MASA eUpdate

This week's edition of the "Henton Headlines" features information on the upcoming Budget Reduction & Strategy Sessions, warning about phishing emails, and a last minute push for our MASA surveys! Read the full post here.

Where and when are the sessions?

October 28, 9-10:30 am, Resource Training & Solutions, Sartell

November 5, 10-11:30 am, ARCC, Hermantown

December 19, 10-11:30 am, SWWC Service Cooperative, Redwood Falls Community Center

Who can attend these sessions?

All sessions are open to all MASA members (regardless of regional affiliation) including superintendents, business managers, finance directors, and other district-level administrators and staff!

What do we hope to achieve?

• Facilitate discussions on how to communicate statewide budget reductions.
• Learn how colleagues are informing boards and communities, and handling budget cuts.
• Develop unified talking points for statewide advocacy.
• Provide a space for attendees to share experiences and network.

RSVP form coming soon! Be sure to check out the Henton Headlines for more info!

If you attended the fall conference, you may have already provided your input...but if you did not attend the conference you are invited to participate in our new legislative topics exchange and annual member survey!

After you answer a few demographic questions, you'll be asked to respond to one open-ended question, consider and assign stars to some of the ideas shared by others, and learn what's important to your fellow members.

Your thoughts and stars are confidential. You can come back as often as you'd like to participate and, in fact, we ask that you do come back to star some of the new ideas shared since you first participated. The ratings will help us understand the most important areas to focus on. Thank you in advance for your help and input.

Complete our member survey here!

Participate in the Legislative Exchange here!

Please submit your responses by 11:59 pm on October 11.

MASA members are invited save the dates for a series of virtual legislative updates from MASA Lobbyist Valerie Dosland during the 2025 Minnesota Legislative Session! We are happy to partner again with the Minnesota Association of School Business Officials (MASBO) for these sessions.

Dates and Times

All sessions will be held virtually from 12:30 - 1:30 pm!

January 17

January 31

February 14

February 28

March 14

March 28

April 11

April 25

May 22

Full information and Zoom links will be sent to members and included in the eUpdate in the coming weeks!

In an effort to help our members organize and manage the day-to-day, week-to-week, and month-to-month demands of leading a school district, we shared this new MASA Superintendent’s Checklist in August. Running from July to March, this monthly checklist serves as a guide to help you navigate through the school year. It includes links to relevant information and supportive resources and is intended to support you in your work. April through June will be shared in March! Please contact Lori Zimmerman (lori.zimmerman@mnasa.org) with comments and suggestions for additional items to include.

Google Sheets Tips

• If this is your first time accessing the document, here is how to make a copy of the spreadsheet.

• If you already have an existing copy, you can add any new tabs to your spreadsheet. Here is an image of how to add them to your copy.

During a recent Instructional Leaders network meeting a request as to how teaching/learning departments are structured across the state led to a survey opportunity for the curriculum component group. Many districts are represented in that group, but if MASA members don't have an official teaching/learning person, they might not have had an opportunity to participate in the survey. Here's the link to offer feedback should you wish to participate.

Thank you to our speakers, breakout session presenters, exhibitors, and attendees of the 2024 MASA Fall Conference at Madden's! The conference evaluation and CEUs were emailed from sara.klecker@mnasa.org on October 2. You can find conference materials here!

A special thank you to our conference sponsors!

Nexus Solutions | Conference Lanyards

Kennedy & Graven, Chartered | Morning Refreshment Stations

Save the date for the 2025 MASA/MASE Spring Conference, March 20-21 at the Minneapolis Marriott Northwest!

You are invited to join us virtually on Thursday, November 7 at 10 am for a state of the association, financial report, professional learning update, and legislative outlook. After the MASA Business Meeting adjourns, there will be a brief meeting for the Management Concerned for Public Education (MCPE), MASA's political action committee! Register here!

Are you ready to lead your district into the future? The MASA Advanced Leadership Academy invites superintendents and education leaders to come together to work collaboratively to lead for tomorrow. The theme of the first session, The Future of Education, focuses on adaptability, agility, and visionary planning for the next generation of educational leadership.

