January 30, 2025

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January 30, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

TOP STORY

Legislative leaders talk education

The elected officials that represent the citizens in the Prior Lake-Savage Area School district have differing ideas on how the state should proceed, but they agree on one key point: nobody wants to see funding cut to public schools.

Rep. Jessica Hanson, DFL-Burnsville, Rep. Ben Bakeberg, R-Jordan, and Sen. Eric Pratt, R-Prior Lake, shared their priorities for the 2025 legislative session with the PLSAS board Jan. 27, and while they agreed that state funding is critical to the success of the district, opinions were split on how that money should be allocated.

Pratt, a former member of the PLSAS board, particularly has his sights on some of the mandates implemented under Gov. Tim Walz. Bakeberg, currently the principal at Jordan Middle School, said the proposed budget increases funds to the Department of Education, but doesn’t do enough to support schools.

“How in the world can you justify increasing your budget at the department when districts across the state are cutting?” he said.