating in our video, we were able to do just that.

Today’s victory validates everything Minnesota did this year to make sure all of our children start their education off right. Earlier this year we came together as a state to enact key early childhood reforms, including $4 million in scholarships for low-income families tied to a preschool rating system. With this Race to the Top money—which marks the largest investment in early learning education in Minnesota in recent years—we will be able to continue the path of pre-K reform.

As Minnesotans, we have a lot to be proud of today. And if we continue to work together to give all of our kids great public schools, I’m confident we’ll have even more to be proud of in 2012.

--Vallay Varro, MinnCAN executive director

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