Star Tribune
St. Paul teachers union authorizes strike vote
The union representing teachers in the St. Paul Public School District has authorized a strike vote, and will ask its members on Feb. 15 to decide whether to walk off the job if they can’t agree on a contract with the district.
After an emergency meeting, the executive board of the St. Paul Federation of Educators made the decision to call for the strike vote as the two sides remain at odds after months of talks and two mediation sessions.
“We sought mediation because we believed it would help spur progress in reaching a settlement,” wrote union president Leah VanDassor. “Sadly, there has been little movement on behalf of SPPS, even for those proposals that are cost neutral.”
Teachers are asking for a $7,500 pay raise in the first year of a contract and a 7.5% increase in the second year. The union also is asking for pay increases for educational assistants along with more money for mental health services, lower class sizes and changes in how students are disciplined.
In the letter, VanDassor says the district received $56 million in additional state funding this year that could be used to pay teachers.
“It is time for district leadership to do the right thing: treat educators with the respect they deserve for their past sacrifices and dedication to the profession, and pay us a wage that honors the work we do,” VanDassor’s letter says.”
The union has two more mediation sessions scheduled before the strike vote would take place.
A vote to strike does not mean a strike is imminent. If the membership votes to call a strike, they would need to give the district a 10-day notice before walking off the job.
Teachers went on strike for three days in 2020, but avoided a walkout in 2022 when the two side settled. The union is hoping for the same result this time around.
“I remain hopeful that there can truly be a resolution for all of us without the necessity of a strike,” the letter states. “We will continue to prepare for that possibility.”
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Twin Cities, get ready to potentially spot an ex on the Minneapolis season of Love Is Blind, which was officially announced Wednesday night.
The anticipated reunion episode that closed out season 7, set in Washington, D.C., included the surprise announcement. The eighth season will launch on Valentine’s Day.
“This Valentine’s Day 2025 will mark the five-year anniversary of the premiere of Love Is Blind, and it is going to be the launch of season 8, which takes place in Minneapolis,” host Vanessa Lachey said in a moment also posted to social media.
Three of the incoming Minneapolis singles were introduced in the reunion episode. When asked about the challenges of the dating scene in Minneapolis, one contestant shared a sentiment many Minnesotans will be familiar with.
“It’s such a small community, it’s not like a major city but it’s also not a small town. So you kind of see the same people over and over, and it’s a small bar scene,” he said.
Star Tribune
Long Prairie, MN school board dismisses its superintendent, the latest controversy in this small town
LONG PRAIRIE, MINN. — The school district superintendent dressed up as the school mascot, Thor, on football nights. He read the graduation address in both English and Spanish. He even set up office hours in the cafeteria, granting easier approachability to students.
But now, two months into the school year, Daniel Ludvigson is gone. Or, rather, “on special assignment,” according to the terminology of the Long Prairie-Grey Eagle School Board, which voted 4-3 earlier this month to remove him as superintendent. The move came weeks after voting to not renew his contract, which expires at the end of the school year in June.
Four board members — two of whom voted to oust Ludvigson, including Board Chair Kelly Lemke — are up for re-election next week.
The dismissal is the latest blow in this central Minnesota community on the edge of the prairie. Over the last nine months, the town of 3,400 residents and seat of Todd County has lost its mayor, a city manager, two school board members, and now its superintendent.
Students walked out earlier this month in support of Ludvigson. Signs in support of Ludvigson can be seen across town on the lawns of apparent Democrats and Republicans alike. And last week, hundreds packed the American Legion off Hwy. 71 to eat beef sandwiches and sign support letters for Ludvigson, who only swung by to pick up his child for hockey practice.
In a time of great divide in America, this fight has nothing to do with politics.
“You’ve got Harris buttons and Trump hats side-by-side, arm-in-arm,” said Amanda Hinson, a former local newspaper reporter who is concerned the board is not being upfront about why they placed Ludvigson on special assignment. “We want transparency in our government.”
Lawn signs around Long Prairie, Minn., now include people weighing in on the dismissal of Superintendent Daniel Ludvigson by the school board. (Christopher Vondracek)
School board members say Ludvigson has repeatedly shown he is not ready for the prime time of a school district bigger than the one in central North Dakota he arrived from two years ago. They have twice disciplined Ludvigson, but did not state the reason for placing him on “special assignment,” beyond insinuating that staff are fearful to raise official complaints.
