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Administrator’s Corner by Chris Dibble

Feb. 21 to 25 will mark School Board Recognition Week in the state of Minnesota. This gives all constituents an opportunity to learn more about school structure and the important role of elected school board members. As a building leader, I appreciate working collaboratively with members of the school board in making Albert Lea High School a great environment for students to learn. The Albert Lea School Board consists of seven members who work toward the district mission to ensure individual academic, social and emotional growth that leads to engaged citizens and lifelong learners. This mission statement was created by the school board to guide decisions made at all levels from classrooms to board rooms.

Part of the press release from the Minnesota School Board Association reads:

“Minnesota school board members are chosen by their communities through election or appointment to manage local schools. Statewide, school board members oversee multi-million dollar budgets which fund education programs for more than 893,000 students in more than 2,000 schools. Their personnel decisions affect more than 58,000 teachers and thousands of administrators and support workers.

“These leaders also are responsible for formulating school district policy, approving curriculum, maintaining school facilities, and adhering to state and federal education law. Legal concerns and the complexities of school finance, including budgeting and taxation, require them to spend many hours in board training programs and personal study to enhance their understanding of these issues.”

An important role of school boards is to represent the members of communities who trust them in guiding decisions of local districts. Every two years, elections place the members to serve on the school board to take on all the responsibilities above. This fall, four of the seven positions will be up for election. People interested in running can look for filing instructions on the Albert Lea Area Schools website later this year.

I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank the work of our school board members, Dennis Dieser, Angie Hoffman, Dave Klatt, Jill Marin, Kim Nelson, Bruce Olson and Neal Skaar. I appreciate all you have done for the students in our schools and communities. I look forward to continuing our collaboration in making the Albert Lea Area School District the best it can be.

Chris Dibble is principal of Albert Lea High School.