EXCLUSIVE: A local private school superintendent believes Gov. Tim Walz's policies have had a "negative impact" on education in Minnesota, suggesting he "broke trust" with residents during the coronavirus pandemic.

"He's ignored us," Kim Friesen, who has lived in rural Minnesota for 21 years, told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview. "I think he's broken trust with rural Minnesota because of education and how he hasn't listened or visited or been out here."

Friesen, who works as an administrator at Mountain Lake Christian School, detailed the effect she has seen Walz's policies have on education in the state.

"The majority of the thinking that Governor Waltz did was all Metro. He didn't consider some of the unique problems that we face in rural Minnesota, for example, connectivity," Friesen said of rules enforced in the state during the COVID-19 pandemic. "It's been kind of hard to see the negative impact that has taken place under Governor Waltz's leadership."

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Friesen said that rural families faced roadblocks to online learning requirements during the pandemic, such as not having access to the internet.

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"Rural Minnesota really suffered during that time," she added. "I don't think he cared for all his people well. He cared for the center of our state. North, south, rural, east and west, we did not get his attention, and we deserved his attention."

Friesen also said that she does not think Walz appears to want to connect with rural Minnesotans.

"I do believe that some of the things that he has said are very self-focused rather than people-focused. And I need a vice president that is going to be us focused," she said. "He needs to know his people better. And if he's not willing to do it in a state, how can he do it for the nation?"

When asked about a potential Harris-Walz administration, Friesen said that the policies enacted in Minnesota could be reflected at a national level - such as social issues and illegal immigration.

Walz signed an order making Minnesota a "trans refuge state," where minors from out of state could receive transgender surgical procedures and hormone prescriptions.

"His ideas on allowing children or encouraging children from other states to come for transgender surgery or therapy, it just breaks my heart," Friesen said of the order. "It rips parents' authority away. And I don't believe that's God's design. God gave children to parents, not to the government."

"Neither one of them are ready to lead a nation. Neither one. They don't have the experience. They don't have the wherewithal to fight for people who are here. And I think they have some distorted views on how to move forward. That would not better our state, nor our nation," she said. "So that's of concern."

Before entering the political scene, Walz worked as a high school teacher in Minnesota.

One of Walz's former students, who asked to remain anonymous, told Fox News Digital that he was a "very belittling teacher."

"He yelled at students constantly. He would treat conservative students poorly and he would one side his teaching. If you were liberal he liked you, and if you were conservative he treated you like garbage. He was not a kind person. I nicknamed him "Hitler" because he was so strict and was constantly yelling at kids down the halls," the former student told Fox.

"Not to mention he was a traitor and left his crew behind during war. There is nothing honorable about that!"

Sandra Lee romance still feels brand new three years into her relationship with her fiancé.

"It's just completely different. It's almost like. It's almost like having a first love again for me. And I think for him, I am his first love," the "Blue Ribbon Baking Championship" host told Fox News Digital. 

She continued, "So it just it's a completely different relationship than I think either one of us have had before. And, you know, all the things that you go through with a first love is exactly the kind of stuff we go through. And some of it's silly, and some of it's not. And, you know, it's very present, every day. It's very like there's no time off. We are in it to win that."

Lee is dating Ben Youcef, 44, an actor-producer. 

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She recently celebrated her 58th birthday on Instagram, sharing a series of photos of her and Ben kissing, writing in the caption, "Best birthday gift ever was Ben! Thank you for chasing me up the street and not taking NO NO NO for an answer! You were right!"

"Thank you God for such wonderful man to get to kiss," she added, also writing, "so grateful for my love!!"

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Lee’s romance with Youcef comes after a difficult decade marked by health and relationship issues. 

"Talk about turning your life upside down. It was being a pancake on a griddle and just getting flipped. And I had just gotten to, like, the most perfect place. And all of a sudden, everything went south," she said of the past decade. 

