[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6200095,"mediaKeyId","3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f","parentId",3819397,"title","District activities directors showcase athletics, arts and new programs; flag football and girls lacrosse highlighted","audioSeconds",4045,"startMs",3513000,"endMs",7558000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f&start=3513&end=7558","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f/thumbnail_3513000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6200095/Minnesota/District-activities-directors-showcase-athletics-arts-and-new-programs-flag-football-and-girls-lacrosse-highlighted","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6200095-44c4b4c8d001aca7dc28c8e474bc79b3/orig.mp4?Expires=1770655555&Signature=R4Ax-awWBqgNqsRxhjkGGiNlayXbVCXW8AA25ObLFiiZyXKB3cRvIt8upVlaT6BYAm5w2EGTD38AyNYMaYkCYz8Ja02P7uos3OnZ8E5kfdHslc2xlHnjOjllW2ikkHakQsIUd546c3oYQjRydahYEPEI0-X-GF4qs8xdHCbiCcWnGUHz1-9GPj7VIDsZQF-az2gJn77eTxXuvq-TouooN6KZqoIRrw-Hf7HCPK3drx1U3v8lJyslQbW34YLbNuNxb3pmHkvwCSzhYcWOPQfnyJ4wvzTgx8ps03Ih6EhZOovdFlJytp2qREvsxE7GkTWQrCb8~Qg1p-3VWrNpc6pPng__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","South Washington County, MN","date","2025-06-13T13:21:22Z","article","Assistant Superintendent Christine Schaefer introduced a district activities update at the June 12 board meeting and invited activities directors from East Ridge, Park and Woodbury high schools to present highlights from the 2024–25 school year.

Sarah Plodicek, East Ridge activities director, reported increased overall participation and noted particular successes: a two‑time state champion in girls swimming and diving (Logan Hoverman, a sophomore who set a state record in the 200 individual medley and won the breaststroke), conference and section championships in volleyball, multiple students signing national letters of intent and a number of teams earning academic team awards. She described clubs that expanded this year (for example, robotics, Hmong dance, and a student publication called Fine Print) and noted students’ community service, including fundraising and a large homecoming dance.

Park High School's director (identified as Phil in the presentation) outlined broad participation and fine arts achievements, including musicals and one‑act plays recognized for strong performance. He highlighted students who earned national and conference recognitions, academic team awards across multiple sports and additional district honors; Park reported a large spring collegiate signing event and multiple student athletes receiving academic all‑state honors. Phil and the presenters also described the growth of newer offerings such as trap team, robotics (which qualified for worlds), and competitive cheer.

Woodbury activities director Jody (surname presented during the meeting) described Woodbury’s participation numbers, club diversity and several individual achievements—multi‑year state qualifiers in wrestling and alpine skiing, cross‑country and track qualifiers, and successes in debate, swim and dive and gymnastics. She and other presenters noted the district’s Thunderbolts adaptive teams and their continued appearances at state tournaments.

Directors from all three schools emphasized two recurring themes: strong academic performance by student athletes (multiple teams earned gold or silver academic team awards by meeting GPA thresholds) and growth in nontraditional or newly sanctioned sports. Notably, girls flag football—organized as a club sport with Vikings grant support—played multiple games on weekends, drew high participation and exhibited fast‑improving athleticism; the district’s flag football team went undefeated in the regular season and reached the state semifinals. Directors also highlighted girls lacrosse’s deep runs in the postseason; Park and East Ridge reported state tournament appearances.

The Woodbury director noted the district began decommissioning the Woodbury High School pool after a 50‑year history; staff and community members marked the pool’s last meets and practices with commemorations. Directors thanked coaches, families and the board for support; no formal board action was associated with the presentations.

