Chapter Twenty-Five >>>>> Department of College and Career Readiness

This MPS Department of College and Career Readiness has undergone dramatic bureaucratic slimming during the tenure of Ed Graff as superintendent.

 

Please peruse the information given below:

 

MPS Department of College and Career Readiness Staff, Fate as of August 2018

 

As late as March 2018, the Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Department of College and Career Readiness website listed fifteen staff members, as follows:

 

Minneapolis Public Schools Deparment of College and Career Readiness

 

Staff Member                                                   Position

 

1)    Terry Henry                                                Executive Director

2)    Alexandria (Alex) Spirov                      WWYB Associate Educator

3)    Colleen Kaibel                                          Director of Student Retention and Recovery

4)    Heidi Olson                                                WWYB Associate Educator

5)    James (Jim) Bierma                                District Q-Comp Counselor

6)    Jennifer Ennen                                         Office Specialist

7)    Jill Bjorklund                                             STEM/CTE Project Coordinator

8)    Julie Montgomery Weiss                     District Lead Counselor

9)    Melissa Butler                                          WWYB Associate Educator

10)  Michael Ash                                              Account Specialist

11)  Paul Klym                                                  Career Development Coordinator

12)  Quyen Phan                                               ALC 9-12 Manager

13)  Sara Etzel                                                    Director, STEM/CTE

14)  Tamala Washington-Green                Office Manager

15)  Vanessa Moe                                            JAG Coordinator

 

By May 2018 Executive Director Terry Henry was gone but the website otherwise still listed the same staff composition.  But in my close examination of a full (all department) MPS Davis Center staff roster, I only found rthese four members:

 

Department of College and Career Readiness (May 2018)

 

Minneapolis Public Schools Deparment of College and Career Readiness

 

Staff Member                                   Position                                               Salary

 

1)  Colleen Kaibel                            Director of                                          $105,552

Student Retention

and Recovery

 

2)  Melissa Butler                            WWYB Associate Educator          $32,004

3)  Quyen Phan                                 ALC 9-12 Manager                           $86,631

4)  Sara Etzel                                      Director, STEM/CTE                        $84,442

 

With this finding, I inquired at MPS Human Resources as to whether MPS Department of College and Career Readiness actually disappeared as an administrative entity.  Executive Director Terry henry was gone, and the departmen5t did not seem to have a lead administrator.  I was told that seemingly in the offing for academic nyear 2017-2018 was a plan to have a few people retained for specific functions but to eliminate this department aws a swtand-alone entity.

 

By August 2018, though the Department of College and Career Readiness website listed seven staff members, with no one acting in an overall directorial capacity;

 

MPS Deparment of College and Career Readiness, August 2018

 

Staff Member                                                   Position                                              

 

1)    Colleen Kaibel                                          Director of Student Retention and Recovery

2)    Heidi Olson                                                WWYB Associate Educator

3)    James (Jim) Bierma                                District Q-Comp Counselor

4)    Jill Bjorklund                                             STEM/CTE Project Coordinator

5)    Melissa Butler                                          WWYB Associate Educator

6)    Paul Klym                                                    Career Development Coordinator

7)    Sara Etzel                                                    Director, STEM/CTE

 

Then, in September 2019, the website of the Department of College and Career Readiness listed these six staff members, same as above but with no listing for Melissa Butler:

 

MPS Deparment of College and Career Readiness, August 2018

 

Staff Member                                                   Position                                              

 

1)    Colleen Kaibel                                          Director of Student Retention and Recovery

                Colleen.Kaibel@mpls.k12.mn.us               

                612-668-1206

 

2)    Heidi Olson                                                WWYB Associate Educator

                Heidi.Olson@mpls.k12.mn.us    

                612-668-1201

 

3)    James (Jim) Bierma                                District Q-Comp Counselor

                James.Bierma@mpls.k12.mn.us                 

                612-668-5323

 

4)    Jill Bjorklund                                             STEM/CTE Project Coordinator

Jill.Bjorklund@mpls.k12.mn.us                  

                612-668-0656

 

5)    Paul Klym                                                    Career Development Coordinator

                Paul.Klym@mpls.k12.mn.us         

                612-668-0424

 

6)    Sara Etzel                                                    Director, STEM/CTE

Sara.Etzel@mpls.k12.mn.us         

                612-668-5377