Star Tribune
Minneapolis Public Schools leaders laud ‘very strong’ superintendent finalists
Minneapolis Public Schools leaders say the choice between the two superintendent finalists — Sonia Stewart and Lisa Sayles-Adams — will not be an easy one.
“We have two strong very strong candidates before us,” Minneapolis School Board Chair Sharon El-Amin said. “I’m excited by what they both have to bring to the table.”
Stewart is the deputy superintendent of Hamilton County Schools in Chattanooga, Tenn., and Sayles-Adams is the superintendent of Eastern Carver County Schools.
Both candidates will be interviewed publicly next week and their answers will help determine what “distinguishing experience” will be best for a district facing tough decisions to avoid what its own finance staff calls a looming fiscal crisis. The board is in ongoing discussions about a “district transformation” plan that could include closing and consolidating schools. The new superintendent will be tasked with navigating that transformation while working to rebuild trust and draw families back to the city’s schools amid declining enrollment.
“We have a heavy load,” El-Amin said. “We have not shied away from sharing that” with the candidates.
The district’s search for a new leader has stretched for more than a year after the appointment of Rochelle Cox as interim leader.
Under state law, the names of those who applied for the job but weren’t selected as finalists are not public. Cox has not publicly said if she applied for the permanent position.
In a statement on Wednesday, Cox called the two finalists are “outstanding candidates to serve as our next superintendent.”
“I look forward to supporting a seamless transition and continuing to serve MPS and the new superintendent,” Cox’s statement read. “Every role I have had in MPS has been a joy and an honor, including serving as interim superintendent. I’m excited for this next phase.”
Sonia Stewart
Stewart’s career includes 13 years in the Nashville, Tenn., public schools, where she worked as a high school principal, a high school administrator, a math teacher, basketball coach and executive officer of organizational development.
According to her LinkedIn page, Stewart was named to the role of deputy superintendent of Hamilton County Schools about two years ago. The district serves 44,000 students across nearly 80 schools and is considering a plan to consolidate its smaller schools.
She earned a doctorate of education from Vanderbilt University.
In a statement on Wednesday, Stewart wrote that, if selected, she would “fully commit” to the mission of Minneapolis Public Schools “to provide a high-quality, anti-racist, culturally responsive education for every student” and she would be “humbled to join the strategic vision of MPS.”
“I believe that through the collaborative efforts of this passionate and thriving community we are well positioned to change the long-term outcomes for our children,” she wrote.
Lisa Sayles-Adams
Sayles-Adams started in Minneapolis Public Schools in the late 1990s and served as a teacher and coordinator before becoming a principal of City Alternative High School.
She then served as a principal in schools in Georgia before returning to Minnesota, where she worked as a principal in St. Paul Public Schools before becoming an assistant superintendent in that district. After five years in that role, she became an assistant superintendent in the North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale School District and then, in 2020, took the helm at Eastern Carver County Schools, which serves about 9,600 students.
She has a doctorate in educational leadership from Minnesota State University, Mankato, and completed her dissertation on African American women principals.
Jenny Stone, chair of Eastern Carver County Schools’ board, said in a statement that the board “is aware of [Sayles-Adams’] candidacy and recognizes that experienced education leaders will always be in high demand.”
In a brief statement on Wednesday, Sayles-Adams said she is “excited about the opportunity” and looks forward to interviewing with the school board.
Public interviews next week
Members of the public are invited to meet the candidates and watch their public interviews next week.
The meet-and-greet events for Stewart are on Monday from 3:30-4:30 p.m. at Folwell Elementary, 3611 20th Av. S., and from 5-6 p.m. at the Davis Center, 1250 W. Broadway.
People can meet Sayles-Adams next Wednesday from 3:30-4:30 p.m. at Folwell and from 5-6 p.m. at the Davis Center.
The candidates’ interviews with the school board will be held in the boardroom at the Davis Center and live-streamed on mps.eduvision.tv. Stewart’s interview is set for 6:30-8:30 p.m. Monday and Sayles-Adams’ is 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29.
