MINNEAPOLIS — The new school year brings a change for two Minneapolis schools.
After helping reverse Lucy Laney Elementary School's negative trend of student suspensions, principal Mauri Friestleben announced in August that she was moving to a new position as principal at North High School in Minneapolis.
Before beginning her new assignment, however, Friestleben made certain to pay a visit to her old stomping grounds at Lucy Laney on the first day of the new school year.
"One of the things I wanted to make sure to do was that I wasn't just going to disappear from my students' lives, or the staff for that matter," Friestleben said.
KARE 11's Ben Garvin and Lindsey Seavert profiled Friestleben's efforts at Lucy Laney in the feature-length documentary, "Love Them First."
The documentary shows the struggles facing the community and the school, but finds its heart in the strength of its children, and the many people working to make a difference.
You can watch a broadcast of the inspirational 90-minute documentary Thursday, Sept. 12 at 8 p.m. - only on KARE 11.
You can learn more about this documentary on the film's website.