Four seats on the Minneapolis Public Schools Board of Education are up for election on Election Day, Tuesday, 5 November 2024.
Two candidates are running unopposed >>>>>
>>>>> Sharon El-Amin is running unopposed for the
District 2 seat, which she has held for four years.
>>>>> Adriana Cerrillo is running unopposed for
the District 4 seat, which she also has held for four years.
The other two seats are contested, as follows >>>>>
>>>>> Kim Ellison is running again for the At-Large
seat that she currently holds; her
opponent is Shayla Owodunni.
>>>>> Lara Bergman and Greta Callahan are
candidates for the District 6 seat vacated by outgoing MPS Board of Education
Director Ira Jourdain.
Thus, the candidates in the 5 November 2024 election are as
follows >>>>>
District 2 >>>>> Sharon El-Amin
District 4 >>>>> Adriana Cerrillo
District 6 >>>>> Lara Bergman
Greta
Callahan
At-Large >>>>> Kim Ellison
Shayla Owodunni
The following provides key information and
personal statements from Greta Callahan’s website >>>>>
From Greta Callahan’s Website
I am a kindergarten teacher, single mom, labor leader, lifelong
Southwest Minneapolis resident, and your DFL-Endorsed candidate for School
Board in District 6.
Hi Neighbor,
My name is Greta Callahan, and I look forward to serving District
6 as your school board representative. I am a kindergarten teacher, a single
mom, a union president, and was born and raised right here in Southwest
Minneapolis. I am running for School Board in District 6 because I believe that
every student in our city, regardless of their race, zip code, and/or class,
deserves an excellent, well-funded, and easily accessible education.
I’ve dedicated my entire life to making the Minneapolis Public
Schools (MPS) stronger and better. I was born in District 6, raised in District
6, and am raising my son in District 6. This is my home and although my path to
becoming who I am today was not linear, it all began right here.
My education journey started at Burroughs Elementary and
subsequently Anthony MIddle School.
There, I received a foundational experience that included strong
academics, lasting friendships, and critical thinking skills. I believe every
student in our city deserves the same quality, well-funded education I received
and that my son is getting at Southwest High School.
As a single mother, this is personal for me. I’ve watched too many
of my neighbors and colleagues leave MPS because they do not trust this
district. This adds to the destabilization already created by the Comprehensive
District Design (CDD). Now there are talks of school closures, which further
alienates and scares our families. It doesn’t have to be this way, and on the
School Board I will be one of the many pieces to the puzzle who will help
create the changes and stability we need to rebuild trust.
My North Star is always our students.
As a kindergarten teacher, and former finalist for Minnesota
Teacher of the Year, I know what supports our students and educators need to
succeed. My decision-making process always centers their needs first. I look
forward to the honor of working side-by-side with this School Board and our new
Superintendent Dr. Sayles-Adams.
This is a time of hope in the Minneapolis Public Schools. It is a
time for leadership and further investment in our students. And a time for
stability and safety. It is time to trust each other again.
As a union leader, and President of the Teacher Chapter of the
Minneapolis Federation of Teachers (MFT 59), I’ve invested my time and energy
into doing everything I can to make improvements to our district. I saw the
incredible power the School Board has to change the lives of students,
families, and educators. Through collective action, our union won life-changing
wage increases for our hourly workers, groundbreaking language to support and
retain educators of color and other underrepresented groups, class size caps,
and a Social Worker in every building. Consequently, we are that much closer to
having the schools our students deserve - but we’re not there yet.
I have the experience, relationships, and passion to lead in
District 6.
I bring a track record of improving MPS - both as a teacher
and a trusted union leader. I’m excited to continue on the path of improving
our public school system and working with our current leaders as a School Board
member and I look forward to representing both our district and our beautiful
city. I hope you will join me.
With love and solidarity,
Greta
My name is Greta Callahan.
I am a kindergarten teacher, a single mom, a former union
president, a life-long member of our community, and a candidate for the
Minneapolis School Board in District 6.
I have spent my career as a proud kindergarten teacher in North
Minneapolis. on release, I am also the former President of the Minneapolis
Federation of Teachers. I’m a fierce advocate for public schools, a strong
leader, and am unapologetic in my beliefs and values.
I fight every day for what's best for our students and I strive to
ensure that they come first in all decisions.
I taught at a charter school for two years before coming to MPS.
It is there that I learned that without collective bargaining, educators cannot
advocate for their students when it comes to inequity and unfair practices. I
made it my life's work to fight for public education so that all students
receive the education they deserve.
I have served on the Education MN Governing Board, am the
Executive Vice President of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, was a
2017 MN Teacher of the Year finalist, and Midwest Labor Leadership Initiative
graduate.
My leadership and governance experience is a critical piece to
being an effective school board director.
I spend my free time doing yoga, walking my two pugs, taking my
niece and goddaughter to the park, fishing in the summer, and playing piano
with my son, Morris.
