Action of the School Board Action of the School Board 10/27/14 | Page 2

Joel VerDuin, chief technology and information officer, noted that this is the second of two
reports presented to the board on enrollment. The first is in January when enrollment projections for the upcoming year are presented. The October presentation provides information on how accurate those projections were.
Michelle VanDenTop, director of technology and information services, pointed out that at
2,639, kindergarten enrollment is very similar to what it had been five years earlier. AnokaHennepin’s overall enrollment for elementary schools is 16,272, which is 86 fewer students
than had been projected. Anoka-Hennepin’s elementary schools range in size from 431 at
Hamilton to 1,368 at Ramsey.
Middle school enrollment is 8,556, which is 35 more than projected. Middle schools range
from 1,131 at Roosevelt to 1,934 at Jackson.
High school enrollment is 11,650, which is 84 more than projected. High schools range from
1,696 at Andover to 2,877 at Blaine.
The enrollment for Anoka-Hennepin alternative sites is 691 and for special education sites,
including early childhood special education, is 1,022.
The percentage of students of color increased 2.2 percentage points to 24.48 percent. The
number of students receiving free or reduced lunch prices, a federal indicator of poverty,
also increased. More than one-third, 35.55 percent, of Anoka-Hennepin students now live in
poverty.
The percentage of students who are English language learners increased by less than 1 percent to 6.43 percent. It has been relatively stable for several years.
In response to a question from Board Member William Fields regarding the decline, Superintendent David Law said the population has been aging faster than babies are being born.
The trend is similar throughout the state.
Board Chair Heidemann said the stabilization of kindergarten enrollment is an indication
that the decline is stabilizing.
The full presentation and enrollment report are available on the district website.

Anti-bullying/Anti-harassment Leadership Team update presented

Dr. Jinger Gustafson, associate superintendent, and Dr. Jennifer Cherry, Title IX coordinator,
provided an update of the work of the district’s Anti-bullying/Anti-harassment Leadership
Team, which is composed of staff. It works in communication with the Anti-bullying/Antiharassment Task Force, which is composed of community members, students and staff.
Dr. Gustafson said the work of the internal team focuses on providing a safe and respectful
learning environment for all students. This effort in the district goes back to the core values,
which include respect and appreciation of diversity, adopted by the School Board in 1993;
the district’s mission statement, adopted in 2004; and LEADS, a statement of how core va lues are put into action adopted in 2013.

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ACTION

The community task force presented nine recommendations to the board in July 2013. At
that time, the board directed the internal leadership team to develop a plan for addressing
the task force recommendations. Dr. Cherry noted that the nine recommendations were
intentionally broad-based to serve as a framework for the coming years. From those recommendations, 21 actionable items were identified. They related to such things as student
education, employee professional development, promoting positive culture in schools, supporting mental wellness and more. All have now been completed.
The internal leadership team will be developing action steps for five recommendations the
task force presented to the board in June. Action steps for recommendation four, to imple-