Insight News ::: 3.14.11

NorthPoint seeks cash, food donations for March food drive MORE ON PAGE 6 stock.xchng (Maphler)

INSIGHT NEWS March 14 - March 20, 2011 • MN Metro Vol. 37 No. 11 • The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • www.insightnews.com

A tribute to

By Maya Beecham Contributing Writer

Lou

It was a full circle moment on Thursday, February 22, 2011. Lou Bellamy, Founder and Artistic Director of Penumbra Theater, addressed a large gathering of friends, family, colleagues, students, and supporters in Willey Hall at the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities campus, for a retirement celebration aptly entitled “A Tribute to Lou Bellamy.” After 17 years Bellamy is stepping down from his tenured position as professor in the Theatre Arts and Dance department. In 1972,

Bellamy

as a graduate student, he was one of three African American male students in the department. Bellamy never predicted fate would lead him to teach about the African American theater experience he was discouraged from studying as a student.

Bellamy said, “Change tends to prompt reflection and my forthcoming retirement has provoked for me what are profound realizations… Now as many of you know it’s often in graduate school that it becomes crucial to discover ones relationship to the work and ones potential for one’s unique contribution to the expansion of knowledge in a particular field. I got into the habit of focusing every question I could toward African American participation in the development of American drama. It was an uphill battle… These efforts, though rewarding, were not always rewarded.”

Bellamy said, once during his written examination he was asked to identify and describe a moment in the history of American theater during which riots broke out. He took opportunity to expound on his personal research regarding the closing of the African Grove Theater in 1821, when the entire cast of Richard III was arrested during a performance

BELLAMY TURN TO 11

Courtesy of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts

Lou Bellamy

Newspapers question NAACP decision Special to the NNPA from the Philadelphia Tribune

Tricia Khutoretsky

“Effects of the Iraq War” panel discussion on March 4 (l-r) Harry Boyte, moderator, panelists Tom Hanson, Suaad Allami, and Wes Davey.

Navigating the effects of the Iraq War

By Lydia Schwartz Contributing Writer On March 4, a panel discussion asked respected Iraqi and American voices to explore the effects of the ongoing war in Iraq. The discussion, called “Effects of the Iraq War,”

acted as the closing event of Navigating the Aftermath, a month-long exhibit at the University of Minnesota’s Regis Center for the Arts. The exhibit featured fourteen American and Iraqi artists who have been personally affected by the war.

IRAQ TURN TO 3

West Broadway Stakeholding

PAGE 2

The NAACP has been criticized for not including Black newspapers in a recent advertising campaign.

The NAACP inserted its 42nd NAACP Image Awards Magazine in the Philadelphia Daily News, however the advertisement was not included in The Philadelphia Tribune and

other markets (Los Angeles, Atlanta, Texas, New York, New Jersey and Chicago).

The magazine insert serves to highlight the Image Awards and the respective honorees.

“In (Thursday’s) Philadelphia Daily News, the 42nd NAACP Awards Magazine was inserted and not one copy was inserted in the Philadelphia Tribune, America’s oldest and America’s largest daily newspaper serving the African American community,” said Robert W.

Bogle, president and CEO of the Tribune.

“This action is an insult to the men and women who work at the Philadelphia Tribune and should be an insult to Black Americans in this country. The very right of full inclusion and participation of African Americans has been denied by the organization that purports that African Americans should be fairly included in all aspects of American life.”

The National Newspapers

Publishers Association, which represents more than 200 members of the Black press, is conducting an investigation to determine whether the practice has happened in other markets.

Members have been asked to monitor whether the general publications in their areas are carrying the NAACP Image magazine.

“We are quite dismayed and disappointed that the

NAACP TURN TO 11

Focus on science, engineering, technology, math BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -North Carolina A&T State University has joined with Indiana University and 11 historically Black colleges and universities in a partnership aimed at increasing the number of African Americans pursuing careers as researchers and scholars in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines.

Since 2007 the partnership has provided high-achieving African American students from HBCU institutions with opportunities and mentoring to help them find and succeed in graduate-level research

Aesthetics Chrishan the Prince

PAGE 5

Photos courtesy of Indiana University

Lagina Williams, of Xavier University of Louisiana, performs an experiment in 2008. North Carolina A&T State University has joined Xavier and 10 other historically black colleges and universities in the initiative.

Lifestyle

Good communication = happy marriage + $$ saved

PAGE 8

programs in the STEM disciplines.

IU President Michael A. McRobbie recently signed a memorandum of agreement with North Carolina A&T State University President Harold Martin that will open participation to selected individuals from that institution’s 10,500-student body.

“We welcome our colleagues at North Carolina A&T State University into this important undertaking,”

HBCU TURN TO 9

Honoring legends

Jones, Rollins awarded National Medal of Arts

PAGE 11

Page 2 • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Insight News

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Mobilizing West Broadway businesses

By Ivan B. Phifer Staff Writer The West Broadway Business and Area Coalition (WBC) is hosting a Membership Drive Kickoff Breakfast to encourage neighbors and residents to become a part of the community organization.

The breakfast, sponsored by Comcast, General Mills and U.S. Bank, takes place Tuesday, March 22 from 8:30 to 9:30 am at the Northside YMCA, 1711 West Broadway in Minneapolis.

Founded in 2007, WBC is a combination of West Broadway Business Association (WBBA) and the West Broadway Area Coalition (WBAC).

“For a long time now, the WBC predecessor organization never really had a membership drive for businesses and stakeholders in the West Broadway area. This

westbroadway.org

West Broadway year we decided it is time to do it,” said Ron Hick, WBC Executive Director.

The WBC will also use the membership drive to highlight some of its key successes. “Over

the last two years, the Façade Improvement Program has awarded nearly $190,000 to 26 businesses to improve their store fronts,” Hick said. “We also do advocacy and public policy

planning and projects such as the development of the West Broadway Alive plan. We were heavily involved in bringing the Minneapolis Public Schools headquarters to West Broadway.

That’s a whole new market for the businesses in that area,” he added.

Other projects WBC has in the works are the West Broadway Social Media Promotion project and business lunches/networking events. The West Broadway Social Media Promotion encourages businesses to utilize social media and develop an online presences as a means of marketing their services and products.

“We will be able to give every business a presence on the Internet through our website,” he said. They can develop a web page, create and post coupons, and post menus. They will also receive one-on-one training on how to use Facebook and Twitter to stay in touch with their customers and find new ones,” Hick said.

The business lunches will serve as networking events for West Broadway businesses.

“They will give people a chance to come together, network, raise concerns and suggest ideas on how to be more valuable to our stakeholders,” said Hick.

Hick said the WBC will also provide updates on public improvements on West Broadway and how these projects will impact area businesses. “We will talk about what this means in terms of construction and impacts on businesses and assessments costs,” he said.

The breakfast will include guests such as Don Samuels, of Minneapolis City Council Fifth Ward; Mike Christenson, Director of Community Planning and Economic Development; and State Senator for Legislative District 58 Linda Higgins.

To RSVP contact Ron Hick at ron@westbroadway.org or by telephone at (612) 353-5178.

The Arab youth revolution... a bad year for dictators

By Ahmed Tharwat “There is no doubt that mathematics and astronomy owe a great debt to the Arabs,” wrote George Sarton a Harvard historian of science in his introduction to the history of science. It all started more than 1,000 years ago, in the Ninth century to be exact. An Arab genius named Musa alKhawazmi, while the west was living the dark age, went to India to study their science.

There he took a hard look at the Indian sifr (zero), which

had been used mainly as an empty ring for calculation convenience. al-Khawazmi then came back home and introduced what is now used and known in the west as Arab numerals and the concept of zero, which resulted in a scientific revolution where algebra and computer science have been built until today.

Without the Arab zero, there wouldn’t be a digital and social Network, there wouldn’t be Facebook and there wouldn’t be an Arab revolution.

And Arab dictators wouldn’t have been doing what

Flickr (Johnathan Rashad) Creative Commons

A protestor holding the Egyptian flag during the protests that started on January 25, 2011 in Egypt that demanded the removal of the regime and for Mubarak to step down.

they have been doing for years: squandering Arab wealth and brutalizing their own people.

The Arab youth revolution has been the most transforming revolution in history. Millions of young men and women have put their lives on the line and have taken to the street to ask for freedom and dignity. The American youth who used the social network and Facebook to elect the first Black president have been missing.

American youth are on the social network mainly to be entertained and in pursuit of happiness as an empty zero.

Now, it all comes back in a full circle.

As Arabs introduced the concept of zero to the west a millennium ago, they are at it again, now giving the west a new meaning of social network that could topple dictators and transform societies.

The Arab revolution in Tunis, and Egypt that rid those countries of their longtime dictators, now is spreading in Libya where a lunatic dictator is cornered in his green zone capital city, and to Jordan,

REVOLUTION TURN TO 8

Asynchronous internal / external revolution in Libya

By A Libyan-American Twin Cities resident Copyright Insight News The foreign actions have accelerated in recent days whereas internal actions have slowed down, except for the Eastern and some Western

cities, such as Misrata, Zawya, Zwara and Zintan. The Southern part of Libya (Fezzan) has a large geographical area, but it does not have a large impact as its population represents 5% of the total population.

There are minimal actions in other cities, except in Tripoli and Surman. If the situation continues as it is,

the population will get used to the facts on the ground, while Gaddafi’s militias will continue to attack other areas.

In order to improve the situation, the following steps may be considered: 1. Continuation of media presence and media pressure with more information, analysis of the crisis.

2.

Libyan interim committee should start to use the Libyan embassies abroad that have pledged their allegiance to the revolution as a means to communicate with the foreign governments.

3. Creation of a national liberation front which consists of all the various ideologies which is to be in place until

elections take place. This front will put together a temporary council of 5-7 individuals who run the country together. The criteria for these individuals is: efficiency, can only be part of this transitional government and not a part of the future government.

4. After 2-3 weeks of the council’s creation, they are to

announce that they represent the government of the state of Libya. Should then have the ministers put in place for the transitional period, they should also not be eligible to run for presidency or prime minister or leadership positions in the future.

