Star Tribune
St. Cloud superintendent gets top state honor
ST. CLOUD – Superintendent Laurie Putnam, who has been at the helm of St. Cloud’s increasingly diverse school district since 2022, has been named the 2025 Minnesota Superintendent of the Year.
The honor, recently announced by the Minnesota Association of School Administrators, puts Putnam in play for the national title, as well.
Laurie Putnam was named Minnesota’s Superintendent of the Year. (St. Cloud school district/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Before starting as superintendent, Putnam served as assistant superintendent for three years, as well as a counselor, assistant principal and principal in the central-Minnesota school district.
“Her visionary leadership, dedication to equity and inclusion, and commitment to student success have transformed St. Cloud Area Schools and left a lasting impact on the entire community,” said Deb Henton, executive director at the association. “Dr. Putnam’s efforts to foster a collaborative, inclusive learning environment inspire educational leaders across the state.”
In a news release, Henton cited several factors considered by a panel of representatives from educational organizations in the state, including Putnam’s work to dismantle systemic inequities within the district, find innovative funding solutions and involve the community in education.
In recent years, the district has partnered with community organizations to implement “Grow Your Own” programs to increase staff diversity — which is important because the demographics have shifted dramatically in the district in the past 15 or so years. Students of color comprise a majority of district enrollment and, compared with surrounding districts, St. Cloud has higher percentages of students in poverty, who are homeless, enrolled in special education or who do not speak English as their first language.
“In Greater Minnesota, where only 1.2% of the teacher pool are people of color, St. Cloud Area Schools has achieved 8.5% representation among teachers and 21.6% of administrators identifying as people of color,” the release states. “This focus on representation has fostered a more inclusive and welcoming school environment, where students see themselves reflected in their educators and feel a greater sense of belonging.”
Under Putnam’s leadership, the district also received $7 million in grants to turn two schools into full-service “community schools” that provide additional arts activities and after-school programs for kids, as well as health care, financial counseling and career services for families. The program rolls out in January.
“Reaching 100,000 passengers in less than six months is a testament to the good things that can happen when we provide a service that is needed,” said MnDOT Commissioner Nancy Daubenberger. “We are very excited to reach this milestone and look forward to strengthening our partnerships with communities, as well as federal, state and local governments, and Amtrak to continue providing a safe, reliable, and sustainable transportation option.”
“Both are discovering who they are,” said stage manager and Armstrong senior Katie Spickelmier. The play reflects the “struggle of growing up in a society you don’t really fit into.”
Cast members are challenged with embodying beloved iconic characters while creating their own personal versions of them — while speaking their lines in British accents.
“Trying to put yourself in a whole different dialect is definitely a fun challenge for all of us — and trying to keep it appropriate and not silly,” Smallacombe said.
And then, of course, as with everything Harry Potter-related, there’s all the magic the production’s tech team has had to figure out how to depict without the benefit of Hollywood’s computer-generated special effects. They include the machinations of the time machine, a character shooting out of a fireplace, characters flying above the stage.
Lovitt and other staffers traveled to New York to see how Broadway pulled it off. It debuted there in 2018 as a five-hour play performed in two parts (and remains that length in the London production). It was later edited to a one-part version at three and a half hours, and in November will be presented on Broadway in under three hours (which is the version playing in Chicago). The high school version is even shorter, closer to two hours.
Actors from “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” rehearse a scene at Armstrong High School in Plymouth. The 40-scene play has a cast of more than 30 students. (Renée Jones Schneider)
Of course, Broadway, like Hogwarts, has access to magical elements not generally available to Midwestern high schools. For example, she said, there was a whole swimming pool directly under the stage, which cast members reached via a tunnel, wearing scuba gear and emerging soaking wet.
A St. Paul woman faces a felony charge for allegedly stealing a sheep from a local farm in Bloomington, according to court documents.
Mandy Kay Bower, 42, was arrested at Old Shakopee Road E. in Bloomington Saturday evening after officers saw her and a male walking with a dog and a sheep on a leash.
According to police, Bower told officers that she purchased the sheep for $200. However, one of the officers noticed burs, a prickly plant found in fields, all over Bower and the sheep.
The male with Bower told officers she stepped over the fence of a farm, put a leash on one of the sheep and pulled it through the fence, according to the charging document. Bower pulled so hard that the sheep was choking, the male told officers, according to the document.
The officers eventually spoke to an employee and owner of the nearby farm and confirmed that the sheep, a breeding hair ram worth approximately $500, had not been sold to Bower, according to court documents.
Bower is charged with rustling and livestock theft. In a booking photo, Bower appears to have a tattoo of a sheep covering her left cheek.
