Superintendents Office

1250 West Broadway Ave.

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55411

Michael Thomas
Interim Superintendent

June 14, 2016

Good afternoon,
Im Michael Thomas, Interim Superintendent of Minneapolis Public Schools.
Many of you have contacted the school district to share your concerns for and support of Ms. Crystal
Spring, a Washburn High School teacher. I would like to address the situation regarding Ms. Spring
and most importantly say that we sincerely apologize for how this situation was handled.
When this came to my attention, I found myself immediately questioning the process that resulted in
the recommendation for termination of Ms. Spring. It is imperative to be thorough when considering
the action of terminating an employee, and we regret that due diligence, as I would expect, was not
followed in this case. This serves as a reminder for us that every situation is unique and we cannot
rush to judgment without considering all of the facts.
Ms. Spring is a teacher who is a passionate advocate for social justice and equity, which are also
values we uphold as an organization. Our sincerest apologies go out to her and to all of you, as well
as other students, staff, families and community members who may be impacted. My wish for Crystal
is to have a restful summer, and well look forward to her continued contributions when she returns
in the fall.
In the meantime, we will review our termination processes and are committed to making all
necessary changes to ensure this type of mistake does not occur again.
Thank you,

Michael Thomas
Interim Superintendent