No board decisions followed the reports; directors said they will continue work to expand offerings, sustain high academic performance among athletes and support student leadership programs.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","School Board Business Meeting - June 12, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Assistant superintendent Christine Schaefer and activities directors from East Ridge, Park and Woodbury summarized the 2024–25 season's participation, competitive highlights and extracurricular growth—naming state qualifiers, academic team awards, robotics and trap teams, and noting Woodbury's pool decommissioning.","taxTitle","South Washington County Schools, School Boards, Minnesota","taxId",13238,"location","Minnesota","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6200099,"Preliminary 2025–26 district budget projects $1.9 million deficit; board hears risks from special education aid and paid family medical leave",794,2307000,3101000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f&start=2307&end=3101","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f/thumbnail_2307000.jpg","/articles/6200099/Minnesota/Preliminary-202526-district-budget-projects-19-million-deficit-board-hears-risks-from-special-education-aid-and-paid-family-medical-leave","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6200099-b847e907d769712d73df0b244a1cd559/orig.mp4?Expires=1770655555&Signature=CzdN4hecCx-2MRa-rnKtiP8K3GfOif6CjcwXYtjYdrv5mBI9uOzyy3ZUdpfmJGOgj9llrw2nxtbt3Gboyf7OVoi-zTfzTXVNEOJ5KDF1d6Xm3NmEnCA5MM7XaA1umig3AucexOOU7gUs86CiI4k2gRpj5bozkf5m03YfDFbtJBs4qM4nnGJpBB7zshC4nimSYguUhRcK2Un8UqWpQVQWHql1K4grdcOOMoDWAmM9~z00YUtB065pYMNeQeJoLgELEHmRPtteg67HwRWssbVLdC9LYUY7-o00J-0VDCyUCdQcdGgxd-HgsVX-TlMnJnicmhR9~uQJENX3v5ImeXGRaw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Chris Blackburn, Director of Business Services, presented the South Washington County Schools preliminary 2025–26 general fund budget at the June 12 meeting and told the board the district projects a $1.9 million deficit on a $350.6 million preliminary general fund budget.

Blackburn reviewed revenue drivers: the district is about 70% state‑aid driven, supplemented by local levies (property taxes) and small federal shares (about 1.5%). He said state basic formula increases and modest projected enrollment growth are included in estimates; the district models salaries and benefits at the individual level because roughly 78% of expenditures are personnel costs.

On fund balance, Blackburn said the district previously reached a 17.2% unassigned fund balance but the preliminary 2025–26 budget would reduce that percentage to about 13.9%. Board policy calls for a 16.6% target by 2027; Blackburn said the district built reserves to weather anticipated or unanticipated costs but faces near‑term pressures.

Key risk areas and changes identified:

• Special education transportation aid: Blackburn said the budget reflected an anticipated 95% reduction in reimbursement for special education transportation aid and that the change was memorialized in special‑session legislation. He said that factor had already been reflected in the preliminary figures.

• Paid Family Medical Leave: Blackburn flagged the new state‑administered paid family medical leave program, effective Jan. 1, 2026. The program will be financed by a payroll tax (about 0.88% point) split at least 50/50 between employer and employee; Blackburn estimated the employer share will be material and said district staff are modeling roughly a $500,000 annual impact, subject to administrative rules and program use patterns.

• Enrollment uncertainty: Blackburn said the district projects a small enrollment increase (about 79 students) for 2025–26 but warned of longer‑term declines tied to the planned expansion of a nearby Minnesota School of Academics (MSA) that could reduce district students and create fiscal pressure.

Blackburn summarized programmatic spending increases in student‑centered categories (instruction, special education and pupil support) and said administrative and district support spending is down in the proposed budget. He also described the composition of restricted funds (nutrition, community service, construction, OPEB) that do not count toward the unassigned fund balance.

