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I am the best candidate because of my deep commitment to education and the well-being of students in my community. My background, in finance, community service, a career in intellectual and developmental disabilities and leadership roles, equips me with the insights needed to make informed decisions that benefit the school system.
Additionally, my ability to listen to diverse perspectives and collaborate with parents, teachers, and administrators can foster a positive environment for growth and improvement. I have experience, such as advocating for educational programs and improving school policies while working with high needs children.
1. Enhancing Educational Quality: Focusing on curriculum development and teacher support to ensure that all students receive a high-quality education.
2. Promoting Student Well-Being: Prioritizing mental health resources and support systems for students.. By prioritizing student well-being, we can help foster a positive school culture where students feel supported and engaged.
3. Strengthening Community Engagement: Building strong partnerships between schools, families, and the community.
1. Prioritize Essential Programs: First identify and prioritize programs and services that are essential to student learning and well-being.
2. Engage Stakeholders: Involve teachers, parents, and community members in the decision-making process. This approach can also foster understanding and support for difficult decisions.
3. Explore Cost-Saving Measures: Look for areas where efficiency can be gained without sacrificing quality.
To address racial and economic disparities in our education system I would Implement targeted programs for underrepresented students, such as mentorship and tutoring, that can help bridge achievement gaps. Additionally, fostering an inclusive curriculum that reflects diverse perspectives is essential. Engaging with families and communities to understand their needs and advocating for policies that promote equity will also be key in creating a more just educational environment.
I will engage teachers and families with regular communication channels such as, continuing open forum meetings, surveys, and newsletters, to gather input and feedback on key decisions. Some ideas might be. creating a Teacher Advisory Committee and a Family Engagement Task Force to ensure their voices are heard in policy discussions. By actively listening to their concerns and suggestions, I can make informed decisions that reflect the needs and priorities of our school community.
I have a deep understanding of and commitment to New Ulm Public Schools. I attended Washington Elementary in Kindergarten and graduated from New Ulm High School. I returned to New Ulm after graduate school and now I have two children in the district – one at Jefferson Elementary and one at New Ulm Middle School. I have a vested interest in the quality of their education. I served on the District Curriculum Advisory Committee for two years where I learned how state standards are implemented, how curricula are chosen, and how student success is evaluated and reported. I have a good relationship with several district staff and administrators through my involvement in various community service organizations.
My priority is ensuring the highest quality education. This begins with retaining and recruiting top staff through fair compensation, professional development opportunities, and a positive work environment. Equally important is maintaining a balanced budget, ensuring every dollar is put to good use and all available resources are utilized. Lastly, I will champion fine arts, student clubs, and extracurricular activities that foster creativity, enrichment, and a sense of belonging.
It is the board’s responsibility to ensure financial resources are aligned with the district’s vision. I would look to district leaders, such as the superintendent, to make the decisions that best support the educational needs of students while maintaining fiscal solvency. I would also advocate for state and federal funding to keep pace with the needs and obligations of the district.
I support the district's mission to strengthen community engagement and outreach to marginalized populations in two ways. First, I would advocate for leveraging the district’s relationships with other governmental and community agencies to identify disparities and remedy achievement gaps to complement the district’s efforts. The other would be to ensure the district goals and policies reflect the vision of empowering the learning community through equitable programming.
I would encourage participation by teachers and families in creating the district strategic plan for 2025-2028. As a board member, I would be a liaison between the community and the district and would welcome hearing from all stakeholders. Finally, participation in board committees would allow me to better understand various district issues and field concerns.
My name is Matt Ringhofer. I have been married to my wife Wendi for 21 years and I am a proud father of 2 daughters. I believe I would continue to be a good school board member because I know all students can be successful and I want to help that become a realization. I have been in education professionally for the past 27 years as a school counselor. I have had the privilege of supporting my children in New Ulm Public Schools for the past 18 years.
I have been on the school board for NUPS for the past 12 years. In this role I have been on the policy, finance, district curriculum advisory, and technology committee and a board member for the South Central Service Cooperative. I am also a school board delegate for MSBA.
As our district is ever changing there are several components that are in constant motion and warrant attention.
I believe that the top 3 priorities would be our CTE (Center for Technical Education). It's important the CTE setting is current on programming and meets the expanding world of technical education. The second priority would be to ensure families want to send their children to NUPS. The 3rd priority would be to retain our excellent staff and entice other people to become part of NUPS.
If we faced declining revenues, we as a collective board, would take direction from our superintendent to look at where we would need to make adjustments and the why behind that shift in programing or potential staff reduction. This strategy involves many individuals including and not limited to parents, students, staff, administration, community members and the school board. Ideally, study groups would be formed to look at where we would prioritize our resources and then make hard decisions
This is a great question because the economic and cultural/racial makeup of the district can change quickly. It's important for me as a board member to understand what those cultural and economic changes look like and who they represent. When you address the disparities it's important to have the right people in place. NUPS does a great job identifying how a demographic group could benefit from specific support and where to put resources so that any disparity can be properly addressed.
I think it's very important to not only engage but involve teachers and families in our decision making process.One of the ways this happens is through our District Curriculum Advisory Committee (DCAC).On this committee, all active members have input about curriculum development as well as implementation and data collection.Our school board study sessions and regular board meetings are open to our entire community. When we hired a new superintendent, families and teachers played a major role
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