LIBYA TURN TO 9

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Insight News • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Page 3

BUSINESS Create an impactful career plan Plan Your Career

By Julie Desmond julie@insightnews.com Business owners usually begin their million dollar futures with a great idea and, soon after, a business plan. Entrepreneurs sometimes skip over the formal planning stage in their rush to bring in those first few dollars.

However, with or without a plan, the business eventually will flounder, grow, require financing

Iraq From 1 The Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project (IARP) sponsored the exhibit. The organization works to build the bridge between Iraqis and Americans through art, education, health, and cultural exchange projects that promote peace and reconciliation. The organization hopes to raise consciousness in the American public about the well-being of average Iraqis, their daily lives, and their culture in response to the devastation caused by

INSIGHT NEWS www.insightnews.com

Insight News is published weekly, every Monday by McFarlane Media Interests.

Editor-In-Chief Al McFarlane CFO Adrianne Hamilton-Butler Publisher Batala-Ra McFarlane Associate Editor & Associate Publisher B.P. Ford Vice President of Sales & Marketing Selene White Director of Content & Production Patricia Weaver Sr. Content & Production Coordinator Ben Williams Production Intern Andrew Notsch Distribution/Facilities Manager Jamal Mohamed Facilities Support / Assistant Producer, Conversations with Al McFarlane Bobby Rankin Receptionist Lue B. Lampley Staff Writer Ivan B. Phifer Contributing Writers Maya Beecham Brenda Colston Julie Desmond S. Himie Marcia Humphrey Alaina L. Lewis Ryan T. Scott Lydia Schwartz Stacey Taylor Photography Suluki Fardan Tobechi Tobechukwu Contact Us: Insight News, Inc. Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Ave. N. Minneapolis., MN 55411 Ph.: (612) 588-1313 Fax: (612) 588-2031 Member: Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium (MMMC), Midwest Black Publishers Coalition, Inc. (MBPCI), National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Postmaster: Send address changes to McFarlane Media Interests, Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Avenue North, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55411.

or face an opportunity to sell.

Imagine staring at elevator doors that never open. It’s the business plan that opens those doors. To truly succeed, a written document mapping out all aspects of the business eventually becomes mandatory.

Planning your career is no different than launching any other enterprise. You start your million dollar future with a unique and amazing concept: you. You can float along for a while, just traveling where the opportunities take you. But eventually, your career will flounder, grow, demand additional investments or you might face an opportunity to retire. At each crossroads, a

American invasion.

Indeed, answering questions about an ongoing war is hard. IARP’s aim with the discussion was to look to the future and give serious thought to what the war has done and is doing to each country. While Americans have seen a small part of the devastation and tragedy of the war, they want to take a step back to look at the collective and long-term effects of the war and how both countries might start to move forward toward healing and a more peaceful future.

Panelist Suaad Allami, an Iraqi women’s rights lawyer, is the winner of the 2009 International Women of Courage Award. She is also the Director of the Women for Progress Center in Baghdad, which provides free legal advice and medical care for women. “Over there, people don’t want to hear about women’s rights. They say, ‘There are more important issues.’ Many women don’t even know what rights they already have,” Allami said.

Panelist Wes Davey, an Iraq War veteran, co-founded the Minnesota chapter of ‘Iraq Veterans Against the War’. He said that he wants the service members to come back home.

“They come back with severe mental problems and end up killing themselves…

Our country has become greedy, wanting victory without pain,” he said.

Panelist Tom Hanson, a US Foreign Policy Consultant and a former Foreign Service Officer, is currently the Program Secretary of the St Paul-Minneapolis Committee on Foreign Relations. He said that America’s moral standing has greatly fallen around the world. “The number of Iraqi human lives lost because of the war will never be known…The [2003] invasion was based on deception, and self-deception, we built our policies around these lies,” Hanson said. Even so, he supports President Barack Obama’s decision to not polarize the nation further by holding the Bush Administration criminallyresponsible for their war crimes.

Hanson is concerned that Iraq has become “a war based on contracting, which hides the costs from view.”

He worries that there will be “paid contractors to protect American assets after we leave [Iraq]—a mercenary force that is paid by American taxpayers through the Foreign Assistance Budget. Our plan of going in [to Iraq] was to protect US Armed Forces throughout the Middle East.”

Allami said that she sees the direct effects of corrupt army contractors on her people and that many Iraqis don’t feel as though America has enhanced their quality of life. “The US spends so much money on Iraq but the people don’t see the impact on the ground because of corrupt and dishonest local contractors,” she said.

Davey argues that we should adhere to the ideals of the Founding Fathers, who were against Imperialism and the idea of a large standing army. “We’re spending so much money on wars that we don’t have any left to do the things we need to,” he said, “such as developing green technology and investing in schools.”

At the discussion, Davey also spoke out against the ‘revolving-door’ between the Pentagon and Wall St—where businesses that manufacture weapons and other military supplies push the Pentagon to spend more taxpayer money.

career plan is invaluable.

An effective career plan can follow the template of a straightforward business plan.

Think through these sections of a typical plan and your career path will become clear, wide and infinitely more satisfying than it was when you were wandering aimlessly from job to job.

What business are you in?

Describe where you have had the most success, and why you chose the job you have now.

Mission statement. In two or three sentences, explain what motivates you. What principles guide your actions? For example: My life’s work is grounded in my service to others. The person

who shared this with me said this single line frames every decision he makes regarding his career.

Goals and objectives. A goal is glimpse into the future. Create a music video or PowerPoint presentation in your mind featuring you and where you are in two, five and ten years. The narrative should be visual: It is a steamy summer afternoon in 2017 and my ice cream stand at the State Fair has never been busier.

Objectives are specific, measurable items that get you to your goal. These could be annual ice cream sales targets or a series of promotions that propel you to Director of Mint Chocolate Chip

Sales.

Impact statement.

Be specific. How many dollars do you want to earn? Or how many home runs will you hit in your career?

Marketing. Who values what you do? List potential mentors and professional associations and start planning to connect.

Strengths and weaknesses.

No plan is complete without a nod to core competencies. What sets you apart? Where do you add the most value? Which key skills do you need to acquire to succeed in your life’s work? Include in your career plan ideas for developing necessary new skills, learning new technologies, and frequently

Tricia Khutoretsky

“The rest of America is not affected by this war… They are indifferent because there is no draft and we don’t see our tax money going to it,” Davey said.

Hanson agrees, saying that the war in Iraq continues only because “the elites are not exposed to it.” He said that he is

becoming optimistic, however, because some Pentagon officials have said that Middle Eastern imperialism is no longer the goal. “We need to continue to support the independence of nations in the Middle East,” Hanson said.

Allami also sees hope for the future relationship between

our two countries. She sees protests in Iraq calling for local officials to listen to the people and different sectors praying together and becoming more unified. “Americans have a responsibility to help the country. We feel alone, fighting to gain our rights,” she pleads, “Don’t leave us alone in this

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upgrading the quality of your product (yourself).

A quality Career Plan is useful when it gets used. Refer to your plan when your career stalls, or when you sense a new opportunity. Fine tune the details to accommodate changes in your long term vision. Your Career Plan is unique and personal, and as simple as it is, it can tremendously impact the course of your career.

Julie Desmond is a recruiter with Express Employment Professionals in Minneapolis.

Write to julie@insightnews.com.

battle.”

“Effects of the Iraq War” was moderated by Harry Boyte, Director of the Center for Democracy and Citizenship at Augsburg College and a Senior Fellow at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.

IARP provides material support to the Muslim Peacemaker Teams (MPT) in Iraq. MPT works to bring all Iraqi groups together in peace to work for the good of the country. They do this by discouraging sectarian violence and encouraging the Iraqi people to be selfsufficient. MPT teaches peace and human rights so the Iraqi people can once again live in a civil society, to help the people to maintain their physical health, and to lift their spirits by providing encouragement and support.

The most pressing issue for MPT is sanitation education.

The infrastructure of Iraq has been ruined by the wars in recent decades, including the destruction of water and sewage treatment plants.

Most Iraqi families do not have a dependable source of pure water and have limited electricity. Contaminated water and spoiled food cause much of the illness in the country. MPT organizes teams to go houseto-house and educate families on how to protect themselves and learn to adapt to the lack of dependable refrigeration for their food.

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Page 4 • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Insight News

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EDUCATION House passes reform to reduce education gap

By State Rep. Jeff Hayden (MN-61B), State Rep. Bobby Joe Champion (MN-58B), State Rep. Rena Moran (MN-65A) The Minnesota House of Representatives passed an education reform bill Thursday, March 3 to create an alternative pathway to teacher licensure.

The bill aims to reduce the achievement gap between white students and students of

color and is likely to be signed into law by Governor Dayton.

African American legislators supported the bill, calling it a positive first step to increasing teacher diversity and education outcomes for African American students.

“It’s a moral imperative that we reduce the achievement gap and this legislation set us on that course,” said Hayden.

“We worked closely with Commissioner Cassellius to bring forward reforms that include rigorous oversight so

we can bring quality educators into our classrooms to produce quality results for the next generation.”

Specifically, these education reforms provide a means to draw talented, culturally competent teachers into the classroom to help address the achievement gap, and fill teacher shortage area needs. Teach for America, an alternative teacher preparation program which has been shown to succeed could more easily be sustained and expanded in Minnesota as a result.

“For too long, Minnesota has had one of the largest achievement gaps in the nation,” said Champion. “As our nation was tested generations ago, we must face this inequity in our education system head on with new ways to educate all learners.

That is what we are doing with these innovative reform.”

Governor Dayton, Commissioner Cassellius, and legislators fought to ensure quality standards for teachers in the final reform package.

New teachers must have a

bachelor’s degree, excellent grades, and pass rigorous exams on the content area they wish to teach. 200 hours of instructional preparation and student teaching would also be required. In addition, candidates must complete teacher performance assessment which includes evaluation by a team of teachers and administrators at the school site before they are given a standard license. The Minnesota Board of Teaching has a rigorous approval process that will be overseen by Commissioner

Cassellius to ensure effective implementation.

