VIRGINA- It was apparent at Tuesday’s ISD 2142 board working session that communication and understanding between the district and its American Indian Parent Advisory Committee is still a work in progress.
In February, AIPAC members voted to notify the board that “we attest that the school board and/or district are not compliant with Minnesota Statutes and that the school board and/or district are not meeting the needs of American Indian students.” The so-called vote of nonconcurrence was accompanied by a list of 10 recommendations the district should adopt to become compliant with the regulations as AIPAC understood them.
But as district Director of Federal Programs Kim Jordan worked with board members on a response to the recommendations, she expressed confidence that the district is in compliance with all regulations regarding the Indian Education program.
“We’re going by what it currently is, and we do try to follow the state statutes,” Jordan said. “We are doing what we’re supposed to be doing. We are in compliance.”
Jordan allowed that some best practices in the regulations that parents would like to see, such as having the percentage of Native staff equal to the percentage of Native students, are outside the district’s ability to provide, but that doesn’t mean the district is out of compliance for not being able to provide that.
“Sometimes we can’t because of financial considerations or we don’t have the staff, but we do our best according to the statutes that are [in place] right now,” Jordan said.
Board member Chris Koivisto noted that AIPAC recommendations inferred that the district was not in compliance.
“But we are in compliance, so there’s nothing to be done there, right?” Koivisto asked.
“Right,” Jordan confirmed.
Responding to AIPAC’s recommendation for full collaboration in writing all aid grants, Jordan indicated that is a shared goal that has been difficult to achieve of late because of issues with AIPAC functions during the COVID pandemic.
“It kind of fell away and they didn’t really meet, but now they’re getting organized again and they’re gaining speed,” Jordan told the board. “We are excited to work with them. We just have to have common definitions of what collaboration means so that we can support our programs and make sure our American Indian students are getting what they need to be successful.”
AIPAC’s third recommendation was for district personnel to read and adhere to AIPAC’s bylaws, and while not a specific regulatory issue, board members requested that they be provided with copies to review.
AIPAC recommended that the district reinstate a full-time Indian Education director, but Jordan pointed out that regulations don’t require such a position. In her draft response that she reviewed with the board, she explained that the district employs a full-time cultural liaison, and that Jordan serves half-time as Director of Indigenous Education. That has allowed the program to run effectively, she said.
For the recommendation that the district needs to be in compliance with teaching American Indian standards in all classrooms, Jordan said the resources are in place for that to happen.
“Our teachers are given supports and resources to do this,” she said. “They know what the standards are. We have given them a list of what they are and how they line up with our current academic standards. And then if they need resources, they just need to reach out to their staff at the school.”
The Minnesota Department of Education has a self-assessment tool for Indian Education programs, and AIPAC recommended that the district work toward attaining excellent ratings.
Board member Bob Larson directed a question to Jordan.
“When you meet with the parent group, do they understand that you can’t do everything at once, is that agreed upon?”
“I hope so,” Jordan replied. “That’s a point I’ll have to make sure I make next time I meet with them. We’ve talked about the rubric. Like you said, there are some things that are an easy fix and there’s some that it’s going to take some time.”
At that point, Superintendent Reggie Engebritson joined the conversation noting that communication and collaboration with AIPAC is evolving.
“We are in the middle of some growing pains working together and building this collaboration with the AIPAC committee,” Engebritson said. “We found out we’re not supposed to call an AIPAC meeting together, the AIPAC committee meets on their own and it’s up to them if they want to invite Kim (Johnson) and I. The AIPAC committee revised the budget that we had and I think the perception might have been that I was supposed to accept it. So, we had a meeting on Zoom with the Indian Education Director at the state, and I said we’re supposed to collaborate, right? I was struggling that one group says this is our budget and they’re not part of the school’s budget, and she agreed. So, we’re trying to understand and use the same language for this collaboration – what does it mean? We’re trying to work and we want to work together. It’s just being clear on what the roles are.”
Board member Rob Marinaro said roles need to be more clearly understood based on his experience of attending an AIPIC meeting via Zoom.
“We’ll be happy to listen and figure out what everybody’s role is, because at that meeting I wasn’t quite sure what everybody’s role was and what they expected and what we expected, but they’ll come together,” he said.
Being on the same page was a recurring theme as the board continued to review Jordan’s draft responses to AIPAC. Jordan noted that the district has an open line of communication with the state office, and that representatives will be coming up in May for a visit to help facilitate collaboration between the two groups.
Jordan will incorporate the board’s suggestions into her draft and present the final document for approval at the next board meeting so that it can be delivered to AIPAC.
The board also heard a presentation from Senior Consultant Julie Baeb of TeamWorks, the organization that is facilitating the district’s comprehensive strategic plan development. Board members expressed their approval of the work TeamWorks has done to solicit engagement of all of the constituent stakeholders of the district and the thoroughness of the process. Baeb responded to their concerns about coming up with a strategic plan that doesn’t become a document sitting in a file cabinet by describing how the plan incorporates specific performance measurements that are reviewed regularly and are aligned with the directions the district wants to go. The plan as constructed will work as a management tool to guide decision making and performance at all levels of the district, she said.