[0:05] Good afternoon everyone, [0:07] and thank you so much for having me. [0:08] Truly an honor to speak to you all, [0:10] and also to attend this meeting and hear [0:12] about all the great workthat our community has been doing. [0:15] As Superintendent Baumann mentioned,my name is Alice Yi. [0:18] I'm a senior at Lakeville South,and I'm really excited [0:21] to share how Lakeville schools have shapednot just my education, [0:25] but certainly my growthas a holistic person. [0:29] Although we've spoken a lotabout my high school [0:31] experience, I've attendedquite a few schools in the district. [0:34] I moved herewhen I was probably just under one, [0:37] and I started at Lakeview Elementary,and then I moved to Oak Hills [0:41] for the Ignite program,and I'm currently at Lakeville South. [0:44] What stands out most here in Lakevilleisn't just the quality of education. [0:48] It's our entire environmentthat's built by everyone in this room; [0:51] our educators, administrators, familiesand community partners. [0:56] And to address the gap in the schoolsI just listed, I spent my three years [1:00] of middle school in a town near Londonin the United Kingdom, [1:04] and returning to Lakeville,however, was a very easy choice. [1:08] It felt a lot like home,even though I'd spent three years [1:11] experiencing a vastly differentand incredibly exciting, different place. [1:15] My mom even left a well-regarded jobso that I could finish high school here, [1:19] because we truly believed in the strengthand the heart of our [1:23] Lakeville Area schools. [1:24] And despite my worries about fitting inafter having a few years away, [1:28] everyone at Lakeville Southtruly welcomed me with open arms. [1:31] Our administrative team has continuouslyshown incredible care and flexibility. [1:36] My teachers are always truly supportiveof not just my academics, [1:39] but personal growth. [1:40] And of course, a huge shout outto all the incredible staff [1:44] that keep our schools running. [1:45] And we couldn't do it without you. [1:47] Over the years,I've had a lot of opportunities to move [1:50] not just outside of Minnesota,in the U.S., but [1:53] overall to more so-calledcompetitive school districts. [1:57] But I've definitively chosen to stay here,and I think that staying here was never [2:01] a matter of sacrificing opportunities,but rather gaining something more rare. [2:06] A genuine investment in me as not justa student, but as an individual. [2:11] This past year, and also in my junioryear, I started serving on the Lakeville [2:16] Teaching and Learning Advisory Council, [2:18] along with, again,many of the people in this room. [2:20] That gave me an incredibly rarefront row seat to just [2:23] how deeply our school district valuesthese student voices. [2:27] And I saw administrators,parents, community members [2:30] listen, respondand act on what we've shared and aligning [2:34] on the core values that our schooldistricts continuously strive to achieve. [2:38] And academically,of course, I can definitely echo [2:41] what our superintendent has shared. [2:43] We do have an incredible opportunityfor rigor. [2:45] I've been fortunate to take 15AP courses, earn a perfect ACT score, [2:50] and qualify as a National Merit Semifinalist. [2:52] But I think that these milestonesdon't just reflect my personal effort, [2:56] but the support and resourcesthat Lakeville schools have provided. [3:00] And I know that over time,those statistics that our superintendent [3:03] shared have only been continuouslyincreasing and improving. [3:07] I've also benefited hugelyfrom local organizations and businesses [3:11] that believe that learning extendsjust beyond the classroom. [3:14] From showcasing my artat the Heritage Library [3:17] and unfortunately not being ableto attend the Lakeville Art Festival, [3:20] to speaking at the International Dayof Living Together in Peace, [3:24] as well as gainingentrepreneurial experience [3:26] at the Lakeville Home,Landscape and Community Expo. [3:29] I think these opportunitieshave all shaped my learning as a person. [3:32] Thanks to ISD 194,I’ve proudly represented Lakeville, Minnesota [3:36] and the U.S. as a MinnesotaDECA State Officer, as a part [3:40] of the Congressional Art Competition,and also on Team USA for debate. [3:44] I think that by prioritizing ISD 194 [3:47] in our schools were truly shapingall of Lakeville future: its economy, [3:51] its culture, its vitality,and probably most importantly, its people. [3:56] When our schools, as they currently are,combining academic rigor [3:59] with personal support,and when both civic and business [4:03] and community leaders treat educationas a shared responsibility, [4:07] we're not just creating better students. [4:08] We're creating reasons for peopleto stay and return [4:11] and build their futures in Lakeville,as all of us currently