As the Northfield School Board works to decide the best way to address the issues at the Northfield high school facility, the district hosted a public informational meeting on Monday night that was attended by about sixty members of the community.
Northfield Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Matt Hillmann, said the purpose of the meeting was to bring the public in as a part of the Board’s deliberation on a possible bond referendum for the election ballot in November. Beyond that, however, is the greater campaign the district is carrying out to engage the public in the conversation and create a better understanding of the problem at hand.
The district has offered three tours of the high school, with a fourth coming up on Saturday. There was a free tour of the brand-new high school in Owatonna. The school board has held several public work sessions in the high school media center to talk through options for the facility. Hillmann has written several updates for the School District’s website. A direct mailing was sent out to every address in the school district, and of course, Dr. Hillman has engaged with the media quite a bit as well.
The people who attended the meeting on Monday night were mostly well informed, and those who weren’t quite as up on the situation asked very good questions.
While there was a distinct lack of attendance by members of the Latinx community, most age groups were well represented. Two Northfield High School students made comments to the gathered group during the public comment section, at least two people who identified themselves as grandparents spoke, and several people of ages in-between spoke as well.
Hillmann said the school district is working so hard to reach every member of the community because the School Board has to make an informed decision about what to put on the ballot this fall.
“We want to put something on the ballot that we think the community can get around. That’s not saying that we’re going to go with something that we think could easily get the support of the community, but we’d be foolish if we didn’t do some investigative work and try to find out which pathways are the most palatable to people. It’s about solving the problem ahead of us.”
Despite the wealth of knowledge and opportunity the district has supplied to the voters, Hillmann acknowledged that it is impossible to reach everyone, and he invited anyone with a question or an opinion to contact the school district.
“If you’re listening and you have an opinion, please feel free to connect with us. You can e-mail me. You can e-mail the board at board@northfieldschools.org. You can come to the tour. We have an opportunity for feedback at the end of the tour. This is a community problem for us to try to solve. There are a variety of different pathways that could solve it, and we need your feedback about which pathway to use. What do you think is the wisest one to go down?”
Saturday’s tour of the high school will begin at 10am in the high school media center.
Many volunteers will be needed for Northfield Shares a Dinner
Northfield Shares made it official yesterday. After months of rumors, the organization announced to the public that Northfield Shares a Dinner will return to Division Street this summer.
In 2019, on a beautiful summer evening, celebrating the organization’s fifth anniversary, the City of Northfield closed Division Street, a dining table that ran the length of city blocks was set up, and 1200 members of the Northfield Community were able to sit down and share a meal together.
Ally Oaks, one of the co-chairs of the event this year, said she was one of those 1200 people who took part in the event, and it was something she has not forgotten.
“It was amazing. I wasn’t a volunteer that year, but I was able to attend, and it was so neat. Just sitting next to people that you didn’t know, neighbors in the community, maybe some you’ve seen, some you haven’t, just learning their stories. What an amazing way to bring people together over sharing a meal.”
Northfield Shares is a community foundation that manages more than two-dozen different funds established by donors to offer grants to enhance specific facets of life in Northfield.
As 2024 is Northfield Shares’ 10th anniversary, Executive Director Carrie Carroll said the decision was made to bring the event back on a grander scale. The goal this year, she said, is to feed 2024 people that day. While they would love to have more than 2000 people lining Division Street and sharing a meal together, they will also be working to deliver food throughout Northfield to ensure those who are unable to make it to the table can still participate.
Oaks said there will be live entertainment that night, and Caroll said they are working on some other ideas as well.
“There is a wide variety of committees that have already been formed and have kind of percolated some ideas, and now it’s really about flushing out what works and how it works and how it all comes together. And there will be some new facets that we’ll be bringing forth this year that will be different than in 2019. So, stay tuned.”
Both Oaks and Caroll said there will be a strong need for volunteers to make the event a success. Caroll said they had upwards of 150 volunteers in 2019, and they will need more than that this year.
Northfield Shares a Dinner is set for August 25th. Carroll said it will be a free event, but registration will be necessary. The registration page is forthcoming, as is the post on their Volunteer Hub website. For more information, and to stay apprised of the situation, visit northfieldshares.org.
Rice County United Way granting process will move to a two-year cycle
The Rice County Area United Way is now accepting grant applications for 2024.
In a statement, the organization said grants are awarded to 501(c)(3) organizations in the Rice County area that are working to improve lives through education, health and financial stability.
This year, according to the statement, nonprofits may apply for one-year or two-year grants. Following this grant cycle, the next Rice County Area United Way grants will be offered in 2026, with the exception of microgrants for urgent needs or innovation.
The statement said the organization will offer flexible funding for general operations, as well as grants tied to specific programs. All grantees are asked to show measurable outcomes, whether applying for organization or program grants.
In addition to making grants in the three broad areas of education, health and financial stability/basic needs, Rice County Area United Way’s impact focus is childhood literacy.
In 2023, the statement said, they granted $280,000 to local non-profit organizations.
All local nonprofit organizations are being encouraged to apply. An online application is available at ricecountyunitedway.org/grant-application.
Applications will be accepted through March 15th at 5pm.
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
