Category: Rural Headlines

EXCERPT: “When Ajit Pai became chair of the Federal Communications Commission earlier this year, he pledged to make bridging the digital divide a top priority. Thursday, the commission took several steps that could worsen the divide, by making it harder for poor and rural Americans to access telecom services. In particular, the agency said it is considering ...

EXCERPT: “The Mayo Clinic, which sprawls across this Midwestern city, is the nation’s top-ranked hospital, according to U.S. News & World Report. But that might undersell its prominence: The clinic is arguably the best-regarded health care system on the entire planet…Patients from nearly 150 countries travel to Mayo Clinic sites in Minnesota, Arizona, Florida and beyond. ...

EXCERPT: “Many small towns struggle to sustain a local police department with qualified and experienced law enforcement officers, said Andy Skoogman, executive director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association. It can be difficult to replace police chiefs and officers who retire or get hired by other agencies. Cash-strapped city councils are then tempted to ...

Reporter Maya Rao talks with veterans who live in areas far from any of Minnesota’s VA hospitals about what it’s like trying to get medical care and the federal program that’s supposed to make it easier. FULLSTORY: http://strib.mn/2hqrXE6

EXCERPT: “Minnesota’s city-owned liquor stores produced record 2016 sales for the 21st straight year, but higher costs kept profits down. The state auditor reported Tuesday, Nov. 7, that stores listed $344 million in sales, up $7 million over 2015. However, profits fell more than 16 percent over the past five years . . . Forty-five Minnesota ...

EXCERPT: “After being in the works for several years, a local angel fund now has nearly $1.4 million ready to invest in private companies that have the potential for profitable growth. Based in Willmar, the West Central Angel Fund I LLC officially began accepting applications this fall from “early to middle stage” private business ventures ...

Brad Finstad, longtime president and CEO of the Center for Rural Policy and Development, has announced his resignation effective Nov. 24, 2017, to receive a presidential appointment as the Minnesota State Director of USDA Rural Development. Finstad has been the president and CEO at CRPD since 2008. In announcing his resignation, Finstad said, “I’m sad ...

EXCERPT: “Citing a lack of beds and staffing concerns, a central Minnesota hospital says it’s no longer accepting people committed by courts for psychiatric care. St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Brainerd will admit to its 16-bed behavioral health center only those patients who are seeking treatment voluntarily . . . Minnesota Human Services Commissioner Emily Piper fears St. ...

EXCERPT: “It’s a dilemma many Minnesota parents face – trying to find affordable child care. The problem is especially prevalent in rural Minnesota, where the number of providers has dropped significantly in the past few years. It’s gotten so bad that both providers and families are calling this a “crisis.” Providers say the cost to ...