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Thursday, July 31, 2014
[Minnesota Rising Dispatch] July 2014
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Accepting Applications: Ron McKinley Philanthropy Fellows
After a successful launch to the MCF Philanthropy Fellowship, the recently re-named program is currently accepting applications for Ron McKinley Philanthropy Fellows. Seeking to engage new ideas and perspectives to strengthen the field, the fellowship prepares applicants from underrepresented communities for careers in philanthropy. Learn more at an informational webinar later this week and consider applying before the August 27 deadline!
Learn About Becoming a Ron McKinley Philanthropy Fellow
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
You're Invited: Expo 2023 July Speaker Series Event
There's a hearty crew of Minnesotans working to make our state the host of the 2023 World's Fair! Join them at their July Speaker Series event to learn more about their efforts, their upcoming crowdfunding campaign, and how you can help bring the world to Minnesota in 2023!
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Expo 2023 | The Minnesota World's Fair · PO Box 8832 · St Paul, Mn 55102 · USA
Monday, July 28, 2014
Friday, July 25, 2014
You're Invited: Urban Oasis Food Fest
Next month, the Forever Saint Paul Challenge's winning idea will launch, and you're invited for a taste of the fun! Join your neighbors at the Urban Oasis Food Fest, a free community food festival. The event features a tomato-canning demonstration, sample treats from East Side food vendors, and delicious menu ideas!
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Thursday, July 24, 2014
You're Invited: Citizen League Emerging Civic Leaders Committee Meeting
Have you saved your seat on the bus yet? Less than one week remains to reserve your spot on the 2014 Generation Now Leadership Visit to Fargo, ND from September 10-12! Once you confirm your registration, be sure to put the upcoming Citizens League Emerging Civic Leaders Committee meeting on your calendar, too. More details on the exciting new initiative below!
| Emerging Civic Leaders Committee Meeting | |
This summer, the Board of Directors approved a charge for the Emerging Civic Leaders to function as an operating committee of the League.
Join us August 5th from 5:00-7:30 at the Wilder Foundation, Room 2410 (451 Lexington Pkwy N, St Paul) as we discuss our work for the rest of the year and listen to a presentation by General Mills' Good Works program, which kindly donated their services to us earlier in the year.
For more information and to RSVP, please contact Adam at aarling@citizensleague.org or 651-289-1073.
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Wednesday, July 23, 2014
[Recommended Reading] Joe Kahne: "Should Graduation Speakers Talk About Improving the World?"
A 2004 Citizen Scholar at the Institute for Civic Leadership (ICL) at Mills College, I have long been grateful for Joe Kahne's founding vision for the ICL and his continued national leadership in the realm of civic and community engagement. His blog post, "Should Graduation Speakers Talk About Improving the World?" during the height of graduation season last month considers the critical role of schools in involving young people in community service and civic engagement.
Joseph Kahne
Joseph Kahne Should Graduation Speakers Talk About Improving the World?
Posted: 06/17/2014 5:52 pm
It's high school graduation season. A time for speeches that remind youth to draw on their talents to make their communities and the world a better place. As an educator who focuses on ways to support youth civic engagement, I love those speeches. But, they do leave me wondering, if this is a goal we laud on graduation day, why aren't students asked to focus on this more during high school?
Schools and school districts aim to prepare students for college and for careers. Vitally important goals, but helping to make the world a better place is enormously important as well.
Of course, many teachers want their students to care about societal problems and to contribute to their communities. But teachers have to fit these concerns in. Attention to these priorities isn't required. The structure of the curriculum standards in California and of the state and federal assessments that students receive barely attend to civic life. One exception is that some districts have a community service or service-learning requirement of 25 hours or so. Youth spend roughly 4,000 hours in high school. Is mandating 25 hours spread across four years (one minute a day) really the best we can do?
Consider an alternative. In Oakland, supported by the Educating for Democracy in the Digital Age Initiative, the school district has expanded its focus from preparing all students to be "College and Career Ready" to preparing all students to be "College, Career, and Community Ready." Teachers are implementing innovative curriculum from grades 9-12 so that students will have the capacities and commitments they need to address community concerns. Students' research and action projects include environmental protection, access to healthy food, educational improvement and violence prevention. The capacities students develop include running workshops, blogging, speaking to legislators, producing a webinar and conducting policy analysis.
