As a reminder, in the upcoming 2019-20 school year, the academic calendar includes five days with a two-hour early release in order for staff to participate in professional development. Please mark your calendars:

• Nov. 1
• Dec. 6
• Feb. 7
• March 13
• May 1

These dates can also be found on the District calendar. We are excited to share that our partnership with the Central Minnesota Boys & Girls Club will enable families to utilize after-school care and activities on early release days.

Elementary students can join and utilize KIDSTOP (K-5 students at all elementary schools) and the Boys & Girls Club if your child is not yet a member, and it will be a seamless transition if your child already attends. Boys & Girls Club locations are listed below, and transportation from the school to the Boys & Girls Club site is provided. A minimal fee applies; however, scholarships are available. Registration is required.

KIDSTOP for grades K-5 students
Available at all elementary schools

Eastside Boys & Girls Club
320 Raymond Ave. SE, St. Cloud
320-253-5159
 
Roosevelt Boys & Girls Club
345 30th Ave. N, St. Cloud
320-257-5124
 
Southside Boys & Girls Club
1205 6^th Ave. S, St. Cloud
320-251-4314
 
Please contact your school principal with any questions.

Al Johnson, the new director of equity services, is known throughout District 742. He has a way with kids. He engages them on their level, challenges them to be better and stands behind them when they need someone to lean on.

“I believe … it’s really important for us to connect our passion with our purpose,” says Johnson. “Our passion comes out of what we believe, our family values, how we’ve been brought up or raised, and through that lens, I can determine what I’m really passionate about. And then, we have to look at what we’re really good at. Now, I can play the drums, but I wasn’t meant to play the drums. That’s not my purpose … I’ve been given a gift to connect with kids.”

Having his passion in line with his purpose has been a journey of discovery for Johnson. When it came to education, he felt lost as a child. He didn’t feel a sense of belonging and struggled because of it. What he did learn was that he was good at talking to people.

Johnson’s career began in sales. He worked for many different companies which gave him the perspective of what he didn’t want to do the rest of his life. Continue reading.

2014-15 Community Forums

It’s been a long time in the making, and the wait is finally over! The new Tech High School just opened its doors to students, families and the community to continue its tradition of excellence. And enthusiasm is in the air!

Construction on the project officially began with the Groundbreaking Ceremony in August of 2017, but the process to build the new school started considerably earlier.

“Going all the way back to 2014,” explains David Leapaldt, IIW Minnesota architect for the project, “it started with the interview process of the project.”

Once the school board decided to move forward with a referendum for a new or renovated Tech, IIW Minnesota contacted Cuningham Group to establish a partnership due to Cuningham’s recent successful completion of the Alexandria High School. The two companies complemented each other well by using current knowledge of high school design coupled with local experience within the community.

Community forums consisting of community members, staff, parents and students began in 2014 and met throughout 2015.

“A lot of the discussion [from the forums] was centered around Tech, but it was really [about] how the district wants to deliver education and how does the community view and want education,” says Leapaldt. “How do you model an education system that is both flexible and match where education is going?”

Taskforce members agreed a new Tech was the only way to accomplish what the community and the district viewed as the future of education.

After a failed first attempt at a referendum in 2015, taskforce members went back to the drawing board. The district convened listening sessions, and the agreed upon best option was to scale back the building to accommodate 1,600 students instead of 1,800. However, members believed District 742 would reach a 1,800 population within a short amount of time. Therefore, the change in design meant the core facilities such as the commons areas, food areas and courts would still need to handle 1,800 students, and the site would allow for the expansion of the gym, gymnastics facility and an additional learning neighborhood in the future.

And the referendum passed the second time around. Continue reading.