MINNEAPOLIS, AUTHOR DAVID MURA'S NEW BOOK ON RACE, AND LARRY FITZGERALD IS HERE FOR HIS MONTHLY SPORTS ROUND-UP.

>> CATHY: WE START TONIGHT WITH A STORY THAT SHOOK THE TWIN CITIES THIS PAST WEEK.

ST. PAUL HARDING HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS RETURNED TO SCHOOL THIS MORNING FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE SOPHOMORE DEVIN SCOTT WAS FATALLY STABBED IN A HALLWAY LAST FRIDAY.

EARLIER THIS WEEK A 16-YEAR-OLD WAS CHARGED WITH SECOND-DEGREE MURDER IN THE STABBING DEATH.

ST. PAUL SCHOOL OFFICIALS HAVE INCREASED THEIR ATTENTION TO SECURITY AND SAFETY ISSUES IN THE AFTERMATH.

HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE TOUGH CHALLENGES FACING EDUCATORS, STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES ACROSS MINNESOTA AND THE U.S. IS LONGTIME EDUCATION REPORTER BETH HAWKINS.

SHE WRITES FOR THE NATIONAL EDUCATION NEWS SITE KNOWN AS THE 74.

HEY, BETH.

GOOD TO SEE YOU.

>> GLAD TO BE HERE.

>> Cathy: HARDING, LET'S PUT HARDING IN THE SPOTLIGHT HERE.

THEY'RE LOOKING AT SAFETY AND SECURITY IN THE WAKE OF THAT STABBING DEATH.

AND THEY SAY THAT THEY'RE DANCING THE LINE BETWEEN HAVING POLICE AT THE SCHOOL AND OTHER MEANS OF KEEPING KIDS SAFE.

WHAT ARE SCHOOLS DOING ABOUT THIS?

>> YOU KNOW, THIS IS, AS YOU MENTIONED EARLIER, A NATIONWIDE PROBLEM RIGHT NOW.

KIDS ARE COMING BACK TO SCHOOLS WITH BROKEN SOCIAL FABRIC AND THEY'RE COMING BACK WITH HEIGHTENED, INCREASED MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS, THE LIKES OF WHICH HAVEN'T BEEN SEEN N YEARS.

SO SCHOOLS ARE LOOKING, LIKE YOU SAID, AT SECURITY, IN St. PAUL, THE POLICE ARE STATIONED OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL, WHICH IS, OF COURSE, A CHANGE FROM YEARS PAST.

SCHOOLS, WE MOVED POLICE OFFICERS FROM INSIDE THE BUILDING IN THE WAKE OF GEORGE FLOYD'S MURDER, IN 2020, SO THE FACT THAT THEY'RE STATIONED OUTSIDE NOW IS A COMPROMISE BETWEEN PAST PRACTICES.

THERE WAS A SCHOOL DISTRICT IN THE WEST METRO THAT HAD A SHOOTING LAST YEAR THAT REINSTITUTED METAL DETECTORS AT THE DOOR TO THE SCHOOL.

SO THERE ARE ALL SORTS OF BALANCING ACTS THAT SCHOOL LEADERS ARE LOOKING INTO TO TRY TO MANAGE BEHAVIOR, BUT THE FUNDAMENTAL CRISIS IS STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH WHICH, OF COURSE, IS THE UNDERLYING BASIS OF BEHAVIOR.

>> Eric: AND I THINK ADVOCATES HAVE SAID MINNESOTA HAS ONE OF THE WORST COUNSELOR TO STUDENT RATIOS IN THE COUNTRY, I THINK.

AT LEAST THAT WAS TRUE A WHILE BACK.

BUT EVEN IF YOU HAD UMPTEEN COUNSELORS IN EVERY SCHOOL IT WOULD BE HARD TO KEEP UP WITH THE DEMAND, I WOULD GUESS.

>> THERE'S RESEARCH OUT THIS WEEK THAT SAYS 92% OF SCHOOL SYSTEM LEADERS NATIONWIDE SAY THAT MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES ARE MUCH MORE PROFOUND THAN THEY WERE PRE-COVID.

THE NUMBER OF VIOLENT INCIDENTS THAT THEY'RE REPORTING HAS DOUBLED SINCE COVID.

79% DON'T FEEL THAT THEY HAVE THE STAFF TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEMS.

AND THIS IS DESPITE A HUGE INFUSION OF FEDERAL PANDEMIC RELIEF MONEY, WHICH IN St. PAUL I BELIEVE THEY'RE SPENDING $23 MILLION ON STUDENT'S SOCIAL/EMOTIONAL AND WELLNESS.

THEY HAVE PUT A COUNSELOR IN EVERY SCHOOL IN THE DISTRICT.

THEY HAVE SPENT SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS ON INTENSIVE TRAINING FOR SOCIAL WORKERS IN TRAUMA-INFORMED PRACTICES.

BUT THE SIZE OF THE PROBLEM IS PRETTY UNPRECEDENTED.

>> Cathy: WHAT DO WE KNOW, WHAT HAS RESEARCH SHOWN, WHAT'S ANECDOTALLY OUT THERE ABOUT WHY, WHAT HAPPENED DURING COVID THAT IS NOW SHOWING UP IN SOME OF THESE KIDS AS THEY ACT OUT?