are. [4:15] I'm incredibly gratefulto be a part of that future [4:17] because Lakeville invested in mefirst and grateful for you all. [4:20] Thank you. [4:23] I have tried to do, [4:25] I guess some some people are calling it Baumann 2.0. [4:28] I don't know if that's true,but there is a 2.0. [4:32] My goal is really to simplify [4:35] what we're trying to do as a [4:39] school organization, and that's [4:42] stated right here 2025-26 priority. [4:47] It's to get Pre-Kthrough 12 aligned curriculum [4:51] and an instructional systemfocused on state academic standards. [4:55] That's it. [4:56] Don't have 100 other thingswe want to try to do. [5:00] We just want to try to do that, [5:03] and we want to try to do thatwith every bit of energy that we have. [5:06] So all the help we can get from this room,we want it focused on that. [5:11] So, if you can in any way help us do that. [5:17] So a couple of thingsI want to make sure everybody is aligned [5:21] with and are hearing from me. [5:24] We did, when I did return, [5:27] we did some adjustments in leadershipand did some restructure. [5:30] And the purpose of doing that was to getfocused on what I just shared with you; [5:34] to get our Pre-K - 12 curriculum alignment [5:38] solidified and to get focused on state standards. [5:42] So that's everything Idid is focused on that goal. [5:46] We wanted to [5:47] get into a cycle of what I thinkwould be a term familiar [5:50] with many people in this roomis a quarterly business review [5:54] where we arelooking at our data at the macro level, [5:59] sharing that with our school board,sharing that with our community [6:03] so we can all develop an understandingand a common operating picture of how [6:08] we are performing as a school systemand just being very upfront about that. [6:13] Some of the challenges we're facing, [6:16] currently and, give you a littlelook over the fence here. [6:20] We have challengeswith concentration of students [6:24] based on our system of boundariesfor kids, attending school. [6:29] So we have neighborhood schools,essentially. Attendance area alignment, [6:33] we have to get that squared away. [6:36] Our challenge there is we have, [6:38] too many kids in some schoolsand not enough in other schools. [6:42] So it's not balanced very well. [6:44] And that creates a lot of challengesin our system. [6:47] We know this. [6:48] And so we have to do some attendance arearealignment. [6:51] And, we'll be working thatand sharing that information [6:56] at school board meetingscoming up in November, December [7:00] with a intent to have a decision onwhat we're going to look like by January. [7:06] The other thing is, we do have a [7:09] a bubble classor a wave class, as I like to call it. [7:13] Fourth grade todaywill be moving into our middle schools. [7:18] We project to have about 3,000middle schoolers [7:21] coming into the system,for sixth grade in 2028. [7:25] Right around that time frame. [7:27] We have three middle schools currently,a thousand per middle [7:30] school is what the simple math is. [7:33] I can even do that. [7:35] And our [7:37] challenge there is what our capacity iswith the schools, that were built. [7:42] As we all know, Century Middle Schoolwas the last middle school built. [7:46] Right now,we have over a thousand kids at century. [7:50] And so we have a concentrationchallenge again. [7:53] And it really is a challenge on how ourboundaries are set and what our growth is. [7:59] And I think in the video, althoughit didn't flash up there very long, [8:03] it did show our enrollment growth. [8:05] And I think everybody in this room knowsthat Lakeville is going to continue [8:08] to grow. [8:10] And that's that's by design. [8:13] The city makes those decisions. [8:15] Elko New Market is growing as well. [8:19] Not quite as fast, but in the end, [8:22] what happens is the Lakeville AreaSchool system [8:25] has to make room and space for our kids. [8:29] And getting back to our missionand also looking at [8:33] what we want to dowith the environment of education. [8:36] We have some challenges on our hands,and I'm just sharing that with you, [8:40] because you all are the influencers [8:43] and the business people of our community. [8:46] And you should knowthat. More details will be coming out. [8:50] I know everybody'sgoing to put on their calendars, [8:54] our school board meetingsand be watching or attending. [8:57] Some of you in this room do attendour board meetings and thank you for that. [9:02] But, you can watch it online as well. [9:04] We want to get viewership up. [9:08] So just a [9:09] small way of just letting you knowthat publicly, we are going to be talking [9:13] about these kinds of things,over the next few months. [9:16] So to give you just a sense ofwhat's going on in Lakeville Area Schools. [9:22] Now, you all are business people. [9:24] The