“We are so excited to begin this journey to improve the quality of education for young African American learners, but we are at the starting line, not the finish,” said Moran. “We look forward to collaborating with Commissioner Cassellius to ensure the best and brightest teachers are helping our children succeed.”

Governor Dayton is expected to sign the bill into law in the coming days.

AARP scholarship opportunities for women 40 and older AARP Women’s Scholarship Program is about creating chances, fostering opportunities and, ultimately, changing lives. Since 2007, The Women’s Scholarship Program awarded scholarships to help over 500 women.

to reapply for a second year of assistance • Enrolled in a U.S. Department of education accredited school or technical program within 6 months of the scholarship award date

• Educational and career goals • Challenges you may have faced in life • Basis of financial need • The likely impact of the scholarship on the women’s lives, families, and communities

An applicant for the Women’s Scholarship Program must be: • Woman, age 40 and older • Low-income • Pursuing a technical or vocational education, an associates degree, or a first bachelor’s degree • Scholarship recipients who wish

Scholarship winners are chosen by an independent selection committee established by the AARP Foundation. The following factors are considered for each applicant: • Personal circumstances and achievements

Priority is given to women in three categories: • Those who are raising the children of another family member • Those in low-paying jobs with no career opportunities and who are missing either a retirement

benefit and/or health insurance • Those who have been out of the workforce for more than five years Accreditation: Scholarships may be used for any course of study at a U.S. Department of Educationaccredited public or private post-secondary school, including community colleges, technical schools, and fouryear universities. Applicants should check with their schools enrollment or financial aid office

to confirm U.S. Department of Education accreditation.

Scholarship funds are paid directly to the institution and are used for tuition, fees, and books.

Please visit the database of accredited postsecondary institutions and program provided by the U.S. Department of Education to see if your school is accredited.

Important Dates: March 31, 2011 - Application Closes by 11:59pm CT June 2011 - Awards are

announced via email August 2011 Scholarships available for disbursements to institution December 2011 - Deadline to be enrolled in an accredited institution Go to AARP website to apply: h t t p : / / w w w. a a r p . o rg / a a r p foundation/info-2010/ scholarship-opportunities.html The scholarship program is made possible by AARP Foundation with generous support from the Walmart Foundation and AARP.

Online teacher licensure program Beautiful little towns in out-state Minnesota often have difficulty recruiting and holding teachers in their rural schools. Bemidji State University’s DLiTE (Distributed Learning in Teacher Education) designed a solution over a decade ago and has trained teachers to find employment in their own small towns across Minnesota.

How did Bemidji provide a teacher licensure opportunity for teacher candidates living in small remote towns hundreds of miles from a university?

The DLiTE program is a hybrid-online, cohortbased elementary-education teacher licensure program that culminates in a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education. This program was developed as a comprehensive, blended-technologies elementary education program for rural and urban students who, for various reasons, cannot attend a campusbased teacher education program.

A new cohort begins each fall. The courses in the program are offered in a hybrid format which means that a portion of each class is conducted in a faceto-face setting, both with faculty and students in Minneapolis at the beginning and end of the

semester and throughout the semester in K-12 classroom settings with mentor teachers, while the majority is completed online.

DLiTE is a three-year program, whether candidates have an AA, BS, or BA degree.

98% passed their licensure tests on their first try and 87% of the candidates find a job in education. The teacher-mentor each DLiTE candidate selects from their community adds an integral component to the teacher-candidate’s success.

They are excited to report their first three member ‘allDLiTE’ Teaching and Learning Team. DLiTE was 10 years old this year. Allison Biagi started the DLiTE program in January 2011. She chose teaching after seeing her mom, Elizabeth Biagi complete the Bemidji DLiTE program and observing how the flexible design allowed her mom to keep her full time job.

Allison said, “Seeing my mom complete her Bachelor of Science in Education at Bemidji was truly inspiring to me. I knew that if she could get her Bachelors on top of all the distractions in her life, then I could do it too. Without the

Courtesy of Bemidji State University

L to r: Andrea Rhoads, Allison Biagi, Elizabeth Biagi Bemidji DLiTE program, I think my mom would have had a hard time finding a school to work around her schedule. I decided that the DLiTE program would be a great fit for me, as I work at a school during the day and I can do my homework at night. Also, the Bemidji DLiTE program is affordable.”

Allison chose Andrea Rhoads to be her mentor, because she was one of the greatest teachers she

saw in her school. “She really understands kids and gives them new chances each day,” Allison said, “After spending a couple hours in her classroom she is the teacher I want to become.” It was only after the selection, that Allison discovered that Rhoads was also a DLiTE graduate.

Between her mom and her mentor, Allison has a solid support system from two women who know what it takes to stay

determined, motivated, and focused and know the DLiTE program from the inside. They both tell her that she needs to set specific times each week to work solely on her schoolwork and both recommend that she pick somewhere quiet to work such as a library or a coffee shop.

Mentor Rhoads also tells Allison about the benefits of the discussions with her classmates. DLiTE courses have

very dynamic discussion topics focused on the curriculum. The students become quite passionate about debating the current topics and it is not unusual to speak directly to the professor several times a week on the pager, email or the phone. “I hope my experience with the Bemidji DLiTE program will be just as positive as it was for my mom and my mentor,” Allison reports.

Allison will also be adding a new skill set to her teacher bag of tricks. She will be able to teach online in the new online K-12 classroom which is already here as you read this article.

Grow your own teachers!

This is the story of three teachers who were, and are, part of the DLiTE model. There are many others. The rigor of the program, along with personal contact of the instructors and mentors, ensures teacher candidates who are ready to meet the challenges facing Minnesota as it educates teachers for a new century.

Bemidji DLiTE K-8 teacher licensure program http://www. bemidjistate.edu/academics/dlite Bemidji FasTrack Secondary http://www.bemidjistate.edu/ academics/fastrack

Harlem school shatters learning barriers

By Stephon Johnson Special to the NNPA from the New York Amsterdam News While most New York City kids enjoyed their winter recess from school, a group of students in Harlem continued their learning process at the North Harlem Kumon Learning Center, where

the learning never stops.

For many of uptown kids, getting the educational edge is always a challenge and it bears out in the statistics. Recenty, for example, the New York Amsterdam News reported the release by the city of a report that shows a crisis in the number of Black and Latino students attending specialized high schools in New York City.

Despite the fact that Black and Latino students make up more than 70 percent of the students in New York City schools, only four percent of the students admitted to specialized schools were Black and six percent were Hispanic, while 35 percent were Asian and 30 percent were White.

This week we take a peek inside a decades-old learning

center first begun in Japan that has recently set up shop in Harlem and other communities of color, and we wonder if the method holds the key to broad educational achievement for Black and Latino children.

This New York Amsterdam News reporter took a trip to the Kumon Learning Center located on Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard between 129th and 130th streets to speak with the center’s director and parents and see how successful the Kumon center is in Harlem.

Upon arriving, one finds an environment of children quietly studying and working, surrounded by pennants from elite colleges and universities on blue, orange and yellow walls. The center’s director, Elizabeth M. Ebbits, discussed her vision of the company and the method that has made it such a successful learning experience for millions of children around the world.

“We’re a supplemental program, so we’re meant to complement what the students are doing in the classroom,” said Ebbits. “We’re an independentbased program. We basically start our students at what is called a comfortable starting point, and that is a point that is below grade level. We do this to fill any gaps in learning they might have; we do this to build up their confidence and their self-esteem to build up momentum.

“And from that low starting point we progress them through the program at their own pace, but each child starts at their own placing point and progresses from that placing

point going forward,” continued Ebbits. “Regardless of where they place, they all have to go through the levels. Every child has their own placing point.”

Established in 1958 in Japan

by Toru Kumon, a high school math teacher, the Kumon method is designed to teach while leading the child to academic excellence.

The goal is to master a subject before moving on to the next step. Since these programs are after school, there is no stopping point, and children can sail past their peers, who are done with school at 3 pm. The program covers preschool through high school and has centers in 46 countries with 4.2 million students worldwide and 211,957 students in America make the trip to Kumon after their school day.

When the New York Amsterdam News asked several parents how they first found out about Kumon, their answers were always the same: Word of mouth, usually from a friend.

“The way I found out about Kumon; my daughter was 3-years-old and she was going to the St. Aloysius School [in Harlem] when she and another little girl became friends,” said Shanise Thomas. “So when she had a play date with her friend, the parent showed me the work of Kumon. The parent started telling me about Kumon and how it was really good for her child— how her child was so advanced from coming here. So, she showed me the work and I said let me try them out. I came to the orientation and I think, like, the following week I brought my daughter so they could give her a

test to start the program.”

Thomas’s now 6-year-old daughter, Yeali Ulaba-Samura, who has been a student at Kumon for two years, is currently at a fourth-grade reading level.

Delys St. Hill-Lopez’s 6-year-old daughter, Tibisai, has also been in Kumon for two years and currently reads at a second-grade level. “I had a very good friend whose son had been in Kumon from age 4—she found out about [the school] from another friend of hers whose son did so well in Kumon in math that it encouraged her to put her son in,” she said. “And, it encouraged me to put my daughter in.”

St. Hill-Lopez enrolled her daughter at age 3 despite having known about it for a year. She wanted to be proactive in her approach and not wait until her daughter had any problems in school to make a move.

“The beautiful thing is that you get them at 3-years-old and you start training them to sit down at a table and focus and concentrate,” she said. “And it’s a beautiful thing.”

St. Hill-Lopez’s desire for her child to succeed academically not only stems from the love of a mother, but also from an awareness of the global competition her daughter will face when she’s older. “That’s why I think it’s important to be proactive,” she said. “I’m not confident in our educational system in this country. I look at what this country is accomplishing and other countries that have a GNP

GRADE TURN TO 9

insightnews.com

Insight News • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Page 5

AESTHETICS Chrishan the Prince

By Alaina L. Lewis Contributing Writer Determination is the name of the game for singer/songwriter, Chrishan the Prince, a St. Paul, Minnesota native, whose spent years successfully maneuvering through the music industry’s independent neck, with hit tracks like Do It To It, Gucci Swag, and Somethin’ Like It. In December 2010, his newest LP Night And Day: Platinum Vol I, sent his career into new heights when it went number one on the charts in one of the most unlikeliest places— Japan. But this presence in Tokyo, all over Europe, Australia and Asia have helped to make this Midwest superstar an international great.

