Monday, May 29

Harriet, the world's oldest Peregrine Falcoln is recovering from injuries at the University of Minnesota's Raptor Center. Harriet, who first received care at the Raptor Center 15 years ago when she was just a chick, was recently found sick and undernourished in St. Paul. I went over to the Raptor Center to visit the falcon. Dr. Patrick Redig is director and co-founder of the Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota; he says Harriet seems to be out of immediate danger.

A project to repave a bike path and put in concrete picnic tables in a Moorhead park is generating a debate about protecting an archeological site. Buried under the park are homesites from the original settlers that arrived in the Red River valley more than 100 years ago. Minnesota Public Radios Dan Gunderson reports.

Catholic Cemeteries will unveil a new memorial today for deceased children. The memorial is at Resurrection Cemetery in Mendota Heights. It includes a garden and a wall of remembrance, which is marked with the names of children who died very young. The memorial was commissioned to provide families who have lost a child with a place to mourn and heal. Jeff Pederson is the Community Affairs Director for Catholic Cemeteries. He's on the line now.

The graduation standards bill Governor Ventura signed into law last week gives teachers and administrators at every public school in the state just over ten weeks to decide on modifications to the Profile of Learning. The bill allows educators to decide on a school-by-school basis whether to temporarily alter the number of state-required content standards in the show-what-you-know system. Education organizations have learned those votes are not optional and are now scrambling to make preparations. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports.

Curriculum specialists in districts all over the state are scrambling to comply with the new law regarding the Profile of Learning. Joining us now is Joe Wemette, director of Curriculum and Evaluation for the North St. Paul/Maplewood/Oakdale School District.

The Minnesota Twins open a three game series tonight against the Toronto Blue Jays, after sweeping three games from the Texas Rangers over the weekend. That was the first full series of the Chris Clouser era. Clouser, who is a friend of team owner Carl Pohlad and a former executive with Northwest Airlines, was named Chief Executive Officer of the Twins last week. Does the hiring of Clouser signal the beginning of another push for a new stadium? Joining us with his thoughts is MPR Sports Commentator Jay Weiner. Jay is also the author of Stadium Games: Fifty Years of Big League Greed and Bush League Boondoggles.

A small but growing number of farmers are growing herbs to take advantage of consumer demand for natural health products. But experts, and farmers who've tried getting into what's called the neutraceutical market, say it's not an easy or quick road to riches. Minnesota Public Radios Dan Gunderson reports.

There's an old environmentalist saying: Everyone lives downstream. That sentiment has some soil and water officials worried about the Crow River. It flows from west central Minnesota into the Mississippi River in Wright County. The river drains a 2,700-square-mile area of mostly farmland. By the time it reaches the Mississippi, it's picked up tons of urban and rural run-off. A new monitoring program hopes to gather more information about what is happening in the Crow, but local farmers are concerned they may be made scapegoats for concerns about possible impacts on the environment and local residents health. Mainstreet Public Radio's Tim Post reports.

Senator Rod Grams is out stumping for his plan to privatize the Social Security system. Grams is holding a series of community forums to outline the idea and build support. With less than a week to go before DFLers convene to endorse a challenger for the Senate race, some Democratic hopefuls are already making Grams' proposal a campaign issue. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

Northwest Airlines' flight attendants union has overwhelmingly ratified a new five-year contract. The rank and file of Teamsters Local 2000 rejected the first contract proposal last August. The union's 11,000 members have been working without a contract for more than three and a half years. The new agreement takes effect tomorrow. Minnesota Public Radio's Bill Catlin has more.

Officials have postponed a controlled burn planned for today near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. They say recent rains have left the area too wet. The fire is intended to clear damaged trees and reduce fire danger on a peninsula near Ely. The trees were blown down and snapped off during a windstorm last summer. Controlled burns have been the subject of more scrutiny since a fire escaped in New Mexico earlier this month and drove about 25,000 Los Alamos residents out of their homes. Mark van Every of the Forest Service is on the line now.

When officials in Ottertail county recently conducted a sting operation on alcohol sales to minors, they found nearly 70 percent of businesses failed to comply with state law. In Fargo officials are so concerned about the sale of alcohol to minors they plan to arrest store clerks or bartenders who fail an undercover check. Minnesota Public Radios Dan Gunderson reports.

Last night in their last formal debate before the state DFL convention, the Democratic U.S. senate hopefuls talked about a broad range of issues at the University of Minnesota. From gun control to national security, and health care reform, the candidates were mostly in agreement. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

A new study concludes that Minnesota's pilot welfare program helped more people find employment and get out of poverty than the traditional federal program. The Minnesota program provided financial incentives, childcare and medical benefits to those entering the workplace. The study finds the pilot helped some of the hardest to employ find work and increased family stability. Minnesota Public Radio's Amy Radil reports.

Mike Welvert is forecaster for the National Weather Service in La Crosse, Wisconsin. He says some areas in southern Minnesota have already received quite a bit of rain.

The town of Spring Valley, Minnesota, just south of Rochester, is experiencing severe flooding. Jim Cooper is with the Emergency Operations Center in Spring Valley. He says people are being evacuated in some areas.

Three thousand delegates, candidates, and political junkies are expected to stream into Rochester for this weekend's DFL state convention. Next weekend it's the Republicans' turn, and once again Rochester will play the host. It's been more than decade since either party held its convention in Rochester. Minnesota Public Radio's Erin Galbally reports on why, after a long absence, the two conventions are returning.

By 2002, the Fairview Health Services aims to go paperless. Doctors, nurses and pharmacists will manage everything from prescriptions to patient records on computers. The point is not to save paper, but rather to improve care, eliminate medical errors, and save lives. Minnesota Public Radio's Andrew Haeg reports.

Rhubarb leaves very little middle ground. Folks either like rhubarb or hate it. Ignoring it is virtually impossible, especially now, during rhubarb's peak season. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson has more.

State DFL officials say the party endorsement for a senate candidate appears to be up for grabs as the state convention gets underway today in Rochester. Tomorrow delegates will be asked to endorse a candidate to run against incumbant Republican Senator Rod Grams. They have a wide field of candidates to choose from including lawyers, a doctor and a bartender who more often than not agree on major campaign issues. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

Steve Jaffe, an analyst with Avitas Aviation, joins us with reaction to reports that Northwest and American Airlines are discussing a possible merger.

Scientists throughout the country are carefully watching to see if West Nile Virus, which killed seven people in New York City last year, will spread to the Midwest. But while epidimiologists are concerned about the spread of the virus, officials with the Minnesota Department of Health and the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District say they're more worried about other, more prevalant forms of encephalitis in the state. Minnesota Publc Radio's Tom Scheck reports.