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Integration funding not secure [UPDATED]
Published 9:30am Tuesday, February 26, 2013 Updated 12:01pm Tuesday, February 26, 2013
While the School Board approved the budget for the district’s integration program, they are waiting on the state legislature to see if the program will be funded next year.
Currently, Minnesota spends $108 million in integration aid appropriated by the state legislature. Programs vary from combatting segregation to working on minimizing the state’s acheivment gap between white and nonwhite students. However, a task force’s recommendations for on-going program implementation were not adopted by the legislature in the last session, leaving integration funding in limbo for roughly 137 schools.
Integration program coordinator Cindy Skalsky reported to the School Board Monday on the progress toward requesting state funding for the program during the next school year.
A grant has been written to continue integration activities, which includes cultural activities, teacher training and curriculum. Integration programming is based out of Pelican Rapids School which has a high ethnic population, but all district schools benefit.
The grant for 2013-2014 will need school board approval before submitting to the state.
The State Legislature has not yet funded the integration program for the next school year.
The budget for next year’s integration program was approved by the School Board Monday.
