Grand Rapids, Minn. — Five leaders in Minnesota’s technology sector have accepted invitations to the Blandin Foundation Broadband Initiative Strategy Board. An experienced technology leader, Carolyn Parnell has been appointed by Governor Dayton to serve as Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the State of Minnesota. Among her leadership roles as State CIO, she is the …
Grand Rapids, Minn. — Twenty-three residents of the Albert Lea area returned September 27 from a five-day leadership retreat, the first segment of an intense eight-day training provided by the Blandin Community Leadership Program (BCLP). The team also will participate in follow-up workshops in December and February 2014. A program of the Grand Rapids-based Blandin …
GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. (August 8, 2013) – Post-secondary students from throughout the Itasca County area will go back to school this fall with support from Blandin Foundation. At their recent meeting, Blandin Foundation’s scholarship review committee (a panel of community members) recommended $953,700 in Education Awards to 334 local students for the 2013-14 school year. …
GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. – Among the $4.2 million in grants awarded by Blandin Foundation in June, many are focused on strengthening our rural economy by building high-quality, living-wage jobs and developing skills of rural Minnesota’s workforce. At their quarterly meeting in Grand Rapids, Foundation trustees approved a total of 124 grants. The Grand Rapids Area …
GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. – At their June 13 meeting, Blandin Foundation trustees selected three distinguished Minnesota community leaders to join the Foundation’s board of trustees, effective January 2014. Dr. Mike Johnson, chairman of the Foundation’s board, announced that three Minnesotans emerged from a statewide search: Kandace Creel Falcón, Ph.D. (Moorhead), William D. Maki (Bemidji), and …
$6.6 million project shows resources, local focus boost local use GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. – Through the work of local leaders in dozens of rural Minnesota communities, more than 250,000 rural Minnesotans have been introduced to online resources to find jobs, continue their education and strengthen their businesses. Connecting rural Minnesotans with tools they can …
GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. – Economic recovery is reaching Minnesotans unequally, according to a statewide survey released by the Blandin Foundation. The real-time snapshot of community issues, perceptions and priorities among rural Minnesota residents, called Rural Pulse(TM), demonstrated that demand for living-wage jobs far outweighs all other concerns. While residents note that the economy has improved somewhat, …
Grand Rapids, Minn. (May 2, 2013) — Twenty-three residents of the Bigfork, Effie and Marcell area returned April 26 from a five-day leadership retreat, the first segment of an intense eight-day training provided by the Blandin Community Leadership Program (BCLP). The team also will participate in follow-up workshops in July and October. A program of …
Twenty-four residents of the Hermantown area returned April 12 from a five-day leadership retreat, the first segment of an intense eight-day training provided by the Blandin Community Leadership Program (BCLP). The team also will participate in follow-up workshops in July and September 2013. A program of the Grand Rapids-based Blandin Foundation, BCLP has provided experiential …
Grand Rapids, Minn. (March 18, 2013) — Twenty-three residents of the Lake City area returned March 15 from a five-day leadership retreat, the first segment of an intense eight-day training provided by the Blandin Community Leadership Program (BCLP). The team also will participate in follow-up workshops in June and August 2013. A program of the …