The Oral History office worked with the Department of Inclusion and Community Engagement on an oral history project related to the History Center's 2015 exhibit Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair. Interviewer Mica Anders-Turner completed 10 interviews to complement the exhibit. Plans for FY17 include seven interviews focused on African American cabin- and resort-owners at Lake Adney (Crow Wing County), and working with the nonprofit Oromo Community of Minnesota to document the stories of Oromo immigrants, an Ethiopian ethnic group.
MNHS Press will publish a book on the 120-year history of the Minnesota State Capitol and its role as the heart of civic life in the state, a place for celebrations, demonstrations, arguments and accomplishments. The book will include stories of its construction and restoration, fine art and furnishings, laborers and craftspeople, and politics and lifestyles within our "house of democracy."
The Division of Parks and Trails is engaged in critical work to connect people to the outdoors. As part of the work in this project area, the new touch-screen kiosk project will increase awareness about outdoor recreation opportunities at Minnesota state parks and trails among underrepresented groups by creating and installing accessible, touch-screen kiosks with information in multiple languages, in high-traffic, family-oriented locations. Connection plans deliver Minnesota State Parks and Trails' messages to new audiences.
PAM Education is a training series developed for homeowners, realtors, community members and professionals in fields that frequently interact with historic buildings and districts. This year the program had a significant focus on reaching new audiences.
The 17 member Park and Trail Legacy Advisory Committee is appointed by the Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources, the Chair of the Metropolitan Council and the Chair of the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission. The mission of the committee is to champion the 25 year "Parks and Trails Legacy Plan" by providing recommendations to enhance promotion, coordination, and accountability throughout implementation of the plan.
To provide grants to local units of government to support parks and trails of regional or statewide significance outside of the seven county metropolitan area. Funding for this grant program is from the Parks and Trails Fund created by the Minnesota Legislature from the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment passed by the voters in 2008. Beginning July 1, 2015 (fiscal year 2016), the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission (GMRPTC) assumed management of reviewing and awarding these grants.
To hire a qualified consultant to develop a Historic Structure Report that will help preserve the St. Paul Public Library/James J. Hill Reference Library, listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Since 1976, Penumbra Theatre has ignited dialogue and social action in the Twin Cities and beyond by presenting original, compelling works grounded in the history of African American artistic expression and social justice. The 2016-2017 season marks Penumbra's 40th anniversary, and MNHS is developing an exhibit on the theater's rich history and legacy, in partnership with Penumbra and the University of Minnesota Libraries Archives and Special Collections.
The purpose of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture's monitoring activities is to determine the presence and concentration of pesticides in Minnesota's groundwater and surface water. Monitoring information is used to characterize and assess the extent of pesticide impacts to Minnesota's water resources.
Minnesota’s twelve regional library systems, which encompass more than 350 public libraries in all areas of the state, can benefit from a portion of the Legacy Amendment’s Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. Through State Library Services, a division of the Minnesota Department of Education, each regional library system is eligible to receive a formula-driven allocation from the annual $2.2 million Minnesota Regional Library System Legacy Grant. Pioneerland Library System (PLS) is a consolidated regional public library system in west central Minnesota.
This groundbreaking project creates a new model for school field trips, using mobile and web technologies to capitalize on the natural behaviors and learning styles of today's students.
The Pomme de Terre River Association will partner with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to conduct water quality monitoring in the Pomme de Terre River Watershed. The purpose will be to determine if waters meet the states non-point source pollution standards. The data collected will be utilized to produce the cycle two Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) report and supporting documents for the watershed. Through the utilization of this funding a total of 11 lakes and 7 stream reaches will be assessed.
This project will establish a framework with the Pomme de Terre River Association (PDTRA), county staff, Soil and Water Conservation District staff, and state agencies that will outline their involvement throughout the development of the Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) for the Pomme de Terre River watershed. This work will form the basis to establish restoration and protection strategies that local governments and watershed organizations can use to make decisions that will lead to protecting and restoring the waters in the watershed.
The goal of this project is to extend through 2016, calibrate, and validate the existing watershed model using Hydrological Simulation Program FORTRAN (HSPF) for the Pomme de Terre River Watershed. The contractor will produce an HSPF model that can readily be used to provide information to support conventional parameter Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) studies.
This program is to increase prescribed burning on Division of Parks and Trails (PAT) lands in order to meet shortfalls in achieving PAT restoration and management objectives.
