Michael J. Thomas - Superintendent, D11 Schools

 

Michael J. Thomas has over twenty years of experience in the fields of education and social work. He received his Bachelor's in Social Work from the University of St. Thomas and completed his Masters in Social Work as a Title IV-E Fellow at the University of Minnesota.  Currently, Michael is a doctoral student and a full Presidential Scholar in the School of Education’s Educational Leadership program at the University of St. Thomas, where he also
completed his PK-12 Principal and Superintendent licensure.

Mr. Thomas’s experience spans multiple industries such as education, community-based mental health, hospitals and corrections. He has spent most of his career in three of Minnesota’s largest school systems. He believes that education is the gateway to success in life and adopts a holistic approach to supporting students’ academic and social and emotional needs.

 

His educational career began as a school based social worker and was part of a team that established one of Minnesota’s first full service school systems in St. Paul, which was modeled after the Children’s Aid Society Schools in New York. This was a collaboration between St. Paul Public Schools, Ramsey County Human Services, Parks and Recreation, and a local housing council. He successfully established a culturally specific mental health support program for African American students that significantly impacted the disproportionality of special education referrals. His success led him to present the model at multiple national conferences and consulted locally to help other districts create similar supports. He expanded his leadership to coordinate school family resource centers and brokered support services of mental health, dental health, and social services.

Mr. Thomas transitioned to a district level administration role in a large suburban district, where through deep community engagement, he led equity efforts in response to the State’s desegregation laws. Under his leadership, he established a Department of Equity and Integration employing a team of 18 cultural liaisons to lead extensive professional
development/support throughout the district and uphold accountability efforts for the system to be more culturally responsive. He was also the district’s liaison to a seven district collaborative to create magnet schools as a recipient of the Magnet Schools of America grant.

His passion for all students, equity, and integration was further witnessed as an elementary and secondary principal. In these roles, he was successful closing learning gaps between students of color and white students and significantly increased the learning of students receiving special education support. Mr. Thomas is well known for his mantra, "We are ALL here, ALL of the time, for ALL students!" The students, staff, and communities he has served can testify that it is more than a mantra...it is at his core and the way he leads every day.

For the past seven years, Mr. Thomas has been a leader with Minneapolis Public Schools, the third largest district in the state of Minnesota with approximately 36,000 students. First as an Associate Superintendent supervising a portfolio of 18 schools, he increased attendance rates, data accountability systems, and led several of his schools to State recognition of achievement status.

 

After three years, he was promoted to become Chief of Schools and supervised a team of six Associate Superintendents and helped author a Wallace Foundation grant, receiving $5 million dollars to increase principal supervisor performance and accountability systems. He established academic walkthrough protocols, common data cycles, coaching for equity and professional development with the Minnesota Department of Education to be a standards-based instructional leader. He developed partnerships with the Council of Great City Schools, New York Leadership Academy and New Leaders, to name a few, to support the work and development of principal supervision. His strategic leadership helped craft a 5-year enrollment plan that addressed barriers to quality educational experiences to include opening new schools, changing academic
pathways, and ensuring strong financial equity in school funding.

Most recently, Mr. Thomas served as the Chief of Academics Leadership & Learning. He maintained responsibility for school accountability to include a team of four Associate
Superintendents and approximately 70 schools with a budget of $370 million dollars. Additionally, he led multiple departments within the Academic Division to include, but not limited to, teaching & learning, multilingual/global education, adult basic education, and early childhood education with department budgets totaling $129 million dollars. Through his leadership and commitment to ALL students, highest priority schools experienced increases in assessment
scores, high schools increased graduation rates, he successfully adopted and implemented a comprehensive core literacy curriculum and implemented stronger community engagement practices where all voices are heard and valued.

Lastly, Michael believes the key to long-term success is experiencing professional and personal balance, which in-turn fills his bucket to be a better leader each day. To achieve this, he enjoys spending quality time with his wife and two high school age daughters, fishing, cooking, and writing poetry.