August 30, 2012 - The Daily Circuit’s Tom Weber visits a Erin Daninger, a former Princess Kay of the Milky Way finalist, to find out what happens to a 90 lb butter head sculpture after the Minnesota State Fair ends. Weber finds himself being taken behind a famm shed, where Daninger’s butter head sits in a chest freezer…next to pulled pork. Weber checks in on other ‘heads’ as well.
May 18, 2012 - Is life better for an African American artist today living in the Twin Cities than it was twenty or thirty years ago?
February 14, 2012 - MPR’s Tom Weber reports that by a 5-1 margin, the Anoka-Hennepin school board voted to revoke its so-called 'neutrality policy,' which required teachers to remain neutral when issues of sexual orientation come up in the classroom.
August 23, 2011 - MPR’s Tom Weber reports that two lawsuits over the treatment of gay students in the Anoka-Hennepin School District offer something old and something new for legal observers.
November 26, 2010 - A Midday re-broadcast of "The Big Time: F. Scott Fitzgerald," a staged storytelling of F. Scott Fitzgerald's vision of making it big. The original MPR-commissioned production of words and music was written by Patricia Hampl, with music direction by Dan Chouinard, and features singer Blake Hazard, who is Fitzgerald's great-granddaughter.
September 23, 2010 - MPR’s Tom Weber reports that after recent student suicides, there are efforts to change Anoka-Hennepin School District's sexual orientation curriculum policy. The policy states that sexual orientation topics aren't part of the curriculum, and it instructs teachers to remain neutral if the subject comes up in class.
March 26, 2010 - On this Midday program, a collection of reports in which MPR News explores how changing our food culture could help cure obesity.
November 25, 2009 - A charter school in St. Paul plans to close next month because of financial problems. 'Skills for Tomorrow' school has continually lost enrollment in recent years, which has only hurt finances, but officials say the governor's shifts in education funding this summer also contributed. While "Skills" is the first school to announce its closure since the shifts, advocates for charter schools worry it won't be the last. Tom Weber reports.
March 9, 2009 - Some of the state's best high school poets competed for the state championship, with eighteen students from across the state took part in the 'Poetry Out Loud' contest. They were judged by a panel on seven criteria, including physical presence and level of difficulty. The champion, Thandisizwe Jackson-Nisan, was named after three rounds of poems.
September 23, 2008 - Governor Tim Pawlenty traveled the state today (tues) to discuss education initiatives he'd like to see pass during next year's Legislative session. Most of the proposals are aimed at getting a force of even-better qualified teachers in classrooms. Some of the ideas are familiar because Pawlenty has pursed them before. Critics say the proposals are small potatoes that don't address what really needs to be addressed: Funding. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Weber reports.