Recognitions, Roles, and Professional Accomplishments:
·
Bachelors in Psychology, Augsburg University
·
Master of Arts in Education, Augsburg
University
·
Fox 9 Top Teacher 2016
·
MN Teacher of the of the Year Finalist 2017
·
Designed and presenter of professional
development on Social Emotional Learning and Play
·
Presenter at ECET2 MN Play Conference
·
Speaker at MRLF Housing Summit 2018
·
Designed innovative, “Read to Our Children”
Program
·
Former Early Childhood Arts Integration Coach
for Minnesota
·
Turnaround Arts Delegate and presenter to
Washington D.C. conference
·
MPS Shark Tank grant recipient, to implement
Stop Motion in Pre-K – 1st grade
·
Designed and presenter of professional
development course on Stop Motion in the Classroom
·
ENVoY Certified Host and Demonstration Teacher
·
Executive Vice President; Minneapolis Regional
Labor Federation, AFL-CIO
·
Former Governing Board Member; Education
Minnesota
·
Former General Board Member, Minnesota AFL-CIO
Vision
Our students deserve a world class education. There is no
quick-fix or reading curriculum that can solve the crisis we are in. Some of
the issues we face in MPS are due to government’s failures and society’s
inequities. Others are things we can control. As the most qualified candidate
in District 6, I will continue to work with our families, educators, and
leaders to create the schools our students deserve.
Students First, Always
Our budget, strategic plan, and strategy around the future of MPS,
must center on what is best for our students. At present, MPS is not
spending money on par with districts of similar size and demographics. We must
re-prioritize our spending to maximize the students’ experience. We fought (and
won) tens of millions of dollars in new money from the legislature. These are
dollars that should be invested directly into our students and into making MPS
a destination where people want to send their children. This also means
creating a more straightforward and transparent process for co-creating
district strategic plans. Additionally, the School Board must direct district
leadership to create a comprehensive recruitment plan for new and returning
students that includes partnering with local elected officials, school staff,
and neighborhood organizations.
Stability
We need stabilization across MPS. I was, and still am against the
Comprehensive District Design (CDD), which broke trust with our families.
Building back trust is essential to making changes in MPS and is one of my top
priorities.
42% of eligible MPS students are enrolled outside of the MPS
system. The CDD was a prime contributor to this. It’s time that we make a plan
for safe, stable, and thriving schools so that our families trust this
institution again. This isn’t rocket science. As parents, we want to know that
we can enroll our children at excellent schools, trust that they will have
relationships with the people in the building, have individualized attention,
be safe, and continue on the path through middle and high school that we had
planned on. We want to trust in the system. We want our children to learn, make
friends, be happy, and grow up to be contributors to society. It all starts
with stability, and I’m running to be a part of the solution.
Meaningful Support Services
As a former kindergarten teacher, I know first-hand that all
students need access to mental and clinical health support - access to nurses,
clinicians, mental health workers and social workers. The proven model of Full
Service Community Schools meets many of these needs. I want to continue the
work we’ve started at Green Central, Cityview, and Bethune to create Full
Service Community Schools’ pathways, while partnering with the city. With a
growing housing crisis and more students facing homelessness I see supporting
the Stable Homes, Stable Schools work as critical to providing stability to
housing-insecure families. In our 2022 strike, we started the hard work
of creating safe and sustainable staff-to-student ratios. On the School Board,
I will champion those efforts so that special education, English language
learners, all of our new-to-country students, and those needing special medical
or emotional care get the one-to-one services they need.
Continue the Momentum We Have at the Legislature
Fully funding our schools is essential for ensuring that we have
the schools our students deserve. As a board member, I will build on my
existing relationships with legislators to secure additional funding for
Minneapolis Public Schools and work to finally close the gap between state and
local special education funding, removing the extra burden on local districts.
We must also remember that charter schools drain money and take taxable land
from public schools. To further support fully funded schools, I will work with
City Councilmembers to stop new charter schools from being created in the city.
Focus on Educating Students, Not Fighting at the Table
Educators with MFT59 Teacher and ESP Chapters teach our kids, SEIU
284 members make sure our kids have nutritious food and clean buildings,
members of Teamsters 320 transport our kids to and from school, and AFSCME
members run the front office and keep our schools moving. These union members
are the people who make our students’ education possible. We should be
co-creating the future of MPS with those that make schools happen.
As a taxpayer, I am livid that MPS decision-makers do not sit at
the negotiating table with union leaders. Instead we pay middle management to
run negotiations with some of the largest contracts in the city. This is
dangerous and a disservice to our students and city.
As a Board member, I will be present at negotiations so that we
can work closely to settle contracts in a timely fashion. The 2022 strike was
hard on all of us and the best way to avoid that from happening in the future
is for the real decision-makers to be present throughout the negotiations
process. We must put our bargaining units in a position where they can focus
the majority of time on educating, feeding, and supporting our students.
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