House, Senate Begin Negotiations

mreaadmin2016 Legislative Issues, Early LearningLeave a Comment

With four weeks left in the session, the House and Senate begin debating their respective supplemental budget proposals and pass them off the floor of each body. A supplemental budget conference committee then will begin sorting through the similarities and differences between the two bodies’ budget priorities in addition to what Governor Dayton wants in the final package in order to attain his … Read More

New Mock Election Lets Students Vote This Fall

mreaadminOther Rural IssuesLeave a Comment

Minnesota will hold its first statewide student mock election this fall for high school students. Called Students Vote 2016, the program lets students in grades 9-12 get hands-on experience with the electoral process by joining their peers from schools across Minnesota in casting a mock ballot for the next U.S. president. Students Vote 2016 will be hosted by the Office of the Minnesota … Read More

Broadband Speeds Draw Attention

mreaadmin2016 Legislative Issues, Broadband AccessLeave a Comment

The Governor, Senate and House all proposed significant investment in broadband expansion across rural Minnesota.  Gov. Mark Dayton recommends the highest investment of $100 million, followed by the Senate at $85 million. The House proposes $40 million. At issue is how to prioritize the needs across the state.  MREA is rooting for all three to resolve their differences and push substantial … Read More

Technology, Teacher Recruitment Top Priorities in Omnibus Bill

mreaadmin2016 Legislative Issues, Achievement Gap, Assessment and Accountability, Balance Local Control, Broadband Access, Capitol Insider Blog, Career and College Readiness, Early Learning, Facility Fallout, Opportunity Gap, Quality TeachersLeave a Comment

The House and Senate Education Committees passed their education finance bills on schedule last week.  They neatly bracket the Governor’s target of $60.77 million.  The Senate’s budget tops $100.5 million, while the House spends $52 million. Both bodies assume that several districts with Capital loans will repay their loans thus providing the state with an infusion of $52 million.  Even … Read More

MREA Opens Call for Conference Presenters

mreaadminOther Rural Issues, Quality Teachers, Teacher Development, Teacher ShortagesLeave a Comment

MREA welcomes dynamic presenters to share best practices, solutions, and research at our 2016 Annual Conference: Making Teaching Matter. Expectations for today’s professional teachers are redesigning teaching and making it a more demanding profession. Research continues to demonstrate that great teaching is more important than ever to student achievement. Presenters will have the opportunity to positively impact more than 300 … Read More

National Teacher to Keynote “Making Teaching Matter”

mreaadminOther Rural Issues, Quality Teachers, Teacher Development, Teacher ShortagesLeave a Comment

Sarah Brown Wessling, National Teacher of the Year, has been selected as the keynote speaker for MREA’s 2016 Annual Conference. The conference will focus on the theme, “Making Teaching Matter.” It will be hosted November 13-15 at Cragun’s Resort near Brainerd. Why “Making Teaching Matter?” Expectations for today’s professional teachers have redesigned teaching and made it a more demanding profession. Research continues to … Read More

National Teacher to Keynote "Making Teaching Matter"

mreaadminOther Rural Issues, Quality Teachers, Teacher Development, Teacher ShortagesLeave a Comment

Sarah Brown Wessling, National Teacher of the Year, has been selected as the keynote speaker for MREA’s 2016 Annual Conference. The conference will focus the theme, “Making Teaching Matter.” It will be hosted November 13-15 at Cragun’s Resort near Brainerd. Why “Making Teaching Matter?” Expectations for today’s professional teachers have redesigned teaching and made it a more demanding profession. Research continues to demonstrate that … Read More

House Releases Budget, Senate to Follow

mreaadmin2016 Legislative Issues, Broadband Access, Career and College Readiness, Early Learning, Facility Fallout, Teacher Development, Teacher ShortagesLeave a Comment

The House GOP released its E-12 target late last week with a focus on one-time funding. The Senate will follow with its plan this week. The House Plan The House proposal focuses on creating $53 million in one-time funding by offering favorable refinancing of facility debt for several Capital Loan districts. The plan assumes seven districts will take advantage of this … Read More

Governor’s Budget Focuses on Early Learning, Teacher Recruitment

mreaadmin2016 Legislative Issues, Early Learning, Teacher Development, Teacher ShortagesLeave a Comment

The Governor’s Supplemental Budget focuses 95 percent of the $39 million in ongoing appropriations on early learning and teacher recruitment. The centerpiece is a $25-million voluntary, formula funded at .6 APU, 350 hours per year PreK program for four year olds. Next in line is a  $12 million for teacher recruitment programs for teacher candidates from under-represented populations and para-professionals in … Read More