Chrishan is also the winner of this year’s Twin Cities Hip Hop Award for Best R&B Male Artist, and he sat down with Insight News to tell us about his international success, his music, and what it’s like to be in control of his own musical destiny. Take a look.

Insight News: What sets your music apart from these other artists out here?

Chrishan: I create R&B music that is grittier. My uncle is Lyfe Jennings. We basically take after the same thing. If you listen to his album, we have the same style except mine is a little more new-school than his.

Chrishan the Prince

Book review

By Alaina L. Lewis Contributing Writer

Taboo

In order to walk upright in the sunshine, you have to be willing to let go of the storm.

Taboo, one of the founding members of the super group the Black Eyed Peas knows all too well the struggle of breaking out of one’s own personal rain cloud. Unbeknownst to many, while we were all dangling at the ear candy of hits like Where Is the Love, Don’t Phunk with My Heart, My Humps, and Pump It, the kid who’d once survived the mean streets of Los Angeles, was now an adult dealing with an even bigger battle; his personal struggle to overcome a reckless addiction to drugs and alcohol.

“Fallin’ Up”, his new autobiography, written with the help of ghostwriter Steve Dennis, illustrates how the Black Eyed Peas were formed, how they rose to superstardom, as well as Taboo’s parallel journey to overcome his addictions, adhere to the roles of fatherhood, and capture serendipity with a love named Jaymie Dizon.

Written with a pure and passionate prose, his story is sure to inspire others, and encourage a world of onlookers to harness their own personal victories. Taboo sat down with Insight News to talk about “Fallin’ Up”, and where he’s at in his life today as the guy who people know as the ‘Tea man’, in the club.

Insight News: So what made you want to sit down and actually pen this novel; unleashing all your vulnerabilities to the world?

Taboo: It was therapeutic to be able to tell my story as well as the story of the Black Eyed Peas and how we were formed, through my eyes. It was an initial way for people to get to know me as an individual, and all the craziness that comes along with the fame, fortune, and success—the wild antics, everything that people didn’t

TABOO TURN TO 9

13TwentyThree Photography

IN: Is that how you got into making music; because of your uncle?

Ch: My dad started the group The Dots. That was a group that Lyfe was in. You’ll hear him talk about it in interviews sometimes. My dad had a studio available for me, and I used to practice in it. I would always hear [The Dots] rehearse in the back room, and

when I would be in time out, I would pull up a chair and sit outside of the room. I used to always hear them rehearse, so it was like I grew up in that whole music environment.

IN: So you came by it honestly.

The talent is in the family, so it’s in your blood as well I see.

Well you’re an incredible artist.

Are you signed to a label, or still independent?

Ch: I’m still unsigned in the US, but I am signed to a label in Japan, and I am working out my deal with the UK right now as we speak.

IN: So why skip over the US and go straight to Japan?

Ch: Because the US is uncomfortable with what I’m doing right now. I want a good situation; I don’t want to jump into anything really fast.

Me signing a deal in Japan is broadening my horizons.

I really want to break out in more areas, not just the United States market. I want to keep my mind on the bigger box.

IN: When you say, “The US isn’t comfortable with what you’re doing,” tell me what that means?

Ch: Basically, in the US when you come out on a label, there’s a lot of different politics that play a factor into what comes out, what’s on the radio, what music videos are played on MTV, to what award shows you

show up at. I really want to be respected for my music, which is why I’m taking my own independent approach, and doing my own thing. I don’t want to be subjected to people telling me I can’t do ‘this style’ of music, or you have to tone it down a little bit. I like where I’m at, and saying the things that I want to say. I don’t really feel that I would be able to say what I’m saying now if I were signed to a major here.

IN: Why’d you wait this long to move to LA? Ch: I wanted to wait till I was ready. There’s this saying that the, ‘biggest people come to smaller cities, and they’re Kings.’ I didn’t want it to be a situation where I was big in Minneapolis, and then I come out to LA and now I have to fight my way out of sharkinfested waters. I wanted to be fully ready, and fully aware of what I was getting myself into.

I wanted to be fully prepared, and I’m glad I stuck around. It really helped me out in the long run. I made a lot of connections from just going out there for months at a time, and let me just tell you that there are a lot of fake people down there.

People will stare in your face, and they’ll look at you and say all the right things, ‘we want to work with you,’ ‘we want to do this,’ but when I get back

CHRISHAN TURN TO 9

Page 6 • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Insight News

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HEALTH Getting serious about healthy eating Health and Wellness

By Stella Whitney-West CEO, NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center

When it comes to food and health it is ironic in that as we enter National Nutrition Month, members of Minnesota’s state legislature have failed to advance anything more creative or substantive than the Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act, also known

as ‘the Cheeseburger Bill’.

This legislation is designed to protect fast food corporations from lawsuits for weight-related health problems. Unfortunately, thus far nothing has been done to help address the very real problem faced by Minnesota’s urban and rural citizens alike in accessing affordable fresh produce, a critical component to the effort to improve health and reduce obesity.

National Nutrition Month is designed to promote, “the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits”.

Depending on where you live, this can be easier said than done. In

North Minneapolis, we have evidence that choice in itself does not offset the difficulty of access to healthy foods. In 2010, NorthPoint Health & Wellness Center conducted a comprehensive food assessment that found that although residents have interest in consuming more fresh produce, it is often out of their reach.

According to the 2000 census, approximately 40% of North Minneapolis residents do not have access to a vehicle and are often reliant on foot travel to corner stores, where fresh produce is frequently limited to nothing more than a few onions, potatoes, and bananas that tend to be very expensive. Additionally,

the Center on Urban and Regional Affairs at the University of Minnesota recently found that across the city of Minneapolis, the highest concentration of households with food insecurity concerns that also had limited access to large-scale grocers were located in North Minneapolis. This, in effect, means that people living in this part of Minneapolis are at greater risk, not because of unhealthy behaviors or by choice, but because of an unhealthy environment. Where a person lives does matter.

With these findings in mind, we are working as part of a coalition of more than 30 other organizations, known as the,

“The Northside Healthy Eating Project.” Our goal is to transform the food environment in North Minneapolis to broaden access to affordable fresh produce options.

We recognize that change doesn’t happen overnight, and we understand that we must work across multiple sectors and at multiple levels to foster transformation. However, we also know that when we strive together to make even modest changes to the food environment, the results can become cumulative, and our residents, clients, and neighbors can have the opportunity to make choices that will improve nutritionrelated health outcomes for our children and ourselves.

The participation of Minnesota’s policymakers in the effort to support a healthier Minnesota would be welcomed.

Doing that would be far more effective and far reaching in the effort to improve food consumption than simply limiting food-related lawsuits to protect fast food corporations.

Stella Whitney-West is the CEO of NorthPoint Health & Wellness Center, which strives to improve the physical and socio-economic health of the North Minneapolis community through an integrated model of health and human services.

Officials investigate case of measles in Hennepin County infant The Minnesota Department of Health is working closely with Hennepin County Public Health and Hennepin County Medical Center in investigating a case of measles in an infant who lives in Minneapolis.

The child became ill in late February and was likely infectious from Feb. 22 through March 2. Hennepin County Public Health staff and Hennepin County Medical Center staff are notifying people who may have been exposed in specific settings such as a hospital or residence.

The child was hospitalized and is recovering.

Because the child’s family recently moved from Chicago and spent time in Indiana, the child could have been exposed to measles in Illinois, Indiana

or Minnesota. The child was too young to be vaccinated for measles.

The child spent time out in the community in Minneapolis while infectious. However, the risk to the general public of infection from this case is relatively low, health officials stressed, because vaccination rates for measles in Minnesota are very high. Most people in Minnesota have either had the measles or been vaccinated for measles. The greatest risk is to those who may have been exposed to the child and have not been vaccinated.

“This case reminds us of the importance of getting vaccinated for diseases, such as measles, which can be prevented with vaccines,” said Dr. Ruth

Lynfield, state epidemiologist.

“Vaccines are an extremely effective tool for prevention of diseases like measles. We are fortunate in Minnesota to have high vaccination rates. We have had seven cases including this one over the past five years; some have been related to travel to areas where measles is more common.”

The U.K and Europe see hundreds of cases every year.

While once nearly eradicated in those countries as it is in the United States, measles resurged after vaccination rates dropped.

“We need to maintain our high vaccination rates in the United Sates to make sure measles does not gain a foothold here,” Kristen Ehresmann, Director of the infectious disease

division said. “Contrary to misinformation that may still be circulating, the measles vaccine is safe and effective. Without it, the risk of disease is real.

Children can die from measles.”

MDH has alerted health care providers in the state, and particularly in the metro area, to be alert for patients with signs or symptoms of measles. Anyone who has concerns about their health should contact their health care provider. If additional cases were to occur as a result of this case, they would likely occur between March 1 and March 19, health officials said.

Symptoms of measles include fever, runny nose, cough, loss of appetite, watery eyes and a rash. The rash usually lasts five to six days and begins

at the hairline, moves to the face and upper neck, and proceeds down the body.

It generally takes eight to 12 days from exposure to the first symptom, which is usually fever. The measles rash usually appears two to three days after the fever begins.

Measles is spread through the air by infectious droplets and is highly contagious. It can be transmitted from four days before the rash becomes visible to four days after the rash appears.

There is no specific treatment for measles. People with measles need bed rest, fluids and control of fever. Patients may need treatment specific to any complications.

Complications may occur in

30 percent of those infected and are more frequent in children under 5 years and in adults and include diarrhea, pneumonia, ear infections and rarely encephalitis. Pregnant women may experience complications such as premature labor and stillbirth. Measles can be especially severe in people with weakened immune systems.

