It was a fine St. Patrick’s Day meeting of the Killarney Lakes Rotary Club. Our President, Jennifer Bennerotte proceeded to explain how and why Edina got it’s name in 1888. Names such as Hennepin Park, Westfield and Edina were being considered. The choice was narrowed to Westfield vs. Edina and eventually the name Edina was chosen with a 47–42 vote.
President Bennerotte thanked the greeters, Chuck Agan, Luther Amundson and Meg Boehne. She also thanked Peter Hoffman for helping our extraordinary Club Administrator Jennifer Garske with the front desk duties. Jennifer went on to thank Gordy Lewis for giving the invocation and leading us in the Pledge of Allegiance and the Four-Way Test.
Steve Slyce introduced visiting Rotarians, including Susan Brott from the Edina Morningside Rotary Club and Paul Mork from the Golden Valley Rotary Club. Steve also had David Clynes introduce his visitor, Thomas Cook, approved earlier in the day by the board for membership in the No. 1 Club in the Universe; and Bill McReavy introduce his guest, John Shevlin.
Steve Buettner introduced our two impressive student guests from Edina High School, Natalie Haven and Sam Thomas. Natalie has played volleyball at Edina for the past five years and has been the captain of the team for the past two. She will be attending Purdue University and playing volleyball there as she studies to become an engineer. Sam has been the captain of the Cross Country and Track teams at Edina. He will be attending Davidson College in North Carolina and plans to be a high school teacher.
Brad Hepp and Steve Slyce officially inducted new members Toni Gerard and Bjorn Freudenthal into the No. 1 Club in the Universe. Toni is personal banker and Bjorn is a design/builder. They are both wonderful additions to the club and we are looking forward to their classification talks.
Sam Cote introduced our speaker, Dr. Ric Dressen. Ric is the Superintendent of Edina Schools. Ric is a native Minnesotan. He graduated from Bemidji State University and received his doctorate from the University of Minnesota.
Ric serves over 8,500 students and over 1,200 staff members in the Edina School District. He has the opportunity and responsibility to deploy the $124.9 million dollars approved by last year’s May 15 bond referendum vote.
Five grade schools, two middle schools and the high school will undergo huge changes in the next two-and-a-half years. Many of the schools will be enlarged and all of the buildings will be entirely remodeled. Much of the money will go toward classroom changes and more common space and “breakout rooms” at all grade levels. Ric referred to the classroom environment as more “Starbucks like” in nature.
The “Next Generation” program Ric described focuses on being one step ahead of the national trends in education. The program starts before kindergarten and continues beyond high school graduation. Many of the dollars approved will promote the upcoming needs of education as the trends change from traditional academics to identifying the students' strengths early, and providing them the opportunity to grow those skills.
Large portions of the funding will go toward vastly improved sporting facilities. There are two new turf fields and a 2,400-seat gymnasium scheduled for the high school campus. More and improved parking and substantial rework of the campus’ building facades and common areas is also planned. Bidding is under way for the summer 2016 construction and the last phase of construction is scheduled for the fall 2017.
Edina Schools are ranked 71st nationally, with a 96.7 percent graduation rate. The school district is very competitive and Ric’s delivery shows that the district will be ready to stand among the best for a long time.
Jack Kennefick thanked the speaker and Jennifer closed the meeting promptly at 1:30 p.m. with an Irish blessing: “May the roof above us never fall in and may we friends gathered below never fall out.”
The Rotary Club of Edina will welcome two program speakers at the Thursday, March 24, meeting. Author Jim Hoey and longtime Edina High School boys' hockey coach Willard Ikola will speak about their joint effort in writing Ike: Minnesota Hockey Legend about Ikola's legendary career as EHS hockey coach from 1958 to 1991.
Willard Ikola had a legendary 33-year career here at Edina and Edina-East high schools, and led the Hornets to eight state titles and 19 tournament appearances. Ike grew up in Eveleth, Minnesota, and won three state titles as an outstanding goalie for Cliff Thompson's Golden Bears. In college, he backstopped the Michigan Wolverines to two NCAA titles. While in the U.S. Air Force, Ikola played on two U.S. National teams and was named the top goaltender in the 1956 Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. 
The Rotary Club of Edina Morningside is holding a plant sale to raise money for its Foundation.
The Edina Country Club will serve members their choice of Beef Taco, Chicken Enchilada and Spanish-Style Rice or Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad at the Rotary Club of Edina's March 24 meeting.