Category: Our Research Reports

Job Opportunity Building Zones: Constructing the Framework for Program Evaluation (2004)

One of the first bills introduced in the 2003 Minnesota Legislative session was H.F. 3, creating what is now known as rural Job Opportunity Building Zones, or JOBZ. Announced after its passage as Gov. Tim Pawlentyʼs “marquee” rural economic development initiative, the program partitioned most of the state outside of the seven-county metropolitan area into ...

Examining Efficiency in our Public Schools (2003)

On most measures of success such as graduation rates, parental involvement and achievement test scores, small rural schools consistently confirm their value. However, others argue that due to their small enrollments, many rural school districts simply cannot achieve the necessary critical mass and subsequent economies of scale to reach fiscal efficiency; that the most rational ...

Addressing Diversity: Making a Difference in our Communities (2003)

After the release of the report in December 2001 we had a real desire to provide some tangible assistance to communities that were experiencing rapid demographic transformation and diversification. We found that, as with most things, some communities were very active in their diversity efforts while other communities were not. Accordingly, we began to compile ...