Children should receive two doses of the Measles Mumps Rubella (MMR) vaccine: The first at 12 to 15 months of age, and the second at four to six years of age.

More information on measles can be found on the MDH website at: http://www.health.state.mn.us/ divs/idepc/diseases/measles/ basics.html.

NorthPoint seeks cash, food donations for March food drive

By Ivan B. Phifer Staff Writer

Suluki Fardan

Tarik Fisher

For more than thirty years the Community Food Shelf at NorthPoint Health & Wellness Center Inc. has been available to those in need.

NorthPoint is a comprehensive health and human services agency located in the heart of North Minneapolis. It is the only remaining Neighborhood Service Program (NSP) of the original 13 established in 1968 with funding through President

Johnson’s “War on Poverty” efforts to provide coordinated access to health and human services programs. Its mission is to actively partner with other organizations to create a healthier community. Meeting basic needs for food is the first step towards health for all.

NorthPoint, formerly known as Pilot City Health Center, is participating in the state’s largest food drive, known as the March Campaign sponsored by Minnesota Food Share. The campaign is designed to bring everyone in Minnesota together to fight hunger through community

action.

NorthPoint is requesting food and cash donations to support its March Campaign Food Drive.

The goal is to collect a combined total of 55,000 in pounds of food and cash donations during the month of March.

Each year, NorthPoint’s Community Food Shelf provides food for more than 30,000 people—many of whom are in dire need. A majority of the pantry’s users are working, in school or

FOOD TURN TO 7

Food safety act targets foodborne illnesses

By EarthTalk® E - The Environmental Magazine Dear EarthTalk: What specific issues and protections are covered by the Food Safety Modernization Act recently signed into law?

-- P. Palmerino, New York, NY Existing laws and oversight

from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have done a decent job of keeping the vast majority of Americans safe from food borne illnesses, but several recent cases of contamination have put the spotlight on what more we can do to protect ourselves from unwittingly consuming harmful bacteria, parasites, viruses and toxins that could be lurking on our dinner plates.

The U.S. Centers for Disease

Control (CDC) reports that, of the 48 million Americans afflicted with some sort of food borne illness every year, 128,000 are hospitalized and about 3,000 die. In response to this growing problem, in January 2011 Congress passed and President Obama signed into law the landmark Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), a comprehensive $1.4 billion bill that aims to stop outbreaks of food borne illnesses before they begin.

ABUSED, NEGLECTED, AND MAYBE AWAY FROM HOME… Food and Drug Administration

Some 48 million Americans are afflicted with a form of food borne illness each year. The Food Safety Modernization Act, signed into law in January 2011, now gives the U.S. Food and Drug Administration wider latitude in protecting our food supply, including the ability to order recalls of tainted foods (previously, the agency could only negotiate with businesses to order voluntary recalls).

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“This law makes everyone responsible and accountable at each step in today’s global food supply chain,” reports FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg. “This law represents a sea change for food safety in America, bringing a new focus on prevention, and I expect that in the coming years it will have a dramatic and positive effect on the safety of the food supply.”

FDA inspectors have monitored domestic producers of seafood, juice, meat, eggs and poultry for decades, but the new law expands their powers to evaluate hazards in all kinds of food and to impose stricter standards on imported foods.

Processors are now required to proactively take measures to prevent contamination, and must have plans in place for corrective action when something does go wrong. Smaller producers are exempt from some of the more onerous and costly provisions of the new law, but are nevertheless

still responsible for maintaining the strict health safety standards set forth in its provisions. The new law also increases the number and frequency of inspections at both high-risk and non-high risk facilities. And the FDA can now order recalls of tainted foods; before FSMA’s enactment, the agency could only negotiate with businesses to order voluntary recalls.

Given that some 15 percent of our food supply—including 60 percent of fresh fruits and 80 percent of seafood—is imported, the new law also requires importers to verify the safety of food from their foreign suppliers and authorizes the FDA to block foods from facilities or countries that refuse inspections.

FSMA also provides funds for training, equipment and facilities at food safety agencies across federal, state, local, territorial, tribal and even foreign jurisdictions to ensure that all parties are up to snuff on the ways

and means of preventing and containing food borne illnesses.

“Really this is a major victory for every American who will sit down at the dinner table and have more confidence that their food is going to be safe,” says Erik Olson of the Pew Health Group, one the most vocal of hundreds of nonprofits in favor of strengthening our nation’s food safety net.

CONTACTS: FDA, www.fda. gov; CDC, www.cdc.gov; Pew Health Group, www.pewtrusts. o r g / o u r _ w o r k _ c a t e g o r y. aspx?id=184.

EarthTalk® is written and edited

by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss and is a registered trademark of E - The Environmental Magazine (www.emagazine.com).

Send questions to: earthtalk@ emagazine.com. Subscribe: www. emagazine.com/subscribe; Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/ trial.

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Insight News • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Page 7

COMMENTARY Support education reform; stop budget cuts Opinion

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. As the federal and state governments are all faced with severe fiscal and budget restraints, even as the United States is currently undergoing an economic recovery, the last thing that should take place is to reduce the funding for education.

At the primary, secondary and post-secondary levels, the funding for education was already grossly inadequate across the nation.

President Obama is on the right side of history as he continues to remind and challenge members of Congress, as well as governors and members of state legislatures that the future of America will be dependent

on how well we educate the nation’s children.

For Black American parents and children, the impact of proposed budget cuts in education in most states and in the various proposals now being debated in the Congress will be devastating to the African American community.

African American children still have some of the highest dropout rates in nearly every state. Increased poverty and the lack of a good education are the twin evils that perpetuate the prolonged suffering and pain in our families and communities.

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), more than 45 states have imposed budget cuts that will “hurt vulnerable residents and the economy.” In a report recently released by the CBPP, it concluded, “With tax revenue still declining as a result of the recession and budget reserves largely drained, the vast majority of states have made spending cuts that hurt families

and reduce necessary services.

In 34 states and the District of Columbia funding for K-12 has been reduced and in 43 states funding for higher education” has been slashed.

Although some governors will not admit it publicly, but had it not been for the Obama Administration’s support of

pubic education budget. In Florida, the tuition increases for public universities have been increased to more than 30% in the last two years. In Virginia, more than $700 million was cut in K-12 education funding.

In Illinois, the funding cut for school education was more than $300 million. In Detroit and

“We should be demanding more educational options for African American parents and children” the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the budget cuts to education at the state level would be even greater than now projected. That Act gave states $10 billion in additional education funding. In Colorado, $400 per student was cut in the

Baltimore, African American children in particular, will face major budget cuts in education with the closing of numerous schools. These are just a small sample of what is going on as funding overall for education appears not to be a state priority.

All of this means that African American leaders and organizations have to be more vocal and involved in the decision-making process at all levels of government to make sure that the educational interests of our children are not the first to be triaged by those who are the responsible parties to determine the federal and state budgets. Noticeably the massive protest demonstrations in Wisconsin do not exhibit a huge presence of African American participation. But when it comes to those states where African Americans are a decisive share of the state’s population, we should be out on the frontlines of the public protest movements on the issue of education.

We should be demanding more educational options for African American parents and children. We should be saying no to budget cuts that will further take away educational access and opportunity for our children. The aftermath

of the economic recession is our communities has been and continues to be very tough. But, we must not sit by in silence today when the budget ax is swinging at the heart of our communities. We have to fight for the rights of our children in good economic times and in bad economic times.

Let’s support education reform. We all have a stake in the welfare and education of all the children in our communities.

A people who will not fight for their own children will always be a people who will not be shown respect when social, economic or political decisions are made.

Our most vital resource are our children and they need our support, voice, and involvement.

Stop the budget cuts in education.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. is Senior Advisor to the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO) and President of Education Online Services Corporation.

Deamonte Driver’s continuing legacy Child Watch

By Marian Wright Edelman Four years ago this February, an entire community was devastated in Prince George’s County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C., when 12-year-old seventh grader Deamonte Driver died after complications from a tooth abscess. His mother Alyce, who worked at lowpaying jobs, had searched for a dentist to treat Deamonte’s toothache who would accept Medicaid, but she was unsuccessful.

Ultimately, Alyce took Deamonte to a hospital emergency room, where he was given medicine for a headache, sinusitis, and a dental abscess and sent home.

But his condition soon took a turn for the worse, and he was back at the hospital being rushed to surgery where it was discovered that bacteria from his abscessed tooth had spread to his brain. Heroic efforts were made to save him, including two operations and eight weeks of additional care and therapy totaling about $250,000, but it was all too late. Deamonte died on February 25, 2007—when his life could have been saved by a routine dental visit and an $80 tooth extraction.

Tooth decay is the single most common chronic childhood disease—five times more common than asthma and seven times more common than hay fever. Dental care is an often overlooked but critical component of comprehensive health care for children.

Pain and suffering due to untreated dental disease can

Deamonte Driver lead to problems in speaking, eating, and learning. For children caught without dental coverage, dental problems can quickly become more than “just” a toothache. Research shows children who lack basic dental care miss more days of school and see their overall health suffer. In fact, children miss more than 51 million hours of school each year due to dental-related illnesses.

According to the Children’s Dental Health Project, “The oral health of children has a significant and lasting impact on the productivity of our existing and future employees and leaders... Untreated tooth decay is progressive and can be devastating to children’s long-term health, educational achievements, self image, and overall success.” And as Deamonte’s death showed, in extreme cases lack of dental care can even lead to fatal complications.

Health insurance coverage is a strong predictor of access to dental care. But despite its importance, dental coverage

childrensdefense.org

is largely excluded from many private insurance plans, and pediatric dentists can be difficult to find. For every child without health insurance, there are 2.6 children without dental coverage. Uninsured children are 2.5 times less likely than children with insurance (public or private) to receive dental care.

Since Deamonte’s death, Congress has recognized dental coverage as an important component of comprehensive care for children, enacting major policy changes to improve dental coverage for children.