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"That's the beautiful thing about life, is you really it shows you [that] you really have to enjoy the good times. And because the bad will come no matter who you are. And I thought I had already taken my lumps, but, you know, life was going to show me that there were still some more hiccups to go. And so I had [take] them over the last couple of years."

In 2015, Lee was diagnosed with breast cancer, specifically ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), and underwent a double mastectomy and later a complete hysterectomy.

Four years later, in 2019, she and her longtime boyfriend, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, went through a very public break-up. 

And during the break-up, she found out that her uncle, who she considered a father figure, had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and moved to California to care for him until his death in 2023.

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"When I had a breakup, I moved to California to be by my uncle, and that just turned out to be the very best thing for me. And I got to spend time with him I would have never gotten to spend. And we went on so many trips together and checked off so many items on his bucket list, and that's what I wanted to do, and that's what I did," she recalled.

Handling the whirlwind of emotions helped Lee learn a lot about herself.

"I just let it be. I just let it breathe. I just really sat back and kind of watched what was going on and really leaned into who I wanted to be and who I thought I was," Lee said. 

She admitted, "Some of the decisions I made were very petty, and they were very difficult decisions to make, and they were heartbreaking decisions and other decisions I had no control over, other than how I was going to handle them."

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"One day at a time is exactly what I did. Literally one day at a time. I took my time with it," Lee said of managing her life, revealing that much of her New York home that she packed up when she left for California is still in storage "because I haven't been able to deal with it until just this year."

"I let myself go through every, every piece and part of it. And it's still not easy. Nothing's easy. You know, 14 years of a life is . . . to walk away from, it's not an easy thing."

What has been easier is her relationship with Youcef, who she jokes "cannot cook his way out of a box."

"I mean, he just likes to eat, and I like to cook, and so that works out just fine," Lee said, adding that his favorite meal is lamb chops with mashed potatoes, and maybe some brownies for dessert. 

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"Every relationship is unique. Every relationship has special things in it, and every relationship has challenging things in it. It's just a matter of ‘Can you deal with the challenges that are created with a particular person that you are with?’ And sometimes it's yes, and sometimes it's life's too short."

Lee said there are no wedding plans yet for her and Youcef, instead focusing on her new series "The Blue Ribbon Baking Championship," on Netflix.

She not only co-hosts with "American Pie" star Jason Biggs, but also judges with former White House pastry chef, Bill Yosses, and award-winning artisan baker, Bryan Ford. 

The "Semi-Homemade" star loved watching contestants not only compete, but come together, even with prizes like $100,000 and a Best in Fair blue ribbon on the line.

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"I love the fact that they help one another when one is in trouble and struggling. They would leave their stations and help their fellow competitors, not to the detriment of themselves, but enough to get them over a hump. And they were truly happy for one another," she said.

For Lee, the show also highlights some true Americana with its state and county fair aesthetic.

"For me, when you're looking at who we are as America, it's the people who go to the state fairs. They are a favorite amongst kids," she said.

She continued, recalling her own fond memories of attending fairs as a kid.

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"I remember what I ate, I remember I had my first kiss on the tram going across the fairgrounds with a boy named Ben when I was 13. Like the state fairs are a thing. You eat, you have fun, you go on rides, you play with your friends, you hang out, you know, it's good, clean fun." 

"The Blue Ribbon Baking Championship" has also been a labor of love for Lee. She created the show 12 years ago, and found that even after all that time, there were still last-minute changes to be made.

"It's a living thing. I mean, right in the middle of the first, the first day of taping, we decided we were going to shoot it like every other food competition where you stop down, people go home and everybody's rested, and everybody's fine. And we looked at, we went, that's not real life. That's not what happens in the world. This is $100,000 is, you know, someone has to be the best baker with all the stress and all the pressure and all the challenges. And so we ran that show in real time. And those bakers are baking in real time. If it's a day, it's a real day. And that's a lot of work, and that's a lot of stress, and that's a lot of energy, and that's a lot of focus. But it's also a lot of joy, and it makes amazing television." 

"The Blue Ribbon Baking Championship" is streaming now on Netflix.