Campaign for school board heats up

Southwest voters will be choosing a new District 6 school board member this fall.
Ira Jourdain announced early this year that he would not being seeking re-election as Minneapolis Public School (MPS) District 6 School Board Member.
Now, Lara Bergman and Greta Callahan are campaigning throughout the district that includes the southwest corner of the city west of 35W and south of Lake Street, as well as most of the Cedar-Isle-Dean neighborhood north of Lake St. With only two candidates running, there was no primary election, and Bergman and Callahan will appear on the general election ballot on Nov. 5.
If the Democratic Farmer Labor (DFL) party process is any indication, the vote could be close. While Callahan won the DFL endorsement, it took two meetings and several rounds of voting before she secured the 60% of votes needed for endorsement.
The two have a lot in common and that could make the decision even harder.
Both women grew up in southwest Minneapolis, and now live in the Armatage neighborhood.
They both have been, or are, public school parents. Callahan’s son graduated from Southwest High School in the spring, and Bergman has two children enrolled at Armatage Elementary School.
They are also both professional educators. Bergman’s teaching experience was as a Montessori teacher at the children’s house level teaching three to six-year-olds in early childhood centers. She was an adjunct professor at St. Catherine’s University, and was chair of the Cathedral Hill Montessori school board in St. Paul.
Callahan taught kindergarten for 11 years in the Minneapolis Public School system, and served as president of the district’s teachers union, the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers, 2020 to early 2024.

They both say they are listening to voters
Callahan is hearing from people concerned about instability, trust issues, class sizes being too large, and people “sick of the rug being pulled out from underneath them.”
She added, “I’m also hearing that they love their teachers and want to keep their schools open. They are concerned about the talk of school closures, and have seen some of their neighbors leave the district, just at the mention of closing school. They are excited at the thought of someone wanting to grow and expand our schools, instead of manage its decline. They are ready for someone who is qualified to sit on the school board and steer this ship in the right direction.”
“Community members in District 6 are really concerned about the financial future of MPS,” said Bergman. “Families are concerned about ballooning class sizes and losing programs that get kids excited about going to school. Taxpayers want their tax dollars used in ways that ensure our city’s students graduate with the skills they need to be successful citizens. Everyone is ready for conversations about the reality of MPS’s budget and want to partner on what creative child-centered solutions look like. I truly believe this is a pivotal moment that calls on all of us to work together to strengthen our city’s public schools for current and future generations.”
The school-restructuring Comprehensive District Design (CDD) initiated under the last superintendent continues to be a topic of conversation.
“I’ve heard from so many district 6 families who felt the CDD had good intentions, but was implemented really poorly,” said Bergman. “It is important that any time our school voard is making decisions that we are co-creating solutions with all stakeholders so we positively impact students in every school in MPS.”
“I was and still am against the CDD,” said Callahan. “As a parent and educator, I fought very publicly against this harmful redesign. In 2019 and 2020, I (alongside many others) predicted that this would drive families out of the district and would lead to school closures. I am up for any changes that will bring families back, without leading to a larger enrollment decline, including bringing back K-8s and redrawing some lines.”

PRIORITIES FOR EACH CANDIDATE
Comparing priorities may help some voters make their decision in the fall.
Callahan said that one priority should be increasing enrollment through smaller class sizes, and by adding and keeping programs that families want, like fifth grade band/orchestra, world languages, and High Five. She is also committed to rebuilding trust and developing “a robust plan to educate the public about the corporate ed reform movement and why we must choose public schools if we want a safe, healthy, well-educated Minneapolis.”
Additionally, Callahan ranks stability and “doing a deep dive into finances (examining outside contracts with a microscope, for example) and focusing on gaining more funding at the legislative level” as top priorities.
Bergman said that in her first 100 days on the board she will prioritize visiting schools and strengthening relationships with principals, educators, families and students, She said she will “develop a community engagement plan that meets the community where they are.” She plans to “engage with the finance team about a plan for financial sustainability,” and connect the early childhood work being done in MPS with “the larger conversation happening across Minnesota.”
“Most people need to go to governance trainings, get into buildings, and form relationships for their first 100 days – not me,” said Callahan. “I have over eight years of experience in governance. I have spent time in every single building in our district. I have relationships in every building in our district. I can get straight to work once elected, educating the public about why strong public schools are in everyone’s best interest, and why shrinking this district will only create more harm.”
She said that she wants to “help to make stronger connections with new families, educators, and leaders in MPS and bring more co-creation into the work we do to improve our schools – it has been too top-down for too long.”
Callahan added, “More than anything, I am big on full-service community schools, so that families, students, and educators can decide on what is best for their school.”
Reading and writing instruction, along with the budget, top Bergman’s list. “This next board has the responsibility to fully implement an evidence-based literacy curriculum as part of the solution to address why only 50% of MPS students are reading at grade level,” said Bergman. “It also has the responsibility of engaging the community, early and often, to come up with a fiscally responsible future for our schools. ...
“As an educator and parent, I understand deeply that our students, families, and educators have weathered unimaginable challenges in recent year. More budget setbacks feel daunting, and yet I firmly believe that with every challenge comes an opportunity to build something better, stronger, and more equitable for all our students.”

HOW TO SOLVE BUDGET CRISIS
Bergman and Callahan agree that solutions to the budget crisis must be found at the city and state levels.
At the state level, Callahan advocates “recovering the funds we have lost since 2003 when there was a substantial change to per pupil funding,” and getting special education mandates fully funded. At the city level she said, “We would have saved over $50 million this past year if we had spent similarly to our peer districts.” She believes the district is outspending similarly sized districts in administration, transportation, and outside contracts. “We need to take a good look at those three areas and dive into how we can spend smarter, not harder by looking at those around us,” said Callahan. “If we are outspending peer districts on anything, it should be on student instruction.”
During the 2023 legislative session, Bergman advocated for state investments in early childhood and public education. She says she will continue working for state funding to cover federally required special education and English Language Learner services. “Additionally, I will advocate for the state to pay more of our growing transportation costs, especially for our homeless and highly mobile students, who have a right to access stable education and are highly concentrated in MPS,” said Bergman. “Addressing these funding gaps is not just a financial imperative but a moral one.”
Her vision, she said, “is for MPS to be the best choice for every student, every family, and every educator.” She said that the district could start by making literacy the top priority, expanding dual-language programming to meet the demand, increasing the investments in early childhood programming and “addressing school attendance boundaries to increase enrollment so that we have buildings with healthy budgets that can support smaller class sizes, robust programming, and more individualized student support.”
She is concerned, however, that as birth rates in the city are declining and state laws permit open and charter enrollment, enrollment alone will not solve all problems. “We must come together to pursue longer-term solutions at the state level while ensuring our schools are places of excellence and opportunity right now,” Bergman said. “Through collaboration, advocacy, and commitment, we can create a brighter future for all our students.”