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Fridley emphasizes educational-benefits forms as compensatory funding faces uncertainty; $6.8M annual funding at stake, superintendent says
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Mike Lewis told the board the district is pushing an educational-benefits application campaign to preserve compensatory education funding that he said amounts to $6.8 million annually for the district; the district rolled out incentives and school videos to encourage form completion and increase direct certification rates.
Superintendent Dr. Mike Lewis updated the Fridley Public School District board on the district's effort to increase completion of the educational-benefits application amid uncertainty about how compensatory education dollars will be calculated in the future.
Dr. Lewis said districts receive compensatory education dollars with a one-year lag tied to educational-benefits and direct certification. He warned that, "without legislative action, this is going to go away with the form or has gone away with the form qualification, and it's just direct certification." He said the district is tracking direct certification numbers closely and that, while he has been nervous about the trend, the district recently reached a level similar to last year.
"I would be remiss if I said I don't want us to keep doing the forms because of that," Dr. Lewis said, adding that continuing to collect forms helps demonstrate local need. He told the board that compensatory aid amounts to $6,800,000 annually for the district and described that sum as roughly 10% of the district's budget.
To encourage form completion the district produced a video campaign in which principals and staff pledged playful incentives if schools meet their completion goals: Hayes Elementary said it would "trap out," Stevenson announced rooftop greetings, the middle school principal promised to wear a mullet wig for a day, and Fridley High School staff pledged to wear wigs if they reach a 70% completion target. The Early Childhood Center spotlighted a planned classroom visit by a staff member if it meets its goal.
Why it matters: Compensatory education dollars fund programs targeted at students with the greatest need; the superintendent characterized the potential loss or change in distribution of those dollars as significant for the district's budget and planning.
Board reaction and follow-up: Dr. Lewis said he will not feel fully confident until a compensatory aid work group produces a long-term solution and asked the board to continue supporting local outreach. The district said it will continue to monitor direct certification rates and report updates to the board.
Details not specified: The board and superintendent provided the $6.8 million figure and percentage of the budget but did not provide a detailed funding breakdown or the precise legislative mechanism that would change the compensatory funding formula during the public meeting.