The board will be asked to approve the preliminary budget at a later meeting; Blackburn outlined the district schedule for audit, levy certification work and final budget adoption through December and January.","Director of Business Services Chris Blackburn presented the 2025–26 preliminary general fund budget to the South Washington County Schools Board, outlining a projected $1.9 million shortfall, fund‑balance decline, enrollment risks and statutory changes that could affect future aid and costs.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6200104,"Community education presents balanced‑recovery budget, highlights expanded early‑learning and adult programs",1061,1324000,2385000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f&start=1324&end=2385","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f/thumbnail_1324000.jpg","/articles/6200104/Minnesota/Community-education-presents-balancedrecovery-budget-highlights-expanded-earlylearning-and-adult-programs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6200104-8ae338ba881747ef39cc0f99f79bc495/orig.mp4?Expires=1770655555&Signature=GFMY7s8JX7GuADFtTJBCvz3D~WbOipGHYi8hOoUfV8AgBy~ALkFRturykEjm~Eon1PKRUJp0iyiaz7YCPQ7GWSiIarGkDXFGIOn61D9nVOjNHNP8err8MiGt57-uIuvEpSOhTV4IHANn~MxGS-lfZR9bR973HiXAyXNRsOS1CSPfIBP8SiTLIxK~OIMZ8sfp6je9UVgC41vEZAd6ugYDnmLjdKCg4n-Mpj6ugSnJsJrpq8nC~L-NOdTOLI6n5NsUqPW3iNbbuBBtFz3zTke1U59BJIWh6p7yEDmRNBf7h7c1I3T57~5MIE95X6Iz9V0s5DiqlCnfbv2N1qlrrMbXjQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jake Winchell, director of community education, presented the 2025–26 proposed budget to the South Washington County Schools Board on June 12 and reviewed program highlights from the 2024–25 year.

Winchell said community education is primarily fee‑based—about 70% of revenue comes from participant fees—and that salaries and benefits compose roughly 80% of expenditures. He told the board the department tightened expenses and increased revenues where possible and that some program balances will intentionally run at a deficit because they are community services, not profit centers (for example, the senior center and early learning).

Program highlights provided in the presentation included:

• Early learning/ECFE: Winchell said ECFE served 4,532 individuals and conducted more than 1,400 early childhood screenings; the district reported 757 preschool students at 12 sites (figures presented by Winchell during the meeting).

• Adult programs: Winchell reported more than 1,000 adults served, roughly 36,000 program hours across Adult Basic Education and related services and 30 adults earned a high school equivalency credential this year.

• Kids Club (school‑age child care): Winchell said Kids Club served about 905 children last summer and about 1,600 during the school year; he reported roughly 352,000 summer contact hours. The program is DHS‑certified and accepts childcare assistance for families who qualify.

• Community Bridge (adults with disabilities): Winchell reported about 224 unique participants across 18 classes with an average of five enrollments per participant.

Winchell outlined revenue and expenditure breakdowns by department and category: most revenue is fees, with the largest revenue and expense shares in Kids Club and operations (facility rentals), early learning at roughly 22% of revenue, and adult programs about 5.5%. He said the department keeps a portion of vendor fees (roughly 25%) to cover supplies, repairs and program support; vendors receive the balance for instruction in many seasonal offerings.

On the proposed 2025–26 budget, Winchell said the department crafted a plan intended to be net positive overall even though some service lines operate at a deficit. He said a multi‑year process will rebuild the fund balance for community education and recommended a community needs assessment to inform program priorities.

Board questions focused on accreditation versus certification for child care sites and on whether Kids Club enrollment and revenue have recovered from COVID. Winchell said revenue is close to pre‑COVID levels but enrollment is not fully restored; he added staffing was fully restored for the current year and that the program is no longer limited by hiring this summer.

