South St. Paul School Board reviews NAPAC's nonconcurrence and details staffing response

The South St. Paul School Board met in a work session on March 31, 2025, to review the Native American Parent Advisory Committee's (NAPAC) annual vote of nonconcurrence and the district's draft response.

According to the minutes, "The Board has 60 days to respond to the NAPAC's recommendations." The minutes record that NAPAC's submission said the district was not in compliance with meeting the needs of American Indian students, though NAPAC also "acknowledged the progress the district has made over the past year" and noted that "the absence of a liaison for much of the year impacted available support for students." The Board reviewed the draft 2024-25 School Board Response to NAPAC's vote during the session.

Amy Winter, executive director of educational services, presented the response materials and briefed the board on steps taken to address the staffing gap. The minutes state the district recently hired a new liaison and that "this position, typically part-time, will be full-time for the remainder of the school year" to enhance student support. Board members discussed those steps but no formal vote on the response was recorded in the work session minutes.

Why this matters: Minnesota statute requires school boards to respond to advisory committee nonconcurrence within a set timeframe; the board's review and the decision to expand liaison hours are the district's immediate operational actions to address NAPAC's concerns. The board accepted NAPAC's written recommendations earlier in the year at the Feb. 24 business meeting and now is reviewing its formal reply.

The district indicated it will finalize its written response to NAPAC within the statutory period. The board adjourned the work session at 5:47 PM; the minutes do not record a subsequent formal vote on the draft response.