I sent this petition to the board members with a plea on Monday morning, addressing our voices via emails, in-person, listening sessions, the news, and more. Below is the response I got from Rick Kaufman:
"Thank you for following up with this information. Although the outcome of the School Board vote to approve the proposal was not the result you hoped for, please know that your voice - and the collective voice of the Washburn community - was heard. We have shared a copy of your petition with the School Board.
We appreciate your advocacy for Washburn Elementary School.
Rick J. Kaufman, APR | Executive Director | Community Relations & Emergency Management
Bloomington Public Schools #271 | 1350 W. 106th St., Bloomington, MN 55431 bloomingtonschools.org | rkaufman@isd271.org | Ofc: (952) 681-6403 | Cell: (612) 518-5498
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On Monday, 10/28/24, the School Board voted unanimously to close Pond and Southwood early learning childhood centers and repurpose Washburn Elementary School to house all district early childhood and preschool programs beginning in the 2025-26 school year.
You can watch the meeting, here: https://reflect-bcit.cablecast.tv/BECPublicSite/show/53135?site=1
- Right Sizing the Budget Presentation | 21:39-26:04
- Pond/Southwood/Washburn Topic | 26:05-31:37
- Repurpose Washburn Plan | 31:38-34:06
- Why Washburn | 37:02-43:05
- Transition Support for WB families | 43:06-45:25
- Timeline | 45:26-47:56
- FAQs | 47:57-52:05
- Board Proposal for Washburn | 58:10-58:45
- Board Comments | 58:46-1:24:14
- Board Votes | 1:24:15-1:25:08
You can check out the updated FAQs page, here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rSUuGL7_EV8KBDmpSzqomNtQVAaf7gN8WVlsVFN956E/edit?usp=sharing
Here is the actual file of the approves document (document #23) under October 28th's meeting file: https://www.bloomington.k12.mn.us/school-board/meeting-materials
I appreciate all of your support during this time, and I'm sorry the outcome couldn't have been different. Washburn is our family and always will be.