Letter to the Editor,
As you know, an appeal was filed with the Minnesota Court of Appeals relating to a policy adopted in July by the School Board of Independent School District No. 505, Fulda. The policy clarifies and sets parameters for students who are not enrolled fulltime with the District due to their enrollment in Post-Secondary Enrollment Option courses. The purpose of the policy is multifold, but is geared toward eliminating distractions and other issues in school and using resources for the benefit of the District’s student body as a whole, rather than a few students. In particular, the District sought to ease the pressure put on District resources, such as supervision during non-instructional time and library and computer access, caused by students being present in the school for several periods when they are not enrolled in District courses. The District needed to act to address these issues before they could cause a long-term detrimental impact on the District’s students and employees. Numerous other local school districts already have such policies, and the Minnesota Department of Education was involved in the initial discussion regarding the policy.
The case filed with the Court of Appeals sought to challenge the application of a provision in this policy that requires students enrolled in PSEO to leave the school building during time periods when they are not enrolled in District-run courses during the school day, and have no place to be or other reason to be in the school. Please note that one of the parties to this appeal is employed as the Dean of Technology and Distance Learning, which includes coordinating online PSEO classes, at Minnesota West, the main post-secondary institution where Fulda High School students enroll in online PSEO courses.
While many students expressed interest in PSEO courses during the registration process for this school year, which began in March 2016, the 2016-2017 enrollment rate remains about the same as the 2015-2016 enrollment rate, with fewer than 10 students pursuing this option.
Last week, the court dismissed the legal challenge as improper. The District is pleased by this decision and hopes that it puts this issue to rest, ending the needless diversion of funds to defend against this unfounded challenge to the policy. The District has acted lawfully and prudently in safeguarding finite resources and the school’s learning environment for the benefit of the entire school community. With this decision by the court, the District looks forward to working cooperatively with all students, families, and community members in pursuit of the best interests of the student body as a whole.
Luther Onken, Superintendent
Fulda School Board
