Kare11
New legislation would give students 15 minutes to eat lunch
“Their kids are just not having enough time to eat lunch,” Jordan said.
ST PAUL, Minn. — How long did you get to eat in the cafeteria when you were in school? 20 minutes? 30 minutes?
House File 3556 would require districts participating in a national meal program to give students 15 minutes minimum from when they sit down to eat a school lunch, if approved.
“By putting it into law, I think it makes a stronger statement and makes it so that students have the right to those, at least, 15 minutes,” DFL State Representative Sydney Jordan, District 60A, said.
This comes after Jordan says many parents and students reached out, saying they weren’t getting at least 15 minutes.
“And I’ve heard from many students and their parents that while, yes, they appreciate the school meals, that their kids are just not having enough time to eat lunch,” she said.
Jordan declined to say what schools this was allegedly happening in, but did say they were both in the metro and rural communities.
Jordan emphasized – this is the floor, and this legislation could be tweaked to include longer times for lunch. Some schools, like Randolph Heights Elementary School in St. Paul, exceeds that minimum, giving students 30 minutes.
“We stagger every five minutes, just because of what we can fit in the cafeteria,” Principal Tim Williams said.
Williams knows how complicated lunchtime can be, with tables of kids running in every day. He says even 15 minutes may not be enough.
“Kind of take a deep breath and get their food in and their socialization in is really important,” he said. “So, I guess my personal opinion is 15 would be pretty short.”
Jordan says she expects this legislation to be wrapped up in a larger omnibus bill. In the House Education Policy Committee, that bill was laid over Wednesday afternoon, meaning it could be discussed again, or later wrapped into another piece of legislation.
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist:
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11’s newscasts. You’ll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
The Ground Delay went into effect shortly before 7:30 a.m. The FAA says departures to MSP from across the U.S. are being delayed 62 minutes.
MINNEAPOLIS — Federal aviation officials have issued a Ground Delay for Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) International Airport due to accumulating snow and ice.
The Ground Delay means departures to MSP from across the U.S. are being delayed an average of 62 minutes as runway crews deal with accumulating snow and ice from the winter storm system sweeping across parts of Minnesota.
The delay is in effect from 7:21-9:59 a.m. Central Standard Time, according to the FAA website. De-icing operations began at MSP at 5:30 a.m.
Those who were planning on picking up travelers from the airport are advised to contact those individual carriers or check out the arrivals and departures section on the MSP website.
KARE 11 is following this situation and will have the latest information as the morning unfolds.
Robbinsdale Police Captain John Elder says while the victims were located in his city, the actual shooting took place late Wednesday in Minneapolis.
ROBBINSDALE, Minn. — Investigators are looking into a shooting that took place late Wednesday involving two communities.
Robbinsdale Police Captain John Elder told KARE 11 that squads responded to a 911 call just after 10:30 p.m. reporting that two people near the intersection of 35th and Beard avenues north had been shot.
Officers arrived and found two men suffering from gunshot wounds. First responders immediately provided lifesaving aid, including putting tourniquets on both victims. They were rushed to North Memorial Medical Center, where one man is considered in critical condition.
Investigators soon learned that while the victims were found and treated in Robbinsdale, the actual shooting took place across the border in Minneapolis. Elder said the two departments will be cooperating to investigate the shooting and locate suspects.
At this time no one is in custody.
Toledo’s mayor and city councilors met Wednesday to discuss the letters after receiving them in the mail. Lincoln County leaders also received copies.
TOLEDO, Oregon — The city council for the small Oregon coast city of Toledo planned to meet Wednesday to discuss a racist letter sent to several city leaders.
Toledo has a population just under 4,000 residents and is located outside of Newport. It’s led by a guy who knows just about everyone — or so he thought.
Last week, Toledo Mayor Rod Cross got a shock in his mailbox at home, with a letter entitled “The Brown Round Up, Part One.”
“If you see a bunch of brown folks getting in a car, write down the plate number,” it read, in part. “… Starting the last part of January 2025, this nation will commence the largest roundup of brown illegals in our history.”
It continues on, explaining how to “help” that effort. “For example, parking in a church parking lot and taking down license plates and car makes and models of folks that are brown (as well as at) schools as you wait in line to pick up the kiddos or the grandkids. If you see brown folks, record the plate number.”
Cross said the letter was sent to his home and the homes of other members of the Toledo City Council.
“I’m a proud American veteran. And this country does not stand for that,” he said.
With a sigh, Cross recalled, “I’m like, ‘Is this a joke going on?'”
Though the letter had a Portland post office stamp, the P.O. box on the return address is fake.
It showed up in the mailbox of Lincoln City Mayor Susan Wahlke, who said it’s been turned over to Lincoln City police.
“I want people to know that Lincoln City is an inclusive and welcoming community,” she told KGW.
Lincoln County said, “Our commission and our office are disgusted by and reject this call for wholesale racial targeting.”
“I think small towns were targeted. I think the targeted places that they thought there might be a receptive audience,” Cross said. “I also think that they targeted small towns because of, to be honest, our lack of resources to investigate this.”
Cross added that the whole thing came as a surprise: “In Lincoln County, I don’t think I’ve ever had a conversation about illegal immigration, and I’ve lived in Lincoln County for 28 years. So, this was this was striking to me because I don’t hear anything about this from even our constituents.”
But the letters come as President-elect Donald Trump promises “the largest mass deportation program in history” when he takes office for his second term in January, while his incoming border czar, Tom Homan, is already making plans to mobilize federal agents.
However, Oregon and Washington are sanctuary states; state law prevents local jails from working with federal immigration enforcement.
Cross said he understands how broken the U.S. immigration system is, but he said if someone has a concern, he wants to hear from them.
“Our residents, my number one goal is to keep them safe,” he said.
Wisconsin school shooter had 2 guns and got messages from man accused of plotting his own attack
Georgia appeals removes Fani Willis from Trump 2020 election case
Man accused in UnitedHealthcare CEO killing expected to appear at hearing on extradition to New York
Wisconsin school shooter had 2 guns and got messages from man accused of plotting his own attack
Georgia appeals removes Fani Willis from Trump 2020 election case