The school board will meet Dec. 1 to choose the final candidate. A start date will be determined after contract negotiations and approval.
Two people from Minnetonka were killed late Friday afternoon when their GMC Suburban ran a stop sign and was struck by a GMC Yukon headed north on Hwy. 169 west of Palisade, Minn.
According to the State Patrol, Marlo Dean Baldwin, 92, and Elizabeth Jane Baldwin, 61, were dead at the scene. The driver of the Suburban, a 61-year-old Minnetonka man, was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.
The Suburban, pulling a trailer, was headed east on Grove Street/County Rd. 3 at about 5:15 p.m. when it failed to stop at Hwy. 169 and was struck by the northbound Yukon. The Yukon then struck two westbound vehicles stopped at the intersection.
Four people from Zimmerman, Minn., in the Yukon, including the driver, were taken to HCMC with life-threatening injuries, while two passengers were treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Three girls in the Yukon ranged in age from 11 to 15.
The drivers of the two vehicles struck by the Yukon were not injured, the State Patrol said. Road conditions were dry at the time of the accident, and alcohol was not believed to have been a factor. All involved in the accident were wearing a seat belt except for Elizabeth Baldwin.
Hill City police and the Aitkin County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.
Amid the cacophony and chaos of the pregame preparation before a recent Minnetonka High School football game, an exceptional group of six girls is gathered together among the school’s deep and talented cheerleading and dance teams.
The cheerleaders, a national championship-winning program of 40 girls, dot the track around the football field. As the clock ticks down to kickoff and their night of choreographed routines begins, the six girls, proudly wearing Minnetonka blue T-shirts emblazoned with “Skippers Nation” and shaking shiny pom-poms, swirl around the track, bristling with excited energy.
Their circumstances are no different from any of the other cheerleaders with one notable exception: The girls on this team have special needs.
They’re members of the Minnetonka Sparklers, a squad of cheerleaders made up solely of girls with special needs.
A football game at Minnetonka High School is an elaborate production. The Skippers’ recent homecoming victory over Shakopee brought an announced crowd of 8,145. And that is just paying attendees; it doesn’t include school staffers, coaches, dance team, marching band, concession workers, media members and others going about their business attached to the game.
The Sparklers program, now in its 12th season, was the brainchild of Marcy Adams, a former Minnetonka cheerleader who initiated the program in her senior year of high school. Adams has been coach of the team since its inception, staying on through her tenure as a cheerleader at the University of Minnesota.
She started the program after experiencing the Unified Sports program at Minnetonka. The unified sports movement at high schools brings together student-athletes with cognitive or physical disabilities and athletes with no disabilities to foster relationships, understanding and compassion through athletics. Many Minnesota schools offer unified sports.
“I grew up in a household that valued students with special needs and valued inclusion,” Adams said. “I saw a need to give to those students. At Minnetonka, we have a strong Unified program, and this was a great opportunity to build relationships and offer mentorship opportunities.”
Elite runners are in a league of their own.
To get a sense of how far ahead elite runners are compared to the rest of us, the Minnesota Star Tribune took a look at how their times compare to the average marathon participant.
The 2022 Twin Cities Marathon men’s winner was Japanese competitor Yuya Yoshida, who ran the marathon in a time of 2 hours, 11 minutes and 28 seconds, for an average speed of 11.96 mph. He averaged 5 minutes and 2 seconds per mile.
That’s more than twice the speed of the average competitor across both the men’s and women’s categories, of 5.89 mph, according to race results site Mtec. The average participant finished in 4 hours, 26 minutes and 56 seconds. That comes out to an average time of 10 minutes and 11 seconds per mile.
And taking it to the most extreme, the fastest-ever marathon runner, Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya, finished the 2023 Chicago Marathon in 2 hours and 35 seconds, for an average pace of about 13 mph. Kiptum averaged 4 minutes and 36 seconds per mile.
Here is a graphic showing these differences in average marathon speed.
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