Marilyn Forsberg was first elected to the Spring Lake Park School Board in 1982. Now she's the longest serving active school board member in Minnesota. >> Well, I'm proud to have done it. >> It has been extremely interesting. I've learned a lot. >> Her journey of school board service began after her son was diagnosed with a learning disability. If you have a child who needs special services, you quickly learn how school districts function and I had become very interested and there was an open seat. So, I decided I would run. Back then, the district served about 3,800 students. Today, enrollment is over 6,000 and the high school campus has been completely redone along with new buildings and expanded programs. Forsber is proud of her role in moving the district forward and making pivotal decisions. >> New superintendence of course is always a critical thing. Um we've had a lot of uh things happen with buildings. >> Her colleagues say Forsberg's experience and perspective are invaluable. >> She makes an immediate impression with her knowledge and her leadership. She's like the compass for us and she just is always willing to give of herself and she takes such pride and she's so good at it. >> We're extremely proud of Marilyn. She's taught me to um just be confident in what I do. Whatever knowledge she has, she's been more than willing and to share and and I've been more than happy to accept it. >> She's so passionate about it. She goes to everything and I mean and I mean everything. That passion is why few were surprised to hear that Forsber is running for reelection. >> I was not at all surprised. I She This is a part of her and and she's a part of the community here. >> She just likes it so much. She and she's so involved and she knows so many people. So hopeful. >> It does take time and it does take work, but I have time and I have learned so much along the way that I hope to continue to share that and makes do some more things. >> Forsber has seen education evolve from oneizefits-all to more personalized learning like in the district's pathways program and she believes even bigger changes are on the way. I anticipate that with AI, we will have more changes. >> If voters choose her again, Forsberg says the focus will be on navigating funding challenges and making sure every student has opportunities to succeed. >> I have really enjoyed my time on the board. There have been tense minutes and um we have to deal with those. But we have a board and an administration that's very focused on serving kids and that's really what we're all about. >> For North Metro TV News, Danica Peterson reporting.