December 28, 2012
 
Dear Lake Harriet Parent,
 
I wish to inform you that Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) is recommending an administrative change that would convert Lake Harriet from a single school model to a paired school model. We believe that this conversion will provide students, families and staff members the administrative support they deserve.
 
Lake Harriet School serves over 1,200 students, one of the highest student enrollments in any MPS K-8 program. Since 1999 the enrollment at Lake Harriet Community School has continued to grow, leading to the approval of a plan to add space at the Lower School campus to realign the grade configurations to K-3 in the Lower School and 4-8 in the Upper School beginning in the fall of 2013. This recommendation would align the Lake Harriet campuses with other schools that serve similar numbers of students.
 
The recommendation would ensure:

• administrative support at each building
• the pathway from the Lower School to the Upper School (the schools would be paired)
• sibling preference

If approved by the Board of Education, the conversion to a paired model would take effect the start of the 2013-14 school year. The school board must vote on this recommendation. There will be an opportunity for the public to provide their input on the recommendation at the January 15, 2013 Lake Harriet Site Council meeting from 5:00-6:30pm. In addition, the public will be able to provide their input at an upcoming school board meeting to be determined at the Davis Center, located at 1250 West Broadway Street in North Minneapolis.
 
Please contact the campus offices if you would like more information on the recommendation. Call 612-668-3210 for the Lower Campus and 612-668-3310 for the Upper Campus.
 
Sincerely,
 
Theresa Battle