January 26, 2005 - Governor Tim Pawlenty's budget recommendations for the state's public colleges and universities are getting a mixed reaction from the state's higher education community. The University of Minnesota says it got what it wanted, mostly. But officials and students with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system say the governor is under-funding the system and short-changing the daily needs of students. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.
January 19, 2005 - Officials and students with the state's public colleges and universities are criticizing Governor Tim Pawlenty's proposal to change the way Minnesota funds higher education. In his state of the state speech yesterday Helms reports.
December 9, 2004 - A commissioner from the Federal Communications Commission is in the Twin Cities today
November 30, 2004 - Mexico plans to open up a consulate in St. Paul sometime early next year. City, state and Mexican officials made the announcement today.
November 25, 2004 - The shooting deaths of six hunters in northwestern Wisconsin has prompted a complex set of reactions - perhaps nowhere more than in the Twin Cities Hmong community. The alleged shooter, Chai Vang, is a Hmong immigrant who lives in St. Paul. When the first reports of the incident came out, local Hmong leaders cautioned against making Vang's ethnicity an issue.
November 23, 2004 - MPR’s Marisa Helms reports that Chai Vang remains a bit of a mystery to many in the Hmong community…and even to his neighbors. They say they've never met Vang, and rarely even spoke to him or saw him. Some wonder if the shootings could have been prevented if they had reached out more to Vang and his family.
November 9, 2004 - A Minnesota Citizens League report on higher education released today says the state is ill-prepared to handle the changing and expanding demographics of low income, immigrant and minority students. The report urges state leaders to make short and long term reforms to ensure Minnesota maintains its high quality of life by investing in a highly educated workforce.
September 28, 2004 - Students from around the world are finding it increasingly difficult to study in the United States. Colleges and universities in Minnesota, and throughout the country, have reported a slowdown in foreign student applications. Higher education officials say new anti-terror laws have made it much harder to get a student visa. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.
May 4, 2004 - St. Paul residents got a chance to interview the city's five candidates for police chief last night Helms reports.
April 29, 2004 - MPR’s Marisa Helms reports on Ramsey County and St. Paul city officials beginning an education campaign they hope will prepare residents to welcome the newest Minnesotans…1000 to 5000 Hmong refugees that will resettle in the county in the next few months.