The new rating system employed by the state of Minnesota to evaluate schools has issued its results, and by all early indications Forest Lake Area Schools received positive marks.

No school in the Forest Lake district fell under the categories of Priority Schools or Focus Schools, which indicates a school that is struggling. But one school – Forest View Elementary – was listed as a Reward School, indicating achievement in the top 15 percent of all Title I schools in the state.

Under the new system – as with the previous system – student scores from the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) test are used as the basis by which schools are rated, but the way those scores are applied in terms of evaluating schools is different.

The previous system, which required schools and school districts to achieve Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), has been modified and has been incorporated into a new system known as the Multiple Measurement Rating (MMR).

While the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act still remains in place, several states – including Minnesota – have received waivers from the U.S. Dept. of Education that allows a state to avoid the penalties and sanctions associated with NCLB and to establish a new system to evaluate schools.

The new MMR is different in that it adds other criteria by which schools are measured, including: growth in student learning, graduation rate and success in narrowing the “achievement gap.”

The achievement gap refers to the tendency for proficiency scores by students in certain racial and ethnic groups to be lower than those by their Caucasian counterparts. The achievement gap varies from school to school and state to state, and while Minnesota’s overall proficiency numbers tend to be very high, the state also has one of the largest achievement gaps in the nation.

The new system also employs a 0 – 100 rating system, rather than the previous “all or nothing” approach inherent in AYP results. Under the AYP system, a given school could have been extremely successful in student achievement for 17 of the 18 measured groups, but failure to score high enough in even one group could put the school on the “needs improvement list.” Under that system, roughly half of all Minnesota schools were on that list in any given year.

The new system rates schools on a continuum, but schools can still be designated for certain lists. These new lists include: Priority Schools, Focus Schools and Reward Schools. As with the old system, under MMR these designations only apply to “Title I schools,” or schools that receive Title I funding from the federal government.

Priority Schools are those that score – according to the new MMR formula – in the bottom 5 percent of all Title I schools in the state, and Focus Schools are the 10 percent of all Title I schools that have the worst achievement gaps. In the new system, these designations are both indicators of a school that is struggling.

On the other side of the spectrum, Reward Schools are those schools which, according to the new standards, perform very well and are listed among the top 15 percent of all Title I schools in terms of proficiency scoring.

In the Forest Lake district, no schools were designed as Priority or Focus, but Forest View Elementary received the Reward Schools designation.

Forest Lake High School, Columbus Elementary and Scandia Elementary each scored high enough to have been deemed a Reward School if they had been a Title I school.

“We are certainly happy that Forest View was named a Reward School,” said Superintendent Linda Madsen. “Forest View has a long tradition as a very successful elementary school, and the fact that it has twice been named a Minnesota School of Excellence is certainly testament to that.”

But Madsen also cautioned against jumping to any major conclusions based on the new system, which in many ways is still in the early stages of development.

“At this point it’s difficult to determine how all schools across the state measure up against each other under this new system,” Madsen explained.

“It may be several months before the assessment coordinators in each school district are able to get a firm handle on what the results actually mean in terms of what a particular school’s strengths and weaknesses are in terms of student achievement.

Madsen explained that the AYP system had some good points, and schools did make some positive changes as a result. But overall, she said, there were many problems with it.

“Under AYP, some very good schools were being labeled as failing, and that’s unfortunate,” she said.

“When half of Minnesota’s schools are labeled as struggling – and we know historically that Minnesota is one of the most successful schools in the nation in academic achievement – there’s clearly an issue with the methods being used to evaluate them. I am hopeful that the MMR will provide us with better data presented in a more constructive way that will really help those schools that are truly struggling to do better, to raise the bar and to address the achievement gap.”

The overall results for Forest Lake Area Schools are available on the district website at http://www.flaschools.org, and also on the Minnesota Department of Education’s website at http://education.state.mn.us.

Mounds View held a six-point lead in the standings heading into the day, but took sixth place at Keller. Hastings started the meet two points back of the Rangers.

Junior Trevor Thompson tied two Hastings players for medalist honors with a three-over round of 74. Jake Moryn shot 79, Daniel Massey shot 80 and Zach Dickenson also scored with a round of 82.

Thompson, Massey and Max Kelly earned all-conference honors. Moryn was an honorable mention choice.

Southbound I-35E will remain reduced to a single lane between the two points through early June as crews remove traffic control and apply permanent pavement markings.

More information about the southbound lane reopening may be made available by May 29.

This nearly completed project reconstructed I-35E between Columbus and White Bear Lake and extend the life of the pavement by removing the existing blacktop and replacing it with a new concrete overlay, which also improved ride quality.

The project also replaced the box culvert carrying Clearwater Creek beneath I-35E.

For real-time travel information anywhere in Minnesota visit www.511mn.org.

