Year: 2019

By Marnie Werner, Vice President, Research & Operations Telehealth has been a long time coming. Telehealth is technology that allows people to access health care services over long distances. We’ve seen it in movies almost since movies began and on futuristic TV shows like Star Trek. It was pioneered in the late 1900s, with stories ...

EXCERPT: “Cortney Zukauska doesn’t let herself get too comfortable. Ask her what she seeks five years in the future and her answer is simple. ‘Surviving,’ she said. ‘And raising my babies the best I can.’ Pictures of her six children line the walls of the house she’s renting here. Being a mother is Zakauska’s first priority, ...

EXCERPT: “Dozens of school districts across the state are asking their residents to take on additional property taxes to pay for things like upgraded facilities, new school buildings, pools and technology. Most of those requests, which will come in the form of referenda on Election Day ballots Tuesday — are in rural districts . . . The Minnesota Rural ...

EXCERPT: “Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development Commissioner Steve Grove recently announced the recipients of Child Care Economic Development Grants. A total of $727,500 was awarded to 11 organizations throughout Minnesota to increase families’ access to quality child care. The Northwest Minnesota Foundation, based in Bemidji, received $85,000. ‘Too ...

EXCERPT: “Backers of a second Fargo-Moorhead passenger train to and from the Twin Cities are headed to Moorhead to promote the proposal. The concept has the second train leaving Fargo-Moorhead in the morning, returning in the early evening on the current Amtrak route. It’s part of the development of a passenger rail service network, involving the ...

EXCERPT: “The problems facing farmers today seem ceaseless. Adverse conditions during planting season, an early frost that has begun to hit crops, and President Trump’s ongoing trade war are just a few of the factors weighing on American agriculture these days. Beth Ford, President and CEO of Land O’Lakes, and Denise Johnson, Resource Industries Group President ...

By Julie Tesch, President & CEO Do you know what the bedrock of any town is, rural or urban?  Community.  In this age of technology, it is very easy to isolate yourself.  You can be listening to a podcast on your phone while you are emailing for work and playing a game at the same ...

EXCERPT: “The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is now accepting grant applications for organizations offering technical assistance to improve access to fresh, affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate foods for underserved communities. The funding is available through the Good Food Access Program (GFAP). These grants will help organizations provide needs-based technical assistance to eligible food retailers, such ...

EXCERPT: “In the largest city in Chippewa County, last week, Oct. 10, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn) visited Montevideo and was taken on a ‘Rural Economy Tour.’ During the driving tour, Smith was escorted by Montevideo City Council President Nathan Schmidt, City Administrator Robert Wolfington and Superintendent of Schools Dr. Luther Heller, who guided her ...