ARLINGTON, MN — Education Minnesota, the leading statewide voice for public education representing more than 84,000 teachers, faculty, and education support professionals, has officially endorsed Ben Wieman for the Minnesota House of Representatives in District 17B.
The endorsement recognizes Wieman's steadfast commitment to rural public education, competitive compensation for educators, and practical, forward-thinking policy solutions that invest directly in classrooms without placing unfair tax burdens on family farmers and working families.
Rural Schools and Family Farms: The Multiple Backbones of Our Communities
For Wieman, a lifelong Sibley County resident and fifth-generation dairy farmer whose family has farmed the same land since 1886, defending public education is inseparable from the survival and vitality of rural Minnesota.
"Growing up on the farm, I always heard the phrase that agriculture is the backbone of rural Minnesota," said Wieman. "And it is. But as I've listened to neighbors across this district, I've come to realize that a community cannot stand on just one backbone. Rural Minnesota has multiple backbones, and the two strongest are agriculture and public education. When our schools and our farms stand together, our small towns are unbreakable. When either one is neglected, the whole community suffers. If we want small towns and family farms to thrive for the next generation, we have to make sure our rural schools have the resources to deliver a world-class education."
Supporting Teachers: Respect, Retention, and Competitive Pay
Rural school districts across Sibley, McLeod, Carver, and neighboring counties face severe staffing challenges, with high turnover rates and difficulty recruiting specialized educators, counselors, and support staff. Too often, small rural districts train outstanding teachers only to lose them to wealthier suburban districts that can offer higher salaries and broader tax bases.
Wieman has made attracting and retaining excellent educators a cornerstone of his education platform.
"Teaching isn't just a profession — it is the backbone of our community," Wieman stressed. "Our teachers are our neighbors, 4-H leaders, coaches, and mentors. They shouldn't have to work second jobs during the summer or leave our rural towns just to pay off student loans and provide for their own families. We must respect educators as professionals with competitive pay, sustainable retirement pensions, and safe, well-equipped classrooms."
Creative Funding Solutions Aligned with Ben's Campaign Message
A hallmark of Wieman's campaign — centered around the rallying cry "Let's Put the 'F' Back in DFL" — is fighting for working people, protecting independent family farms, and rejecting the notion that improving public schools requires hiking property taxes on local farmers.
Instead, Wieman is advocating for creative, commonsense funding mechanisms:
- Rebalancing the State Formula to End the 'Rural Penalty': Outdated state funding formulas fail to fully reflect the realities of rural districts, such as high busing and transportation mileage, aging infrastructure, and small-class economies of scale. Wieman will fight to modernize state formulas so rural schools receive equitable per-pupil state funding rather than forcing local school boards to rely on regressive local operating levies.
- Holding Corporate Agribusiness & Monopolies Accountable: Large corporate conglomerates and out-of-state monopolies have extracted record profits from rural communities while exploiting tax loopholes. Wieman advocates closing corporate tax exemptions and dedicating that revenue directly toward statewide rural education funds, teacher recruitment grants, and modern classroom technologies.
- Targeted Rural Educator Loan Forgiveness & Housing Assistance: To solve rural educator shortages, Wieman supports state-backed student debt relief for teachers and support professionals who commit to serving in rural school districts for three to five years, along with local-state housing partnerships that help young teachers afford homes in the communities where they teach.
- Expanding Farm-to-School and Hands-On Career & Technical Education (CTE): Connecting local agriculture directly to classrooms by expanding state funding for Farm-to-School nutrition programs that purchase fresh dairy, meat, and produce directly from local family farms. Concurrently, Wieman champions robust state funding for vocational, technical, FFA, and skilled trades apprenticeships, equipping rural graduates with high-demand career pathways right at home.
- Protecting Local Control by Ending Unfunded Mandates: When St. Paul passes down new curriculum requirements or administrative standards, the state must fully fund them. Wieman will vote against unfunded state mandates that force rural superintendents and school boards to divert money away from educator salaries and classroom instruction.
Moving Forward Together
With early voting underway across Minnesota and Election Day on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, the endorsement of Education Minnesota adds powerful momentum to Wieman's grassroots campaign.
"I am deeply honored to receive the endorsement of Education Minnesota," said Wieman. "When we stand with our teachers and invest creatively in our kids, we secure the future of our family farms, our main streets, and all of District 17B."
To learn more about Education Minnesota and their work advocating for educators and public schools across the state, visit educationminnesota.org. To read more about Ben's platform for District 17B, visit our Priorities Page or sign up to join the team.