majority of you in hereare businesspeople. [9:27] Well, as Krista shared, [9:31] I was, I did the Business ServicesExecutive D irector job here in Lakeville, [9:36] and I was doing somethingsimilar in Saint Paul schools. [9:40] So I want to to share with you [9:44] more of the financial sideof the conversation [9:47] with regard to Lakeville Area Schools,because that's how we resource [9:51] all the other things that we want to do,whether it's hiring staff, [9:55] supporting, programs,anything that we're doing. [9:59] Like you run a businessfor what you're doing. [10:02] We have to run a business for whatwe're doing. [10:04] Now, the difference is the Constitution,the state of Minnesota, [10:10] affords us revenue through taxation. [10:14] And I did say that word out loud, andI'll continue to say the word out loud. [10:18] We want to be good stewards [10:21] of our community's dollarsand our state's dollars [10:25] to helpbuild our nation in a positive way. [10:28] That's what we're trying to do. [10:30] So I, I often get asked questionsabout school finance. [10:35] School finance has a lot of complexities to it. [10:37] So I found a sourced video that I think [10:41] can help simplify and amplify [10:44] kind of what we are doing financially [10:48] in school systems and what the challengesare that we face with that. [10:52] So I'm going to attempt to [10:55] hit the right button here. [10:57] After headlines across Minnesota [10:59] declared record school funding in 2023. [11:02] You may be asking yourself,why are so many school districts [11:06] making budget cutsand going to voters for more funding? [11:10] Here are the top reasons Minnesota [11:12] schools are struggling to balance budgets. [11:16] Number one: inflation. [11:19] Families aren't the only onesfeeling the impact of rising costs. [11:22] For school districts, [11:24] the costs of labor, healthinsurance, property insurance and school [11:28] bus transportation continue to rise. [11:31] The 2023 inflationary increaseto the general education [11:34] formula is a step forward,but it doesn't make up for decades [11:38] of underfunding and failingto keep up with rising inflationary costs. [11:44] Number two: [11:45] unfunded and underfunded mandatesfrom the state. [11:49] When it comes to some of the most costlythings schools have to pay for, [11:53] it's the state legislature, not the localschool board who makes these decisions. [11:58] From implementingnew instructional strategies to increasing [12:02] curricular requirementsto providing unemployment benefits, [12:05] there are decisions made at the statelevel that local districts must follow. [12:11] While the state may offer one time fundsto help pay for some new requirements, [12:15] the ongoing costs are oftenthe school district's responsibility. [12:20] And number three: the changingrole of schools in our communities. [12:25] The needs of students are differentthan they were [12:28] ten, twenty or thirty plus years ago. [12:31] From mental health support for students,specialized learning assistance, [12:35] family resources and career programsto help meet workforce needs, [12:39] schools have takenon additional responsibilities [12:42] to meet the needs of their studentsand community. [12:45] When you add rising safety needs, aging [12:48] buildings and technology,and declining birth rates, [12:51] it's clear why Minnesota districtsstruggle to balance their budgets. [12:57] School funding is complex, with the majority [13:00] of funding coming through the statein the form of general education aid. [13:04] Schools also receive funds [13:06] for specific categoriesthat can only be spent on certain items. [13:10] Additional needs arethen covered by property taxes. [13:15] In other words,just because the state is providing us [13:18] with more dollars doesn't meanwe can use those dollars wherever we like. [13:22] Each yearwe tackle the challenge of balancing [13:25] these funding sourceswith our increasing expenses [13:28] to build an effective budgetthat meets student needs. [13:32] When our student needs exceedsstate and local funding, [13:35] we may seek additional supportthrough a referendum. [13:40] As you can see, there's more to the storybeyond headlines of schools receiving [13:44] record funding, inflation, unfundedmandates, and a changing role for schools. [13:51] Funding schools is an [13:53] investment in our students,community and future. [13:57] Please reach out to your elected officialsand share your story [14:00] so they can help do their partto make sure our students [14:03] and our schools are receivingthe resources they need for success. [14:09] Visit our website to learn more. [14:15] So to that point, [14:17] we have a rainy day fund,which I think is a great, [14:21] key performance indicator onhow we are performing in terms of, [14:25] managing our financesin our school