Nelson uses dubious claim to make case for local control school bill
As the Minnesota Senate prepared to vote on bills aimed at limiting Gov. Tim Walz’s emergency powers, Republican State Sen. Carla Nelson took to Twitter Monday morning, calling out the governor’s education plan and lobbying for Minnesotan students to return to the classroom.
However, one of the Rochester legislator’s main points prompted questions from constituents about the accuracy of her testimony.
In the video, Sen. Nelson expressed her support for Senate File 2, a bill she co-authored that would revoke the governor’s ability to close schools in a peacetime emergency. Midway through the video, though, Sen. Nelson said something that drew scrutiny from social media followers.
Taken verbatim from the video:
Unfortunately, the Governor has continued to mandate that every school be closed, regardless of the conditions on the ground, regardless of the risk mitigations, and regardless of the disadvantages of having kids out of school.
In truth, however, scores of primary schools across the state are now open for in-person instruction as part of the governor’s Safe Learning Plan. Many secondary schools have also re-opened in hybrid form. And contrary to Nelson’s assertion that decisions are being made “regardless of the conditions on the ground,” Walz’s plan does provide leeway for local school boards to make decisions based on the data available to them.
As one Twitter user wrote, “Rochester schools are currently closed because of the decision our school board made in their last meeting—not [Gov. Walz’s] mandate. We are in a time of crisis and Sen. Nelson is unfortunately using misinformation to score political points against Walz.”
In comments provided Monday to Med City Beat, Nelson attempted to clarify her claim — emphasizing her belief that Gov. Walz continues to wield too much power.
“The Governor’s [executive orders] have the illusion of local control, but only for those districts that agree with his decision about which schools can and cannot be open,” said Nelson.
A bit of background
Minnesota’s Safe Learning Plan suggests districts should follow the Minnesota Department of Health’s case guidelines — primarily referring to the “14-day case rate per 100,000” statistic. If that number drops under 20, MDH recommends elementary schoolers switch to full in-person learning. If it drops below 10, secondary students can join them.
While some districts (like Rochester) have decided to play it more conservative than state recommendations, those guidelines have proven to be malleable. In recent weeks, MDH has allowed some of the state’s largest districts to bring elementary students back to the classroom — even though their 14-day case rates per 100,000 remain slightly above 20.
The current law, however, allows Gov. Walz — and Education Commissioner Mary Cathryn Ricker, by extension — to put the brakes on any district’s “return to learn” plan if they deem it unsafe.
From the Safe Learning Plan:
Pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 12.21, subdivision 3(11), the education commissioner is authorized to order a school district or charter school to dial back to a more restrictive learning model if the commissioner, in consultation with MDH and the school district or charter school, determines the learning model being used by the district or charter school is no longer safe.
If approved, Senate File 2 would replace that provision with language stripping the governor of their authority to close schools, change schedules, or alter activities.
In a statement released earlier this month, Nelson, formerly the chair of the state senate’s E-12 Finance and Policy committee, sad the proposal is about doing what is in the best interest of Minnesota students.
“The decision on how and when to reopen should not be made from the governor’s office,” said Nelson. “It should come from local school boards and community leaders. They are the ones who know what is best for their students. They should be given the option to decide how and when to open their schools.”
Senate File 2 is one of four GOP-authored bills aimed at curtailing the governor’s Covid-19 peacetime emergency executive powers — something Republicans have been unsuccessfully attempting to do since the summer.
Those four bills will likely pass the Republican-controlled Senate, but their chances of passing the DFL-controlled House appear to be slim.
Isaac Jahns is a Rochester native and a 2019 graduate of the Missouri School of Journalism. He reports on politics, business and music for Med City Beat.
