April 28, 1998 - As part of MPR's month-long series of programs and reports on "Religion in Everyday Life,” this program presents various reports, interviews and commentaries compiled from the series, and looks at the contemporary impact and influence of religion in America.
April 23, 1998 - University of Minnesota President Mark Yudoff says a national report critical of U.S. research universities does not accuratley reflect what's happening on many campuses. The independent report released this week suggests most big universities shortchange their undergraduates in favor of faculty research. Yudoff agrees such problems existed, but he says the U of M and other universities have seen the light. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... The University of Minnesota is one of 125 research universities in the United States. While the institutions make up just three percent of the nation's campuses, they award about a third of the bachelor's degrees. But a commission created by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancemen
April 22, 1998 - (Wed. 4/22 M.E.) Faculty at Minnesota's seven state university campuses will vote Monday on whether to strike. Union leaders say the action is unprecedented. They say they've grown increasingly frustrated over stalled contract talks with no settlement in sight. Officials with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system are trying to lure the faculty union back into negotitions with a new contract offer. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... The Inter Faculty Organization, or I-F-O, represents 32-hundred faculty members at the seven state universities. Union negotiators have been trying to reach a contract settlement with the Minnesota State Col
April 17, 1998 - Anyway you measure it, too many African American students are failing in Minneapolis and Saint Paul public schools. Results of last year's eighth grade basic skills tests put the problem in sharp focus, and raised the pressure on school leaders to improve scores. There are a few urban schools where African American students are not only passing, but excelling in rigorous academic programs. Educators from throughout the region will gather this weekend at Augsburg College in Minnespolis to learn more about those success stories. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... --------------------------------------------------------- | D-CART ITEM: 3923 | TIME: (4:29) | OUTCUE: s.o.c. --------------------------------------------------------- 3806 (Sound of classroom)
April 13, 1998 - It will be another week before students at Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter return to classes on their tornado-ravaged campus. Officials had hoped to reopen the college today, but delays in debris cleanup and restoring power pushed that back a week. The small Lutheran college faces a long and expensive rebuilding process. But the money's pouring in and administrators are confident they'll emerge from the debris even better than before. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... (Sound of bobcat) In a parking lot at Gustavus Adolphus College, workers take a break from hauling debris to unload a semi-trailer full of donated trees. The tornado stripped the campus almost bare of its large mature trees. Campus Gardener Bil
April 10, 1998 - It's been a quiet week for weather in Saint Peter as residents continue to clean up tornado debris and rebuild their flattened community. But spring in Minnesota means storm season...and that could be a frightening experience, especially for children who recently lived through a tornado. Saint Peter schools are trying to plan for the next severe weather and how to keep kids from panicking. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... (Sound of kids running and screaming) In the gymnasium at South Elementary School in Saint Peter, kindergarten students chase each other in a wild game of tag. Teachers and counselors at the school are hoping to avoid chaos in the classrooms the next time the
April 10, 1998 - Traditional mainline churches have lost a quarter of their members in the last 25 years -- in part, due to the defection of baby boomers, a generation dissatified with organized religion. But for the first time in decades, officials with the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis say enrollment in Catholic schools is on the rise. All this month, in a series of reports and commentaries, Minnesota Public Radio will explore relgious issues in everyday life. Today, in the second report in our series, Tim Pugmire reports in the Twin Cities, a new Catholic high school and two elementary schools are planned in fast-growing suburban communities. But enrollment is also booming for a few inner-city parochial schools.
April 8, 1998 - Elementary grade students are back in school this week in Saint Peter. That's a small but important step on a long road to recovery for the tornado damaged school district. Middle school and high school students go back to classes next week, sharing the elementary buildings for the rest of the school year. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... (Sound of classroom chatter) At North Intermediate School in Saint Peter, sixth grade students are dissecting matter regurgitated by owls, looking for the small skeletons of rodents. The class is studying predators and scavangers in the animal world. The unsavory aspects of picking through the remains of an owl's meal is lost on these children, who've spent the past week picking through their scatt
March 31, 1998 - (For Monday 3/30 M.E.) Saint Paul school district officials turn to the public this week for help in their search for a new superintendent. An advisory committee will host three meetings to give district residents and employees a chance to share their opinions about the district's future leader. Superintendent Curman Gaines announced in January his plans to step down June 30 after eight years on the job. School board members want his successor in place by fall, but they have a lot of work left to find the right candidate. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... Compared to last year's superintendent search in Minneapolis, the Saint Paul school board is moving at a snail's pace. The Minneapolis
March 16, 1998 - When an explorer sets off on a new adventure these days, it's a sure bet students are going along too, albeit from their classrooms via the internet. Computer technology allows today's adventurers to instantly share photographs and written accounts of their discoveries. Most schools with computer-savvy, creative teachers have tapped into some form of adventure learning. They say it a great way to motivate students. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports.