Local group gives immigrant girls tools to apply to and finance college

By |

Before Bee Vang moved to Minnesota in fall 2006 from a village in Laos, she was told her straight dark hair would get her into trouble.”They said girls coming to America had to have curly hair like American people or they would hit you with a car,” said the Como Park High School senior.That hair story wasn’t the only tall tale Vang heard before immigrating to the United States. Once she began her life here, she learned quickly that Americans don’t feed each other to wild reptiles, everyone isn’t rich and everything is not always beautiful and nice, she said.One thing Vang had counted on is true: She could get an education here.And when she graduates this spring from Como Park High School, Vang plans to continue that education at one of the six colleges she has applied to, thanks in part to the help she received through Girls Getting Ahead in Leadership (GGAL), one of several programs offered by the Women’s Initiative for Self-Empowerment (WISE).WISE is a nonprofit organization founded in 1995 to help Asian, African and Latino immigrant women and girls succeed in this country. GGAL’s goal is to teach low-income immigrant high school girls what they need to know to get into college and how to finance it.The group holds Saturday-afternoon workshops for 11th- and 12th-grade girls throughout the school year at its University Avenue offices. There are 25 students enrolled in the program this year and 15 mentors. Most of the girls come from high schools in the St. Continue Reading

St. Paul schools’ new plan would move 6th-graders to middle school and limit citywide busing

By |

Are sixth-graders ready for middle school?

The jury’s out among parents at St. Anthony Park Elementary School, according to Principal Ann Johnson. Families at the school have given a mixed response to the St. Paul Public Schools’ proposal to move sixth-graders out of elementary school and into middle school programs in the district.

Continue Reading

Cafe’s menu sometimes depends on what the farmer digs up

By |

It’s a Friday morning in early November and “Farmer” Bob Schuett has just shown up at the backdoor of Muffuletta, 2260 Como Ave. W., with a produce delivery that includes Swiss chard, Honeycrisp apples, butternut squash, Brussels sprouts and (believe it or not) tomatoes. These are the makings of what chef Jason Schellin calls his brown-bag special. Throughout the week, Schellin takes what farmers bring to his restaurant and brainstorms each night’s menu. This night, the special will be pan-roasted Hawaiian blue marlin with roasted Brussels sprouts and butternut squash. Continue Reading

Black Bear Crossings provides more than just a free Thanksgiving meal

By |

The shopping list for Pam Glass’s Thanksgiving Day meal includes four 25-pound turkeys, 75 pounds of potatoes, 10 pounds of cranberries and enough pumpkin to fill at least 20 pies.She’s never quite sure how many people she’s feeding until they show up at her door.This is the fourth year that Pam and her husband, David Glass, have offered a free Thanksgiving dinner to anyone who comes to their restaurant, Black Bear Crossings on the Lake at Como Lakeside Pavilion in Como Regional Park. So far, they’ve not run out of food.They served 40 to 50 people their first year, Glass said. Last year, 120 people came to the restaurant for a traditional meal. She has between 10 and 15 volunteers each year and often has to turn down people who would like to help.Both Pam and David are volunteers at heart, she said. They spent a number of holidays volunteering when they were dating. Continue Reading

St. Paul’s Alternative Learning Centers enroll students from kindergarten to graduation

By |

On June 10, almost 200 St. Paul Public Schools students were handed their diplomas through the district’s Alternative Learning Center program. The next day, SPPS mailed out more than 19,300 letters to students in grades K-12 who were targeted as needing remedial help in summer school, which begins June 28. 
Both actions are the work of the ALC, a K-12 program designed to help students succeed in school and earn their high school diplomas. ALC programs begin in elementary school, where students who are academically behind their peers are offered help after school twice a week at more than 50 sites in the district. The middle and high school ALC programs include extended day and evening programs, along with four alternative high schools: Gordon Parks, AGAPE (Adolescent Girls and Parenting Education), Creative Arts and LEAP (Limited English Achievement Program). Continue Reading

Creating the Maxfield-Jackson Children’s Zone in St. Paul

By |

“Opportunity” is a word Nancy Stachel repeats often when talking about her assignment as principal at Maxfield Magnet School in St. Paul.  Stachel’s first day on the job was January 18, two months after principal Belinda Green was placed on administrative leave. Stachel had been chief of schools for St. Paul Public Schools and was a semi-finalist for the superintendent position last fall. Her position was one of three executive posts cut by new Superintendent Valeria Silva in January in an effort to address a $28 million deficit.She admits she didn’t choose her new position, but she’s optimistic: “I’m excited. Continue Reading