Vote for Jim Vue

Hi neighbors. On Nov. 2, St. Paul voters will vote to fill four seats on the St. Paul school board. Three of those seats are for a 4-year term and one seat is for a 2-year term. I’m writing to encourage you to support my board colleague, Jim Vue, who’s running for reelection and a well-deserved 4-year term on the Saint Paul School Board.
Jim joined the school board by appointment in July of 2020 following the death of our board chair, Marny Xiong. It’s hard to describe what that time was like. At the time of this profound loss, we were in the first weeks of a post-George Floyd world, following three eventful months including St. Paul’s first teacher strike in 70 years and a transition to virtual learning due to the pandemic. There wasn’t one aspect of our work that wasn’t impacted by these events and the heaviness and pace was unforgiving.
From the moment Jim joined the board, he was a calm and steady presence. He arrived with the experience of navigating SPPS as a parent; he also brought a commitment to understanding the work of the board - from policy to governance to engagement. From the beginning, he spent time building relationships with his colleagues and the broader SPPS community and never shied away from stepping up and into the challenging and important work already before the board.
Since that time Jim has remained humble and determined – asking thoughtful and challenging questions and earning the confidence of his colleagues to become Vice Chair of the board in January of 2021. I appreciate how he seeks to bring people into the conversation to gain a better and broader perspective on the complex issues that come before the board. In a time of great change and opportunity, Jim Vue continues to provide steady and thoughtful leadership, demonstrating both the technical and relational skills necessary to be an effective in this role. As both a school board member and the parent of an SPPS student, I know he is the person we need to successfully move through another critical phase of public education in Saint Paul Public Schools.
In these weeks before the election, I hope you will get to know Jim better at jimvueforspps.org and join me in supporting his reelection to the Saint Paul School Board.
Jessica Kopp
Hamline Midway neighbor
Saint Paul School Board Member