In addition, to honor student work this year, the district held its first "Community Ready" awards ceremony. Two students from each of Oakland's 12 high schools received awards from Oakland's mayor. One award recipient, 17-year-old Yasser Alwan of Oakland International High School, produced a video to support a group working to get his school a soccer field. He and his peers developed a website, spread the word through their online social networks and spoke to the media and at community meetings in an effort to mobilize support for this cause.
Acting with similar goals in mind, LA's County Office of Education has launched an effort to institutionalize civics in 12 high schools and a new initiative is being planned for Sacramento. Could this emphasis on learning about and responding to community needs become the norm, rather than the exception?
The California Task Force on K-12 Civic Learning thinks so. Established by California's Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye and State Supt. Tom Torlakson, the task force calls for ensuring that all students have opportunities to study issues, to evaluate different possible responses and to help make a difference. Yes, this means youth will need to discuss some controversial issues. The Task Force believes that it's key for teachers to help students learn to have such discussions in productive ways. The Task Force also is proposing to strengthen the State's history and social science 15-year-old standards. These standards predate Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and the Web 2.0 ecosystem that have literally transformed how civic and political life is practiced.
The benefits of adopting these recommendations would be substantial. Research demonstrates that when students have civic learning opportunities to research and discuss controversial issues, develop digital literacy skills, and engage in service-learning they become more interested in, capable of, and engaged in civic life. They also enhance their ability to undertake rigorous analysis and to produce compelling and informed perspectives -- crucial skills in the 21st century.
In short, policymakers, educators and the public must work to ensure that all youth receive these civic-learning opportunities. If we do, maybe in a few years, when graduation speakers exhort students to help improve both their communities and the broader world, the schools will have systematically prepared their students to do so.
Follow Joseph Kahne on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@jkahne
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
You're Invited: Breakfast with The Shannon Institute
The James P. Shannon Leadership Institute is a structured, challenging and supportive opportunity for personal and professional renewal for experienced leaders of philanthropic, civic and community service organizations. As the program itself seeks to be renewed through a strategic planning process, they invite your input and ideas on how it could better serve the needs of emerging leaders. See below for more details on the upcoming breakfast and brainstorming opportunity!
Start your day inspired!
Do you have a perspective on leadership, self-reflection and renewal, and what it takes to achieve authentic community change?
Enjoy starting your day with a good cup of coffee and some tasty eats?
Like gathering with other like-minded emerging leaders?
Yes? Then join us Thursday 7/24 from 8-9:30am to help create a stronger Shannon Leadership Institute!
We are currently undergoing a strategic planning process and we’re especially interested in hearing from younger leaders about how The Shannon could better serve you.
We’ll host the event and provide food and facilitation; you bring your insights and experiences. Share this invite with a friend!
The details:
Date: Thursday July 24, 2014
Time: 8:00 – 9:30 a.m.
Place: Wilder Center, Amherst H. Wilder Foundation
451 Lexington Parkway N.
Saint Paul, MN 55104
Monday, July 21, 2014
Friday, July 18, 2014
[Recommended Reading] IQ Magazine | Generation Next: The Millennials
I was pleased to be interviewed for the most recent issue of Initiative Quarterly for their "Generation Next: The Millennials" piece, and incredibly impressed by the Millennials represented in the article. Read on for more about who and how Millennials are making a difference in Greater Minnesota!
Franz Vancura: “I came to the conclusion that I’d have a better quality of life staying here.”
IQ Magazine
Generation Next: The Millennials
Franz Vancura always thought he’d
practice law in the Twin Cities. That certainly was the plan when a
Minneapolis law firm hired him in 2011. But when
his new employer encouraged the recent University of St. Thomas School
of Law graduate to take a year to clerk for a judge before jumping into
life as a corporate attorney, Vancura didn’t pursue any opportunities in
the metro area. “I applied to any judge north of Brainerd,” said the
New Ulm native.
Vancura’s interest in the region started
when he was young. His family owned property on Little Webb Lake in
Hackensack and he had happy memories of fishing and relaxing with
friends and relatives on the lake. “I had a real connection with the
geography and nature of the area,” he said. When he was hired by Judge
John P. Smith in Walker, Vancura packed up his Minneapolis condo and
moved to a cabin in the woods on Horseshoe Lake.