system. [14:28] So you can see in 2023 we were, had a [14:31] dip, started to recover in 2024. [14:35] And we are on a path of recovery,where we're projecting out [14:38] to about a 7.3% of our budget beingin our rainy day fund. [14:44] The goal the board has set for us is 10%. [14:47] So we are driving in that direction. [14:49] I think itit shows a good picture of health for us. [14:54] And it also presents the challenges of, [14:56] of how we are going to manage dollarsmoving forward. [15:00] And then this is something I think is,fair and important for all to understand. [15:06] And the, the pie chart on the leftshows our general fund revenue [15:10] and what the sources are. [15:12] The video you just saw explainsa little bit of that, but for us here [15:17] in Lakeville, it's about 69% from statesources. And then on the right, [15:22] we have how our expenditures are usedor where we are putting those dollars. [15:27] And if you start with the,the gray side of the pie chart and flow [15:31] all the way around past the purple,all that those dollars [15:35] are going into classroomsand instructional services [15:38] or into our buildingsthat are literally classrooms [15:42] supporting our kids and the thingsthat they need to do their work. [15:47] So I just want you to see thatbecause I think sometimes people are like, [15:51] well, why are you spending moneyor you got all this money? [15:53] What are you doing with it?So there there's a pie chart. [15:55] I think that kind of is illustrativeof how we're using the dollars. [15:59] This representsthe current school fiscal year. [16:05] Now, as you all are aware, [16:07] we do have a levy renewal coming. [16:09] And I just want to share a few thingsabout the levy renewal. [16:12] And first of all, some community feedback. [16:16] We do a survey of, [16:18] using the voter profile of our communityand our voters. [16:24] And we have a scientific survey conducted. [16:27] We did one in April of 2025. [16:29] Some of that was also includedin the video. [16:32] But what I want to share hereis, some of the things [16:35] that are directly related to the renewalthat we are, [16:39] having on the ballot and, [16:41] with college and careerreadiness, 76% of those surveyed said [16:45] that, career and collegereadiness are very important or essential. [16:50] And 84% said that Lakeville Area Schoolsis doing a good or excellent job at that. [16:57] With regard [16:58] to educational technology, 71% say [17:02] that educational technologyis very important or essential [17:05] in our school system,and 79% say that Lakeville Area schools [17:09] is doing good or excellentin using our educational technology. [17:14] And then finally, [17:16] in that survey,85% said they would support a renewal [17:20] of the capital projects levy,which is what we are [17:24] having on the ballot coming up. [17:26] So if it passes, what are we able to do? [17:29] Well, we're able to sustain and maintainand continue [17:32] to do the things that our community [17:37] funded us for back in 2015. [17:40] And some of those thingsare very important. [17:42] A lot of them are related to informationtechnology, but also cybersecurity [17:47] and security for,physical security in our buildings. [17:52] And I think, everybody is is keenly aware [17:55] of how important and vitalthat that is for us. [17:59] Some of the things that we were able to do [18:02] is imagine a school systemthat doesn't have an enterprise [18:05] information technology systemor service within its, [18:11] district. [18:12] That is where we were before we got this, [18:15] levy that you all voted for back in 2015. [18:18] We did not have an enterprise solution. [18:21] We do now. [18:22] And by that,we're able to have standardized classroom [18:25] setups for our teachersand for our students, and we're able to be [18:29] interactive and intentionalwith our learning practices [18:32] using educational technology tools. [18:36] There's also overridingall of that, is our cyber [18:40] security capacity and capability. [18:42] As you know, as our kids are usingdevices, as our staff is using devices, [18:46] and everybody in here who owns a businessor as part of a business [18:50] probably understands how important cyber [18:53] security is in our world today. [18:57] And you can imagine in education, [19:00] there's the kidsand then also our families. [19:03] There's also all of the people who comeinto our buildings and use our networks. [19:08] They have to be secure. [19:09] And this chart here shares with you, [19:14] a scope [19:15] of about the devices that we have [19:18] and the systems that we have that [19:21] the levy passed in 2015, provided usthe opportunity to have in our system. [19:26] And we're just trying to keep that going [19:29] in our classroomsand in our school district. [19:33] Safety from a cybersecurity