Students from Metro Deaf School-Minnesota North Star Academy told the House K-12 Education Finance Division March 23 there is no other school that offers them the same level of access to social, learning and leadership opportunities. They urged the division to support a bill that would alleviate the charter school’s cash flow problems.
Rep. Carlos Mariani (DFL-St. Paul) sponsors
HF3404, which would allow the Education Department to adjust its payments to any school with fewer than 150 students where 100 percent of its students qualify for special education services. MDS-MNSA, with 100 preschool through 12th-grade students from 39 school districts, is the only school that would now qualify for the exception.
“This school is really important to many of us,” said Allison Porter, a senior from Minneapolis, through an ASL-English translator. She likes having “direct communication” with teachers and staff who are all bilingual in ASL and English.
Junior Matt Welstad said he’s developed leadership skills and improved his academics after transferring to the school as a sophomore from a Silver Bay public school where he was the only deaf student.
School Administrator Dyan Sherwood said $500,000 in payments delayed by the Education Department, plus the 27 percent unallotment shift made last year, caused a “cash flow crisis” requiring the school to seek a $700,000 line of credit.
The proposal would accelerate regular special education aid payments to the school, but slow cash flow proportionately to all other districts and charter schools by the same total dollar amount, estimated to be $615,781.
“All charter schools are in severe financial cash flow problems,” noted Rep. Paul Anderson (R-Starbuck). “Are there other schools that are close to meeting the criteria?”
“All schools are under stress in the state of Minnesota,” said Mariani, adding that the “truly unique nature of this particular charter school” merits unique treatment.
The bill was laid over for possible inclusion in the division’s omnibus bill. Sen. Kathy Saltzman (DFL-Woodbury) sponsors a companion,
SF3000, which was laid over for possible inclusion in an omnibus bill March 24 by the Senate E-12 Education Budget and Policy Division.
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