6286 Fountain Ln N
Maple Grove, MN 55311

Wayzata has been the best experience I could ever ask for from a school district. Our daughter started in the district Kindergarten and is now in 9th grade. We couldn't be more pleased with how this district handled both sports and academics through the pandemic and how they made sure our students were successful and safe throughout their shift into high school.

I have worked in education for a long time, and I feel compelled to share my experience about this building. The teachers are the heartbeat of this building. They are compassionate, resilient, strong, and determined. I watched these teachers go out of their way to provide exceptional educational experiences to students at home during the pandemic. The community of teachers here is truly wonderful and strong. What is happening behind the scenes at this school is heartbreaking. Most of the community is familiar with the district cost containment by now. With the district experiencing financial losses, there unfortunately has to be a reduction in the teaching staff. While many districts are experiencing financial losses post pandemic, the way this building has decided to handle the staff reductions has been incredibly demeaning and sad. I watched several colleagues, all of whom were outstanding educators, lose their job because they were simply "too educated." Of course, in the education system, being more educated means the district must pay you a greater salary...and hence these teachers are the first to go. As teachers, it is our goal to nurture lifelong learning amongst our students. Why is this penalized from administers in the district? How can one be punished for pursuing higher education as a teacher? The way administration handled some of these layoffs was done without compassion, empathy, or kindness. I would love to ask the principal team, "How would you feel if your son or daughter was fired from a job because they were too educated?" In turn, don't we want our students in the community to experience teachers who have mastered their craft? As someone who has had to stand by and watch, it has been painful to see the way this building has started to devolve from the top. With so many teachers fleeing education, we need to be working endlessly to keep them around. The admin team unfortunately is still struggling with this. I hope they are able to find a way to partner with their teachers and to treat them with respect and empathy, just as we are expected to do with our students. I truly hope that community members ask the board more questions about how they are handling staff reductions. I also hope that superintendent Chace Anderson is able to address some of these pivotal issues as the year continues.

Meadow Ridge's Principal, Karen Keffeler, is an awesome leader and educator. She's more than willing to step in and help no matter how small the matter. Our son's first few weeks of kindergarten were very overwhelming as he struggled getting off the bus and finding his classroom amongst the influx of children entering the building each morning. Being “slightly” overprotective parents, we started meeting him at school to try and help him. Mrs. Keffeler saw us and inquired about the issue. She stepped in right away and would meet our son each day at the bus to help him find his classroom until he felt comfortable. What a relief! We never would have expected the Principal to take on this responsibility, but she had no problem helping. Mrs. Keffeler is a true leader and “walks the talk” about caring for each of her students. We’ve also heard of many other examples of her helping other families just like ours. We are so happy being part of the Meadow Ridge community and teachers and staff have been so nice to work with. Our kids are getting a great education and being educated by people who care.