February 24, 2005 Special School Board Meeting
At the February 24, 2005 board meeting, preceded by a study session, all members were present. At this meeting, the board expected to vote on the final $3.2 million in budget cuts.
Public Comments
During the public comment time preceding the Board meeting, the following people spoke in opposition to IB. Many of them also signed the anti-IB petition presented by Joni Sichting, which cites ideological concerns like " IB rejects the Judeo-Christian values held by a majority of families in our district and instead promotes the atheistic Secular Humanist principles of multiculturalism, pacifism, one-world government and moral relativism."
Paul Borowski said he has ideological objections to IB because it diminishes U.S. culture; has close ties to the U.N. of which Sudan is a member; IB promotes peace at a time when our country's at war.
MaryLouise Bowe said she's been asking questions regarding IB but getting no answers; is concerned that the best teachers are leaving AP to teach IB;
the IB curriculum is from the U.N. but AP curriculum is from the College Board; how can the district do AP and IB? Ms. Bowe signed the petition. Go here to see a scan of the original petition from the public record of the school district (This document was obtained in spring 2005 through a public records request to the Minnetonka School District)Megan Gustafson, MHS class of 2002, Marquette University, class of 2004 and now a taxpayer said she's concerned IB will deplete AP which she believes serves more students and prepares them for college.
Cindy Gustafson said she was pleased with the superior education her students received at Minnetonka but she opposes IB because the district can't fully fund both IB and AP; she feels IB promotes values in conflict with Minnetonka families' values, whereas AP peacefully coexists with those values. Ms. Gustafson left a written copy of her remarks for the district's public record; she refers to the group's meeting that morning with Dr. Peterson. Ms. Gustafson signed the petition.
Karen Schuler Hansen said she's the parent of 3 children in private schools and 1 student at MHS; she feels IB may violate the Minnetonka Vision statement - sees a conflict with IB officers and the organization
itself because of ties to the U.N. and UNESCO; thinks it's undesirable to promote peace education; said Christian parents are watching the school board. Ms. Hansen left 60+ pages of material for the district's public record, including some details of how the group gathered their information. Ms. Hansen signed the petition.Kathy Lynch spoke of meeting that morning with Dr. Peterson but still has questions: how much does IB cost? what is the master agreement? Ms. Lynch signed the petition.
Joni Sichting thanked Dr. Peterson for the meeting with concerned parents that morning; she presented the Board with a petition with 100 signatures. Go here to see a scan of the original petition from the public record of the school district (This document was obtained through a public records request to the Minnetonka Public Schools)
These people spoke in support of IB:
Jacie Hurd said she's the mom of an IB student from a Christian household and sees no conflict; she urged adoption of the Theory of Knowledge materials and said she looks forward to discussions around the dinner table once her daughter's read them.
Maureen Kvam said her 3 children are receiving an excellent education at MHS, though none are enrolled in IB, she values the program; IB offers a different learning environment than AP; IB teaches kids how to learn; why is there s debate now?
Mike Mikulich said he's a strong supporter of IB; is pleased his daughter is in program; there was a unanimous decision to start this program - what has changed?
Sherri West said she represent4d other parents in favor of IB who couldn't be there and who are in favor of IB as a new opportunity and a change from other curriculum offerings.
Dr. Peterson said the Board made a good decision in bringing IB to Minnetonka to serve our students and possibly be a draw for others from private schools or other districts. He said Minnetonka is fully committed to the AP program, that it continued to grow, that IB and Ap would complement each other, and be a magnet for families who want more opportunities and excellent choices.
Budget Discussion - Board members Eaton and Wenmark move to cut IB
Later that evening, during board discussion about budget cuts, Dave Eaton moved that IB be cut completely in view of such community objections. Bill Wenmark seconded. Peggy Stefan questioned Mr. Eaton, saying she hadn’t been aware he had budgetary concerns about IB until his e-mail sent to fellow board members late the night before. Erin Adams, chair, asked if the budget discussion was being used as a place to air ideological concerns. She reminded Mr. Eaton that he’d said he wants to see IB succeed. Mr. Eaton agreed that this was so, but said he hadn’t fully realized that the texts used in IB, particularly in the Theory of Knowledge course in the second year, were not in keeping with the way he feels most parents in Minnetonka are raising their children.
On a roll call vote, Eaton and Wenmark voted in favor of removing IB; Adams, Eastlund, Erdahl, Stefan and Quam voted to retain it. With this 5-2 vote, the board upheld their previous (unanimous) November 2003 decision to maintain the IB Program.
5-2 Approval of IB Theory of Knowledge texts, materials
The board discussed the additional Theory of Knowledge class materials in the presence of members of the public at the study session before the 7:00 p.m. budget meeting on Feb 24. During the board meeting, Ms. Erdahl moved and Ms. Eastlund seconded that the board purchase them. The texts recommended for the Theory of Knowledge class are listed in the minutes of the February 24 board meeting, along with the 5-2 vote to accept them: Eaton and Wenmark against; Adams, Eastlund, Erdahl, Stefan and Quam in favor.
Read the official district minutes of this meeting at:
http://www.minnetonka.k12.mn.us/district/schoolboard/minutes/2-24-05specialmeeting.pdf
Report compiled by TonkaFocus members who attended the February 24 meeting