May 1, 2025

Students First. Stories Matter.

You may recall that, at our spring conference, our partners from ThoughtExchange joined us on Thursday morning, where we engaged around the prompt:

"To do my part to ensure that Minnesota continues to provide high-quality public education in this critical moment in time, I will..."

The ThoughtExchange conversation captured the collective thinking of 180 participants in our MASA community.   Two key themes emerged as priority areas of focus:

• Keeping Students at the Center
  Participants consistently emphasized the importance of ensuring that all decisions and actions are rooted in what is best for students. Our work must remain anchored in student needs, aspirations, and well-being, with every initiative, policy, and practice reflecting a commitment to their success.

• Advocating for Public Education
  Members expressed a strong call to action to advocate for the critical role of public education, especially at a time when it faces significant financial and staffing challenges and national efforts to shift public resources toward private schools and voucher systems. Participants highlighted the importance of proactively communicating the value, impact, and necessity of strong public schools for the future of our communities and our democracy.

This feedback from our members will help guide MASA’s ongoing work to support educational leaders statewide.  Click here to read further.  Together, we are committed to ensuring a strong, student-centered future for public education.

*Even if you were not able to participate at the conference, I recommend clicking on the links and then the “views” so that you can see the top thoughts and topics. Quick read really. Might help you in sharing what a large group of colleagues believe and reaffirm your own why.

Soon to be Negotiating a Subsequent or New Contract?

1. You might consider including a line item for your own professional development—executive coaching, in particular, is a proven strategy for strengthening leadership and reducing isolation. Here's a link to MASA’s vetted business partners who offer these services. As you support the growth of others, don’t forget to invest in yourself as well. Your leadership makes a difference!

2. Be sure to review your contract to see if it includes a clause requiring you to notify the school board about your intent to continue—or not continue—into another contract term. If so, the notification window likely falls sometime this fall. It’s an important detail that can easily be overlooked, especially when you're deep into teacher negotiations, so just a friendly reminder to keep it on your radar.

Leadership Matters!

“The absolute heart of loyalty is to value those people who tell you the truth. You should value them the most, because they have paid you the compliment of leveling with you and assuming you can handle it.” - Pat Summitt