From the Golden Leaf to The Abiders

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On sun-washed, Saturday May 9, the good people of Minneapolis are discovering the emerging greens and gentle breezes of spring and the soft serves at Dairy Queen. Through late afternoon, scents of lilac and freshly mowed lawn and bird song greet folks out for a neighborhood walk or a spin around their chain of lakes. I, however, am hanging out in The Golden Leaf, a tobacco and cigar sampling store on Lake Street near Bryant Avenue. I’m perched on a bar stool near a large, walk-in humidor and have a decent view of the Twins/Indians game on a flat screen TV. A helpful attendant has selected a handmade Dominican cigar for me. Continue Reading

Celebrating 40 years of Southeast Asian Minnesotans

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On July 30th, the Washington D.C.-based Southeast Asian Resource Action Center will convene a special community reception at the McNamara Alumni Center at the University of Minnesota. Part of the national 40 and Forward campaign, the reception will take place from 5:30-8:00 PM and will reflect on forty years of the Southeast Asian American journey. For Minnesotans, this is a year that has led to significant soul searching as they consider the next directions to take. For the Lao community, for example, there are nearly enough Lao to form a city the size of Crystal, but only a handful of organizations in Minnesota who can meet the needs of the most vulnerable members of their community. As dialogues continue on issues of health care reform, immigration reform, and education reform, it is a time to consider where the Lao voice will fit in, especially as the 2016 election season approaches. Continue Reading

Southwest LRT: The New/Old Plan

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Southwest LRT proponents are meeting to reduce a $341 million “funding gap” to curb the $2 billion estimated cost of the most expensive public works project ever proposed in Minnesota. The rush is on. Deadline for completing a money package for federal congressional approval for this cycle of funding is August 3. NO NEW CONSENT PROCESS FOR MINNEAPOLIS: The old plan is the new plan minus one suburban station, deferring another and slashing frills like landscaping, public art and reducing suburban park-and-rides. To avoid triggering another contentious consent process in Minneapolis the under-populated stations at 21st Street and Penn Avenue must remain. Continue Reading

Why is FLOW Northside Arts Crawl Important?

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In anticipation of the 10th Anniversary FLOW Northside Arts Crawl, FLOW’s artist liaison, Farrington Llewellyn asked three North Minneapolis artists, Why is FLOW important to you? Kenna Camara Cottman: Why FLOW Is Important from North MPLS. Watch Kenna also speak about FLOW 2015. Ms. Naima: Keep Flowing from North MPLS. Elder Naima Richmond, poet, storyteller, author, has more to say about FLOW. Continue Reading

Of Voice and Vermin: Talking with Writer Tim Wick

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One of the things that has always impressed me about Minnesota is its vibrant literary community and its ability to make space for so many unique and distinctive voices. One of my favorites is writer Tim Wick, who is the artistic director of Fearless Comedy Productions. Over the years, Tim has produced several successful shows at the Minnesota Fringe festival including “The Complete Works of William Shatner (abridged)” and “Story Time Time Bomb.” He has written comedy sketches for CONvergence and is a podcaster and blogger. You can find many examples of his writing at petsnakereggie.com. One thing that I particularly respect about Tim’s work is his philosophy of theater production. “You shouldn’t be producing theatre if you are afraid to take risks,” he says. “By taking risks, we grow as artists. Continue Reading

Community network in Phillips advances practices in youth literacy

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In the past two years, youth educators, after-school mentors, youth literacy specialists and librarians have teamed up across Phillips to share tested best practices, years of research, resources, opportunities and more, with a vision to enhance out-of-school-time literacy programming through grassroots connection. As the facilitator of the emerging group, I have witnessed as the partnership, called the Phillips Literacy Network (PLN), has developed through more than ten gatherings of the eleven participating organizations. In addition to the inherent value of growing community connection, PLN has also contributed to capacity development across the unique programs of its active members. Librarians at Franklin Library extended the reach of the opportunities they offer by sharing informational materials at meetings and strategically identifying alignment with the schedules of after-schools in Phillips, whose youth will now be exposed to the enriching activities of the Teen Tech Lab, Franklin’s 4H club, and their Young Achievers program. A youth literacy specialist at the U of M shared her years of expertise on effective literacy practices, versed literacy coordinators at different after-schools on the five components of literacy, and provided the group with classroom-ready, easy-to-implement comprehension activities. Continue Reading

Students and educators work together for progress at the Capitol

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Dual credit was a popular education topic in this year’s session, for both K12 and higher education. Encouraged by both educators and students, such as Chala Tafesa, the Minnesota Legislature made significant positive changes to dual credit. Dual credit refers to programs where high school students can take college-level courses for free, earning credit for both high school and college. It is a great way to help students be motivated to finish high school, be better prepared for postsecondary, and to save precious tuition dollars and time. More info on dual credit and research available here. Continue Reading

EPA community air monitoring leaves Twin Cities gasping for breath

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Webinar: Thursday 9 July 2015, 09:00 AM – 12:30 PM [Note: 8 Central Time!]

Notes:

Thanks to Jim Gurley of Winona, MN, for the heads-up on this. The MPCA is predicting CODE YELLOW bad air in the Cities and Rochester for Wednesday, July 8, 2015, through Sunday. The MPCA has been rather unresponsive to communications during the last few days. Perhaps officials are gasping for breath? I can’t predict the quality of the information that will be offered in this webinar, but it might be helpful to people concerned about health threats from air pollution in their communities. Continue Reading

François Rabbath: A musician, a teacher, a gentleman with a double bass

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The Benson Great Hall at the Bethel University was decked out with 11 upright basses and one piano on Tuesday night. Only ten of the basses were not actually upright but resting on their sides for most of the concert. It set a stage for double bass virtuoso François Rabbath and his son-accompanist Sylvain Rabbath on piano. The music was amazing, but even more amazing was the demonstration of admiration and love from father and son, for each other, for the music, and for the experience. They played as if they were chasing each other around a music sheet. Continue Reading