North High School Principal Mauri Friestleben has been a dismal failure as an academic leader.
Friestleben was an overhyped principal even before the documentary, Love Them First, embarrassingly seemed to laud her accomplishment and then had to reveal that a data reporting glitch out of the Davis Center (Minneapolis Public Schools central offices, 1250 West Broadway) was in error--- so that the school for which she served as principal at the time, Lucy Craft Laney, had not achieved the level of improvement to rise into a higher category in the state’s school rating system.
Student academic achievement at Lucy Laney had risen notably but had leveled off and still found fewer than 30% of students academically proficient in mathematics, reading, and science during an eight-year tenure that ended when Friestleben moved to North High for the 2019-2020 academic year.
Academic performance for students at Lucy Laney for years ending in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2021 are given as follows; data for the latter year, in which she was not principal at Lucy Laney, indicate level of sustained progress in the aftermath of her departure:
Lucy Craft Laney
Lucy Craft
Laney at Cleveland Park (PK-5) EC
3333 Penn
Avenue North 55412
668-2200;
Fax
668-2210
8:05 a.m. – 2:35 p.m.
Current leadership:
Lisa
Pawelak, P
Anne
Wagemaker, AP
Ashley
Aaron, Secretary
School District
Native American 3% 5%
African American 83% 36%
Asian American 3% 5%
Hispanic American 4% 14%
White American 7% 41%
English 6% 17%
Language
Learner
Free/ 85%
48%
Reduced Price
Lunch
Special 13%
15%
Education
Lucy Laney
Reading
2014 2015
2016 2017 2018
2019 2021
9%
10% 13% 17%
21% 24% 15%
(334) (368)
(218) (71) (195)
(205) (143)
Math
2014 2015
2016 2017 2018
2019 2021
13%
13% 24% 27%
28% 29% 8%
(333) (363)
(218) (207) (192) (200)
(139)
Science
2014 2015
2016 2017 2018
2019 2021
6%
5% 8% 17%
14% 17% 12%
(105) (118)
(64) (71) (65)
(66) (34)
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Friestleben’s tenure as principal at North High Schools has included only one year of testing, since no Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) were given in the year ending in 2020; at that time, Covid-19 conditions seemed to argue against administration of the assessments.
The following data reveal student performance at North High School for the academic years ending in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021. Should Friestleben continue as principal at North, student progress will indicate her level of success as an academic leader.
The school continues to be very weak academically:
A number of instructors present unchallenging material, including those teaching courses in geometry, Black Studies, and both standard and Advanced Placement world history, the latter having been taught far below the standard indicated by the appellation.
The recent academic performance at North is given as follows >>>>>
North Community High School
North
Community HS – NAAC and NSTEM (9-12) I2
1500 James
Avenue North 55411
668-1700;
Fax
668-1770 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Mauri
Friestleben, P
Steve
White, AP
Febe
Gonzalez, Secretary
School District
Native American 2% 5%
African American
84% 36%
Asian American 2% 5%
Hispanic American 5% 14%
White American 7% 41%
English 6% 17%
Language
Learner
Free/ 68%
48%
Reduced Price
Lunch
Special 21%
15%
Education
North
Community High School
Reading
2014 2015
2016 2017 2018
2019 2021
23%
9% 3% 11%
2% 11% 16%
(66)
(57) (36) (66)
(55) (85) (25)
Math
----
16% 2% 0%
2% 2% 6%
(-----)
(61) (45) (36)
(41) (41) (17)
Science
----
10% 5% 0%
2% 0% 7%
(-----)
(62) (38) (24)
(55) (85) (15)
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
As is the case with most principals in the Minneapolis
Public Schools, Friestleben has academically weak training, as indicated by the
absence of any degrees in key subject areas
>>>>>
Maurie Friestleben
Principal, North High School
Degrees Received
Master’s Degree (Education)
University of St. Thomas
Education Specialist
(Education)
University of St. Thomas
Licensures:
English (Middle School)
Elementary Education (1-6)
Principal (K-12)
………………………………………………………………….....................
Manifesting ability to connect with students on a
personal level and raise morale among the young people under her guidance and their
parents, Mauri Friestleben, has been a positive presence at North High Community
School. She has, though, been a failure
as an academic leader. Given the generally
slim academic training of all administrators and teachers in the Minneapolis
Public Schools, including building principals, Friestleben is the standard mediocrity. Since she does have the ability to connect
personally and to raise spirits, Friestleben brings a quality across the human
dimension that sets her apart from most principals. In terms of the immediately available pool of
principal candidates, no one better than Friestleben is likely to surface; thus, as undistinguished as she is
academically in terms of her own training and as a leader, even on the basis of
her qualifications as principal, she deserves to keep her position.
And certainly in terms of her encouraging students to protest the irresponsible actions of Minneapolis police that resulted in the death of Amir Locke a bit over a year ago, there is no basis for terminating her employment. Organizing students to protest and taking part in the action herself was a noble act that Ella Baker, new namesake of the former Jefferson Global Studies and Humanities School, would have heartily approved. That Superintendent Ed Graff would at this late date in his own tenure (he has resigned and will no longer be at the Minneapolis Public Schools beyond June) terminate such a popular figure in the district for acting upon convictions such as those that animated Ella Baker demonstrates the hypocrisy of Graff and the cowardice of sycophants Candra Bennett (Interim Senior Human Resources Officer) and Shawn Harris-Berry (Associate Superintendent), the latter herself the failed former North High School principal whom Mauri Friestleben replaced.
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