Why I’m Running

Grounded and rooted in community

Fight for better legislative and collaborative outcomes

Attract and retain more students in the district

Develop a positive vision for MPS budget

I believe that our schools are the heart of our communities.

I am Christin Crabtree, and I am running for Minneapolis School Board At-Large. I have been a MPS parent for 21 years. My son started kindergarten when I was just 23 years old, and at my first PTO meeting, I was eager to fit in and belong. I got involved to show that I cared for my kids, and for our community. I was a single parent living at the poverty line, and it was at a Minneapolis Public School that I was not only embraced, accepted and cared for; I was also empowered to lead. I have served on PTOs and site councils. I have written grants for art programs and invested various ways as my two kids have gotten older.

Our public schools are the foundation of our democracy. Schools are the bedrock of community wellbeing and safety. They are the town centers where we gather–across racial and ethnic identities, across socio-economic standing, across whatever divisions our society too often expects us to have. Minneapolis is a city that loves and cares about each other, and we show up time and time again to make that clear. Nothing has shown that like our city’s response to this winter’s ICE invasion. Minneapolis families and educators came together to raise money and provide mutual aid to ensure that families stayed housed and fed and safe as they sheltered in place.

I want to continue building that sense of community and mutual flourishing as your school board member at large. Our kids deserve to have the best schools in the world here in Minneapolis. I am ready to work with you to make that possible.

Priority 1: Grounded and rooted in community

Our district is full of vibrant, tightly knit communities of engaged families—a fact proven clearly by the tremendous response to the ICE occupation in the past two months. I am proud to be a Minneapolis Public Schools caregiver, and I am proud of the immense effort put forth by parents and educators to keep our schools secured, our staff supported, and our neighbors safe. 

As a school board member, I will not forget where I come from. It is important for our communities that our leaders work alongside us. For decades, I have been entrenched in community work, building relationships that give me the confidence and knowledge required to be a leader at the district level. I will remain by your side, fighting for equity, resources, and representation for those who need it most.

Goals:

  • Bring true transparency to the role of school board representation—you will know what I am doing and you will see me engaged in the community

  • Remain accessible to constituents—if you call, I will pick up

  • Advocate for all at the highest levels of decision-making while remaining present in the street-level work

Priority 2: Fight for better legislative and collaborative outcomes

Through decades of organizing in Minneapolis I have developed trusted relationships with a cross section of community members who know how to get things done. Side by side with neighbors, I have been in our streets and our institutions to deliver meaningful policy change and tangible resources that improve living conditions for people in our city.  

Public schools across the state face tremendous funding challenges in the form of unfunded mandates, federal cuts to critical programs, and foreclosing state policies that disproportionately impact services to students with some of the greatest need. School board members should be at the frontline of the legislative battle. We must build a wide coalition  across political and geographic divides, as the funding crisis affects all public schools statewide.

Our school board should leave no local stone unturned in the effort to bring more resources into the district. I have built trust with city council members, park board members, leaders in the nonprofit sector and beyond— relationships that are needed precisely at this moment. As a school board member, I will leverage every ounce of good will and think outside the box to ensure our educators and students have what they need to expand and sustain our schools’ offerings.

Goals:

  • Build broad coalitions across Minneapolis and the state to expand funding for public schools at the legislature

  • Collaborate with local governing authorities to expand support for MPS

  • Fight to close cross-subsidy gaps for special education and English language learners

Priority 3: Attract and retain more students in the district

About 20% of eligible children in Minneapolis are enrolled in schools outside of the district. The best way to improve the financial outlook for Minneapolis Public Schools is to show more families that our schools are their best educational options. Our school system is big, and as a MPS caregiver, I know that the district feels a lot smaller when you see it from the community level. Schools are successful when they center community needs and decisionmaking.  . I support the growth of the Full Service Community School model in Minneapolis in order to offers more opportunities for the neighbors to connect with each other through MPS schools in culturally responsive, socially affirming ways while improving outcomes and closing disparities.

Goals

  • Invest in activities and opportunities that position MPS schools as community hubs; embrace and expand the Full Service Community School Model

  •  Research reasons Minneapolis students choose schools outside the district and develop a data backed, people centered responsive action plan to attract learners to Minneapolis Public Schools  

  • Promote culturally responsive spaces to ensure MPS is a destination district for all students

Priority 4: Develop a positive vision for MPS budget

Disinvestment in people is not a winning strategy for our future. Minneapolis needs a positive budget vision that includes expanded revenue through increased enrollment, strengthened policy and funding at the state level, and authentic engagement of our students, caregivers, neighbors, and the people working in our schools through participatory budgeting and policy-making. .

For too long, the annual budget process has been a source of conflict and distrust. I advocate for a participatory district budget process that embraces collaborative problem-solving, reframing the focus away from adversarial positions and toward the shared project of addressing needs together. This approach can strengthen both our district and larger community by deepening engagement both with MPS and each other. Our students, caregivers, neighbors, and the people working in our schools every day hold valuable insight and have a deep investment in our public schools. We need all voices at the table, all hands on deck, not only to secure the positive gains educators and families have worked so hard to achieve (like smaller class sizes and expanded support for special education), but also to continue advancing investment of attention, energy, and resources in our schools in the future. It takes all of us for Minneapolis Public Schools to live the mission to “provide a high quality, anti-racist, culturally responsive education for every Minneapolis student.”

Goals

  • Be active in oversight for financial division of MPS, ensuring our resources are managed with care and transparency 

  • Contribute to new budget vision for MPS, based in collaborative problem-solving, authentic engagement, and possibility

  • Pursue all avenues to increase shared investment of attention, energy, and resources in our public schools 

Contact

Reach out with questions or comments for Christin. We’ll get back to you soon.