Minnesota's Problem Child

"This is my opinion. The MPS has been underachieving for years now. Even lowering the standards has not helped. It is time to let this patient die. Get rid of the union, and replace the teachers with professionals. Teach to succeed, not just to barely survive."

Minnesota has a problem. Well actually, more than one. But this one has been around for decades, and nobody, I mean nobody in our current state government, knows what to do about it. What is it? The Minneapolis Public School (MPS) system. It is a mess. The taxpayers have thrown boatloads of money at it, and no improvement. No matter how much the MPS gets, it ain't enough. Not even close. 

According to this week's article in Minnpost, the MPS is once again in deep do-do. Only this time, it could be terminal. Why? For one thing, not enough kids. The system was build on having 40,000 students, and right now they have about 28,000. That is a big problem, as the funding comes in on a per student basis. Why has the enrollment dropped? Those who could leave, have left. Many that remain, are the most high need students. Plus, there are thousands of immigrants who have very poor English skills (and more coming all the time). 

Here is the rub. If the reserves of the MPS drop too far into the red, they will be in statutory operating debt. That is a big problem. At that point in time, the patient is not yet on life support, but for sure is in financial ICU. A plan must be submitted to the state, explaining how the district will recover from this mess. Should the plan be unsatisfactory, or fall short in its execution, the state could withhold future state funding. If state funding goes bye-bye, the trumpet will come out, and taps will be played. That will be the end of the Minneapolis Public School system.

Here is the unadvertised secret. For the past three years, the MPS has balanced its books with the help of a quarter of a billion dollars in federal pandemic funds. Those funds are now going away. When that happens at the end of the year, the MPS school board, who is made up of new and very inexperience people, will have to pull a rabbit out of the hat. If they can't, they might be the last crew on the Titanic.

This is my opinion. The MPS has been underachieving for years now. Even lowering the standards has not helped. It is time to let this patient die. Get rid of the union, and replace the teachers with professionals. Teach to succeed, not just to barely survive. In two years, when the legislature is in session, look for this to be the hot burner. Unless state taxpayers want a huge increase in taxes (again) to save this sorry district, the legislature needs to figure out an exit plan.