March 8, 2004 - It used to be that all a student needed to do to make the football squad or debate team was to pass a tryout. These days, it also takes cold hard cash. Because of budget cuts at many Minnesota schools, a growing number are requiring fees for extracurricular activities. And it's more than a few bucks. In the Anoka-Hennepin school district, for instance, hitting the gridiron runs $290, joining the debate team $230, and playing basketball a hefty $332. Anoka Hennepin found in a recent survey that the high price tags were actually driving students away.
March 16, 2004 - Governor Pawlenty's task force on education finance reform wants to give local school officials more discretion over how to spend state aid, as long as their students are succeeding in the classroom. Panel members are recommending the state provide block grants to school districts that would come with fewer strings attached than the current system. The task force held its final meeting Monday, completing a proposal that's been seven months in the making. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports...
March 23, 2004 - The University of Minnesota women's basketball team faces Kansas State tonight for the chance to go to the NCAA's Sweet Sixteen next weekend. Win or lose, it will be the final Williams Arena appearance by the Gophers' seniors --- including All-American guard Lindsay Whalen of Hutchinson. Whalen has been the glue that held her team together under three coaches in four years. With her teammates, including senior Kadidja was there on Sunday. He says the performance was remarkable.
April 1, 2004 - MPR’s Elizabeth Stawicki reports that members of minority bar associations, area law schools, and law firms will launch a website to dispel some of the myths about Minnesota that they say discourage people of color from moving here. The site will feature profiles of noted legal professionals of color and offer information about such things as where to live and shop.
May 1, 2004 - American RadioWorks presents “Thurgood Marshall Before the Court,” a documentary on the story of Thurgood Marshall's remarkable career before he joined the Supreme Court, when he was the nation's leading civil rights lawyer.
June 15, 2004 - As part of the Mainstreet Radio series “Meth in Minnesota,” MPR’s Gunderson reports on meth use by students of Minnesota’s schools.
June 25, 2004 - MPR’s Toni Randolph reports that the Hmong refugees who arrived in the Twin Cities earlier in week have begun enrolling their children in school. Seven children were among the 11 refugees who arrived on Monday. Their father brought two of them to the student placement center for the St. Paul public schools to begin the process.
August 20, 2004 - Minnesota is losing one of its lifelong public servants to the sandy beaches and highly selective public universities of Southern California. Sandra Gardebring has chaired the Metropolitan Council, headed up the Department of Human Services, served as commissioner of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, sat on the state Supreme Court and currently holds the post of vice president for university relations at the U of M. She has announced that she's leaving Minnesota's flagship university to take a similar position at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. She talks about her decision and her long and varied career in public service.
August 26, 2004 - Mainstreet Radio’s Bob Reha reports that while schools aren't open yet, report cards are being released nonetheless. The reports won't go to students, but to their schools.
September 7, 2004 -