Madison Elementary Principal Kate Flynn earns statewide leadership award

ST. CLOUD — Madison Elementary School Principal Kate Flynn earned statewide recognition Thursday for her work as an administrator in the St. Cloud school district. 

Flynn was awarded a Division Leadership Award, which is annual recognition given to a principal in each of the state's 12 divisions by the Minnesota Elementary Schools Principals' Association. 

"The award expresses appreciation to the many outstanding individuals in the principalship who have contributed generously to improving education, their communities, and their profession," the association states on its website. "They serve as role models and sources of inspiration to other principals and educators."

Meredith Boucher, assistant principal at Madison, nominated Flynn for the award. Flynn said the award, which she received Thursday during the association's annual institute in Bloomington, came as a surprise. 

"I think I was shocked and thrilled because it was a peer nomination," Flynn said Friday. "I think you're always humbled to have someone, especially a colleague, think that highly of you." 

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Flynn became principal at Madison in 2017. She spent 28 years in St. Paul schools and started in St. Cloud school district as the principal at Talahi Community School in 2014. 

At Talahi, Flynn implemented co-teaching strategies, STEM initiatives, and collaborative parent and community engagement opportunities that led to academic success at the school.

"That was our first year that Talahi was labeled a 'priority' school," Flynn said of the designation given to the school by the Minnesota Department of Education, which meant it was identified as one of the lowest-performing schools in the state based on test scores.

Under Flynn's leadership, test scores improved — about 10 percent in the first year. 

"St. Cloud should be proud of that," she said. "That's about good teachers and people willing to do the work." 

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Flynn said Superintendent Willie Jett moved her to Madison in 2017 to tackle declining test scores. 

"He wanted a strong, experienced leader to move us forward," she said. 

And the school did improve by about 5 percentage points in math and reading proficiency scores from 2017 to 2018, according to the state Department of Education. 

"We're proud of that," Flynn said. 

English learner students at Madison also performed better than students districtwide and statewide in progress toward their proficiency target. 

English learners at Madison made it on average 71 percent of the way to their individual goals, whereas English learners statewide on average made it 67 percent of the way toward their individual goals. In the district, English learners on average made it about 61 percent of the way to their individual goals. 

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Flynn said she is a strong promoter of co-teaching, where two licensed teachers lead daily lessons, and she has a strong lens for teaching and learning because of her experience as a teacher. 

She said she hopes to stay at Madison. 

"Some longevity will help us move the needle forward," Flynn said. "I'm super-privileged to work with the staff and students."

Send news tips to Jenny Berg at jberg@stcloudtimes.com or follow her at www.facebook.com/sctimesjenny or on Twitter @bergjenny.