Dakota County
Tribune
Farmington | Rosemount and the surrounding areas
www.dakotacountytribune.com
A super-sized thank you
NEWS Happy Valentine’s Day Apple Valley couple celebrates 65 years of marriage from Guyana to New York to Minnesota. Page 7A
OPINION Connecting with others The staff and volunteers of the Burnsvillebased nonprofit 360 Communities are continuing to expand their outreach. Page 4A
THISWEEKEND
Feb. 15, 2018 • Volume 132 • Number 50
Rsoemount High School senior is part of commercial’s debut during the Super Bowl by Tad Johnson SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
When Rosemount High School senior Sydney Kuran appeared on millions of television screens across the world on Super Bowl Sunday, her family members were just as surprised as her many friends, who proceeded to “blow up� her phone with text messages. Kuran wasn’t one of the many local dancers or band members who appeared during the halftime show, she was first pediatric cancer survivor viewers saw during Hyundai’s commercial to promote the company’s Hope on
Wheels program. “They were all really very happy for me, and they all appreciated it,� she said of her friends. “One of them said: ‘You are famous now.’ � “We had no indication that any piece would be on the commercial,� Sydney’s dad, Todd Kuran, said. “It was neat that they led off with her.� She said it took her more than a half hour to respond to all of the messages she received. “She was kind of getting a kick out of it every time her phone buzzed,� Todd Kuran said. It was an emotional 60-second spot that had unsuspecting
Huyndai owners pulled from a security line and brought into a separate room where they viewed a video of young people talking about their cancer journey and then surprising the car owners by emerging from the back room to thank them in person for being part of the program. “They were definitely shocked,� Kuran said of the two families she thanked. “They didn’t expect me to be there. It was nice to let them know that buying a car gave a portion of money to cancer research.� “I think it was really good See KURAN, 5A
Remodels scheduled for all District 192 schools Each school will have an innovative space done by mid-August 2018 SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Twin Cities musical group Transit Authority will bring its Chicago tribute show to the Rosemount Steeple Center. Page 17A
SPORTS
Farmington back on ice The Farmington High School girls hockey team is back in the hunt for a state tournament berth. Page 12A
Farmington schools are all about innovation, and this school year, the district is working to live up to its catchphrase. Last June, staff from each school in District 192 met with 18 architects from Wold Architects and Engineers. More than 60 staff attended this meeting, and some students and parents were invited as well. The mission was to work with the architects to design an innovative space in each school (two for the high school because of its size). The innovative space idea goes back to the district’s strategic plan, according to Barb Duffrin, executive director of educational services.
by Jody Peters SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Photo submitted by District 192
The new design for Boeckman Middle School’s commons area features movable furniture and themed rooms, like a green screen room and a think tank with whiteboard walls. nine teams with two ar- dent Jay Haugen said. “(It) highlights the im- chitects per team. The “The way our portance of students teams looked at floor schools are changing to being agents of their plans of their schools really meet the needs of own learning. So stu- to figure out which today’s kids in today’s dents being able to spaces were underused, world is that instead make decisions about then worked with the of us administratively how they learn and architects to see how to planning everything when they learn — redesign those spaces and then telling people what they need to do to best meet their stu- what to do ‌ we’ve so that they can learn dents’ needs. unleashed our staff to The idea was to turn use their own strengths best,â€? Duffrin said. During the design it over to staff and get day, staff split up into their input, Superinten- See REMODELS, 2A
The Dakota County Tribune is an official newspaper of the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District. Page 12A
INDEX Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . 4A Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 12A Public Notices . . . . . . 12A Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 13A Announcements . . . . 16A
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Cheer team earns its highest finish at national meet by Tad Johnson After the Rosemount High School competition cheer team finished its routine on Saturday during the UCA Nationals final round, the team members rushed off the stage at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, Florida. They were a bundle of excitement since they had an idea they had performed well, but there was apprehension since they couldn’t see what it looked like to the judges. As they huddled around a monitor to see a video replay, that’s when the pandemonium ensued. With each perfected stunt that unfolded in front of them, the shouts of amazement got a little louder, their hands were held a little tighter and the emotions ran higher. When it was all over “they started crying and
celebrating,â€? said coach Sally Holman. “It was great they got to see it together. ‌ The amount the crowd was yelling, they knew it was good.â€? How good? The Rosemount team earned eighth place, finishing nine points out of first in the Large Non-Tumble Division. The routine that had no deductions for stumbles, falls or other errors gave the school its highest UCA Nationals finish ever. It was the flawlessness the team had been building toward since last April, and it culminated on competition cheer’s biggest stage. Holman said she had no idea what was in store for the routine as she admits the team members looked a little nervous when they came out on stage, as girls from the other Minnesota teams at the competition chanted “Minnesota, Minnesota, Minnesota,â€? which Holman said was a
great feeling. She said the team got off to a good start early in the routine when they perfected a stunt involving several girls each holding up another team member while those on top did a leg kick. It’s a stunt that’s difficult to perfect since those on bottom are holding up a teammate by only one foot. “That’s the one we have never consistently done as it should be,� Holman said. The routine’s flips and pyramid near the end also were done without bobbles or wobbles. “Everything hit where you wanted it to be,� Holman said. “They have to be super focused. They have to listen to the music keeping on the count to make sure they are all goPhoto submitted ing together.� A solid routine in the The Rosemount High School competition cheerleading team placed eighth at the NCA Nationals competition Feb. 10 and 11 in Orlando, Florida. See CHEER, 8A
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It’s still early in 2018, and that means the Farmington City Council has recently finished compiling a list of priorities for the new year. This year, the council set city priorities, and for the first time in several years, they also set legislative priorities. The legislative priorities are a list of goals that the council sends to state Rep. Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington, and Sen. Matt Little, DFLLakeville. Farmington City Administrator David McKnight said that the council decided to start sending the legislative priorities after a long hiatus to make representatives aware of Farmington’s goals and increase the communication between the city and the Legislature. “We haven’t done this in a long time, sent legislative priorities, but we just wanted them to know before
Rosemount deserves a cheer SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
PUBLIC NOTICE
Council sets 2018 priorities City will focus on development, partnerships in 2018
by Jody Peters
Catch a Transit Authority ride
Photo submitted
Sydney Kuran, an Rosemount High School senior, appeared in the Hyundai Hope on Wheels commercial that debuted during the second half of Super Bowl 52. The commercial had been viewed more than 16 million times on YouTube as of Wednesday.