Article #4 >>>>> Journal of the K-12 Revolution: Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota<, Volume XIII, Number 4, October 2026

Minneapolis Public Schools Student Proficiency Rates for Academic Year Ending in 2026, as Measured by Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs):  Middle and K-8 Schools

 

 

Given below are academic proficiency rates for all Minneapolis Public Schools students at middle school and K-8 sites in the district as measured by the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) for the academic year ending in 2026:

 

Middle School and K-8

 

Andersen Middle School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

26.3%     27.6%      11.2%

 

(254)       (269)        (37)

 

Anthony Middle School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

60.5%     67.9%      23.7%

 

(437)       (489)        (53)

 

Anwatin Middle School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 7.6%     11.7%        3.3%

 

  (21)       (32)            (3)

 

Franklin Middle School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 10.9%     21.7.%     4.9%

 

  (29)        (58)          (3)

 

Northeast Middle School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 20.1%     31.9.%     9.3%

 

 (106)       (168)        (15)

 

Olson Middle School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 5.3%     10.7%       3.7%

 

  (15)       (31)         (3)

 

Sanford

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 49.4%     58.4%     18.5%

 

  (15)       (31)         (3)

 

 

……………………………………………………..

 

Emerson PreK-8 School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 31.1%     29.0.%    21.9%

 

  (75)        (70)          (16)

 

Sullivan PreK-8 School

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 16.2%    22.4%       9.9%

 

  (70)       (98)           (14)

 

 

 

Article #5 >>>>> Journal of the K-12 Revolution: Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota<, Volume XIII, Number 4, October 2026

Minneapolis Public Schools Student Proficiency Rates for Academic Year Ending in 2026, as Measured by Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs):  High Schools

 

Given below are academic proficiency rates for all Minneapolis Public Schools students at high school sites in the district as measured by the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) for the academic year ending in 2026:

 

High Schools

 

Camden

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

2.1%     14.5%        7.4%

 

  (2)        (18)           (37)

 

Edison

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

13.3%     30.0%      13.1%

 

 (12)         (39)         (13)

 

North

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 3.3%      12.4%       4.9%

 

  (3)          (13)           (4)

 

Roosevelt

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

41.6%     52.9%      40.6%

 

 (87)        (139)       (115)

 

South

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

20.6%     26.6%      13.9%

 

 (33)        (37)           (25)

 

Southwest

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

44.7%     48.7%      35.3%

 

 (96)       (112)         (67)

 

Washburn

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

41.4%     46.6%      35.5%

 

(116)       (166)        (104)

 

 

…………………………………………………………………..

 

 

FAIR

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

 2.3%      39.1%      23.8%

 

  (1)          (27)           (10)

 

 

Heritage

 

Math    Reading   Science

 

41.4%     46.6%      35.5%

 

(116)       (166)        (104)

 

Longfellow

 

   N/A

 

 

Wellstone

 

  N/A

 

 

Front Matter and Contents >>>>> Journal of the K-12 Revolution: Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota<, Volume XIII, Number 5, November 2026

Volume XIII, No. 5                                      

 

November 2026

 

Journal of the K-12 Revolution:

Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota

 

Abject Financial Irresponsibility:

The Cowardly Retrenchment of

Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams

and the Minneapolis Public Schools

Board of Education on Closing Schools

 

 

A Five-Article Series

 

A Publication of the New Salem Educational Initiative

Gary Marvin Davison, Editor    

 

 

Abject Financial Irresponsibility: 

The Cowardly Retrenchment of

Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams

and the Minneapolis Public Schools

Board of Education on Closing Schools

 

       

A Five-Article Series

                                   

Gary Marvin Davison

New Salem Educational Initiative

Copyright © 2026

 

Contents

 

Introduction  

Four Years of Abject Neglect: 

Minneapolis Public Schools Board of Education

Members Have Known About a Looming

Fiscal Crisis Since November 2022

 

Article #1  

Plans for Closing or Repurposing Buildings Presented on 15 September 2026

 

Article #2

Important Facts Pertinent to Schools That Were Slated to Be Closed Under the Transformation Plans Presented at the 15 September 2026 Work Session of the Minneapolis Public Schools Board of Education

 

Article #3

Retrenchment by Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams from Her Own Administration’s Plans for Closing or Repurposing Schools

 

Article #4

Minneapolis Public Schools Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams Should Issue Apologies and Resign

 

Article #5

Transformation at the Minneapolis Public Schools Should Now Involve

Ousting Lisa Sayles-Adams as Superintendent, Installing New Leadership, Then

Focusing Keenly on Knowledge-Intensive Curriculum and the Training of Teachers Capable of Imparting Such a Curriculum 

 

Introduction:  

Four Years of Abject Neglect: 

Minneapolis Public Schools Board of Education

Members Have Known About a Looming

Fiscal Crisis Since November 2022

 

On 29 November 2022, Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Board of Education Finance Committee members received a clear warning from Interim Superintendent Rochelle Cox, Senior Finance Officer Ibrahima Diop, and Executive Budget Director Thom Roethke that MPS was facing a "fiscal crisis" that could reach catastrophic proportions if drastic budgetary changes were not made.

