Retiring Decorah School Board member Mona Nelson says "certain public issues take time and need patience."

Mona Nelson began serving on the Decorah School Board when she had children in 3rd, 5th and 9th grades.  She says that this automatically connected her with a perspective on all different level of K-12 education.

Nelson announced last week that she would not seek re-election, ending 15 years of serving on the school board.

When asked what has been the most gratifying part of her work, Nelson said it was working with administration and a school board that has been continually improving to invest their time and focus on district wide learning and board development.  This includes the teaching staffs that are actively engaging in professional development activities related to specific learning and curriculum goals.  She added that is exciting to attend a parent/teacher conference and in the midst of the conversation see that board discussion has in fact become part of teaching goals and activities.

Nelson's tenure on the board included the major community controversy over East Side School and what should be done with that facility in the context of future facility needs. As board chair she was a central public figure related to the controversy. How does she feel about that conflict? She says that she learned that certain public issues take time and need patience--and that there needs to be patience with the process that allows for public discussion to happen. 

While acknowledging that there will be legitimate differences, she feels the school board was consistent in decision making that was in the full context of facility needs and district wide learning agendas.  While the East Side building was an emotional flashpoint, she felt the decision making was ultimately a cost and educational issue.  She says there might have been some scenarios in which the building could have been saved, but the cost and location stood in the way of that being a viable option for the board and voters.  Based on her tours with the fire marshal, she adds that she had absolutely had no regrets about the decision to move students out of East Side into the less than idyllic portable buildings while the process played out.

When asked about the future, Nelson expressed confidence that the district is well positioned in terms of staff, finances and an ongoing focus on curriculum and learning needs. She feels that the Decorah district staff is exceptional in its commitment to all children and is not narrowly focused on achievement for selected groups.

Nelson thinks the future educational issues will include the continued conversation (state wide) regarding what models of education will get the most attention.  She also suggests that there will be a question regarding what role school boards will be playing in regard to their advocacy roles with state legislators and what agendas legislators will be bringing to the table during difficult financial times.

Nelson says being on the Decorah School Board has been an opportunity for her to engage in personal and professional learning.  She adds that the opportunity to be involved in sustaining quality education for all students within the district has been very rewarding.  She is thankful that district administrators have effectively done their jobs, allowing the board to spend time on learning agendas, rather than deal with controversial staff and student discipline issues that deter some school boards from leadership.