In 2009, the reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) required states to provide dental coverage to enrolled children, and gave states the option to provide dental benefits to certain children who do not qualify for full CHIP coverage. In 2010, the health reform bill known as the Affordable Care Act required that all insurance plans to be offered through new health

Letter to the editor There are over 350,000 working Minnesota families that have children in child care. Quality affordable child care is essential to assure parents that their child has a strong foundation in their early years. High quality child care improves cognitive ability, school readiness and the social behavior of the children in each and every licensed home in the State.

Working parents are

struggling enough in this economy without having to worry about whether they can afford child care and whether their child is safe. Minnesota families need to support child care funding so our children get the highest quality of childhood care for their, and our, future.

Minnesota is facing a huge budget deficit and many legislators are considering which programs to cut. Our legislature

needs to fund Minnesota’s working families.

Parents cannot work without child care.

It is time to invest in the 11,600 Licensed Child Care Providers in our state for the foundation of a strong learning experience for the children in our care each and every day.

Food

said.

“Baby supplies and toothpaste are also important,” Wilson said.

A large number of NorthPoint’s food shelf clients have diabetes, hypertension or both. NorthPoint works diligently to make sure that the foods they provide meet the dietary needs of people with special health needs as well as diverse families with ethnic and/or religious food preferences and needs. To address some of these special health needs, foods that are low in sodium and processed sugars, and high in whole grains and fiber, are provided.

Wilson emphasized the

importance of living up to the organization’s mission of partnering to improve health.

“A lot of our clients that come here have health issues, so we want to provide food that is good for their health,” Wilson said.

“A visitor can come to the food shelf once every 30 days,” he said. “One dollar can buy four pounds or more of food. Your dollar goes further and has more buying power,” Wilson said.

In 2010, NorthPoint’s food shelf distributed 455,875

From 6 looking for work; they simply do not earn enough to purchase all of the food they need.

“One thing that is unique about NorthPoint’s food shelf, is the healthy food shelf,” said Patrick Wilson, Development Director at NorthPoint Wellness Center. “We do not accept or purchase high fat, or sugary items. We stock a variety of vegetables, rice, beans, peanut butter, spaghetti sauce and macaroni --items people do not think of,” he

Brenda Hruza Licensed Child Care Provider Ramsey County, Minnesota

FOOD TURN TO 12

insurance exchanges starting in 2014 include oral care for children, and prohibited these insurers from charging out of pocket expenses for preventive pediatric oral health services.

These two new requirements alone will give millions of children financial access to dental health services, many for the first time.

Other provisions in the Affordable Care Act will help train more dental health providers. A new report by the Children’s Dental Campaign of the Pew Center on the States emphasizes the importance of availability of providers: the authors calculate that more than 31 million Americans are “unserved,” which means they

live in areas where they can’t find a dentist in or near their community. In seven states, more than 20 percent of the population can’t find a dentist.

Maryland, Deamonte’s home state, has become a model for reform. One innovative solution helping to reach some underserved children like Deamonte is mobile dental clinics staffed by volunteer dentists, and in November the Deamonte Driver Dental Project Mobile Unit, a large van now equipped as a three-chair children’s dental clinic, made its first stop by spending the day at Deamonte’s old school.

These victories are all key steps in the right direction, and

part of the solution still needed in order to make sure all children—poor and wealthy, rural, suburban, and urban— receive the dental health care they need to survive and thrive.

Marian Wright Edelman is President of the Children’s Defense Fund whose Leave No Child Behind® mission is to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities. For more information go to www. childrensdefense.org.

Page 8 • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Insight News

insightnews.com

LIFESTYLE Good communication = Happy marriage + $$ saved Style on a Dime

By Marcia Humphrey marcia@insightnews.com This past weekend my husband and I benefited from some sound marriage advice (Hold on before you go spreading rumors about our troubled relationship and impending divorce.). We attended our church’s quarterly Marriage Enrichment Seminar.

Its purpose was to help strengthen marriages by equipping couples with practical tools that help make their relationships’ foundation stronger.

The discussion was centered on communication and finance— two issues in marriage that are often cited as top reasons for divorce. The good news is that if you work on the goal of having more effective communication, improvements in your financial situation will most likely follow. One key lies in learning to speak your spouse’s language.

While it’s true that most every couple desires good communication, some don’t know how to achieve it. Bestselling author, Gary Chapman, offers good insight on the subject in his book, Five Love Languages. He explains that all

5lovelanguages.com/

people have a love language— one of five ways that they express or interpret love—1.

Words of Affirmation 2. Quality Time 3. Receiving Gifts 4.

Acts of Service 5. Physical Touch. On the website, a free assessment is available to help you and your mate identify your top love language— www.5lovelanguages.com The key is recognizing your spouse’s language and then speaking it (The same principles apply to your kids too). Does your honey enjoy it when you spend quality time (without TV) with her?

If so, sit down next to her, without distractions, and just talk. Does she melt like butter whenever you give her gifts (not expensive, just thoughtful ones)? Make a point to do that on a regular basis. Does your man respond most to physical touch? Rub his while he watches TV or massage his head (this shouldn’t always lead to intercourse, but when it does, great, he needs that too).

When your spouse senses that you are communicating love on his terms and in a way that he appreciates, he’ll be more responsive to everything, including working on the family budget or planning your next big family goals.

The primary aim should not be to get your spouse to do what you want him/her to do.

Instead it should be about realizing that, as husband and wife, you are on the same team

and it’s crucial to create a safe haven, where the family’s best interest is foremost.

Good communication unites any team and builds strength and confidence in all the members—husband, wife, and kiddos.

Don’t wait until you have a major marital strife before you decide to work on your marriage. Make it a priority to improve your communication, dream together, and speak the language of your spouse. In fact, it is healthy to evaluate your relationship as a couple on a regular basis and to receive insight from other trusted confidants; close (mature) friends, a pastor, or marriage counselor.

When you give attention to building effective communication within your marriage it helps to provide a type of insulation from some of the inevitable matrimonial trials and challenges of life.

In addition, couples who value and strive for successful communication are giving a gift to their children—stability, respect, and hope for the future.

Show your spouse you care by communicating in his/her love language today. Enjoy!

Marcia Humphrey is an interior decorator and home stager who specializes in achieving high style at low costs. A native of Michigan, she and her husband, Lonnie, have three children.

Hmong American Partnership helps homeowners avoid foreclosures and scams Hmong American Partnership (HAP) along with federal, state, and local government agencies and national organizations celebrated the 13th annual National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW) March 6–12, 2011.

During NCPW, groups nationwide shared tips and information that help consumers protect their privacy, manage money and debt, avoid identity theft, and avoid frauds and scams.

Unfortunately, this year an estimated 4 million households nationwide are expected to face the risk of foreclosure. Millions of homeowners will try to reduce their mortgage payments

with a loan modification. The scammers know this.

HAP, a partner of the national Loan Modification Scam Alert campaign, has 10 tips to help St. Paul and Minneapolis homeowners seeking foreclosure prevention assistance this year.

More information about the campaign can be had from www.

LoanScamAlert.org.

“We have seen a number of community members fall prey to loan modification scams,” says Sheng Lee, HAP Housing & Economic Development Director, “We are excited to be a part of the Loan Modification Scam Alert campaign because it helps us to reach people

Revolution

Algeria, Yemen, Bahrain, Sudan, Syria, Iraq and even Iran. Arab people are not just standing at, but storming

From 2

Courtesy of HAP

Sheng Lee, HAP Director of Housing and Economic Development

the gates of corruption and dictatorship. The Arab revolution is connecting and inspiring people all over the world. North Koreans and Vietnamese are studying the Egyptian revolution for their own fight for change.

America youth, however, are no place to be found. The average American spends only 15 minutes a month on Politicos, and, according to Nielsen, total minutes spent on Facebook increased nearly 700 percent year-over-year, growing from 1.7 billion minutes in April 2008 to 13.9 billion in April 2009.

Women spend more hours watching cooking on TV than actually cooking, liberating themselves from the kitchen to the coach.

The Arab revolution is taking the west by surprise, and the west can’t have it

both ways. They can’t support undemocratic dictators and democracy at the same time.

You can’t talk about peace all the time and wage wars everywhere. You can’t support Arab people revolution and Arab military entrenchment at the same time.

They can’t launch homeland security at here while waging a homeland insecurity war in the world. They can’t support Israel’s occupation of Arab lands, and support the peace process at the same time.

Obama, can’t send a kind public message to the Muslim world while privately sending drones to assassinate Muslims in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

America can’t fight Muslim fundamentalism abroad and spread Christian fundamentalism at home; can’t fight Afghani Taliban and support Israeli Taliban;

proactively and prevent them from getting scammed.”

Established in 1990 HAP is a social service and community development organization with a mission to empower their community to embrace the strengths of their cultures while achieving potential.

Since its inception, HAP has expanded to serve community members from a wide variety of cultural and ethnic groups. HAP provides critical services and support through five program departments: Education & Training; Employment Services; Health, Wellness & Elderly Services; Housing & Economic Development; and Youth &

Family Services.

Loan modification scams are proliferating at a rapid pace—costing unsuspecting homeowners thousands of dollars and often their homes.

To help combat this issue, Congress asked NeighborWorks America® (www.nw.org/ network/index.asp) to launch a national public education campaign in 2009. Today, the Loan Modification Scam Alert campaign empowers homeowners to protect themselves against loan modification scams, find trusted help and report illegal activity to authorities.

can’t fight religious Jihadists and nourish financial jihadists, because more people committed suicide for economic reasons than religion ones.

We can’t talk about liberating Muslim women and ignore subjugating our own women at home, with almost 600 rapes a day and 5 millions assaults on women committed each year in America alone.

I understand the Arab revolution is not over, and the challenges of post revolution are mounting. But there is no going back to business as usual.

It has been a bad couple of months already for Arab dictators, and it is going to be a bad year not just for the Arab dictators, but for dictators all over the world… government dictators and corporate dictators as well, because the Arab revolution is a people revolution, where people all over the world can win.

