Alumnus, New York Times columnist returns

Pulitzer Prize winning New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman went back in time as he took his seat in front of teachers and administrators during an Oct. 29 event at Park.

Friedman, a 1971 Park graduate, returned to the school as part of a planned trip to Minnesota to cover the election. Friedman also met with local elected officials such as U.S. Sens. Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar, and St. Louis Park Mayor Jeff Jacobs during his trip.

However, Friedman’s purpose for visiting the school was not solely to reconnect with his high school alma mater. With principal Rob Metz, Friedman spoke to a group of staff members to check in with the current political climate of his hometown in a question and answer session.

Senior Augusta Weide said she appreciated Friedman’s interest in Park.

“It’s very cool that he wants to connect with the community he grew up in,” she said. “I’m excited to see what he has to say about our school.”

During the forum, Metz addressed new programs offered under the Investing in Innovation (i3) grant that have attracted national attention.

“We are an experimental school. The i3 grant inspires innovation at Park,” Metz said. “It is a new way of (approaching) high school.”

Friedman printed  a column in the New York Times Oct. 31 stating that he was impressed by Park remaking itself to compete in a more connected  and diverse world.

“(Settling for) just average is over for all of us. If the whole world were a math class at Park, the entire global curve just rose,” Friedman said. “So (Park’s) system could really make a difference for students in the future.”

Friedman also took time to weigh in on political concerns such as technological globalization with the presidential election approaching.

“Ten years ago, Facebook didn’t exist, Twitter was a sound, the cloud was still in the sky, and Skype was a typo,” Friedman said. “The job of leadership is to explain how to navigate this new world (of hyperconnectivity) and that’s what is missing in politics.”

Friedman concluded the discussion with a caution for students and teachers about the future of the economy in the age of globalization.

“You can’t just work hard and expect to make it into the middle class anymore,” Friedman said. “If you work harder, study faster and rewrite the rules, you can make it to the middle class.”