What will we do these first two days?

• Embrace change with agility and adaptability
• Engage in scenario planning for future-ready schools
• Dive deeply into future leadership challenges including AI integration, post-pandemic recovery, and more
• Design a visionary 2030 model for your school district
  
• Collaborate with your peers on innovative solutions to the most pressing challenges facing education today

Don’t miss this chance to connect with colleagues, participate in visionary activities, and walk away with actionable insights to lead your district into 2030 and beyond! 19 of your colleagues have already registered - will you join them?

MASA Finance Academy!

Three sessions | November 6 - December 11, 2024 | Quora Education Center
Full information here!

Back by popular demand! In response to feedback from our members and aspiring superintendents, MASA has developed an academy focused on finance topics especially relevant to the superintendency. These three sessions will provide opportunities for reflective leadership and skill development, equipping participants with the tools and strategies needed to succeed in the role of superintendent.

If you are already registered for the Great Start Cohort, there is no need to register for this academy as it is included in the Great Start Cohort experience.

We hope the school year has gotten off to a fabulous start for you and your students! We are excited to welcome you to the MASA Instructional Leaders Networking meetings this year! Facilitated by our Curriculum Component Group representatives to the MASA Board of Directors, Craig Anderson and Vera Weber, we invite you to add the following dates/times to your calendars:

• November 15 - Meeting Link | 1-2 pm | Add to calendar
• January 17 - Meeting Link | 1-2 pm | Add to calendar
• April 25 - Meeting Link | 1-2 pm | Add to calendar

We look forward to meeting together soon and throughout the school year! Please contact Lori Zimmerman with questions.

MASA will be featuring our valued business partners in our weekly association eUpdate to all MASA members. We will select a business partner each week to feature in the weekly eUpdate. Thank you for your continued partnership with MASA!

Submit your business information here: https://forms.gle/q9kjUFV3Dv7aQp7F7.

View the full eUpdate here!

Frontline Education is hosting a webinar on December 5th, 2024, at 12 pm ET, titled "Using Research-Backed Data to Drive Student Success and Boost Teacher Retention."

The webinar will be led by experts Kevin Agnello, PhD, and Sara Thomas, M.Ed., and will focus on using data to address key challenges in education. Participants will learn how to identify and leverage the most impactful metrics, such as student risk, college and career readiness, and teacher burnout, to drive strategic decision-making and improve outcomes. The webinar will also feature real-world examples and data demonstrations from K-12 administrators. Full information and registration here!

FEMA has extended the deadline to apply for assistance to October 27th. This extension provides additional time to inform your communities and networks, especially in the 21 Minnesota counties designated for FEMA individual assistance: Blue Earth, Cook, Cottonwood, Faribault, Freeborn, Goodhue, Itasca, Jackson, Lake, Le Sueur, Mower, Nicollet, Nobles, Rice, Rock, St. Louis, Steele, Waseca, Watonwan, Murray and Martin. Please remember that non-citizen households may still be eligible for FEMA assistance if at least one member of the household meets FEMA’s citizenship criteria.

How to Apply for FEMA Assistance:

• In-Person: Visit the Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) Locator at http://www.fema.gov/drc to find the nearest DRC.
• Online: Go to DisasterAssistance.gov, or download the FEMA mobile app.
• Phone: Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362.

For more details, please visit FEMA DR-4797-MN - Minnesota Severe Storms and Flooding

Dr. Don Lifto is providing MASA members with 24 referendum strategies under the banner of “School Tax Elections: Winning Strategies in 250 Words.” One strategy will be posted to the MASA website each month.

You can find Don's latest referendum strategy, "​Laying the Foundation, Part 1" online at: www.mnasa.org/school-tax-elections.

