New Advocacy Group Wants Reform of Minnesota Public Schools

MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Minnesota public schools suffer from some of the nation's worst achievement gaps between haves and have-nots, according to a new report released at the launch today of education reform advocacy group MinnCAN (the Minnesota Campaign for Achievement Now).

"The truth is that in Minnesota in the year 2011, where you are born largely determines where you will end up," said Vallay Varro, MinnCAN founding executive director. "At a time when the demographics of our state are rapidly changing, the kids who need a great public education the most are not getting one."

Released today at the launch of MinnCAN The State of Minnesota Public Education identifies sobering characteristics of the current state of Minnesota public schools:

• In 2003, our achievement gap in eighth grade math was bad (we ranked 38th out of 50 states for poor students), but now it's much worse: we moved all the way down to 49th place.
• By the time they enter high school, more than 80 percent of Minnesota's Latino students are unprepared to read grade-level material.
• Only Alaska has a larger Native American-white achievement gap in fourth grade math.

MinnCAN will push for school reforms advancing the principles of choice, accountability and flexibility by galvanizing ordinary Minnesotans in support of smart public policies. MinnCAN's 2011 legislative campaign, also unveiled today, is called "Minnesota School Emergency in Effect," and asks policymakers to:

1. Remove roadblocks for teachers: Open alternate paths to getting talented teachers certified and in our classrooms.
2. Clear a path to quality pre-K: Implement a statewide rating system for pre-schools so that parents can make the right choice for their child.
3. Build a barometer of teacher effectiveness: Develop a trusted system that measures the impact of teachers on their students' achievement.

MinnCAN is supported by a committed board of local civic, business and philanthropic leaders: Sarah Caruso of Greater Twin Cities United Way; Rob Clark of Medtronic, Alex Cirillo of 3M (Retired); Michael Ciresi of Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi; Gary Cunningham of the Northwest Area Foundation; Vernae Hasbargen formerly of the Minnesota Rural Education Association; Virginia Hubbard Morris of Hubbard Radio; Father Michael O'Connell of the Church of the Ascension; Tim Penny of the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation; Tad Piper of Piper Jaffray; former Governor Al Quie; Carleen Rhodes of The Saint Paul Foundation; Sondra Samuels of the PEACE Foundation; John Stanoch of Qwest; and Sandy Vargas of The Minneapolis Foundation.

Learn more about MinnCAN, and download the State of Minnesota Public Education report, at www.minncan.org. Learn more about MinnCAN's 2011 legislative campaign at http://www.schoolemergency.org.

ABOUT MinnCAN

Launched in January 2011, MinnCAN (the Minnesota Campaign for Achievement Now) is an education reform advocacy organization. MinnCAN is building a movement of Minnesotans dedicated to creating the political will to enact smart public policies to ensure that every Minnesota child has access to a great public school. Learn more at http://www.minncan.org.

SOURCE MinnCAN