perspective. [19:36] And also, our ability to have a networkthat is capable, that is, [19:41] we can handle a large volumeon our network to support our community. [19:46] If you remember, in the video,we're doing about 2000 200,000 hours [19:51] of post school, community support. [19:55] And when folks come into our buildings,whether they're in a crowd [19:58] or they're in a participatingin some sort of program, [20:02] many people want to be onlineand want to be able to get online. [20:05] And we've been very effective with that. [20:07] And we've also been able to be securewith that, in our system. [20:11] And all of that came from the,the past levy. [20:13] And all we're trying to doagain is maintain and sustain. [20:18] Some of the [20:18] software equipment for STEMand career courses that we're able to do. [20:22] I, I always like that pictureon the far left because it's, [20:26] oxygen and acetylene [20:28] and I speaking any welderslanguage in here? [20:32] We have,we also have the ability to do this, [20:36] with technology, doing [20:39] welding and learninghow to do everything from, [20:43] every part of welding withouthaving the acetylene and oxygen flowing. [20:48] We have both of those. [20:50] So they learn using, a virtual system,and then they transition into, [20:56] doing the actual acetyleneand oxygen part of welding. [21:00] That's just one example. Music production. [21:03] Not every kid is going to be intosinging, as our Encore [21:09] group demonstrated or,playing an instrument, [21:12] but also doing music productionand having the software to develop [21:15] and also give our kids an opportunityto learn and get certified in that. [21:20] And then graphic design,which I think everybody in here in some [21:23] manner or other touches graphic design,if you're into any marketing [21:26] or communications for your business,you're definitely doing those things. [21:31] With physical security and technology, [21:34] with this referendum,we were able to transition [21:38] our security camera systemsfrom analog to digital, [21:42] and that gave us the abilityto interface with other software. [21:46] We did, later put in our 3D system,and all of our cameras [21:50] were able to patch into that, and leveragethe capability there. [21:54] So we were very grateful for thatand continue to leverage that. [21:58] And we would like to keep that all online.In order to do that, [22:02] we needed the referendum to do that [22:06] work, get those storage serversand be able to use those. [22:09] And then, the other thingwe were able to do [22:11] with the levy from 2015, again,that we're trying to sustain is [22:15] this levy gave us the capabilityto to get, access control [22:20] into our school systems,which I think is been vital and important. [22:25] It's only one layer, [22:26] but the return on investmentfor our community and for our schools [22:31] is to have more securityand more safety into our system. [22:35] And, again, the 2015 levy gave us that. [22:39] But access control is is one layer. [22:42] We have layers inside of our buildings. [22:44] We have a [22:46] great relationship with our LakevillePolice Department and our SRO system, [22:50] and all those things combined togetherfor the effects that we're trying [22:54] to get and creating that safe environmentfor our staff and our kids. [22:59] No new tax increase. I would say, [23:01] let's all say that together three times,but I won't do that. [23:04] We're not elementary kids. [23:06] No new tax increase with this. [23:09] If it fails,simply in the fiscal year 2027 budget, [23:15] we will have to figure outhow to carve out $4 million [23:18] and then, move forwardwith that adjustment. [23:23] This is just a picture of whatthe ballot looks like, in case, [23:26] any of you haven't had the opportunityto cast a ballot yet [23:29] or interested in casting a ballot,this is what it looks like. [23:33] I would read that to you, but I think morepeople would head for the exits, [23:36] so I won't do that. [23:38] You can vote now or on November 4th. [23:42] We have at the district office,voting stations [23:46] set up, for youif you want to do early voting in person. [23:50] We also have mail in ballot, [23:53] opportunities. [23:54] And then on November 4th,we will have all of our polling places [23:59] open for your access. [24:02] I want to make sure that you knowwhere resources are. [24:05] I think there's a handoutthat you can take with you, [24:08] that affords you the the [24:12] different sites and locationswe have for information. [24:15] And then again, to all of you,thank you for coming. [24:20] Thank you for supporting our schools. [24:22] And “All for 194” means all of us [24:27] are working to help our school district. [24:29] And we appreciate you. More than that, [24:31] we love you for everything thatyou do. Thank you so much.