Our scheduled speaker did not show up for the meeting, but Jim DeMay provided an impromptu yet very informative update on happenings in the Mounds View School District. As a school board member for the past five years, Jim is passionate and well-versed on the subject of our schools. He covered topics such as the strong focus that has evolved in support of career track preparation in our two high schools for students not intending to go for the traditional 4 year college degree. This focus has attracted a lot of attention outside the district and many students wishing to transfer in. Our district has limited capacity for this type of "open enrollment", but declining enrollment has allowed for some of it. Declining enrollment is due to the aging population in our district and the reluctance of "empty nest" homeowners to leave the area. The district opted for a strict ban on cell phone use in the classroom last year, which has made learning easier and classrooms more manageable for teachers. This was before the state legislature passed a law this past session requiring all districts to create policies covering this difficult topic. He noted that the high schools have rebounded pretty well from closures during the Covid pandemic but that our elementary school kids have had more trouble in terms of test scores and classroom behavior. He also highlighted that Mounds View HS is consistently ranked in the top 5 or so schools in the state, due in part to our excellent teachers, 80% of whom have advanced teaching degrees.