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The Spring 2026 district newsletter is now available!

The Fergus Falls Public School District values the long-standing service Children’s Corner has provided to our community’s families. We recognize that access to high-quality childcare is a cornerstone of a thriving Otter Tail County. To ensure our community has a clear and transparent understanding of the current challenges regarding our facility partnership, we offer the following information.

The Lease Agreement & Financial Stewardship

In approximately 2019, the District and Children’s Corner began talking about Children’s Corner utilizing a specialized portion of Lincoln Schools. After negotiations between the District and Children’s Corner, the parties reached an 18-year lease that started in April 2021.  

Favorable Terms: As we have seen in the last 5 years, the costs of goods and services have increased. The amount of base rent that Children’s Corner pays to the District under the lease has not increased since April 2021 and will not increase during the 18-year term of the lease. The District did not include an annual increase in the rent to help Children’s Corner be successful. By not including a typical 2% yearly increase in the rent, Children’s Corner is saving over $600,000 over the life of the lease. 

Obligation to Taxpayers: The District uses the lease payments from Children’s Corner to service the debt on the Lincoln School. If the lease is not honored, the District remains legally obligated to pay that debt. If Children’s Corner stops paying its rent and/or does not honor its lease, any lost revenue would, by necessity, have to be diverted from funds currently dedicated to student education.

Children’s Corner has requested a significant reduction in rent for the remaining 13 years of the lease. The District wants Children’s Corner to stay, but the District cannot use taxpayer-funded educational dollars to subsidize a private business while significantly reducing Children’s Corner’s lease payments.

Fiscal Responsibility and Facility Management

Our primary mandate is to ensure that educational funds reach the classroom. The potential loss of $2.6 million in lease payments from Children’s Corner necessitates difficult, preliminary conversations about all District assets and options.

We are currently analyzing the efficiency of our smaller facilities, including the potential closure of McKinley School. Operating multiple small sites comes at a cost. Closing McKinley would provide the operational savings necessary to offset the potential revenue losses from Children’s Corner and help to protect the high quality education our students deserve and our families have come to expect.

We want to be clear: no final decisions have been reached. These evaluations are based strictly on financial and educational needs.

Commitment to Communication and Mediation

Contrary to recent reports, the District is, and has always been, open to constructive dialogue. 

The District has made multiple offers to engage in professional mediation to find a path forward. To date, these offers have not moved forward because Children’s Corner has declined to share the cost of the mediator. The District maintains that for mediation to be successful, both parties must be equally committed to the process and its costs.

Moving Forward Together

We understand the anxiety that uncertainty in childcare causes for parents and employees. The District remains dedicated to the well-being of the Fergus Falls community.

Our preferred outcome is for Children’s Corner to continue their tenancy in one of the region's premier early childhood facilities while honoring the terms of the lease. We reiterate our willingness to enter mediation immediately, provided there is a mutual commitment to the process. We welcome civil discourse and encourage residents to attend our scheduled Board meetings, where public comments are always heard and valued.

The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 

The regular meeting of the School Board of Independent School District No. 544 was held in the Community Ed Room at the Roosevelt Education Center. Chair, Melanie Cole, called the meeting to order at 5:15 pm. The following members were present: Kirby Anderson, Jeney Christensen, Melanie Cole, Kelli Graff, Missy Hermes, and Stephen Vigesaa. Jeff Drake, Superintendent, was also present. 

Missy Hermes, acting clerk, established a quorum. 

 Stephen Vigesaa made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. The motion was seconded by Jeney Christensen and carried unanimously. 

Kirby Anderson offered the resolution of acknowledgements for the following and moved for its adoption:

    Thank you to the following:

• FM Bank and the Fergus Falls 544 Education Foundation for their donations to the “Future Otters” onesie project at Fergus Falls Public Schools

• Fergus Falls 544 Education Foundation for their donation to the Roosevelt Gym at Fergus Falls Public Schools

• West Central Initiative for their donation from the Inga M Johnson Endowment Fund for the Fergus Falls Bike Rodeo with Partnership 4 Health at Fergus Falls Public Schools

• West Central Initiative for their donation from the Inga M Johnson Endowment Fund for student experiences at the Area Learning Center

• West Central Initiative for their donation from the Inga M Johnson Endowment Fund for Homework Help through Community Education at Fergus Falls Public Schools

The motion was seconded by Missy Hermes and upon roll call vote being taken, the following voted in favor thereof: Kirby Anderson, Jeney Christensen, Melanie Cole, Kelli Graff, Missy Hermes, and Stephen Vigesaa; 

and the following voted against same: 

None. 

Whereupon said motion was declared duly passed and the resolution adopted.