Letter to the editor

Statement by Pam Costain, member of the Minneapolis School Board

After several months of reflection and numerous conversations with my family, I have decided not to seek reelection to the Minneapolis School Board. This has been a very difficult decision for me because I love the Minneapolis Public Schools and consider my service on the board to be the most significant and important work I have done in my professional life.

I believe passionately that public education is the bedrock of our democracy and that a strong urban school system is critical for our city’s future. Diversity, pluralism and equal opportunity for every child are core values
that I hold dear, and they are central to the mission of public education. When we support our public schools, we express our commitment to the common good and to the responsibility that each generation has toward the care and
well-being of the next.

The fact is I can no longer afford to be a school board member. The combined salary and expense stipend of less than $14,000 a year does not even cover the cost of my health care and professional expenses, let alone provide a modest wage. While others have managed to work this out differently, I personally have not figured out how to do the job with anything less than a full-time commitment. School board directors spend countless hours reading and preparing for meetings, attending community and neighborhood events, visiting schools, talking to constituents, staying current with local, state and federal policy debates, meeting with other community and political leaders and serving on boards with other jurisdictions. We also answer all of our own e-mails, letters and calls.

Wages for school board members have not increased in more than 20 years. Despite the tremendous challenges of governing an urban school district, the job of a school board member is still viewed as essentially a part-time, volunteer commitment. Operating from a model that is at least 50 years old, governance of our schools is seriously out of date in my opinion. I hope the citizens of Minneapolis will begin to discuss governance of the school district and the expectations we place on those who serve.

There is one more reason I will not be running again. There is climate of negativity and blame that surrounds urban public education, and it has taken a toll on me. The negativity is both external (the Governor and other politicians’ favorite sport is bashing the Minneapolis Public Schools), and it is internal (parents, teachers, board members, administrators and the community spend far too much time pointing fingers at one other). I do not believe we can make the breakthroughs we need in our district without stronger unity and a mutual commitment to problem-solving on behalf of the children. Those of us who believe in urban public education must learn how to disagree, without wounding and insulting one other. We are allies, not opponents. There are plenty of people who do not support public education; those of us who do must learn new ways to move forward.