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Minnetonka presents expanded advanced learning programs after public comment on access
Summary
The school board heard an update from Director of Advanced Learning Diane Runquist on universal screening, program access and specialized services; a resident urged broader inclusion based on his family's experience.
The Minnetonka School Board on Feb. 6 received an update on the district's advanced learning programs from Diane Runquist, director of advanced learning, outlining recent changes intended to broaden access and remove barriers for students with advanced learning needs.
Runquist said the district now serves more than 40% of students in one or more advanced learning programs and has taken steps such as universal cognitive abilities screening for all second-graders, expanded file-review qualification thresholds and 'on-ramps' that allow students to enter advanced courses at later points in middle and high school.
Runquist said, "Minnetonka is fiercely committed to the growth of each student, both in their areas of struggle and in their areas of strength." She described the district's approach as "responsive and agile" and said services target different learner strengths including intellectual, visual-spatial and leadership profiles.
Why it matters: District leaders framed the changes as equity measures intended to detect and serve students who would previously have been missed by referral-based systems. Runquist told the board universal CogAT screening in second grade identified 71 students for gifted services this year, and "34 of those 71 students would not have been referred by their classroom teacher under the old system." The district now reviews multiple data sources and has pathways for students to enter advanced courses later if data show they need more challenge.
Runquist highlighted several programs and services: Project Think, an experiential engineering-focused program for visual-spatial learners; Navigator, an elementary program for highly and profoundly gifted students with intellectual profiles roughly three standard deviations above the mean; honors and accelerated offerings at middle school; and a range of AP/IB and specialized programs at Minnetonka High School. She said more than 80% of high school students take at least one AP or IB course before graduation.
Runquist also described work to reduce barriers for students with disabilities and multilingual learners by adapting assessment tools and removing assessment strands heavily influenced by language or attention when those strands would misrepresent a child's reasoning strengths.
The report followed a public comment from resident Carl Bundy, who spoke earlier in community comments about his family's experience with advanced learner services and homeschooling. "My name is Carl Bundy. I live in the, Groveland, tenants area," Bundy said, and described how program availability affected his children's schooling decisions. Bundy told the board that having advanced learner options in Minnetonka had been essential to his family's sense of inclusion.
Board members praised the work and asked for details about staffing and program sizes. Runquist said Navigator class sizes have increased over time to better mirror regular classrooms, and that most high-school advanced courses are staffed similarly to other high-school classes; she noted a few specialized courses (for example, Minnetonka Research) have slightly smaller sections for safety and equipment reasons.
The presentation concluded with board appreciation for the department's efforts to expand access and identify students earlier.
Runquist closed by thanking district leadership and teachers: "I wanna thank Minnetonka's leadership for remaining steadfast in its commitment to all students, learning, and growth," she said.