 

At the time, the approximately $960 million annual budget was balanced, in large measure due to federal relief funds received during the Covid pandemic;  but those funds were slated to abate in 2024.  Cox and Finance Division officials warned that massive cuts would be necessary to avoid dangerous depletion of the general fund that would put the district into operating debt.  The Finance Division’s five-year financial projections indicated that even if enrollment decline could be reversed, expenses would greatly exceed revenue.  A fiscal cliff loomed;  doing nothing was "not an option";  Roethke said that maintaining the status quo in expenditures and revenue would find the district running out of money by the end of fiscal year 2025.

 

At that juncture in November, five newly elected board members--- Abdul Abdi (District 1), Collin Beachy (At-Large), Sondra Emerich (At-Large;  later to change their given name to Joiner), Faheema Feerayarre (District 3), and Lori Norvell (District 5)---  were due to join the MPS Board of Education in January 2023.  Kim Ellison, Board Chair at the time, observed that Senior Finance Officer Diop had been warning members about the looming financial crisis for years and that the issues must be addressed very soon to keep the district sustainable.

 

Interim Superintendent Cox and Diop conveyed to finance committee members that much of the financial dilemma was due to decreasing enrollment, which at the time had declined seventeen percent, from approximately 34,000 to 28,000 students, over five years.  Projections by Diop’s staff indicated that enrollment could decrease to 23,000 students by the 2027-2028 school year.

 

The key document presented at the November 2022 meeting stated that "MPS must address both the quality of its product as well as work with policymakers and city leaders to address factors outside of its control such as crime, housing prices and transportation issues, if it hopes to stabilize.”

 

Roethke emphasized that MPS spent $3,900 more on a per-student basis in general operating costs than the average spent by the state's 15 largest districts, largely due to Minneapolis's substantially lower student-to-teacher ratios compared with other districts.  The district’s relatively large number and small size of schools produced those lower ratios. "Other districts simply operate fewer, larger schools," Roethke commented.

 

Interim Superintendent Cox declared that as the next Board and long-term superintendent made the needed changes, they should do so in a way that focused on improved academic quality for the students of the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

But the administration of Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams, who began her tenure in February 2024, has failed miserably to address the financial woes of the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

This edition of Journal of the K-12 Revolution:  Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota details the culpability of the current administration for failing to address the fiscal crisis of the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

 

Introductory Comments >>>>> Journal of the K-12 Revolution: Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota<, Volume XIII, Number 5, November 2026

Four Years of Abject Neglect: 

Minneapolis Public Schools Board of Education

Members Have Known About a Looming

Fiscal Crisis Since November 2022

 

On 29 November 2022, Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Board of Education Finance Committee members received a clear warning from Interim Superintendent Rochelle Cox, Senior Finance Officer Ibrahima Diop, and Executive Budget Director Thom Roethke that MPS was facing a "fiscal crisis" that could reach catastrophic proportions if drastic budgetary changes were not made.

 

At the time, the approximately $960 million annual budget was balanced, in large measure due to federal relief funds received during the Covid pandemic;  but those funds were slated to abate in 2024.  Cox and Finance Division officials warned that massive cuts would be necessary to avoid dangerous depletion of the general fund that would put the district into operating debt.  The Finance Division’s five-year financial projections indicated that even if enrollment decline could be reversed, expenses would greatly exceed revenue.  A fiscal cliff loomed;  doing nothing was "not an option";  Roethke said that maintaining the status quo in expenditures and revenue would find the district running out of money by the end of fiscal year 2025.

 

At that juncture in November, five newly elected board members--- Abdul Abdi (District 1), Collin Beachy (At-Large), Sondra Emerich (At-Large;  later to change their given name to Joiner), Faheema Feerayarre (District 3), and Lori Norvell (District 5)---  were due to join the MPS Board of Education in January 2023.  Kim Ellison, Board Chair at the time, observed that Senior Finance Officer Diop had been warning members about the looming financial crisis for years and that the issues must be addressed very soon to keep the district sustainable.

 

Interim Superintendent Cox and Diop conveyed to finance committee members that much of the financial dilemma was due to decreasing enrollment, which at the time had declined seventeen percent, from approximately 34,000 to 28,000 students, over five years.  Projections by Diop’s staff indicated that enrollment could decrease to 23,000 students by the 2027-2028 school year.

 

The key document presented at the November 2022 meeting stated that "MPS must address both the quality of its product as well as work with policymakers and city leaders to address factors outside of its control such as crime, housing prices and transportation issues, if it hopes to stabilize.”