>> SO, STUDENTS WERE IN UNSTRUCTURED ENVIRONMENTS FOR SEVERAL YEARS.

THEY WERE COPING IN THE CASE OF OUR MOST FRAGILE LEARNERS, OUR MOST LOW-INCOME STUDENTS, OUR STUDENTS WITH CHALLENGES, STUDENTS WITH ABSENT ARENTS, THEY WERE COPING WITH COMPOUNDED TRAUMAS.

SO NOT JUST ONE THING BUT PERHAPS A PARENT WHO IS A FIRST RESPONDER OR A FRONT-LINE WORKER.

THEY WERE LIVING IN VERY CLOSE QUARTERS SO THEY HAD HIGHER DISEASE RATES.

THEY WERE PERHAPS CARING FOR YOUNGER SIBLINGS ECAUSE THERE WAS NO CHILD CARE.

SO ALL OF THOSE THINGS IMPACTED SOME CHILDREN MUCH MORE PROFOUNDLY THAN OTHERS.

AND THAT'S COMING BACK INTO SCHOOLS WITH CHILDREN WHO ARE LESS ABLE TO REGULATE THEMSELVES, SO SELF-REGULATION IS A SKILL AND CHOOLS REINFORCE IT AND IF YOU'VE BEEN OUT OF SCHOOL FOR TWO OR THREE YEARS OR YOU'VE BEEN ABSENT, IF YOU'VE GOT CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM, YOU'RE PERHAPS NOT THERE OFTEN ENOUGH TO PICK THOSE SKILLS UP.

YOUR FUSE IS SHORT, IF YOU ARE LOW ON SELF-REGULATION ND HIGH ON TRAUMA.

>> Eric: WELL, I WOULD THINK THE TEACHERS ARE JUST THROWING UP THEIR HANDS IN FRUSTRATION IN MANY SCHOOLS, I WOULD GUESS.

WHAT'S THE EFFECT ON THE TEACHERS?

>> I THINK THEY'RE EXHAUSTED.

AND, YOU KNOW, THERE IS ACTUALLY SOME RESEARCH FROM TULANE UNIVERSITY ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE NOW HAVE TRAUMATIZED TEACHERS WHO ARE ATTEMPTING TO REPLACE THE SELF-REGULATION OF THE STUDENT, SO IF THE TEACHER IS LOWER IN CAPACITY, THE SCHOOL ADMINISTRATOR IS LOWER IN CAPACITY, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A TRICKLE-DOWN EFFECT.

SO WE REALLY DO NEED A WAVE OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE CAPACITY TO ADDRESS THIS.

>> Cathy: WOW.

I WONDER OW THAT HAPPENS.

I MEAN, GOOD QUESTION.

>> Cathy: YEAH, EXACTLY.

I WANT TO PIVOT HERE A LITTLE BIT HERE AND STILL TALK ABOUT St. PAUL.

HOW DID St. PAUL LEVERAGE THEIR PANDEMIC FUNDS, THEY RECEIVED, AND CAUGHT THE ATTENTION OF THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION IN A GOOD WAY?

>> WELL, THERE'S BEEN A GREAT DEAL OF HAND WRINGING NATIONWIDE THAT THIS UNPRECEDENTED, I THINK IT'S $1.7 BILLION HAS POURED INTO SCHOOLS FOR PANDEMIC RECOVERY, THAT IT'S GOING TO ALL NEED TO BE SPENT BY FALL OF 2024, AND THAT LOTS OF DISTRICTS ARE THROWING IT INTO PRE-EXISTING DEFICITS.

THEY'RE FILLING BUDGET HOLES THAT PRE-EXISTED COVID.

WHEN, IN FACT, THEY HAVE THESE DEFICITS AND HEIGHTENED NEEDS THAT THEY NEED TO MAKE UP.

SO St. PAUL GOT $300 MILLION IN ONE-TIME FUNDING ND FOUR YEARS TO SPEND IT.

AND THEY MADE A DECISION TO FUND 52 DIFFERENT STRATEGIES, GIVEN THE DIVERSITY OF THE DISTRICT.

IT'S MINNESOTA'S MOST DIVERSE SCHOOL DISTRICT AND SECOND LARGEST.

AND THEN TO MEASURE AS THEY SPENT THE MONEY WHAT IMPACT THEY THOUGHT IT WAS HAVING.

SO THEY DESIGNED A DASHBOARD FOR EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE FOUR DOZEN PLUS STRATEGIES, AND THEY HAVE ALREADY BEGUN TO ITERATE AND REFINE BASED ON THE DATA THAT THEY'RE GETTING ABOUT WHAT'S WORKING AND WHAT ISN'T.

SO THEY ARE -- AND THIS FOR A SCHOOL DISTRICT IS A SEA CHANGE IN CULTURE THAT IF THEY'RE SUCCESSFUL SHOULD AST FOR DECADES INSTEAD OF MAKING DECISIONS BASED ON ONE, TWO AND MULTIPLE-YEAR CYCLES, THEY'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO MAKE CHANGES IN A MATTER OF WEEKS.

GO AHEAD.

>> Eric: I WISH WE HAD MORE TIME.

I'M GETTING THE