LearnmoreMN Blog

Dreams coming true

By Juventino Meza, May guest blogger

Gov. Mark Dayton will sign the Higher Education Omnibus bill that included the Minnesota Dream Act. This is a historic day for Minnesota. It took more than a decade to pass this legislation; we are the 15th state to do so and only the 4th one to provide state financial aid.

The Minnesota Dream Act will:

• Allow students to pay in-state tuition rates at public colleges and universities if they meet certain requirements, regardless of their immigration status
• Make state higher education aid available to all students who meet residency requirements, regardless of immigration status
• Allow public institutions (MnSCU and the University of Minnesota) to use private funding as financial aid for all students, regardless of immigration status
• Create a Minnesota financial aid application specifically for these students that delinks federal and state financial aid.

The Minnesota Dream Act has broad support. The Citizens League supported it based on its 2009 study of immigrant students' access to higher education in Minnesota. The bill was also backed by community groups (Mesa Latina, Centro Campesino, Chicano Latino Affairs Council), all major higher education institutions (U of MN, Minnesota Private College Council, MnSCU), business and labor groups (Education Minnesota, Chamber of Commerce, SEIU Local 26, Agri-Growth Council), superintendents around the state, Republicans and Democrats, rural and urban. And obviously, Gov. Dayton and Larry Pogemiller, director of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, supported it as well. This truly was a collaborative victory for Minnesota!

I went to ask the authors what they thought. “I am thrilled that after a decade of effort by immigrant students and their allies, their ‘dream of a college education’ became law when Gov. Dayton signs it, said Sen. Sandy Pappas. “I look forward to the talents and energies of these bright young people serving the economic future of our great state.”

It’s estimated that if 500 students benefit, it will “bring $1 billion in new earnings to the Minnesota economy over their lifetime. ($1.8 million is the lifetime earnings of an associate degree; $2.4 million for a bachelor’s degree).”

This legislation is about equity, but it also is about closing the opportunity and achievement gap. It will ensure that all students in Minnesota have equal access to higher education and that Minnesota is ready to compete in the world economy with the future workforce we will need.

“It’s an honor being part of this historic legislative proposal,” said Representative Carlos Mariani, who sponsored the legislation in the House. “I have been fighting for this for more than 10 years. This affirms the dignity of undocumented people in Minnesota. Congratulations to everyone who faithfully and strategically worked to make this law. DREAMers inspire us to be a better people. On-forward!”

Marco Loera, a soon-to-be college student from Rochester, Minn. was equally enthusiastic. “I can finally see my future; I can finally say that equality for all Minnesota students is closer now. This is my state and these are my dreams; now, no status will keep me from being the best I can be.”

Find information about the process here. We know that we have a lot of work ahead, especially in high schools and colleges to make sure everyone has the right information. Can you help us spread the word? Organize a group of students, families or staff and invite NAVIGATE MN to do a presentation about how students can benefit from the Minnesota Dream Act.

Ready for school and life: Education in Saint Paul

By Mayor Chris Coleman, February guest blogger

When I first ran for mayor and made education my first priority, I was often asked, “Why should a mayor worry about education?” It’s a good question. After all, Saint Paul has an independent school board, which oversees Saint Paul Public Schools. Well, the answer is more intuitive than you might expect.

Studies show that students spend more than 80% of their time outside of the classroom (before and after school, during the summer and on the weekends). When this is the case it is our responsibility as a city and community to ensure that all our young people have access to high-quality activities and program. Saint Paul's future economic stability and quality of life depends on our ability to connect young people to meaningful learning experiences.

In my first term, my administration made a number of efforts to address some of the obstacles that prevent too many of our students from being successful academically and developmentally. I’d like to give a few examples today. In my next post, I’ll talk more about our plans for the next four years.

Early Childhood: I am extremely proud of my office’s participation in the Saint Paul Early Childhood Scholarship Program. This pilot was originally proposed by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, and funded by the Minnesota Early Learning Foundation. Through this initiative, more than 500 low-income families were given information and resources to enroll their children in high-quality early childhood education programs. An integral part of the Scholarship Program was the use of Parent Aware, a rating tool for identifying high quality early childcare providers. These two components ensure that we are providing access to high-quality programming to at-risk families; a true triumph for our community.

East Side Circulator: Transportation has always been a challenging part of our education infrastructure, particularly when it comes to connecting children to critical out of school time/second shift learning opportunities. How do we get students from their homes, to school, to after-school programs, then home again? In Saint Paul, we’ve identified a promising answer to these questions that we call Circulators. In 2007, inspired by the efforts of parents on the West Side, we piloted a neighborhood bus on the East Side, connecting students to libraries, recreation centers and other learning hubs. That first year, more than 2,100 rides were given by the free service. In the summer of 2008, that number increased nearly 100 percent to more than 4,200 rides. Finally, two years ago, we were able to create a free year-round circulator, connecting students to learning opportunities each day.

College Access: As Kent Pekel and others have explained so well on this blog, college readiness and college access are essential to our economic future. During my first term, I called together a group of college presidents, along with leaders from our public schools, to think about how Saint Paul could play a role in preparing our students to gain admission to higher education. As a response to this conversation, Saint Paul opened two Doorway College & Career Resource Centers at the Sunray Library and at the Dayton’s Bluff Recreation Center. At either of these facilities, students can get homework help, participate in career exploration and skill assessment activities, research colleges and prepare for standardized tests.

As you read over these accomplishments, what comes to mind? What more do you think the City could be doing for its students? Please share your ideas, and I’ll respond to them in my next post.