Ahmed Tharwat/ Public Speaker/Host of the Arabic TV show BelAhdan , Airs on Public TV, Saturdays at 1:30pm www. ahemdiatv.com.

insightnews.com

Insight News • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Page 9

HBCU From 1 McRobbie said.

“By expanding our partnerships with our historically black colleges and universities, Indiana University is making good on its long-standing commitment to encouraging and helping students from under-represented minorities to pursue a graduate education in the STEM disciplines.”

“We are very excited about this new strategic collaboration that will provide students from North Carolina A&T State University as well as other historically black colleges and universities a competitive edge in this global society as they pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM),” said Harold L. Martin Sr., chancellor of North Carolina A&T. Harold Martin, chancellor of North Carolina A&T State University Each summer, undergraduate students from HBCU institutions have participated in a Summer Scholars Institute and conducted research in the laboratories of faculty mentors at IU Bloomington and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). They then present their research at the annual Summer Research Opportunities Program of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC).

North Carolina A&T University joins other partner institutions Alabama A&M, Clark Atlanta, Hampton, Jackson State, Langston, Morgan State, North Carolina Central and Tennessee State universities, as well as Bennett College for Women, Morehouse College and Xavier University of Louisiana.

Taboo From 5 know about when it comes to what happened on tour with me.

I wanted to get that out. It was a chance for me to also let people know how big of an inspiration my grandmother was. That was the first initial change in my life that allowed me to know that I wanted to do this for the rest of my life, performance wise.

IN: When did you feel like you had finally reached success versus greatness, because there really is a difference between the two?

Chrishan From 5 to Minnesota, nobody will call.

Nobody will check up, and nobody will see how I’m doing.

Libya

From 2 The main priority would be to ensure the revolutionaries

Grade

From 4 maybe one-tenth of what this country produces, but yet their students accomplish so much more. A lot of people think they can just send a kid to school and that’s it: ‘Oh, my kid goes to school. They’re gonna learn.’

And, that’s not true.”

St. Hill-Lopez told the New York Amsterdam News several stories about other friends’ children to demonstrate, in her eyes, why even the prestige of a school doesn’t matter when it comes to a child’s education. “At a school like Trinity or Dalton—a number of those children end up having to leave those schools. I had a friend whose son started at Trinity in kindergarten. By the time he got to seventh grade, they told her that her son is not up to par in reading and math. They have failed her son. Her son had to leave and go to another school. Why is it that from kindergarten to seventh grade they did not make sure or give him extra tutoring?

“This country doesn’t value education. It’s about making money and it’s about taking advantage of people and getting them to make money for you. Even at the best of schools,” said St. Hill-Lopez who proceeded to mention well-known private institutions like Fieldston and Horace

Photo by Hillary Demmon

Edwin Marshall, IU vice president for diversity, equity and multicultural affairs.

Edwin Marshall, IU vice president for diversity, equity and multicultural affairs, said the Greensboro, N.C.-based, university is a good fit because of its own STEM activities. For example, several of its students already have participated informally with IU-HBCU STEM summer programs and have been on campus for other similar activities.

Marshall said the initiative’s ultimate goal is to increase the number of black faculty and academic researchers traditionally underrepresented in the STEM disciplines, who also serve as mentors and role models for others.

“According to a recent

survey by the Bayer Corp., a lot of students have been deterred from pursuing careers within the STEM disciplines by their faculty and others within their academic pipeline, not because the student showed a poor acumen or was performing poorly in class, but because of non-validated information suggesting that they do something else,” Marshall said. “I don’t think this is done intentionally to keep students out, but a lot of faculty might think they are doing the student a favor by guiding them to areas that are a little softer.”

“As we have seen with the students coming here, there is often a tendency to underestimate what they can

IU President Michael McRobbie do and contribute,” he said, adding that involvement of IU faculty partners with the

Harold Martin, chancellor of North Carolina A&T State University

STEM Initiative has caused them to “become some of our biggest supporters.”

“If we can increase the number of faculty in the STEM disciplines who come from similar backgrounds, and who can reflect on their own paths to achievement, it will help lead to more students following in their footsteps.”

Of the 61 scholars who have participated in the I U - H B C U STEM Initiative, 25 of the 40 who have graduated so far have enrolled in master’s and Ph.D. programs around the country, including at IU. In 2008 one of the students who participated during the first year enrolled at IU as a doctoral student in neuroscience and received support from the Herbert

Presidential Fellows Program.

In April, IU President McRobbie and North Carolina A&T President Martin will host the CEOs of the IUHBCU partner institutions on the campus of North Carolina A&T State University to discuss the future direction for the consortium, which could include even more student scholars, new research collaborations involving students and perhaps faculty exchanges. About 70 faculty members and administrators were involved in the original planning process.

Marshall said the IUHBCU STEM Initiative also has helped IU to identify other activities at IU Bloomington and IUPUI and tie in those programs to the STEM Initiative.

“We’re developing a nexus of activity with the STEM Summer Scholars program just being one component,” he said.

“Many of the current ideas and concepts around collaboration might not have existed but for what we’ve seen happen the last four years.

“Understanding comes with conversation, so when you have students and faculty from different backgrounds and perspectives working sideby-side in a laboratory setting over the course of eight weeks, there’s greater understanding and appreciation of each other,” Marshall said. “The more that we can do to bring various cultures together, the better we are able to advance understanding, not just around STEM, but many other social issues as well.”

More information about the IU-HBCU STEM Initiative is available at http://www.stem. indiana.edu/.

Copyright © 2011 The Trustees of Indiana University

IN: How has your epiphany strengthened your relationship with your son?

Ta: Me and Josh have grown together as father and son.

It took me a while to really understand the power that being a father presented. There’s a lot of strength that comes with it, but for so many years I was so clouded and delusional because I was abusing substances and drinking. I was kind of a joke. I was kind of like that embarrassing dad that my son didn’t want to be around because I would say things at restaurants, and disrespect people… It was one of those things, one of those moments, where I felt like I wasn’t up to par to be a parent. Now we have an understanding. I think the book will give you a better insight, and it will help you see the journey more.

IN: When you were struggling with substances, did you ever feel like you were at risk of being ousted from the Black Eyed Peas?

Ta: No, because we were so supportive of the good times and the bad times. My partners were always there for me, and they stuck with me no matter what, whether I was coherent or incoherent. They really believed in me enough to be there. That’s the strength of the group, the people around me, my family, and my parents. I never felt like that, but I did feel like I was letting them down, especially the day that I got arrested.

IN: So was your family instrumental in getting you noticed, or how did you take the industry by storm and create opportunities like the one with Nelly and Trey Songz

by yourself?

Ch: I got noticed off of the web presence alone by just posting myself on BLOGS. The BLOGS helped me a lot because they actually recognize the talent. I would talk to the people and interact with them freely. There was one website

in particular, RnBXclusive.com that got me connected with the world. My manager found me off of some blog. He found me at the same time that he found Jason Derulo, and Jay Sean. We were all just like brand new up and coming artists. That same year both of them got signed.

Basically the internet just took things to another level for me.

I figured out how to utilize the web at an early age. I started doing my own graphic design, my own websites, and my own press releases. I was just basically super active when it came to my career.

are in control of the ports: Tobruk, Zwitina, Brega, Ras Lanuf, Misrata and Zwara.

The reasons for this is: 1. To receive food and assistance, 2.

To continue with export of oil, 3. To evacuate foreigners or

others.

Foreign intervention is not accepted, what may be helpful is technical, logistical and humanitarian assistance.

This would translate into no military presence on the

ground, but may include the following: interference of Gaddafi’s military communication systems, supplying of light artillery, supplying of food stocks and medical supplies, supplying

satellite communication systems equipment for the revolutionaries.

With regards to financing the revolutionary activities, make an agreement with 1-2 oil producing countries (KSA,

Qatar, UAE) that you would give them ½ of Libya’s clients to be supplied by the selected countries which would then be returned (eg 10mln barrel loan which is loaned for a period of 6mnths).

Mann to further emphasize her point. “And, they won’t hesitate to show your child the door… especially an African American child.”

With all the positive stories about Kumon, you would think

that it’s hard to be admitted to such a program. When asked about the criteria for getting into one of the learning centers, Ebbits said, “As long as they don’t wear a diaper and can sit in a chair for a few minutes. That’s

it,” she continued. “That’s the criteria.”

To find a Kumon Center near you visit: http://www.kumon. com/GetStarted/FindACenter. aspx or call 877.586.6673 for more info.

Ta: Success is something that is acquired; fame is something that you become. I always thought to myself that I wanted to be successful so I could take care of my kids, my wife, and my family. For me, I think that a big step for me to say success happened was doing the Super Bowl. That was a huge moment of success for us—for the Black Eyed Peas as a group that started in 1995 and had dreams to tour around the world, but never imagined that we would be the first hip hop band performing at the Super Bowl. The thing about it, as best friends, we’ve always had to overcome the road blocks because of our ethnic background. I’m

Mexican-American, Apl.de.ap. is Filipino, Will-i-am is African American, so we’ve always had to prove ourselves as capable of rocking the big stages, traveling the world, and creating a sound that would transcend a culture.

We definitely made it relevant that night.

I only have two real friends, and that’s Kyle Christopher and Chris Ivery. Chris Ivery, if you’ve heard of her, was signed to Ryan Leslie’s Next Selection label. I met them out in LA, and they call me almost everyday to check up and we work together.

I’m actually glad that I found

those two people out of that whole equation.

IN: What was your journey like after treatment? How are you able to stay centered?

Ta: I did this treatment called Prometa, which takes away urges and cravings for drugs, alcohol, smoking, cigarettes— any urges or cravings. That really helped me to be in those environments. The first year I was really scared. I didn’t

want to be in the environment because I was getting used to it being a part of my personal job.

Now when I go to after parties that we’re hired to do, I always have my green tea, and I get flack for it, but it’s become who I am. People already know me as the ‘Tea man’, at the club, and I enjoy that. I enjoy being the individual that doesn’t need drinks, or doesn’t need to fall into the same category as everybody else. I’ve matured a lot since the epiphany.

