I was born and raised in Albert Lea. I am one of those kids, just like our students today, who depended on my community to give me a great education in a positive environment with exceptional role models. My community delivered on that promise, and all of those things are still a part of my life today. I am committed to education because I believe it is our pathway to success, and when a person is committed to something they get involved. That’s what parents do when they volunteer for fun nights, walk-a-thons, field trips and school PTOs. That’s what teachers do when they give so much of themselves on a daily basis to their students. That’s what our community members and organizations do when they support our schools with monies and additional resources, and that is what I am doing running for the school board. Getting involved in a positive way in something that I am passionate about — Albert Lea Area Schools.

To be perfectly clear, we expect a lot of our schools today. They not only need to provide our students with an excellent education, they have many other social issues that they are being asked to address. Keeping our children safe has risen to a whole new level. Social media, with all of its advantages and challenges, has to be addressed. Substance abuse has expanded into areas far beyond smoking and alcohol. Family units look different today than they did several decades ago. Students come from two parent working families, single parent households, blended families and parents with joint custody. Teachers are required to meet educational bench marks, guidelines and testing mandated at both the state and federal level. Our educators and school district have risen to this challenge, but they need and deserve the positive and energetic support of our community. We all have a responsibility to partner with our school board, administration and educators. They depend on us to give them the support they need to achieve excellence in education and the positive mentors and role models that all our children deserve. 

My goal, if elected to the Albert Lea School Board, would be to reflect and communicate in a very positive way the interests and the commitment of the Albert Lea community for our Albert Lea Area Schools. I am a positive, open-minded and hardworking person, and my goal would be to bring all of those qualities to the table and work with the other school board members to build on our past successes and to find positive solutions to our challenges.

Ellen Kehr

Albert Lea