St. Paul mom named Science Museum’s volunteer of the month

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Deb Pleasants is the Science Museum of Minnesota’s featured volunteer of the month. “I am passionate about what I believe in — each person has to give back to the community in order to make the world better,” Pleasants affirmed. “So I try to choose the organization that I give back to that reflects my values.”
Pleasants has been a special exhibit volunteer one day a week for the past year, since the museum’s “Race: Are We So Different?” exhibit. The Science Museum is not the only organization that Pleasants chooses to give back to; she also volunteers at Women’s Advocates, Inc. in St. Paul (a crisis shelter for women experiencing abuse) and at her seven-year-old son’s school as needed. Continue Reading

‘Bitter Fruits’ and ‘Anxiety Dreams’ in northeast Minneapolis

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The Q’arma Building in northeast Minneapolis overflowed with art enthusiasts on Friday night for the opening reception of two exhibits—Bitter Fruits and Anxiety Dreams—at the Altered Esthetics Gallery. Visitors were positively overwhelmed by the diversity and high quality of the shows. “They were pleasantly surprised by the subject matter and the amount of material,” said Jamie Schumacher, executive director of Altered Esthetics. Bitter Fruits and Anxiety Dreams exhibits run through February 28 at Altered Esthetics, 1224 Quincy Street NE, Minneapolis. For more information, see alteredesthetics.org or call (612) 378-8888. Continue Reading

A legacy of pride: A future of promises

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Every Friday for the past several weeks, a group of young women ages 14-18 gather for fun and mentoring under the tutelage of Celie Marie Dean, Miss Black USA 2006. The young women are participants in a program series, “The Beauty of You,” that began in November 2007. The 12-week program included many projects that focused on self-esteem, public speaking, physical fitness, and healthy life style changes. “A Legacy of Pride: A Future of Promises” will be held at Patrick Henry High School, 4320 Newton Avenue, N in Minneapolis on Sunday, February 3 starting with a social hour at 3pm followed by a program at 4pm. Admission is $8 for adults and $5 for youths. Continue Reading

Rico Gatson provokes and inspires at MCAD

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“Don’t be afraid to take chances. After all, it’s only art,” Rico Gatson advised art students at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD). His multimedia show at the MCAD Gallery—video, painting, sculpture, and drawing—reflects that attitude. The show opened with a lecture by Gatson on Thursday, January 17. Rico Gatson’s exhibit is at the MCAD Gallery through February 17. Continue Reading

Program to bring new teachers to St. Paul Public Schools

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The St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) are looking for successful, diverse individuals from a variety of professional and academic backgrounds to make a difference in the classroom. To meet this goal, SPPS has created a new program called St. Paul Teaching Fellows. Applicants to the teaching fellows program are asked to state their subject of choice. Continue Reading

State’s most diverse cities aim to close student achievement gaps

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How do the Minneapolis and St. Paul plans compare? It is not a secret that on average there is an achievement gap between students of color and White students in both the Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) and the St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) districts. For example, in SPPS, the 2006 graduation rate for Caucasian students was 87.1 percent, while African American students’ graduation rate was 74 percent. Continue Reading

Growing health threat may have genetic component

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Growing health threat may have genetic componentby Jennifer Holder, TC Daily Planet
Mary Manning, a 66-year-old St. Paul African American resident, has Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) – the fourth leading cause of death in the U.S. and the only cause of death on the rise. COPD is a slowly progressive disease of the airways that is characterized by a gradual loss of lung function. The term COPD includes chronic bronchitis, chronic obstructive bronchitis, or emphysema, or combinations of these conditions. In 2005, 11.6 million U.S. adults (aged 18 and over) were estimated to have COPD. Continue Reading

Guthrie opens a ‘Blue Door’ to questions of race, history, and identity

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Lewis, a successful African-American mathematics professor, ponders his life’s meaning when his white wife leaves him because he refuses to join the Million Man March. During a sleepless night, Lewis is haunted by visions of three generations of his ancestors in the form of Rex, Jessie and Simon and how their history influenced his identity and his attitudes, particularly towards race relations. Emigrant Theater’s production of Blue Door runs January 17-27 at the Guthrie Theater. Tickets are priced from $18 to $34 and are now on sale through the Guthrie Box Office at 612-377-2224 or online at guthrietheater.org. Lewis’s story is at the heart of Emigrant Theater’s production of Blue Door. Continue Reading

Karen New Year in Minnesota

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Minnesota’s newest arrivals, the Karen refugees from Myanmar in Southeast Asia, also known as Burma, celebrated the 2747 Karen New Year on Sunday, January 13 in the Great Hall of Arlington Senior High School in St. Paul. Rev. William Englund of First Baptist Church in St. Paul welcomed the large gathering of Karen families and their Minnesotan friends and supporters. To the Karens, he said, “At first you are our guests. Continue Reading

Addressing slavery through drama and dialogue

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In honor of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his struggle for racial justice, the first act of the play Tap the Leopard will be performed as a reading at the Minneapolis Urban League on January 27. The captivating play depicts former slaves taking an emotional and physical journey between America and Africa. The theme of Africans’ journeys will continue after the play in a panel discussion featuring Rep. Keith Ellison and representatives from the Urban League and the Liberian community. The panel will discuss the issue of Liberians living in the United States under Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Tap the Leopard will be performed on Sunday, January 27 from 2:00 to 4:30 pm at the Minneapolis Urban League, 2100 Plymouth Avenue North. Continue Reading