Challenges Faced by the Eden Prairie School District

I believe the board will be facing two main challenges in the coming years; financial stability and narrowing the achievement gap. I would work to ensure future financial stability in the following ways:

• Use my financial background to ensure that the district continues to manage responsibly.

• Advocate tirelessly for adequate funding of public education at the state legislature.

• Support innovative programs that give families choices. If we could keep just 10% of the children in
  Eden Prairie that currently go to private schools in our public school system, the district’s financial picture would look very different.

 As to the achievement gap, for our state and country to be competitive in a global economy we must have the best educated workforce in the world. Eden Prairie is becoming a more diverse community and that is a good thing. We have dedicated parents, excellent teachers, and a vibrant business community. My marketing communications experience can help engage the community in narrowing the achievement gap.
A rising tide lifts all boats and narrowing the achievement gap will ensure that all of our children reach
their potential.

Opportunities for the Future of Education

I think that two of our biggest opportunities are to evolve how technology is used in education and to teach our kids a set of “new basics” necessary for global competitiveness.

My career has been spent primarily in technology-based businesses so I will bring an in-depth knowledge of and interest in technology to the board. I believe we should teach our children how to use technology in the way it is used in the business world; to research issues, communicate effectively, and collaborate to solve problems. We must also help our children learn how to be judicious consumers of information. The internet is a wealth of information and kids need to know how to determine what is accurate and what is questionable.

I believe that we must educate our children in a new set of basics that are necessary for our kids and country to compete globally. These “new basics” include:

• Creativity

• Innovation

• Teaming

• Self-directed learning

One of the ways to teach these “new basics” is to synchronize business and today’s workforce with education. I saw the power of this as the lead consultant on a Habitat for Technology project. Habitat for Technology is a consortium of the City of Eden Prairie, the Chamber of Commerce and the School District. I worked on a project that teamed high school students with professionals like me to create websites for small businesses. The students saw how businesses work and gained invaluable experience for their resume.

I also taught marketing at an entrepreneurship camp at Eden Prairie High School. Students with ideas for their own businesses were teamed with professionals from the business community to help them better understand how to finance, market, sell, and run their businesses. At the end of the camp the students presented their business plan to a panel and received feedback and suggestions on how to make their dreams come true. These are the kinds of programs I will encourage to help our students learn the “new basics” needed for success.