On Feb. 1, Sandy Lewandowski got the call superintendents have nightmares about: There had been a shooting at a school. Intermediate District 287, where Lewandowski was in her last year before retirement, is a co-op made up of 11 districts in Minneapolis\u2019 western suburbs. It exists to serve kids with unique disabilities, severe behavioral challenges and other needs that require specialized expertise. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a decade before the shooting, in which a student died, Lewandowski had tried to draw attention to the deepening needs of her district’s children \u2014 and the increasingly dangerous conditions her staff worked in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. <\/em>Sign up for The 74 Newsletter<\/strong><\/a><\/p> Students are sent to District 287 when their behavior, be it related to a disability or trauma, is more than their home districts are equipped to handle, or when their school lacks appropriate expertise to accommodate an intense need. This is both cost-effective and beneficial to students, who get specialized attention. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But it also makes District 287 what Lewandowski calls \u201cthe provider of last resort,\u201d expected \u2014 with very little extra funding \u2014 to educate and treat kids who have been failed by both schools and mental health agencies. Unlike other districts, it cannot transfer out a student with a history of violence or a mental health condition that would normally merit residential treatment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The one-two punch of the pandemic and the nearby murder of George Floyd by a police officer has accelerated the concentration of students with profound needs in the district. Over the last three years, the number of students with very aggressive and sexualized behaviors has almost doubled, there has been a 50% increase in children who are homeless or lack stable housing, and the number who require personalized instruction in class is increasing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The day after the shooting, Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, a former Minneapolis School Board member, visited Lewandowski and her staff, pledging to “work with officials at all levels of government to seek needed change<\/a>.\u201d But the story disappeared in the news cycle. In May, with her retirement just weeks away, Lewandowski delivered blistering testimony before the Minnesota state Senate in hopes of securing $9 million to enable her to continue a successful in-school mental health program in her district and two similar ones nearby. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cLet me give you just a few examples from this year,\u201d <\/em>she told lawmakers: <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe had a<\/em> <\/em><\/strong>teenager try to take their life by jumping off of a second-floor railing.” <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA teen who was homeless brought a loaded weapon to school early this fall. His mother had pleaded that he stay in the group home where he had lived and done well. But he was released and quickly became homeless.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOne of our finest teachers was punched in the face by a young student, causing a concussion and injuries needing surgery. That teacher resigned.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA single mother called to express her displeasure with my decision to call a remote learning day because of bad weather. During the call, she tearfully told me that she was afraid to be home alone with her teenager.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA local police department wanted to come to our school to arrest a young teen on felony charges. They didn\u2019t want to do it at his grandmother’s home, where he sometimes stayed, because Grandma feared for the safety of the young children in the home, and the grandson had access to weapons.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFinally, on Feb. 1, we became the first school in Minnesota to have a shooting that resulted in the death of a student since the Red Lake School Shooting in 2005.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The 74\u2019s Beth Hawkins wrote about 287<\/a> a decade ago, when Lewandowski, then on the job for eight years, first declared the district at “a tipping point<\/a>.” She also happens to live down the street from the site of the shooting. What follows is an emotional exit interview, edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Walk me through the day of the shooting. What it was like to receive that call?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Momentarily overcome, Lewandowski takes a moment for tears to pass.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I didn’t know I was going to go there [break into tears]. Some days I do. Sometimes I don’t go there. But that’s what it feels like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had foot surgery about 2\u00bd weeks before, and that day was trying to work from home. The call came from my assistant superintendent, who said, \u201cSomething terrible has happened, the police have taken over the building.\u201d I had never heard anything like that. I knew it was something horrific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>\n\n\n\n