Most people with big-city ambitions would
find the off season at a resort community like Walker a little sleepy.
But Vancura thrived, especially after he bought an English Springer
Spaniel and spent his weekends walking through the woods hunting grouse
and pheasants. “It became harder and harder to justify leaving a place I
loved and a community I’d gotten involved in to go back to the Twin
Cities,” he said. “I just came to the conclusion that I’d be happier and
have a better quality of life staying up here.”
At 31, Vancura is at the old end of the
generation dubbed the Millennials. Born between 1981 and 2000, the group
gets its name from the fact that it’s the first generation to come of
age in the new millennium.
According to Minnesota Compass, there are 1.5 millennials living in the Land of 10,000 Lakes—200,000 in Central Minnesota. That’s compared to 1.3 million Baby Boomers—the demographic bulge of people born between 1946 and 1964. As the Boomers retire, these young people are crucial to our region’s future.
According to Minnesota Compass, there are 1.5 millennials living in the Land of 10,000 Lakes—200,000 in Central Minnesota. That’s compared to 1.3 million Baby Boomers—the demographic bulge of people born between 1946 and 1964. As the Boomers retire, these young people are crucial to our region’s future.
That’s what Vancura found when he did some research and
discovered that there was only one other attorney under the age of 55
with a solo practice in Cass County. So he literally hung out his
shingle and founded the Vancura Law Firm, now located in Walker. He
immersed himself in the community, joining the Walker Rotary Club and
St. Agnes Parish, and learned how to curl. He also took on as much pro
bono work as he could handle and raised money for Hackensack’s PAWS and
CLAWS Animal Shelter, an Initiative Foundation Turn Key component fund.
Locals took note. “Franz was one of the first people to
get back to us and say he’d help in any way,” said Betty Thomas, the
founder of beekeeping supply company Mann Lake Ltd. and the driving
force behind PAWS and CLAWS. “Sometimes you can’t just have older folks
who are established. You need to bring in the people with new ideas and
listen to them.”
Economic development experts agree. “The Millennials are
our future leaders, elected officials, employees, company owners and
parents,” said Kathy Gaalswyk, president of the Initiative Foundation.
“As the Baby Boomers retire, sell their companies and discontinue their
public service, this is the next wave of leaders.”
Attracting these future leaders to Central Minnesota could
be a challenge. An analysis done by the Pew Research Center in
Washington, D.C., found that only 14 percent of Millennials live in
rural areas nationwide, a marked decline from the 29 percent of Boomers
who called small town America home when they were young adults. This
challenge is further compounded by the fact that even though Millennials
are less inclined to buy a home than older Americans, there’s a housing
shortage in Central Minnesota.
The good news is that there’s another story beneath these
statistics. Research by Ben Winchester, a fellow at the University of
Minnesota Extension Center for Community Vitality, actually shows a
“brain gain” in rural Minnesota since 1970, comprised primarily of
people between the ages of 30 and 49 who, like Vancura, move to rural
communities because they are drawn to the quality of life. As
Millennials start families, Central Minnesota has an opportunity to
capitalize on the region’s natural assets and the fact that our economy
is no longer based solely on agriculture.
“This isn’t your grandpa’s rural,” said Winchester.
“Anywhere between 30 to 60 percent of people in the rural communities
are proprietors. A lot of people are independent contractors.”
Generation start-up
Like any generation, Millennials have their own
perspective on the world, which is often shaped by current events. Hit
hard by the recession, they don’t feel the same kind of loyalty to a
single employer that their older co-workers do. According to the Pew
Research Center survey, about two-thirds of all employed Millennials say
it is likely they will switch careers sometime in their working life,
compared with 55 percent of Gen Xers and 31 percent of Baby Boomers.
In fact, many Millennials in rural communities will have
to start and run their own businesses. “Millennials will be the most
entrepreneurial generation,” said Jack Schultz, the author of Boomtown
USA: The 7½ Keys to Big Success in Small Towns. “That’s important
because most small towns aren’t going to be able to bring in the next
company. We have to grow our own.”
Starting a business just made sense to Travis Kelley, the
28-year-old co-founder and owner of JenTra Tools in Backus. After two
years of working at a Minneapolis lumber company, the Backus native
moved back home to sell doors to lumber yards north of Brainerd. When he
noticed that the doors often warped after they were installed, he and
his wife, Jen, decided to figure out a solution.
