Minnesota State Academies seek predesign and asset preservation funds for historic Faribault campuses

Terry Wilding, superintendent of the Minnesota State Academies, told the Senate Capital Investment Committee on Feb. 18 that the state-run schools for deaf and blind students need capital support for multiple projects on their Faribault campuses.

Wilding said the academies — two residential campuses that serve students statewide — operate historic buildings dating to the 19th and early 20th centuries and that many structures are no longer fully usable or are inefficient to maintain. The academies requested predesign funding for as many as six buildings on the deaf school campus to explore replacement and consolidation and requested predesign funding to replace an aging therapy pool on the blind school campus.

Wilding described the therapy pool as built in the 1950s with a single lift; academies staff said replacing it with a zero‑grade (walk‑in) pool would improve student access and staff safety and would better support students who require wheelchair access and aquatic therapy. Wilding also described ongoing asset preservation needs across both campuses and said the academies received $2.1 million in asset preservation and $4.6 million for a dorm renovation in 2023; the dorm renovation is underway.

Wilding said the academies serve students statewide, with about 100 students at the deaf school and about 50 at the blind school, and emphasized that the schools are residential and that many students rely on campus services and programs.

No formal committee action was recorded; senators thanked Wilding and noted the campuses’ historic character and statewide role.