In this series, we examine the truths and the myths about public education in Minnesota.

When our son was three, we started to think about which school—or, rather, what kind of school—we would send him to: Public or private? Secular or religious? In the neighborhood or across town? What about schooling him at home?

My folks would listen to our endless discussions and shake their heads. “Honey,” my mother said one day, “we sent you to the only school in town—the public school. You turned out fine.”

In the end, we did the same—we sent our kids to the public schools where we lived, first in Minneapolis and then in Lakeville. We were committed to the idea of public education and what it stood for—community, melting pot, curiosity, achievement, maybe courage. And guess what. Our kids “turned out fine.” Actually, way better than “fine.”

Meanwhile, the debate over education has intensified, and today our public schools are under attack and on the defensive, caught up in raw emotions, competing political and ideological agendas, and tax fights. Everyone seems to have a strong opinion, pro or con, about public education in America. 

In this series, we examine the truths and the myths about public education in Minnesota. The first installment describes what our public schools do well—and they do many difficult things with an excellence that’s awe-inspiring. In subsequent months, we will look at our public schools through concerned parents’ eyes, what public schools don’t do well, and ways the public schools must change if they are to continue to be the glue that holds the diverse components of an increasingly fragmented democracy together.

—Marcia Appel