Area legislators brief Columbia Heights school board on compensatory aid, federal funding risks and immigrant-family supports

State Senator Mary Kunish and state Representatives Sandra Feist and Cagle told the Columbia Heights Public Schools board Tuesday night that the state Legislature is beginning work on education funding matters that could affect the district, and they warned that federal funding and immigration policy changes at the national level are creating uncertainty for local schools.

The legislators spoke during the board's regular meeting in the community room. Senator Mary Kunish, chair of the Senate Education Finance Committee, described ongoing work on attendance and truancy pilot programs and said the Senate so far is preparing for a smaller budget target for the coming biennium. “We are expecting a pretty slim target this year financially,” Kunish said, and she urged districts to weigh where limited dollars should go. Kunish said the Senate previously added targeted dollars for special education and English learner…