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Education News and Notes
May 29, 2007
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Several MCF members participated in commencement exercises for local colleges and universities:
- St. Thomas alumnus Mary Brainerd, president and CEO of HealthPartners, addressed recipients of graduate degrees of the Opus College of Business.
- Anita M. Pampusch, president of the Bush Foundation, gave the commencement address at Mount Marty College in Yankton, S.D. Pampusch also received an honorary doctorate degree.
- Dr. Patty Petite was the featured speaker at commencement ceremonies for Lake Superior College. Petite is a past chair of the Northland Foundation and a current member of the Cloquet Education Foundation, and was awarded a Bush Foundation fellowship in 2004-05.
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Macy's and the Metropolitan Library
Service Agency will kick off summer reading programs with two unique
events: "Go Wild at Your Library" for teen readers on June 13 at the
Mall of America's rotunda, and "Go Bananas at Your Library" for
young readers on June 14 at the Como Zoo. Families can visit their
neighborhood libraries for summer-long events and exciting reading
incentives. The Star Tribune created an 8-page tab publication that
features a summer book list, a list of library and reading events,
and more. |
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A new fund has been established with the
Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation to recognize and reward
outstanding educators of ISD#709 - Duluth Public Schools. The
creators of the fund are Manley and Lillian Goldfine. A "Gold Star
Teacher Award" of $5,000 will be given each spring to a teacher
selected through a competitive application process. This first year,
an elementary teacher (pre-K - grade 5) will be chosen; next year,
the award will go to a middle or high school teacher. Awards will
alternate in this way until such time as the fund grows to support
annual awards for both groups. |
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Medtronic awarded a gift of $100,000 to
the Mounds View District for a series of enhancements to its K-12
science, technology, pre-engineering and math (STEM) program to
begin in 2006-07. The initiatives will support staff in providing
high-quality applied experiences for students in the areas of
science, technology, engineering and math. Across the country and
throughout Minnesota, an increasing number of schools are
implementing Project Lead the Way as a component of their STEM
curriculum. Their goal is to increase the number, quality and
diversity of students pursing careers as engineers. |
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One graduating Byron High School senior
who pursues a degree in agriculture or education will be the
beneficiary of a new $5,000 scholarship from the Rochester Area
Foundation's Walter and Pauline Castner Scholarship Fund each year.
The foundation also manages the Byron School District Fund for
Excellence, which was established in 1999 as an endowment for the
school district. |
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As part of an effort to support the next
generation of industry leaders, the CHS Foundation is supporting the
U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Outlook Forum Student
Diversity Program, which was created to provide students a unique
insight into their agricultural studies.
In addition, 50 agricultural students received scholarships from the
CHS Foundation's expanded Two-Year College Scholarship Program. Also
new this year, scholarship winners will have increased connections
to valuable opportunities such as internships, professional or
leadership development programs, career openings and international
experiences. |
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The Blandin Foundation celebrated 50 years of local scholarships with more than $1 million for financial aid, part of a total grant announcement of more than $3.4 million. Since 1956, the foundation has awarded $19.6 million for scholarships. "The foundation's dedication to higher education is part of our commitment to increasing educational opportunities for Itasca County residents, particularly those in lower-income categories," said Wade Fauth, the foundation's grants director. Other programs supported the foundation's economic opportunity grants program as well as social and cultural issues.
> Complete list of grants awarded (PDF)
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Best Buy awarded 1,742 scholarships to graduating high school
seniors across the United States, totaling more than $2.7 million.
Sixteen seniors will each receive a $10,000 scholarship, including
Evan Eliason of Concordia Academy, Roseville. The remaining students
will each receive $1,500 scholarships. |
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Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation president Tim Penny visited Head Start classes at the
Corcoran Center on the St. Edward's Catholic Church campus in west
Austin. The occasion was the distribution of summer reading kits,
containing books, writing tools and other items that children can
use over the summer months to practice their literacy skills with
their parents. Read more in the
Austin Daily Herald. |
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Ecolab raised $125,000 for the National
Restaurant Association Educational Foundation at its 2007 Chairman's
Reception and Silent Auction. Ecolab is a longtime supporter of the
NRAEF, contributing nearly $1 million over the past five years.
NRAEF provides high school seniors, college undergraduate students
and educators with scholarships to pursue an education related to
the restaurant and foodservice industry. The scholarships are
presented to select qualified applicants who have been accepted into
collegiate restaurant or foodservice management programs. |
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The Bush Foundation awarded a three-year, $996,645 grant to the
University of Minnesota's Writing Enriched Curriculum program. The
WEC program, a component of the Baccalaureate Writing Initiative,
seeks to improve the quality of student writing and writing
instruction on the Twin Cities campus to ensure that all university
undergraduate students will follow programs of study in which
writing instruction has been sequenced intentionally and integrated
effectively. When fully implemented, the program will ensure that
students in all academic units will follow first-year writing
courses with a series of well-sequenced and effectively taught
writing-enriched courses within their majors. |
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Students at four Minneapolis public
schools will have the opportunity to improve their academic
performance and college preparedness through an academic enrichment
program based on American history. Funded by a five-year, $975,000
grant from the Cargill Foundation, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of
American History program will leverage the appeal of American
history to help captivate, galvanize and reinforce student interest
in reading, writing, research, analysis, public speaking, and
advanced technology skills.
Cargill awarded 400 scholarships totaling $800,000 to high-school
seniors. 350 scholarships of $1,000 were awarded by National FFA to
students living near communities where Cargill operates; in
addition, a $200 grant to the library at each student's high school
is made in the recipient's honor. Also, 40 scholarships of $3,000
are awarded by Scholarship America to the children of Cargill
employees, and 10 scholarships of $1,000, renewable for up to four
years, are awarded by National Merit Scholarship Corporation to the
children of Cargill employees. In addition, Cargill donated $1.1
million to the Minnesota Private College Fund. |
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The Cooperative Foundation awarded
cooperative education-based grants to the North American Students of
Cooperation, Cooperative Development Foundation and Southern New
Hampshire University. NASCO will use $4,600 to expand the
organization's website content to include a resource library and
co-op directory for sharing information. CDF's grant sponsored an
online auction that featured the work of arts and crafts co-op
members. Southern New Hampshire's grant will support research on
worker cooperatives in the Midwest. |
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The W.K. Kellogg Foundation awarded the
Hawai'i P-20 Initiative $10 million to support the goal of having
every third grader in Hawai'i reading at grade level by 2015. Called
"Capturing the Momentum: The P-3 Initiative," the project will
provide coordinated efforts at community and state levels to support
the development of high-quality, culturally sensitive learning
environments in early childhood through grade 3 settings and
classrooms. |
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