“The doors in our factories were always flat as a board,”
Kelley said. “If the door is installed properly, it shouldn’t warp.”
Seeing an opportunity for a precision tool that takes the guesswork out
of door installation, the Kelleys created a prototype using tin,
cardboard and a level from Menards. “We used it to put a door in and
thought, holy cow, that will work,” said Kelley.
As a new company with no track record, the Kelleys weren’t
able to get traditional funding for a loan to start their business. But
research turned up several local opportunities that turned their dream
into reality. An ex-lawyer from Andersen Windows wrote their utility
patent pro bono. Business financing from the Initiative Foundation and
Crow Wing Power got them on their way.
Manufactured in Rogers and assembled in Backus, The
CHEATAH door level hit store shelves in 2012 and already has been
mentioned on the DIY Network’s “Must Have” list from the International
Building Show. They’ve sold 6,000 units and are working toward
introducing other tools and breaking into the big box market. Kelley
credits much of his success to his hometown. “I have so much support,”
he said. “I grew up with these people so I know they always have my
back.”
Connectors and collaborators
This can-do spirit is part of a Millennial’s approach to
work in general. It’s not unusual today to hear a Boomer marvel, and
sometimes even gripe, about how their Millennial colleague feels
entitled to a one-on-one meeting with the company’s president. But
there’s a positive spin to that generational stereotype. “Millennials
like to be in the loop,” said Diane Tran, the founder of Minnesota
Rising, a network for emerging leaders in Minnesota. “People can say
they constantly want ribbons and awards, but it’s more that they enjoy
human connections. Millennials like feedback, collaborating and working
in teams.”
That’s not the only way Millennials are changing the way
that traditional workplaces operate. “Boomers are into the time clock,”
said Chris Fastner, who in his work as the senior program manager for
organizational development at the Initiative Foundation oversees the
organization’s VISTA volunteers. “Millennials seem to be more focused on
getting the work done,” he said.
That’s a generational stereotype that resonates with
Katrina Pierson, the 28-year-old partner at HBH Consultants in St.
Cloud. “I was 10 when my family got the Internet,” she said. “We are
used to being on all the time because technology is part of who we are.
People my age don’t want to be tied to a 9 to 5 structure.”
That natural ease with technology makes Millennials
extremely valuable to their workplaces. As the first generation to view
texting, tweeting, and “liking” posts on Facebook and Instagram as
everyday parts of life, they understand how to capitalize on social
media in a way that might elude their older colleagues.
“Technology has given us a new set of tools that can lead to opportunities for innovation and connecting people,” said Tran. “The younger part of the workforce can help make meaning of these technologies.”
“Technology has given us a new set of tools that can lead to opportunities for innovation and connecting people,” said Tran. “The younger part of the workforce can help make meaning of these technologies.”
That doesn’t mean the Millennials entrance into the
workforce has not come without bumps. At Mann Lake, Thomas says that her
younger employees have learned that when they are at work, they need to
keep their piercings and tattoos hidden. (Four in 10 Millennials have
at least one tattoo, according to Pew Research.) “What they do after
hours is up to them,” she said. “But when they are the face of Mann
Lake, it has to be our corporate image.”
As an employee stock ownership company, Thomas knows that
the future of Mann Lake relies on this generation. “In small rural
America kids graduate from high school, flee and don’t come back until
they are ready to retire,” she said. “We need a reason that they can
come back, live, raise their families, enjoy the quality of life we have
and offer them a good standard of living.”
Thursday, July 17, 2014
You're Invited: YNPN-TC and YEP-TC Night At The Guthrie
Let YNPN Twin Cities and YEP-TC take you out on the town for drinks and a show! Building on the success of last year's "Night at the Guthrie," this year's event features "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike" followed by Happy Hour at Aloft. Tickets are extremely limited so be sure to follow the steps below and save your seats today!
Last year, YNPN-TC brought over 200 of our members and their friends to see two amazing performances at The Guthrie Theater. Those events were a smashing success and we have been invited back for an event at the Guthrie once again! This year, the event will be in partnership with the Young Education Professionals (YEP) of the Twin Cities.
