good morning my name is Jim Smith and I am running for the Forest Lake School board with a ranger team let's talk about learning I have been doing just that for years and I'm not stopping from I'm not stopping now there are many issues Schoolboard members must address but really two issues top all others the first is to support high levels of learning for all students the second is how to pay for it to move forward we must avoid the contentious political battle that are raging around education and find ways of working together when it comes to providing highquality research-based learning choices Forest Lake is a leader Forest Lake staff live the district uh vision of Excellence for every student every day if elected I will support the current great things happening in Forest Lake and help to build an even stronger future there is so much to be proud of here career path choice abound students are able to not just explore areas of interest but can receive up-to-date training to make that interest the reality including the new technologies that are continuously impacting the workplace for the College Bound get an early start at gaining college credits here at Forest Lake with college and schools programs as uh programs as well as numerous advanced placement opportunities for more information about these opportunities see the district website less visible but still extremely important to Forest Lake Schools is the work being done in the area of curriculum and instruction the newly reorganized Department of teaching and learning is always looking to the Future to help students to continue to build the critical skills necessary in our changing world two examples of this necessary work are one reviewing curriculum and instructional practices to help align instruction to state standards and two providing teaching support from highly effective instructional coaches to promote learning one last piece of the learning puzzle needs to be mentioned the science of reading approach the state of Minnesota has embraced the science of reading but forest lake has already been on this path for a few years and the results are encouraging after visiting with Forest Lake teachers about what they are seeing in the class I am excited about F future growth the three other members of our Ranger team current board members Rob rafhael Gail th Ang Julie Corker and have worked tirelessly to make Excellence happen not just in the classroom but supporting the infrastructure of the district sport venues Transportation Solutions in a very far-flung district and in countless other ways I am both proud and humbled to be included on a ticket with these folks who have done so much for our district school systems are never finished with the task of finding solutions to problems that exist whether in the realm of learning or School financing or other issues that arise in the future it is easy to talk about problems but the important work is to find solutions that move us forward I am always looking for Solutions and I'm glad to be part of a team that has a has uh this solution-based approach as well yes let's continue to talk about learning and fighting finding collaborative ways of moving forward as a community to support our students their families and their teachers thank you