No formal board action was taken; the presentation will inform the district's budget process.","Director Jake Winchell told the board the community education program is largely fee‑supported, returned toward net positive for 2025–26 in a proposed budget, and reported participation and service counts across early learning, kids club, adult education and senior services.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6200109,"South Washington County updates Alternative Teacher Professional Pay System; longtime specialist to retire",642,496000,1138000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f&start=496&end=1138","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3819397-60d1f0632cb44b89ff8c8fffd8618b3f/thumbnail_496000.jpg","/articles/6200109/Minnesota/South-Washington-County-updates-Alternative-Teacher-Professional-Pay-System-longtime-specialist-to-retire","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6200109-7ede8f054fd946a73b9cb44c0a849bdc/orig.mp4?Expires=1770655555&Signature=HC1nZ592bvFJ6lgTBnEYdUnSQ1S1gAzi3o~qAw7xTUgRFPFUnJt4iP~eyZ2uw5xCtqTJSyGXfza3zpDGENj51gMdqUDSarVolUoalRMslZh27MQiO1QArAN76hpv90shaBCc4gcQkQVox8WfoTd6H4Q2NacSjNHlbKWMXlo7KKVznrDyeX91sCjBR3OfpdER9M5sUV7lo2F-2QcrmHADs5W-H3DP7DLPxRac36k~sH-mo0byWgVdbVnm6rtbLF9HC~Q5Jc3bhTQgTvnY~Lys5MtD65iDM~DtTA6DyO3cXZhg09mSsua3VBYVO6Wy0fRKKAU5RMke-eaW17qaSI8w0w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Tim Bunnell, the district HPPS specialist, gave the South Washington County Schools Board an annual update on the Alternative Teacher Professional Pay System (AT PPS) at its June 12 meeting and said he will retire after this report.

AT PPS includes four core components, Bunnell said: site‑determined professional development, student achievement goals, formative peer observations and career advancement opportunities. He told the board the program provided two site‑determined professional development days this year that were used for district training tied to a curriculum rollout and that next year sites will again determine the content for two days scheduled in September and at the end of the year.

Bunnell described the program’s flex professional development option, under which teachers may complete an individualized six‑hour plan and be paid for designated days. He said the district moved the allowable start date for summer professional development back to early June so staff can complete ahead‑of‑year work, and that participation in district PD rose when the district offered paid flex days. \"They participate in the PD, and they receive compensation for one day's pay,\" he said.

On student goals, Bunnell said a major change for 2025–26 is that staff will be required to set both an academic goal and a social‑emotional learning (SEL) goal rather than choosing one or the other. He gave examples: SEL goals typically use student surveys on classroom connectedness administered at the start and end of the year; elementary academic goals are often tied to IRLA or comparable assessments and are framed as growth targets.

Bunnell said the district is changing its formative observation model for probationary teachers. Instructional coaches will provide three observations and follow‑up coaching for probationary staff; mentors will still support those teachers during the year. For continuing staff, the district will keep three peer observations but add a new option: staff may choose a learning walk where they observe a colleague and then debrief.

On career advancement, Bunnell said the district keeps mentors, AT PPS coordinators and equity teacher leaders and continues to make instructional coaches a priority. He said the district will refine coaches’ focus on probationary induction to support teacher retention and long‑term student outcomes.

Regarding funding, Bunnell said AT PPS will be paid without general fund dollars beginning in 2025–26 and that the final state budget bill included a line item for AT PPS. He told the board the district expects the program’s funding to remain intact for the next several years but cautioned that future legislative changes or undetermined cuts could affect appropriations. On proration he said new districts were not added to the program this session and projected only a modest reduction for the district—about a $30,000 decrease on a multi‑million dollar allocation—if statewide enrollment growth slightly reduces the per‑pupil amount.

Bunnell closed the presentation and invited questions.

Discussion and next steps: Board members commented positively about peer coaching and asked follow‑up questions about proration and the new dual‑goal requirement. Bunnell said staff will provide examples and continued implementation details to buildings as sites prepare staff development plans for 2025–26.

No formal board action or vote was taken on AT PPS during the meeting.","At a June 12 board workshop, district staff reviewed annual changes and outcomes for the Alternative Teacher Professional Pay System (AT PPS), outlined program shifts for 2025–26 and said state funding for the program is secured for the near term. Tim Bunnell, the district HPPS specialist who led the report, announced his upcoming retirement.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

District activities directors showcase athletics, arts and new programs; flag football and girls lacrosse highlighted

Preliminary 2025–26 district budget projects $1.9 million deficit; board hears risks from special education aid and paid family medical leave

Community education presents balanced‑recovery budget, highlights expanded early‑learning and adult programs

South Washington County updates Alternative Teacher Professional Pay System; longtime specialist to retire