ST PAUL, Minn. — "St. Paul Public Schools is home to some of the most diverse schools in the state," said SPPS Superintendent Joe Gothard during a press conference Tuesday morning.
With dozens of families looking on, Superintendent Gothard, along with city and state leaders and district staff, introduced the latest school opening.
"I'm deeply honored to be here today and to stand before you as the new principal of St. Paul Public Schools' first program focused on East African language and cultures," said Dr. Abdisalam Adam, a principal and SPPS educator for the past 27 years.
The school will host pre-K through 5th-grade students with applications now open for the fall. Dr. Adam will now serve as the school's new leader.
"Our efforts have to focus on getting staff in place with Dr. Adam. We need to outreach to families," said Gothard.
The St. Paul School Board voted for six schools to close back in 2021.
The building housing the former Jackson Preparatory Elementary will now host the new school.
"That was our plan to consolidate some of our schools, but the informal part is, I drive by these schools all the time and it gnaws at me that it's empty," said Gothard.
While the goal is to hire more teachers and staff, along with registering new students.
"We know the work doesn't end today with this announcement, we know it begins today," said St. Paul Mayor, Melvin Carter.
They're hoping the new school will keep families in the district.
"What I do know is that there are thousands of students from East Africa in this community who choose schools other than SPPS," Gothard said. "What I do know is that we have seen dramatic enrollment decline in the last decade-plus," said Gothard. "One answer that schools have is this: 'What is it that the community is demanding?'"
For more information, visit the link here.
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist: