Saint Paul school board approves preliminary district goals, schedules broad community engagement

The Saint Paul Public Schools Board of Education voted unanimously Jan. 21 to approve a set of preliminary district goals for student achievement and program priorities and to launch a second phase of community engagement to refine those targets.

Vice Chair Gregor Ward, who led the board’s goal‑setting work, told colleagues the draft goals grew out of district surveys and listening sessions with students and staff, and were developed with district research staff. "We came together, talked through our shared desire to be more organized and proactive as a board," Ward said, framing the package as a set of measurable targets the board wants to pursue over the next five years.

The preliminary student‑outcome goals set baseline targets and multi‑year targets tied to state assessments and graduation measures. Among the draft outcomes included in the board packet:

- Reading proficiency: increase from 34% (2024) to 40% by 2029, and for students learning English as a second language from 7% to 15% by 2029, measured by Minnesota comprehensive reading assessments. - Math proficiency: increase from 26% (2024) to 31% by 2029 (Minnesota comprehensive mathematics assessments). - Graduation: increase 4‑year graduation rate from 68% (2023) to 78% by 2029. - Civics/US government: increase the percentage of students receiving a passing grade in courses that meet the U.S. government/civics graduation requirement from 84% (2023‑24) to 90% by 2028‑29.

The board also approved programmatic goals intended to support those student outcomes, including increasing district enrollment (from 60% to 63% of Saint Paul school‑age children by 2029), expanding restorative practices (from 1 school to 8 schools by 2029), incrementally increasing per‑student music and arts funding ($2.43 per student in FY25 with annual increases through FY29), and raising the percentage of students completing a career inventory before graduation from 78% to 99% by 2029.

The goals package drew active discussion. Several board members and community commenters asked the board to broaden or reframe the civics goal to reflect not only formal civic knowledge but also critical thinking and practical life skills, including financial literacy. Director Brionne Carrillo and others said the community’s responses often described a wider set of skills — media literacy, critical thinking and practical navigation skills — that parents and students want schools to teach alongside traditional civics. "A lot of the findings were very similar. They wanted higher quality education. They wanted options when they graduated. And they wanted to feel connected," Ward said describing research results.

Board members directed staff to include focused questions in the next round of engagement on civics and on financial literacy. Several directors volunteered to work with staff to develop a draft financial‑literacy goal for consideration before goals are finalized. The board set a timetable to distribute a public survey in February and hold community sessions through March and into April; staff said a goal‑finalization step will follow the engagement period.

The motion to approve the preliminary goals passed unanimously. The board’s action authorizes staff to distribute the second‑round engagement materials and return to the board with revised language and recommended final goals after community feedback.

What’s next: the district will run community sessions and a survey in February–April, produce a summary of feedback, and return to the board later in the spring to finalize and adopt the goals for publication and progress monitoring.