Friends and neighbors,
As we begin a late night of debate on our Liquor, Public Safety and Crime Prevention, and Health and Human Services budget bills, I wanted to provide you with an update of the last week in the legislature.
Three of my education bills were included in the Education Finance bill, which was passed on Saturday, April 25. HF804 makes modifications to state law surrounding educational programs for students with special needs, allowing school districts the freedom to choose online IEP record-keeping programs that best suit their needs for management and transfer of records. HF1237 ensures that all paraprofessionals hired by school districts have the necessary skillsets to teach each individual student with special needs. We must ensure that teachers are fully equipped to engage in education consistent with individual student goals and classroom needs. Likewise, we must also ensure that record-keeping suits district needs and enables districts to transfer student records if a student transfers districts. I’m thankful to my colleagues for choosing to put students first.
The Education Finance omnibus bill also included HF1636, which reauthorizes a law passed in 2013 that gave school districts the flexibility to transfer finances among accounts and funds. Reauthorizing this law was common-sense, giving financial control back to districts.
I am proud of the work done on education. Our bill empowers teachers to better serve their students, gives schools the flexibility to implement policies that make sense for their classrooms, increases teaching and decreases unnecessary testing, provides fairer funding, and prioritizes early childhood learning. Like many of you, I am committed to ensuring our students receive a great education that sets them up well for future success.
As we continue our budget discussions, please stay in touch to share your thoughts and concerns. You can reach me via phone at (651) 296-8891, or via email at rep.drew.christensen@house.mn. I look forward to hearing from you!
Have a great week,
Rep. Drew Christensen