I’ve been meeting with a few people prior to being sworn in on the School Board in January. I’ve got some catching up to do since it will have been ten years since I was last on the Duluth School Board. I had an opportunity to do that and more last Saturday at this “summit” meeting for young people in northeastern Minnesota. Here’s a DNT story on the event.
I was invited by the Superintendent’s executive assistant a month before the November election and held off signing up until I knew I’d won. I was intrigued to attend because its based on an initiative General Colin Powell got started many years ago. Former Supt. Dixon’s wife Sarah is one of the Youth Alliances top brass and I thought she might attend. We got to know each other well before the Red Plan controversy on the District’s Endowment Committee.
Two new School Board members were at the meeting Annie Harala (who once worked for the Alliance) and Rosie Loeffler-Kemp. I talked with them a bit as well as the District’s number two man supervising the educational side of the District Ed Crawford. And both Dr. Dixon and Sarah showed up a little after I arrived.
We shook hands and greeted each other before taking different corners of the room. However after the conclusion of the Summit Sarah and I spoke at length about the Alliance. Dr. Dixon came over to listen in shortly afterward. We kibbutzed a bit and he informed me he just retired and lost some weight and was off his heart medications. I told him that after I rejoined the board in January I might ask for his prescriptions. He gave me a hearty laugh.