Join YNPN-TC & YEP-TC on July 29, 2014 for a night out at the theater, and get to know your YNPN-TC & YEP-TC peers in this unique networking event. We'll be seeing the play "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike", a hilarious comedy of ill manners, the 2013 Tony Award winner for Best Play, Vanya and his adopted sister Sonia are living a quiet life in the Pennsylvania farmhouse where they grew up, while their sister Masha travels the world as a movie star. Just as their cleaning woman issues a warning about terrible events in their future, Masha returns for an unannounced visit with her 20-something boy toy Spike in tow – and so begins an unforgettable weekend building to a fever pitch of rivalry, regret and racket. Learn more.
That's not all, folks. Join YNPN-TC & YEP-TC for the after party at Aloft Minneapolis hotel with a live DJ. There will be happy hour drink specials, along with a free drink ticket valid for a bottled domestic beer that comes with your ticket to the play.
This great night out must be expensive, right? Not even close. For YNPN-TC & YEP-TC members only, you'll get the play, after party, and drink ticket for only $15.
To be part of this great event, you'll need to make your reservations with the Guthrie. It's super easy to get this great deal - just three simple steps:
1. Call the Guthrie Theater at 612-377-2224
2. Ask for the "YNPN" offer for the performance of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
3. Have your credit/debit card ready to pay over the phone. Handling fees may apply (for our last Guthrie event, they were $0.25).
That's it! We'll give you your performance ticket and drink ticket when you arrive at the Guthrie Theater on the July 29. There is no online purchase option for this event. You may order more than one ticket with this offer if you are purchasing for a group. You can pick up tickets the night of the event at the YNPN-TC table. Please arrive at the theater 30 minutes before the 7:30 PM showing.
We also want to give a special thanks to Guthrie Theater for their partnership with YNPN-TC & YEP-TC on this great event!
Guthrie Theater
818 South 2nd Street
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Parking: Parking is available in the ramp on South 2nd Street directly across from the Guthrie and in numerous parking lots throughout the neighborhood. The event rate for Guthrie performances is $8. Rates vary during other area events.
The After Party: The after party is located just one block away from the Guthrie at Aloft Minneapolis hotel, and will go from post-show to 11:30 PM. Your ticket gives you access to this party and one free drink ticket. Music at the after party will be provided by DJ Marinos.
About the Guthrie Theater.
About YNPN-TC.
About YEP-TC.
PS - Tickets are extremely limited and are sold on a first come first served basis. Purchase early to ensure your spot!
Copyright © 2013 Young Nonprofit Professionals Network - Twin Cities, All rights reserved.
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
You're Invited: The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible w/Charles Eisenstein
Seeking an evening of inspiration and insight? Consider this your invitation to hear from visionary speaker and writer, Charles Eisenstein, elaborating on his latest book, The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible. Register today for the catered community dinner and a conversation about consciousness and connection!
You are invited to join us for a special evening with visionary speaker and writer Charles Eisenstein.
In his latest book, “The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible,” Eisenstein inspires us to discover how small, individual acts of courage, kindness and self-trust can change our culture’s story of separation. He invites us to recognize that by embracing and practicing the principles of interbeing and interconnectedness, we become more effective agents of change.
Charles Eisenstein brings to conscious awareness a deep wisdom we all innately know—when we get ourselves in order, the actions we take catalyze a next step in creating a new story.
Join us in community to explore a new understanding of self, life and world.
Come before the conversation for a community dinner and movement and music. Experience joy, connection and a sense of community in the spirit of creating a more beautiful world.
Evening Timeline:
4:30 - 5:30: Catered Community Dinner
5:30 - 6:15: Connecting Through Movement and Music
6:30 - 8:30: A Conversation with Charles including Q & A
8:30 - 9:30: Book Signing and Socializing
For more information on Charles Eisenstein’s work, including links to his books and videos, visit http://charleseisenstein.net/.
We look forward to seeing you.
Supporting Organizations: Alliance for Sustainability, Ecology Democracy Network, Future First Women’s Congress, Green Party of Minnesota, Headwaters Foundation for Justice, KFAI, MN Interfaith Power & Light, MN Pachamama Community, MN350, Northland Sustainable Solutions, OccupyMN, Raeheart Financial, Shreya R. Dixit Memorial Foundation