Minnesota

News, analysis, and opinion about K-12 education in Minnesota
Students eat lunch of homemade pizza and caesar salad at the Albert D. Lawton Intermediate School, in Essex Junction, Vt., on June 9, 2022.
Students eat lunch at Albert D. Lawton Intermediate School in Essex Junction, Vt., on June 9, 2022.
Lisa Rathke/AP
States Six States Have Made School Meals Free to All Students. Will More Follow?
The new state laws provide universal school meals permanently, affecting 8 million students.
Arianna Prothero, June 23, 2023
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5 min read
Special education teacher Savannah Tucker works with Bode Jasper at the Early Childhood Education Center in Tupelo, Miss., on May 14, 2019. As the special education population has grown, so has mainstreaming - bringing these students into regular classrooms for at least part of their school days.
Special education teacher Savannah Tucker works with Bode Jasper at the Early Childhood Education Center in Tupelo, Miss., on May 14, 2019. Special education costs are rising, particularly as student needs have grown more complex since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thomas Wells/The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal via AP
Budget & Finance Special Education Is Getting More Expensive, Forcing Schools to Make Cuts Elsewhere
States and districts share the disproportionate cost burden of supporting a complex, growing, and vulnerable population.
Mark Lieberman, April 20, 2023
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8 min read
Bus drivers picket outside the bus barn in Wasilla, Alaska on Jan. 26, 2023. Bus drivers in Alaska’s second-largest school district went on strike after delivering students to classes on Tuesday, Jan. 31, citing unfair labor practices.
Bus drivers picket outside the bus barn in Wasilla, Alaska, on Jan. 26, 2023. Bus drivers in Alaska’s second-largest school district were on strike for more than a month until a tentative agreement was reached earlier this month.
Loren Holmes/Anchorage Daily News via AP
School & District Management Why School Workers Are Going on Strike—And What It Means for Districts
Strike activity increased nationwide last year, and educators were a big part of it. It's holding steady so far in 2023.
Mark Lieberman, March 14, 2023
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7 min read
Close up of hands holding a smartphone and working at a laptop near a window showing a snowy day
iStock/Getty
School & District Management 5 Tips for Switching From Snow Days to Remote Classes
Two district leaders say communication, flexibility, and adaptability are key to success.
Caitlynn Peetz, January 23, 2023
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4 min read
Buses parked covered with snow
iStock/Getty
School & District Management Will Schools Actually Ditch Snow Days for Virtual Learning? The Outlook Is Still Cloudy
More districts are substituting some remote learning, but snow days are still an option in many places.
Caitlynn Peetz, January 20, 2023
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5 min read
Photo of school leaders walking outside.
E+ / Getty
School & District Management A School District Now Has a Deep Bench of Principals of Color. See How It Got There
In six years, Minnesota’s Eden Prairie district went from 18 percent of school leaders being people of color to nearly 50 percent.
Denisa R. Superville, January 10, 2023
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7 min read
Image of mental health concept.
Nadezhda Deineka/iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being Incarcerated LGBTQ Youth Are Struggling. Here's How Bad It Is
LGBTQ youth in juvenile detention centers face far greater mental health challenges compared with those in public schools.
Eesha Pendharkar, December 2, 2022
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5 min read
Representatives from St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) administration, faculty and staff, students, and the Indigenous community raise a healing pole in a ceremony at the SPPS headquarters in St. Paul, Monday, Oct. 11, 2021.
Representatives from St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) administration, faculty and staff, students, and the Indigenous community raise a healing pole in a ceremony at the SPPS headquarters in St. Paul, Monday, Oct. 11, 2021.
Scott Takushi/Pioneer Press via TNS
Standards Minnesota Teachers, Parents Criticize ‘Awkward’ Tribal References in Proposed Math Standards
Teachers were somewhat more supportive of the tribal references than were parents, school board members, and school administrators.
Josh Verges, Pioneer Press, March 30, 2022
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6 min read
Illustration of syringe tied to stick
Getty
Student Well-Being Minnesota Offers Kids $200 and Scholarship Drawings to Get Fully Vaccinated
Minnesota is offering 12- to 17-year-olds who get COVID-19 vaccines a $200 reward and a shot at $100,000 worth of college scholarships.
Christopher Magan, Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.), October 19, 2021
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2 min read
Illustration of students reading with pie chart.
iStock/Getty Images Plus
States From Our Research Center Map: A-F Grades, Rankings for States on School Quality
Here’s a map showing grades for all the states on this year’s Quality Counts summative report card, on which the nation gets a C overall.
EdWeek Research Center, September 1, 2021
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1 min read
Illustration of students reading with pie chart.
iStock/Getty Images Plus
States From Our Research Center Nation Gets a 'C' on Latest School Quality Report Card, While N.J. Again Boasts Top Grade
A slight increase in this year's Quality Counts score isn't enough to boost the nation's school system above last year's middling grade.
Sterling C. Lloyd & Alex Harwin, September 1, 2021
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8 min read
Illustration of students reading with pie chart.
iStock/Getty Images Plus
States From Our Research Center State Grades on K-12 Achievement: 2021 Map and Rankings
Examine the grades and scores that states and the nation earned on K-12 achievement, along with how they scored on a host of indicators.
EdWeek Research Center, September 1, 2021
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1 min read
Illustration of a female carrying moving boxes.
iStock/Getty Images Plus
Career Advice Relocating for a Teaching Job: What to Know Before You Take the Gig
Double check the cost of living, assess the cultural fit, review teacher licensing rules, and see how you can become part of the community.

Elizabeth Heubeck, July 21, 2021
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5 min read
Conceptual image of a school door with projected shadows of students.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week (Images: iStock/Getty)
School & District Management Interactive Enrollment Data: How Many Students Went Missing in Your State?
America's public school system lost more than 1.3 million students during the coronavirus pandemic, according to an Education Week analysis.
Eesha Pendharkar & Maya Riser-Kositsky, July 2, 2021
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1 min read
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