Minneapolis Foundation invests $1 million in school district efforts to strengthen student literacy

The Minneapolis Foundation is committing $1 million to Minneapolis Public Schools to support efforts to boost student literacy.

Ten reading specialists will be deployed this school year in 16 elementary schools to speed implementation of a state-required, phonics-based approach to reading.

The foundation also urged voters to approve a district ballot measure seeking a $20 million a year tax increase to cover technology costs and, in turn, take pressure off a general fund used to pay classroom expenses and for other everyday basics.

“The foundation asked leaders in Minneapolis Public Schools how we could be helpful in this moment, and we are excited to partner with the district to help ensure that students, teachers and school leaders have the resources they need to be successful,” Patrice Relerford, a foundation vice president, said in a statement.

The foundation also is investing $244,500 in the district’s “Grow Your Own” programs, which put students, graduates and current staffers on a path to becoming teachers.

R.T. Rybak, the foundation’s president, said the investments are a show of support for new district Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams and a desire to improve foundational literacy skills.

This year, 40% of Minneapolis Public Schools students tested as proficient in reading in standardized tests, and yawning gaps between white students and students of color remained.

Across the state, school district leaders and education advocates see promise in the “science of reading” techniques now required under Minnesota’s Read Act of 2023. However, they say the training of teachers is not fully funded. Deadlines have been extended for teachers to learn phonics-based instruction.

Sayles-Adams said in a statement that the district was excited to partner with the Minneapolis Foundation to improve literacy and remove barriers to attract and retain educators. “This collective work is critical because our public schools are the cornerstone of thriving communities,” she said.

The foundation has lent a helping hand for such purposes previously.

In 2021, the group announced a $75,000 grant to the district to support the recruitment and retention of “high-quality, diverse teachers,” plus family engagement strategies at 15 high-needs schools.

In 2022-23, the foundation also singled out Jenny Lind Elementary School in the Lind-Bohanon-Camden neighborhood of north Minneapolis for nearly $50,000 to implement a phonics-based reading approach in nine of its classrooms.

The foundation, which also has been a longtime backer of charter schools, plans to announce its next round of “Reimagine Education” grants next week.