#WeAreMPS

What a year it's been for Washburn High School English teacher Tracy Byrd! The Minnesota 2024-25 Teacher of the Year reflects on a year of helping students fly – in the classroom and on the track.

There’s a literacy movement at MPS and one way we’re creating lifelong readers is through “MPS Reads.” This program trains high school students to be reading ambassadors to elementary kids. Why? Because literacy isn’t just about skill, it’s about identity.

This year marks a milestone in MPS school lunches. Thousands of students will graduate from our district in June without ever having the experience of ripping the plastic from a pre-packaged, processed meal. That’s because 12 years ago, Bertrand Weber took over the Culinary & Wellness program and turned it around. This month, go behind the scenes of MPS’s Central Kitchen and find out how Weber is serving up the best for our students. 

Now in its 54th year, “Operation Holiday Basket” is a beloved tradition at Roosevelt High School. Each year, about 125 students, staff and alumni come together to fundraise and collect donations, assemble holiday meal baskets, then deliver them to local families in need.

We caught up with Principal Laura Sullivan during Native American Heritage Month to highlight her leadership at Anishinabe Academy. A proud member of the Ho-Chunk tribe, Sullivan has been principal for 14 years at the school, where 95% of students identify as Native American.

The Edison High School class of 1949 gathered in October for their 75th reunion, the first of its kind in the school's history. About 20 alumni came together to reminisce about their senior year, recalling how girls wore ankle-length dresses and boys sported crew cuts and double-breasted suits.