A celebration of life will be held 1-3 p.m., with sharing at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, May 26 at Mattson Funeral Home, 343 North Shore Drive, Forest Lake.

Special thanks to Fairview Hospice and Hospital Staff for exceptional care.

He is survived by his wife, Jackie; children, Chris, John and Karen; grandchildren, Michael, Skylar, Katie and Devyn; and special friends Mike and Nancy.

He was preceded in death by one son, David.

The Ranger girls’ track and field team enters the postseason this week hoping to bounce back strong after placing eighth of nine squads at the 26th annual True Team State meet in Stillwater last Friday.

Jacqueline Pothen runs the 1600 at the True Team State meet in Stillwater last Friday. (Photo by Stuart Groskreutz/Stillwater Gazette)

“True Team State went as planned for personal bests in a multitude of events but the team place wasn’t what we had hoped for,” said coach Eric Kaluza. “Yet we have two to three big meets up coming and know the girls will be at their best at conference and regions.”

The Rangers did get to celebrate a school record at the meet, as sophomore Bailey Norby reached 39-5 1/4 in the shot put. Senior Sam Anderson was close behind with a toss of 39-0 1/2, and they took fourth and fifth, respectively, out of 27.

“That was an outstanding performance from both, and the throws in general,” Kaluza said.

Anderson placed sixth in the discus with a throw of 123-11.

Seventh-grader Allie Bartlett placed second in the 3200 with a personal-best time of 11:16.

Junior Jessica Dhaene raced to fourth in the 300 hurdles (47.05) and sixth in the 100 hurdles (16.36).

Another top-10 finish came from sophomore Katie Dison, who cleared 9-6 to place 10th in the pole vault.

Lakeville South won the title and Prior Lake took second. Suburban East Conference members Mounds View and Stillwater took the next two spots.

The Rangers take part in the SEC championships this week. The preliminaries were held Tuesday and the finals are Thursday, May 24, at East Ridge. The Section 7AA preliminaries take place next Wednesday in Princeton, with the finals following that Saturday.

Jack Schmidt tries to avoid a tag at home plate during a 4-3 loss to Roseville on Friday. (Photo by TLC Digital Images)

Clint Riese
Sports Editor

If admission was charged for Ranger baseball games, fans would still say they got their money’s worth in entertainment last week. Schumacher Field was host to a pair of wild Suburban East Conference games. When the dust settled, the Rangers had a split and a final SEC record of 10-8.

Roseville used a three-run sixth inning to earn a 4-3 win on Friday. The game ended in heartbreak for Forest Lake. With runners on first and second and one out, Jack Schmidt ripped a line drive toward first base. The Raider first baseman was holding the runner on rather that playing behind the runner as usual for that situation. Schmidt’s liner might have shot past the fielder in a normal case, but in this one it was caught and turned into a game-ending double play.

“CJ [Franklin] was on first, so if that ball goes down the line, he probably scores and it’s a walk-off win,” said coach Tal Gravelle.

The 4-3 final came after the Rangers led for much of the game. They went ahead 2-1 in the third inning off RBI doubles from Franklin and Schmidt. A sacrifice fly by Alek Zentzis made it 3-1 in the fourth.

Before the senior night game on Friday, members of the American Legion and VFW were on hand to honor a pair of Rangers seniors with military futures. Carter Burgoyne (catching first pitch in picture above) is going into the Marines, while Bryce Kinder will be in the ROTC program at Michigan Tech. (Photo by TLC Digital Images)

Starter Lucas Kohls ran into trouble in the sixth, and Trent Rabel took the loss in relief.

Gravelle estimates that a large crowd of 300 or so turned out for senior night.

“The staff and I would like to thank the Dugout Club and the fans for making Schumacher such a fun experience again this season,” he said.

Rangers 8, Raiders 7

The coin was flipped for last week’s showdown with No. 8 Cretin-Derham Hall. Some sloppy defense by the Raiders allowed Forest Lake to charge back for three runs in the final frame and walk off with an 8-7 win.

Dylan Dresel started the rally with an infield single. With two outs, Cretin had a chance to end it but misplayed a groundball and the error allowed Matt Jellum to reach base. Bryce Kinder then launched a shot to deep right-center field. The right fielder was able to get a glove on it but could not hold on for a running catch. The hit tied the game, and Schmidt followed with a single past the third baseman for the game-winner.

Matt Hultgren got the win in relief of Phil Sauer. The Rangers committed four errors in the first inning as the Raiders jumped out to a 2-0 lead.

Kinder got Forest Lake on the board in the second inning with an RBI single. Zentzis drove in two with a two-out single in the third and Jellum gave his team a 4-3 lead with a single later in that frame. Cretin regained the lead in the top of the fourth.

The Rangers used a double by Franklin to trim the deficit to 7-5 in the sixth.