Dr. Don Lifto held positions in Minnesota’s public schools for 33 years, the last 25 as a superintendent in rural, suburban, and intermediate districts. During his superintendency, he brought 12 operating or bond proposals forward to the public, 10 of which passed. Lifto completed his Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota with a dissertation focused on factors associated with successful and unsuccessful school referenda. Since 2006 he has consulted with school districts on referendum planning and feasibility surveys with Springsted, Baker Tilly, Morris Leatherman, and School Election Strategies. His third book on referendum planning was coauthored with Barb Nicol and can be found here: https://bit.ly/3dBqEzb

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the latest round of funding from the Clean School Bus Rebate Program with up to $965 million available to school districts. Applications for this year’s Clean School Bus Rebate Program are due on the EPA online portal by 4 p.m. EST on January 9, 2025. Read the full news release from September 26 here!

Senator Tina Smith has provided Minnesota Schools with her office’s Grant Letter of Support request form. If you choose to move forward with an application for funding, Sen. Smith will be happy to provide a letter of support. Reach out to Amy Johnson Korba, Managing Outreach Director for Senator Smith, with questions.

Episode 8: Operationalizing Organizational Culture

Guest: Christine Tucci Osorio, Superintendent, N. St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale School District

Listen Here | Podcastle Link

Tailored to current and future school leaders, the Rethink Possible podcast delivers relatable and relevant content from superintendents and other education thought partners. Each conversational episode provides solutions to common challenges and opportunities while accommodating the busy lifestyle of today's school leaders. Episodes will be published twice a month!

You can find the full information online at: https://events.resultsathand.com/masabp25/2784/registration/1096-Sponsorship-Opportunities!

Need procurement solutions? Please consider checking out our Minnesota School District Purchasing Sites! We have partnered with Sourcewell and Cooperative Purchasing Connection to create two purchasing sites for MASA members! Check them out here!

Facilitated by Dr. Stacie Stanley, Superintendent, Edina Public Schools

Seven more sessions left! | November 2024 to May 2025 | 8 - 9 am via Zoom

Register for all the sessions here: https://forms.gle/X8F15m45oZ6aBdTQ8

Due to a scheduling conflict, the October 11 session has been canceled!

If you know of a colleague who would benefit from attending these sessions, please forward this information to them. All individuals who identify as women are encouraged to attend! CEUs have been requested from the Minnesota Board of School Administrators (BOSA). Participants must attend the sessions synchronously to be eligible for CEUs. Full info at the Women's Leadership Network webpage.

Facilitated by Dr. Bernadeia Johnson

Eight sessions left! | October 2024 - May 2025 | 8 - 9 am via Zoom
Register for all the sessions here: https://forms.gle/8BWUYsurXL2TouvD7

MASA members and our fellow educational leaders who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are invited to join the 2024-25 BIPOC Affinity Group. If you have any colleagues who would benefit from this group, please encourage them to attend! Full session schedule and information can be found at www.mnasa.org/bipoc.

Facilitated by Dr. Michael Thomas

Seven sessions remaining! | October 2024 - May 2025 | 8 - 9 am via Zoom

Register for all the sessions here | No cost to attend!

MASA members are invited to join us in a series of professional dialogue sessions exploring topics of interest to our currently practicing school administrators. While the topics may be general in nature, the group will specifically address issues of race and culture pertinent to the conversation. Please note that at this time, participation in this series is open to only MASA members. Full session schedule and information can be found at www.mnasa.org/professional-dialogue-sessions.

The MASA Foundation is pleased to announce the return of the Foundation Endowment Campaign! All proceeds from the campaign go toward achieving the Foundation’s mission of enhancing the leadership development of educational administrators just like you. Can your fellow MASA members count on your support for 2024-25? Full info at www.mnasa.org/donate.

Post unlimited job vacancies, for all levels of positions. The MASA Jobsite Online is well managed with daily attention to detail and customer service. The cost of an annual subscription is less than just a few advertisements placed in the major and local newspapers. Also, the Department of Education recognizes the MASA Jobsite as a valid advertisement when a school district is seeking a variance for a teacher in a specific subject. We currently have 118 districts using the Jobsite and they have posted nearly 2,000 jobs!

members@mnasa.org | www.mnasa.org

P.O. Box 427, Medford, MN 55049

(651) 645-6272

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