Education

Top officials at the University of Minnesota are considering a plan to upgrade the University's medical facilities that could cost more than $500 million. The 10-year plan would move all hospital care to campus, and would close the Riverside branch of the Fairview-University Medical Center. It would also include a new children's center and a new outpatient clinic. The plan still needs to be finalized, and approved by the University of Minnesota Board of Regents. Morning Edition host Cathy Wurzer spoke with Dr. Frank Cerra, the University's senior vice president of health sciences.

One of the architects of the federal Leave No Child Behind law faced a round of criticism on Thursday from Minnesota educators. The chair of the U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee met in Woodbury with a group of principals, school superintendents and teachers to talk about concerns with federal education policies.

It's summer camp season in Minnesota. But for about 175 teenagers from around the state, it's not about canoeing and campfires. They're attending an unusual summer camp at the University of Minnesota's Design Institute in Minneapolis.

College attendance rates are on the rise among Minnesota's American Indian populations. The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe is using casino revenues to help subsidize college educations.

The new superintendent of the Minneapolis school district says she wants to make sure parents believe again in public education. Thandiwe Peebles officially began her new job Wednesday by outlining some of her goals in a morning news conference. Peebles will try to raise achievement levels in district that is losing students and money at alarming rates.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty named veteran legislator Alice Seagren as Minnesota's new Education Commissioner Tuesday. Seagren, R-Bloomington, will take over the position that was vacated when the DFL-controlled Senate ousted Cheri Pearson Yecke in May. The DFLers said Yecke was a divisive figure and an extremist. Some of the groups who criticized Yecke have lent their support to Seagren, including the teacher's union Education Minnesota, but Pawlenty said that his choice does not represent a change in his education policy.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty says his new education commissioner will bring a different style to the job than her predecessor, but no less commitment to school reform. Pawlenty announced Tuesday his selection of Rep. Alice Seagren, R-Bloomington, to fill the vacant cabinet post. Lawmakers and education leaders say Seagren's style and insider knowledge make her an excellent choice to lead the Minnesota Department of Education.

State education officials have released the test scores they'll use to determine whether Minnesota high schools are meeting performance goals.

Some 16-year-olds are thinking twice before rushing out to get a driver's license. The reasons for postponing that rite of passage range from fear of accidents to economics.

A long-awaited report on the state's school funding system says reform should start with figuring out what it actually costs to educate a child. It's not the type of radical reform some critics of the current complex system hoped for when Gov. Pawlenty assembled the funding task force. But the report's authors hope it at least provides a starting point for what is likely to remain a heated political debate.