Project Impact(s):
Diversity and Inclusion, Education, STEM
This project is in Available Phase
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Per Cathy Nathan 2020-09-22
Rochester Public Schools will be the first school district in the state to launch a collaborative educational model that allows students to earn a two-year postsecondary degree or industry credential before the time they leave high school.
In a news release sent out Wednesday, the district announced it received a $1 million grant from the Minnesota Department of Education to fund the design and opening of the first Pathways in Technology Early College High (P-TECH) program in Minnesota. The P-TECH model gives students high school and college-level coursework, in addition to mentorship, worksite visits, and paid internships.
“P-TECH 535 is just one more way that we are working to meet the needs of our students in Rochester Public Schools,” said RPS Superintendent Michael Muñoz. “Our vision for our P-TECH graduates is that they have the academic and professional skills required to either continue their education in a four-year postsecondary institution or secure employment into entry-level careers in one of our two pathways.”
Computer Information Systems and Licensed Practical Nursing will be the two pathways initially offered in Rochester. IBM and Mayo Clinic have already signed on as community partners; the district says they are still looking for more partners to join them.
The program runs from grades 9-14, but allows students to move at their own pace. If a student wants to move ahead in the program, they can finish with an associate’s degree in as little as four years.
Carla Nelson, a Republican state senator for Rochester, sponsored a bill in 2019 that would have authorized state funds to create P-TECH schools across the state. The bill had bipartisan support, but never made it out of committee.
In a 2019 article about the bill, Med City Beat interviewed Sen. Nelson about the program. She said the P-TECH program would address Minnesota’s “workforce crisis,” plus help ease the financial burden on Minnesota’s college students taking out hefty student loans.
“It is a model that breaks down those barriers between high school and post-high school training — something we have often tried to do and talked about, but haven’t been so successful at,” Sen. Nelson said.
There will not be a separate P-TECH building operated by the district — they say the program will follow the “school within a school” model, but the specific school has not been chosen yet. The program is expected to be up and and running by fall 2021.
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Workforce Development Related Event(s) => LINK
Reports on: P-TECH 535
 (1) 2022 cohort video (2) RCTC grand opening and IBM video in support of P-Tech.
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Other Community News and Reports having impacts on:
Diversity and Inclusion, Education, STEM
 Jun 2021 Co-design Report
2024-08-12 PB Reporting GRAUC leads project to build prototype sim center The Southeast Minnesota Community Healthcare Simulation Center is set to open in downtown
Rochester by mid-October
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Racism, Anti-Semitism and the Fight Against Hate
"Abolishing racism, hate crimes, and white supremacy isn’t a problem for one group to face alone; it’s a shared burden that requires a strong and unified response."
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August 2024 Report : Age-Friendly Olmsted County (AFOC) activities implementing the Age
Friendly Olmsted County 2022-2025 Action Plan since our annual report in February 2024.
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 The visioning effort calls for soliciting broad community input to help propose desired strategic initiatives based on desired outcomes through 2050.
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Newsletter Highlights:
Systems Change Designation; Data Updates; Network Updates; Contributors
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Home Ownership Creation Program - Prairie Ridge: "NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Common Council of the City of Rochester, MN hereby approves the contribution of $4,000,000 to the Prairie Ridge development to support the creation of 201 for-sale homes via the Home Ownership Creation Program.
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 New Mayo Clinic, U of M framework aims to guide future research. The framework defines structural racism as the “totality of ways in which societies foster racial discrimination through mutually reinforcing systems of housing, education, employment, earnings, benefits, credit, media, health care and criminal justice.”
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2Q 2024: June 2024; May 2024 - Admin Message, TBE Report; April 2024 - Admin Message, TBE Report
1Q 2024: Feb 2024 - Admin Message, TBE Report; Jan 2024: Admin Message, TBE Report
Special callouts: Women in Construction; City of Rochester Equity in Development
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June 24, 2024 City Council Study Session: Justice Equity Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Audit per Goodenough
Departmental Audit reports of: Human Resources; Rochester Public Library; Parks & Rec
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SASSA to receive $1M from MN to train workers for high-demand employment.
The funding is awarded under the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Targeted Populations Workforce Competitive Grant Program.
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 The City of Rochester welcomes applications for the Community Building Fund. This fund is all about supporting projects, programs, and events in the city that actively promote equity and inclusion.
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 Calling for Community Support at Community Meeting: The most recent Olmsted County Maxfield Study found that from 2020-2030, housing demand required 18,000 new housing units. 71% would need to be general-occupancy and 29% age-restricted senior housing.
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