Star Tribune
Richfield Public Schools caps open enrollment for the first time
Like other district programs, the Spanish dual-language program draws most of its open-enrollment students from either Bloomington or Minneapolis. Bloomington Public Schools does not have a dual-language program.
In a statement, Bloomington Public Schools said that the district gains more students than it loses from open enrollment. The district cited its popular gifted-and-talented and computer science immersion programs as major draws for students, as well as a K-12 online school that attracts students throughout the state. “Our two high schools are currently closed to open enrollment because they’re at capacity,” the district said.
Minneapolis Public Schools has three elementary schools with a focus on Spanish dual-language immersion, as well as middle school and high school programs. But Minneapolis’ programs often have a waitlist. As of mid-October, nearly 300 students are waitlisted for Minneapolis elementary dual-language programs, and 178 of those students do not currently attend Minneapolis Public Schools, according to data provided to task force members.
Enrollment difficulties in such a popular program have been a source of frustration in Minneapolis, as the district faces a budget crunch driven in part by decreased enrollment. The school board recently appointed a task force to address this issue as part of the district’s “transformation” process. Many candidates for Minneapolis school board this year also told Sahan Journal that expanding the Spanish dual-language program was a priority for them.
The task force will present recommendations in December.
Matthew Arnold, the new principal at Richfield Dual Language School, previously worked for 10 years at Green Central Dual Language School in Minneapolis. He declined to comment on differences between the two districts but said that a sense of safety and community attracts families to Richfield Dual Language School.
The new center aims to connect the East Lake Street community with services related to housing, community safety and more.
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Mayor Jacob Frey says he plans to run for re-election next year.
“I’m preparing to do so (run) but not making any formal announcements yet,” Frey said in a text Monday.
Frey was elected mayor in 2017, defeating incumbent Betsy Hodges, after representing Ward 3 on the Minneapolis City Council from 2014 to 2018. His first term was rocked by the COVID-19 pandemic, George Floyd’s murder by police and subsequent unrest that destroyed city blocks and rippled across the globe.
While a majority of City Council members called for defunding the police, Frey resisted and instead promised reform, angering a crowd of protesters that marched to the door of his townhouse days after Floyd’s murder. Minneapolis residents sided with him when they rejected a 2021 ballot measure to replace the police department with a new Department of Public Safety, and re-elected Frey.
Police reforms continue to dominate his tenure, as state and federal officials are forcing the police department into court-sanctioned monitoring due to discriminatory policing. Meanwhile, the police department continues to hemorrhage officers: The department has about 578 sworn officers, down from nearly 900 in 2019, a 36% decrease.
The Rev. DeWayne Davis, lead minister of Plymouth Congregational Church, announced plans to run for mayor on Oct. 17. Before his ordination in 2012, he worked as a congressional staffer. He co-chaired Frey’s Minneapolis Community Safety Work Group that recommended public safety reforms.
Minneapolis Council Member Emily Koski said Monday she’s “strongly considering” running for mayor. She campaigned with Frey in 2021, when she was elected to represent Ward 11 in south Minneapolis, and was considered one of his top allies on the council. But she broke ranks with Frey on his $15 million plan to replenish MPD ranks; sided with the council’s progressive majority in overriding Frey’s veto of changes to rideshare regulations; and voted against Frey’s proposal to build a new Third Precinct police station downtown.
If Koski runs, she’d be following in her father’s footsteps: Albert Hofstede was a council member before being elected Minneapolis mayor in the 1970s.
A $5 billion facility to manufacture jet fuel for airplanes is coming to Moorhead.
DG Fuels, a Washington D.C.-based energy company, announced they’re putting a sustainable aviation fuel [SAF] plant in Clay County, bringing 650 jobs to northwestern Minnesota’s border with North Dakota.
The facility, which expects to start production in 2030, will convert agriculture and timber waste into jet fuel, according to a statement from Greater MSP, a Twin Cities-based regional development organization.
“We not only want to lead the world in de-carbonizing air travel” at Minnesota-St. Paul International Airport, said Peter Frosch, CEO of Greater MSP, in an interview, on Monday. “But we want to produce that SAF in Minnesota.”
The selection of Moorhead, Frosch continued, was evidence of the concerted push from the Minnesota SAF Hub — which includes, government, universities, nonprofits and companies, including Bank of America and Delta Air Lines — to ramp up production of SAF in Minnesota.
The project is also a win for Moorhead.
“With the largest shovel-ready industrial site in the state of Minnesota, we are excited and prepared to compete on the national stage for this economic development opportunity,” said Moorhead Mayor Shelly Carlson, in a statement.
While SAF can be produced from biomass streams, including corn stover, industry experts look to perennial crops, as well, such as camelina and other oilseeds as possible sources for feedstocks.
