[Minnesota Rising Dispatch] February 2014

[#mnrising Dispatch] February 2014 Today is the official end of meteorological winter, but even for the heartiest of Minnesotans, it's hard after a winter like this one (read: if not freezing, it was snowing) to believe that the end is in sight. To ensure we're offering options for energizing evenings in the great indoors, Minnesota Rising invites you to two events in March: The first of 6 monthly Sounding Board sessions as we invite your input on our core purpose and communications; and the "Minnesota Rising Story Lab: Our Story, Our Future" in partnership with Torch Community. Find more details below and consider joining us in these exciting conversations as we wait for the thaw!  Minnesota Rising Sounding Board Session Monday, March 3, 2014 6:00pm - 8:00pm Grassroots Solutions RSVPs appreciated to minnesotarising[at]gmail.com Minnesota Rising Story Lab: Our Story, Our Future Torch Community   In the face of partisan politics and technological divides, Torch Community and Minnesota Rising invite you to engage our individual stories toward cultivating a shared sense of identity, commonly-held values, and a collective narrative. In this interactive Story Lab, Minnesota Rising aims to emphasize the importance of welcoming a multitude of perspectives; provide emerging leaders with the opportunity to practice deep listening and storytelling with one another; and to reveal a larger future-focused narrative for Minnesota while sharing methods for how emerging leaders can write their own roles into the story of our state! Join us on Tuesday, March 11, 2014 from 5:30pm - 8:30pm at Open Book in the Target Performance Hall. [Read more.]   Accepting Applications: Community Innovation Grants Bush Foundation   The Bush Foundation is once again accepting applications for Community Innovation Grants. Last year, they provided more than $4 million to support 34 organizations working to create or implement a breakthrough in addressing a community need across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geography. Nonprofit organizations and government entities of all sizes are eligible to apply for Community Innovation Grants ranging from $10,000 up to $200,000. The grants support communities to use problem-solving processes that lead to more effective, equitable and sustainable solutions. We think of this as civic R&D, allowing communities to develop and test new solutions to community challenges. Applications will be accepted through March 13, 2014. [Read more.]   MPLS Shapers Applications Open! Minneapolis Hub of the Global Shapers Community Are you passionate about social change and interested in joining the Global Shapers Community? Applications for the Minneapolis Hub can be accessed here and are being accepted through March 7, 2014. We're looking for more passionate people to join us: young leaders who are ready to challenge themselves and commit to taking action locally on global issues by dedicating 15 hours per month to Hub projects. We want to expand and strenthen our Hub's capacity as we grow as a team. We seek to diversify our group with new members that offer a variety of backgrounds, identities, and areas of expertise. The Twin Cities has a wealth of creative energy; we're on the hunt for the young energizers who are ready to start solving our community's greatest challenges. [Read more.] Adding some fun to the after-school routine Chad Kampe, YEP-TC Extra Credit Blog   Have you heard of the 6,000 hour learning gap? By the time a student that was born into poverty is in sixth grade, he or she is likely behind their peers by 6,000 hours in enrichment time. This includes tutoring, extra-curriculars, pre-school summer learning and field trips. That is a lot of critical time that has been lost. Students come to Rock Star Supply Co. for free homework help, one-on-one tutoring or creative writing workshops. Each day, 15-20 students come to the Rock Star Supply Co. Homework Headquarters for direct service. "Whoa!" is often the response we get when students first enter our space. Our Homework Headquarters is the furthest thing from a typical tutoring room or school setting. [Read more.] Friend on Facebook Follow on Twitter Forward to a Friend News from the Network Updates and events with our esteemed network partners and collaborators! relaunch party bfresh productions Saturday, March 1, 2014 7:00pm Public Functionary "Meet the Shapers" Social Hour Minneapolis Hub of Global Shapers Community Tuesday, March 4, 2014 6:30pm - 8:00pm Republic 7 Corners March Networking & Happy Hour Minnesota Young Food Professionals March 5, 2014 8:00pm Red Stag Supperclub Financing Great Places ULI Minnesota Young Leaders Group Thursday, March 6, 2014 4:30pm - 7:30pm Minneapolis Central Library, Pohlad Hall Leading from the Emerging Future Community Conversation Saturday, March 8, 2014 3:00pm - 5:00pm Roseville Library PhilanthroFair The LEAD Project Wednesday, March 12, 2014 5:00pm - 7:00pm Kieran's - The Titanic Room btb #9: Love It or Hate It Break the Bubble Friday, March 14, 2014 7:00pm - 10:00pm Honey Mpls   Making Our #MNRising Mark! Don't forget to tag your upcoming emerging leader events, thoughts, musings, and more,#mnrising, on Twitter and Facebook. Let's aggregate and organize ourselves for increased interaction and potential for collaboration!  Copyright © 2014 Minnesota Rising, All rights reserved.