Letters to the Editor
Letter to the editor: Recommends Holly Link
As president and CEO of Project Management Institute-Minnesota, I heartily recommend Holly Link for Eden Prairie School Board.
Holly recently teamed with the Minnesota Chapter of the Project Management Institute (PMI-MN) to launch PMI-MN’s community outreach program "Project Management Skills for Life," introducing project management to Middle and High School students.
Working with a PMI project coordinator and local middle school students and staff for three months, Holly demonstrated keen project management and facilitation skills through collaboration, creativity and communication to launch and drive the project to completion while engaging students to take overall ownership of the project.
Holly has the ability to envision an overall project, break it down into detailed steps and garner the support of participants to complete the objective. These skills and her dedication to students’ growth will be a great asset to the Eden Prairie School Board and community. Additionally, Holly has a winning attitude and a superb personality. I recommend you vote for Holly Link on Nov. 5. She will get the job done.
Garfield A. Bowen
Plymouth
Letter to the editor: Vote for Holly Link
Holly Link would be an exceptional, hard-working and committed School Board member. While her education, work and teaching credentials are impressive and extensive, she is still a parent who understands that our bottom line boils down to one fundamental objective; what happens in the classroom.
She sincerely sees each child as unique and wants Eden Prairie schools to have learning environments where kids thrive, not just survive.
Holly taught all three of my kids in their elementary years and we appreciated her ability to challenge and engage them in meaningful and creative ways. She didn’t put them in a "box," but allowed them to explore their inherent gifts and abilities. She established a wonderful balance between expectations and autonomy and they loved having her as a teacher. Her classroom was content rich and I share her passion that educational content is of utmost importance. No amount of bells and whistles will improve poor content.
Holly has broad experience in both the private and public sector and she has worked hard to be a good steward of both our trust and our money.
Please join me in voting for Holly Link for the Eden Prairie School Board.
Bonnie Gasper
Eden Prairie
As president and CEO of Project Management Institute-Minnesota, I heartily recommend Holly Link for Eden Prairie School Board.
Holly recently teamed with the Minnesota Chapter of the Project Management Institute (PMI-MN) to launch PMI-MN’s community outreach program "Project Management Skills for Life," introducing project management to Middle and High School students.
Working with a PMI project coordinator and local middle school students and staff for three months, Holly demonstrated keen project management and facilitation skills through collaboration, creativity and communication to launch and drive the project to completion while engaging students to take overall ownership of the project.
Holly has the ability to envision an overall project, break it down into detailed steps and garner the support of participants to complete the objective. These skills and her dedication to students’ growth will be a great asset to the Eden Prairie School Board and community. Additionally, Holly has a winning attitude and a superb personality. I recommend you vote for Holly Link on Nov. 5. She will get the job done.
Garfield A. Bowen
Plymouth
Letter to the editor: Vote for Holly Link
Holly Link would be an exceptional, hard-working and committed School Board member. While her education, work and teaching credentials are impressive and extensive, she is still a parent who understands that our bottom line boils down to one fundamental objective; what happens in the classroom.
She sincerely sees each child as unique and wants Eden Prairie schools to have learning environments where kids thrive, not just survive.
Holly taught all three of my kids in their elementary years and we appreciated her ability to challenge and engage them in meaningful and creative ways. She didn’t put them in a "box," but allowed them to explore their inherent gifts and abilities. She established a wonderful balance between expectations and autonomy and they loved having her as a teacher. Her classroom was content rich and I share her passion that educational content is of utmost importance. No amount of bells and whistles will improve poor content.
Holly has broad experience in both the private and public sector and she has worked hard to be a good steward of both our trust and our money.
Please join me in voting for Holly Link for the Eden Prairie School Board.
Bonnie Gasper
Eden Prairie
Letters from the Community
Good Afternoon Mrs. Link,
I am trying to do a bit of research on the candidates and I am looking to find out where you stand on the new national standards of Common Core in our district. I cannot find anywhere where the candidates have said where they stand on this very important issue.
Thank you in advance for any information you are willing to share,
-Concerned voter
Dear Concerned voter,
I sense this is an important issue for you, and it is for me as well. For some, the Common Core standards represent an important body of knowledge and skills that educators developed for use across the national public schools so that all students attain a common 21st Century education. For others, they represent federal government taking on responsibility that has previously been the responsibility of the state or local government.
Minnesota has chosen to adopt some of the Common Core standards because they are more rigorous than what we had previously (reading) and to not adopt those that were below our level of rigor (math). National testing (MCA's) can enable local school districts and states to evaluate the effectiveness of their education, and help to set future educational priorities. It also allows us to evaluate how our students are learning compared to other students globally, and this can help educators to share what they are doing well and learn from others. Some view this as beneficial comparison, others as competition, and it is perhaps a bit of both.
While the Common Core standards are a good place to start, in Eden Prairie, we would not want them to dictate where our students end or how they get there. The 2013-2018 Strategic Plan, which I helped to draft, goes beyond just standards and "seeks to inspire our students to achieve personal fulfillment, meet district expectations, purposefully engage with their community, and be ready for next steps" (whether in the military, at work or in further education).
A good article that explores this issue is
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2013/06/07/education/common-core-standards
I am encouraged by your interest and involvement in the education of our students!
Holly Link
Candidate for Eden Prairie School Board
I am trying to do a bit of research on the candidates and I am looking to find out where you stand on the new national standards of Common Core in our district. I cannot find anywhere where the candidates have said where they stand on this very important issue.
Thank you in advance for any information you are willing to share,
-Concerned voter
Dear Concerned voter,
I sense this is an important issue for you, and it is for me as well. For some, the Common Core standards represent an important body of knowledge and skills that educators developed for use across the national public schools so that all students attain a common 21st Century education. For others, they represent federal government taking on responsibility that has previously been the responsibility of the state or local government.
Minnesota has chosen to adopt some of the Common Core standards because they are more rigorous than what we had previously (reading) and to not adopt those that were below our level of rigor (math). National testing (MCA's) can enable local school districts and states to evaluate the effectiveness of their education, and help to set future educational priorities. It also allows us to evaluate how our students are learning compared to other students globally, and this can help educators to share what they are doing well and learn from others. Some view this as beneficial comparison, others as competition, and it is perhaps a bit of both.
While the Common Core standards are a good place to start, in Eden Prairie, we would not want them to dictate where our students end or how they get there. The 2013-2018 Strategic Plan, which I helped to draft, goes beyond just standards and "seeks to inspire our students to achieve personal fulfillment, meet district expectations, purposefully engage with their community, and be ready for next steps" (whether in the military, at work or in further education).
A good article that explores this issue is
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2013/06/07/education/common-core-standards
I am encouraged by your interest and involvement in the education of our students!
Holly Link
Candidate for Eden Prairie School Board