The win gave Forest Lake a season sweep of Cretin-Derham Hall. The Raiders won the SEC title with a record of 14-4 in league play. The Rangers came in fifth.

They finish the regular season at Chisago Lakes Thursday, May 24. The game has big implications for the Section 7AAA tournament, as Forest Lake hopes to secure a top-four seed and a first-round bye.

The tournament opens next Tuesday and quarterfinal play is next Thursday. See www.forestlaketimes.com for seeding information.

It’s playoff time in the prep tennis scene and Forest Lake has a section title to defend.

The Ranger boys, seeded second in Section 7AA, took the first step to that end with a 7-0 sweep of St. Francis at their home court this Monday.

Going into this Tuesday’s second-round match against third-seed Chisago Lakes, Coach Greg Patchin said he knows it will be a tough road if his team is to return to the state meet.

“Chisago poses a threat to our lower positions and if we are lucky enough to get by them, Hibbing with a full lineup will be tough as well,” he said. “No. 1 Elk River is the overwhelming favorite with their experience and senior leadership.”

The Elks faced Andover in the other South Sub-Section match on Tuesday. The winners will be part of the section final four in St. Francis next Tuesday.

Forest Lake finished the regular season with a record of 9-6. The Rangers closed the schedule with a 7-0 win at Andover last Wednesday. Zack Decker prevailed in three sets at No. 3 singles, as did Austin Morris and Sam Hamilton at No. 3 doubles.

Individual brackets

The individual section tournament gets underway Thursday, May 24, in St. Francis. Ranger senior Dusty Boyer has a first-round bye as the top seed in the singles flight. The three-time defending state champion seeks his fifth straight section title.

Senior Nate Riedeman is seeded 10th and faces a seventh-seeded opponent from St. Francis.

The doubles flight should feature dogged competition for the two tickets to state. Patchin paired Decker, a senior, with ninth-grader Toby Boyer, who narrowly missed advancing to state in singles last season after qualifying in singles in 2010.

The top Ranger duo is seeded second. Elk River’s Mitchel Brandell and Ryan Ness earned the top seed and their teammates, ninth-grade twins Sam and Josh Gearou, are seeded third. The Elk River duos faced each other in the state consolation championship last spring, with the Gearous winning.

Andover’s Grant Johnson and Robert Munoz are also dangerous as the fourth seed.

“The loaded doubles draw could be a preview of the state finals as the top four doubles teams are exceptional,” Patchin said. “Zack and Toby will have their work cut out for them to earn a state tourney berth.”

Seniors Ryan Renard and Zak Buckley form Forest Lake’s other entry. They are seeded eighth and face a ninth-seeded duo from St. Francis.

The individual section finals will be held next Wednesday in St. Francis.

Forest Lake took second to the Ponies at the five-team meet, 142-134. It came down to the final event, the extended team competition. The Ranger ‘Cheer’-themed team earned five of the seven first-place votes, but the remaining two judges saw things differently enough that the top Pony team won the event based on total points.

“If we would have taken first [in that event] we would’ve tied for the whole meet, and if any other little thing would have changed, we would’ve won the entire meet,” said Ranger coach Laura Davison.

It would have been the first time Forest Lake won the section meet and Stillwater’s first loss.

Still, Forest Lake advanced 19 entries to this week’s state competition. They are as follows:

Solos: Katherine Anderson, Kirsten Sewall, Alexis Cogar and Andrea Dunrud

Duets: Anderson and Morgan Sperry; Rachel Chatwin and Brooke Ewert; Rachel Springman and Emma Stockinger

Trios: Chatwin, Karlee Lawrence and Sarah Kroska; Sperry, Ewert and Resa Brockman; Dunrud, Stephanie Brenk and Lindsey Crohn; Alissa Ralph, Randi Rossbach and Kathy Tomnitz; Jessica Dison, Jordyn Templeton and Jessica Walker; Springman, Lauren Cooley and Megan Peterson

Teams: ‘Cheer’ extended team of Anderson, Brockman, Chatwin, Crohn, Dunrud, Ewert, Sewall and Sperry

‘Dark Knight’ extended team of Brenk, Kroska, Lawrence, Ralph, Rossbach, Tomnitz, Walker and Miranda Anderson

‘Bon Jovi’ long team of Cogar, Dison, Templeton, Bear Dreher, Haley Schoonover, Stephanie Vos and Catherine Ziegelski

‘Rio’ short team of Cooley, Peterson, Springman, Stockinger, Anna Faffler and Josephine Hudoba

‘Goofy’ short team of Elizabeth Blount, Paige Ewert, Kylie Hawthorne, Megan Palmer, Michelle Perkins, Mika Peterson and Dani Sardeson

Figures: Brooke Ewert, Dunrud, Sperry, Chatwin, Sewall, Cogar and Paige Ewert