 

Roethke emphasized that MPS spent $3,900 more on a per-student basis in general operating costs than the average spent by the state's 15 largest districts, largely due to Minneapolis's substantially lower student-to-teacher ratios compared with other districts.  The district’s relatively large number and small size of schools produced those lower ratios. "Other districts simply operate fewer, larger schools," Roethke commented.

 

Interim Superintendent Cox declared that as the next Board and long-term superintendent made the needed changes, they should do so in a way that focused on improved academic quality for the students of the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

But the administration of Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams, who began her tenure in February 2024, has failed miserably to address the financial woes of the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

This edition of Journal of the K-12 Revolution:  Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota details the culpability of the current administration for failing to address the fiscal crisis of the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

 

Article #1 >>>>> Journal of the K-12 Revolution: Essays and Research from Minneapolis, Minnesota<, Volume XIII, Number 5, November 2026

Article #1  

Plans for Closing or Repurposing Buildings Presented on 15 September 2026

 

Three and a half years after the stern warning of November 2022, the staff of Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams finally created a plan to address building usage issues as part of an overall effort to achieve a “Transformation” in the Minneapolis Public Schools.

 

At the 15 September 2026 meeting of the Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) Board of Education, the Superintendent Lisa Sayles- Adams administration presented three options for building usage that depending on the plan could close 9 to 16 schools.  Under any of these plans, most elementary school would have art, music, gym, reading, and math intervention specialists.  All middle school students  would have full programs of athletics and extra-curricular activities;  all high school students would have access to all classes needed to meet graduation requirements.

 

Each of the three plans would close the following schools  >>>>>  

 

>>>>>   Loring Elementary School

>>>>>    Pratt Elementary School

>>>>>   Kenny Elementary School

>>>>>   Bethune Arts Elementary School

>>>>>   Anwatin Middle School

 

Each of the three plans would move students from presently occupied buildings to continue programming in another school site  >>>>>  

 

>>>>>     Hmong International Academy (would shift culture and language magnet programming to Jenny Lind Elementary)

>>>>>     Heritage High School (Somali student program would shift to Edison High School

 >>>>>    FAIR School for Arts (would shift to North High School)

>>>>>     Longfellow Alternative High School (teen parent program would shift to North High School)

>>>>>     Wellstone International High School (program for immigrant students ages 18 to 22 still working toward English language mastery would shift to South High Schools.

        

Each of the three plans would consolidate these schools:

 

• Lake Nokomis Keewaydin and Wenonah community schools would consolidate at the  Keewaydin campus
• Lake Harriet Upper and Lower Elementary Schools would consolidate at the upper school campus
• Hiawatha and Howe Elementary Schools would consolidate over time at the Howe campus, or they might be closed
• Hale Elementary School and Field Elementary School would consolidate at the Hale Campus

 

Some plans would close these schools:

 

• Cityview Elementary School
• Webster Elementary School

 

(Note also that if Hiawatha and Howe do not merge, they would close.)

 

Former Minnesota Federation of Educators president Greta Callahan, now MPS Board of Education director for District 6, spoke vehemently against any school closures.  She complained that the decision had been made by seven central office staff without sufficient consultation with the community and that the presentation did not indicate how much money would be saved or how many families might leave the district;  and she said that the Board of Education directive to the Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams administration was not to bring a plan for closing schools but a plan rather for winning back the 47% of Minneapolis families of school aged children that do not select MPS over charter schools, private schools, and other districts.

 

Callahan drew loud applause from most audience members, including the heavily represented organization, Minnesota Families for Public Schools.  

 

But At-Large Board Director Joyner Emerick countered that the administration had exactly fulfilled the Board’s directive and praised the potential for equitable distributions of resources under the plans. District 2 Director Sharon El-Amin commended the plans for the potential to improve academic results for Black and Brown students.  District 5 Director Lori Norvell Board member also indicated approval, agreeing with Emerick that the administration had fulfilled directives from the Board faithfully.   District 4 Director Adriana Cerrillo, along with Emerick attending the meeting virtually, commended the administration’s hard work but was less effusive in her praise than Emerick, El-Amin, and Norvell. 

 

District 3 Director Lisa Skjefte was absent. 

 

District 1 Director Abdul Abdi questioned if Edison High School had the infrastructure to serve Heritage High School students, expressing fear that they might seek other options.

 

At-Large Director and Board Chair Collin Beachy commended the superintendent and administration for their hard work and conveyed openness to the changes proposed;  but he wants a plan for measuring improved academic results, and he seeks to mitigate impact on teachers.

 

……………………………………………………….

……………………………………………………….

 

The MPS Board of Education was slated to vote on these proposals at the 10 November 2026 regular business meeting, after meetings for community input occurred during a period encompassing 30 September through 9 October.  The community meetings transpired but the opposition to building closures from the Minnesota Federation of Educators and a group dubbed Minnesota Families for Public Education was such that at the 13 October regular business meeting of the MPS Board of Education, the administration and Board retreated, so that there will no school closures during academic year 2026-2027 and the plans for the putative “Transformation” are indefinitely delayed.