Action of the School Board Action of the School Board 02/23/15

Board Chair Tom Heidemann announced he would delay taking comments from those who wished to speak on a particular agenda until after that item had been presented. Elementary and secondary education Anti-bullying/Anti-harassment Community Task Force reviews recommendation three Members of the Anti-bullying/Anti-harassment Community Task Force presented plans for implementing recommendation three of the task force report that had been presented to the board in June and August. Recommendation three asks the district to “honor and celebrate the contributions of diverse people and families in our community, country and world, including the LGBT community.” Dr. Jinger Gustafson said this item was brought to the board as an update. “We are not asking for changes in practices, policies and procedures.” Dr. Jennifer Cherry, Title IX coordinator, said the recommendation emerged from nine broad recommendations the community task force made in 2013 and refined in 2014. Recommendation three follows up on the original recommendation of promoting a positive culture in schools. It asks the district to “recognize, affirm and assess specific lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) activities including, but not limited to, continuing to support student-led Gay-Straight Alliance clubs (GSA), hosting school-related family nights for our diverse populations, including LGBT families and LGBT students and their parents; and creating public displays honoring LGBT history each October beginning in 2014.” She explained the recommendation had received support of 100 percent of the Task Force members present at the May 23 meeting when recommendations were finalized; a followup survey to all task force members found 85 percent supported it. Kathy Riddle, a parent on the task force, reviewed the committee’s considerations, noting that the subcommittee that developed recommendation three had initially developed four SMART (strategic, measureable, attainable, relevant and time-bound) goals. The task force as a whole provided feedback and the steering committee for the Anti-bullying/Anti-harassment Task Force consolidated the goals into one broad recommendation. Dr. Cherry reviewed the activities occurring in schools now that are related to recommendation three, including active GSA clubs that sponsor, LGBT displays created by GSA clubs, and a variety of school-related family nights. Dr. Johnna Rohmer-Hirt, director of research, evaluation and testing, presented survey data indicating an increase in students’ feeling safe at school as well as an increase in parents/ guardians who said their children’s schools are safe. The presentation is available in its entirety on the Feb. 23 meetin g agenda. Communication, Delegations and Petitions continued LeMoyne Corgard, president of Anoka-Hennepin Education Minnesota (AHEM), Beth Hentges, John Look, Steven Johnson, Barb Anderson, Melissa Thompson, Laurie Thompson, Bryan Lindquist, Jeff Cosman, Elizabeth Pass, Gwen Stienmeyer, Dan Rebek, Roger Lee, Rich Rydberg, James Nelson, Stephanie Schroeder, John Leibsch, teacher and former AHEM President Julie Blaha, Tiffany Strabala, Randy Sieben, and Rick Heller provided testimony, which can be viewed via the district’s Granicus site, in regard to Anti-bullying/ Anti-harassment Community Task Force recommendation three following the presentation to the board. 2 ACTION Update presented on Healthy Communities Grant Jeff McGonigal, associate superintendent for high schools, along with Dan Edelstein of Allina and Health Partners and Craig Malm of the Allina Foundation, provided an overview

Action of the School Board Action of the School Board 02/23/15 | Page 2