Page 10 • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Insight News

Classifieds / Calendar

insightnews.com

PHONE: 612.588.1313

FAX: 612.588.2031

EMAIL: andrew@insightnews.com

Catherine Kennedy: “The Baggage We Carry�

On exhibit now thru April 23, 2011 Obsidian Arts 3501 Chicago Ave. So., Minneapolis Gallery Hours: M-F - 10a to 6p Sat-Sun - 10a - 2p Artist Catherine Kennedy has been artistically documenting the social and emotional unpacking of memories by a group of elder women refugees from war torn Liberia. Kennedy’s work has culminated in a series of dynamic tension filled works that comprise Obsidian Arts’ newest exhibition offering: “The Baggage We Carry.�

America’s only civil war is such a thing of myth today that most cannot imagine the horror of having your country, its pastures, its pathways, and your daily practices fall away from underneath your feet as you are forced to watch. Few can understand that you do not just pick up and leave physically and that you may never leave your

Courtesy of Obsidian Arts

“Dancing� beloved country emotionally. With a practical and artistic appreciation for their journey, a journey her own grandmother made, Kennedy has created film-memory, sculpture, social processes, assemblages, and altered photographs as a way to share the experience with others. Kennedy’s

Cecilia Stanton

grandmother was deeply rooted in the experiences these women had but died last year before this work could fully unfold.

Suzanne Roberts, art historian, suggests “effective use of assemblages forces audiences to interact with art works on both conscience and un-

“Dressing� conscience levels. These curiosities compel our minds to revisit (carry) effective works like the assemblages Kennedy creates in an attempt to make them fit our individual sense (baggage) of the topic.�

Catherine Kennedy earned her BFA from the Minneapolis College of Art

Courtesy of Obsidian Arts

and Design and an AA from the National School of Fine Arts, Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Her recent exhibits, recognitions and awards include: Minnesota State Arts Board, Artist Initiative (2009); “Exit-Installation,� African Market and Deli, Minnesota/USA.

Courtesy of Metropolitan State University

Calliope Women’s Chorus performs free concert Calliope Women’s Chorus will perform a free concert at Metropolitan State University on Saturday, March 19 from 7–9 p.m. in the Founders Hall Auditorium. The concert, “In Sisterhood We Trust,� recognizes Women’s History Month and features music from the suffrage movement and other songs of women’s freedom.

Cecilia Stanton, dean of students, is the guest artist. Also participating are the Freedom Band jazz combo and members of DrumHeart. Free will donations will be accepted. There will also be refreshments sold.

This event is sponsored by the university’s Diversity Learning Task Force, gender and sexuality student services and the Women’s Commission.

STEVE WEWERKA “The Wandering iProject�

Director of Development Development Director, Mid Minnesota Legal Assistance/Fund for Legal Aid. For details go to http://www.mylegalaid.org/jobs.

Images: Steve Wewerka

View the newest images of Steve Wewerka in a yearlong documentary. These images capture the beauty of America, the drama of daily life and the triumph of the human spirit. Mar. 18 6-11pm and Mar. 19 12-6pm at 2242 University Ave. W. Studio #150 St. Paul.

Supervising Attorney Supervising Attorney – Senior Law Project, Legal Aid Society of Minneapolis. For details go to http://www.mylegalaid.org/jobs.

CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT AND ESTIMATING Send Community Calendar information to us by: email, andrew@insightnews. com, by fax: 612-588-2031, by phone: (612) 588-1313 or by mail: 1815 Bryant Ave. N. Minneapolis, MN 55411, Attn: Andrew Notsch. Free or low cost events preferred.

PCL Construction Services, Inc. is seeking a Field Engineer, Project Manager, Superintendent, and Project Estimator. Additional information for each position and employment requirements can be found online at www.pcl.com.

Job ID #2158, #2159, #2160, #2161 Applications accepted online only. www.pcl.com No phone calls or walk-ins please.

EOE, AAE, M/F/D/V

Events

POLICE RECEPTIONIST/ TRANSCRIPTIONIST/CLERK The City of Brooklyn Park is seeking applicants for a part-time Receptionist/Transcriptionist/Clerk to provide customer service and general clerical, transcription, and administrative support to the Police Department. $18.45/hr. Schedule: 3:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. every Monday/Tuesday and 4:00 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. on rotating Fridays. Possible alternating weekend hours 6:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. City and supplemental applications forms and job posting with additional information and required qualifications available on city web site or address below. Closing date: 5 p.m., Friday, March 25, 2011.

City of Brooklyn Park 5200 85th Avenue North Brooklyn Park, MN 55443 Phone: 763-424-8000 Fax: 763-493-8391 www.brooklynpark.org Equal Opportunity Employer

TELEMARKETING POSITION Insight News is seeking applicants for a part-time Classified Sales Telemarketing Representative.

This position is perfect for a college student or someone looking for part time employment.

Hours are Mon-Thursday, 10 – 2 PM, not to exceed 20 hours per week.

Position Duties: • Deliver prepared sales talks, reading from scripts that describe Insight News and www.insightnews. com, in order to secure classified advertising. • Contact businesses by telephone in order to solicit sales. • Adjust sales scripts to better target the needs and interests of specific individuals. • Answer telephone calls from potential customers who have been solicited through advertisements. • Telephone or write letters to respond to correspondence from customers or to follow up initial sales contacts. • Maintain records of contacts, accounts, and orders.

This position requires a high school diploma, previous telemarketing experience and the ability to produce results.

Please submit resume with three references to batalara@insightnews.com NO WALK-INS and no PHONE CALLS, please.

Early Childhood and Assistive Technology - Mar 15 — A free workshop for parents of young children with disabilities and for professionals.

It is on Tue., Mar. 15 6:30-9pm, at PACER Center, 8161 Normandale

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Blvd., Bloomington, Minn. Advance registration is requested. To register for the workshop, call PACER at 952-838-9000. In Greater Minnesota, call 800-537-2237 (toll free) or visit PACER.org Creative Housing and Services Options - Mar 16 — A free workshop for parents of teenagers and young adults with disabilities.

It is on Wed., Mar. 16 7-9pm, at PACER Center, 8161 Normandale Blvd., Bloomington, Minn. Advance registration is requested. To register for the workshop, call PACER at 952-838-9000. In Greater Minnesota, call 800-537-2237 (toll free) or visit PACER.org

Commercial Mechanical Contractor Community Action Partnership of Ramsey & Washington Counties Energy Conservation Program (CAPRW), a private non-profit, is seeking a commercial mechanical contractor to replace existing hot water heating boilers and ancillary equipment in three separate multifamily housing facilities located at the same site. Each three story unit has a single mechanical room which houses its current heating equipment. Project construction is expected to be limited to the three mechanical rooms and their combustion vent chases running to the rooftop. Contractor will be expected to pull all necessary permits, call for fi nal city inspection, perform final equipment tests and train on-site facility staff upon final project completion.

Proposing contractors and sub-contractors must be licensed, bonded and insured and pass a criminal background check. Residential Davis Bacon pay scale applies.

Contract documents will be made electronically available on Monday, March 14, 2011 by email request to Geneva Turner, gturner@caprw.org, at CAPRW. Contract documents will then be emailed to all interested parties. A mandatory pre-bidder’s walkthrough for all interested parties will be held on Tuesday, March 22, 2011, at 1:00 PM at 175 Charles Avenue, St. Paul, MN.

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Contractors must submit either a sealed or electronic bid by Friday, March 25, 2011 at 12:00 Noon. Late submittals will not be considered.

Send bids to:

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Geneva Turner Community Action Partnership of Ramsey & Washington Counties 450 N. Syndicate St., Suite 45 St. Paul, MN 55104 gturner@caprw.org

SeniorNet Open House - Mar 18 — Low Cost Computer Classes for Adults 50 and older.

MCTC Campus 1403 Harmon Place, Mpls,

MN. Call 612 659-6253 for details and free Open House parking.

Improving Communication within the Black Family - Mar. 21 — FREE African American Parenting Workshops & Support Group. Mon. Mar 21, 7:30-8:45PM @ Sunray Library 2105 Wilson Ave. St. Paul, MN 55119. For more information please contact Shatona Groves @ 612-568-6326 or visit www. theblackparentgroup.com.

Art at Highland - Mar 26 — A juried one-day indoor spring art fair sponsored by Highland/Macalester/ Groveland Community Education in cooperation with Artists’ Circle, a nonprofit educational advocate for fine crafts which promotes the exhibition and sale of work by quality artists. Sat. Mar. 26, 10am–5pm. Highland Park Senior High School 1015 S. Snelling Ave, St. Paul.

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insightnews.com

Insight News • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Page 11

Jones, Rollins awarded National Medal of Arts the award.

Rollins, a Grammywinning American jazz tenor saxophonist, is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. A number of his compositions, including “St. Thomas,” “Oleo,” “Doxy” and “Airegin,” have become jazz standards.

The National Medal of Arts is a White House initiative managed by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).

By Richette L. Haywood (NNPA) – The ceremony was brief. But, that was no reflection on the significance of the event or the remarkable contributions of the award recipients.

When introducing the 2010 National Medal of Arts recipients, President Barrack Obama said the artists “helped inspire me, or get me through a tough day or take risk that I might not otherwise have taken.”

This year’s list of 10 poets, authors, and musicians, who received this country’s highest award for their individual contribution to the creation and production of the arts, included producer Quincy Jones and jazz musician Sonny Rollins.

When presenting the 77-year-old Jones with the medal for his extraordinary

President Obama presents Quincy Jones (l) and Sonny Rollins (r) with the National Medal of Arts during a White House ceremony contributions to American music, President Obama said, “as a master inventor of musical hybrids, he has mixed pop, soul, hip-hop, jazz, classical, African, and Brazilian music into many dazzling fusions, traversing virtually every

medium, including records, live performances, movies, and television.”

Jones is a multi-Grammy Award winner, who has been in the music industry for half a century. He has worked with a broad range of artists, including

Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Will Smith.

Obama touted the 80-yearold Rollins with being “widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians of the post bebop era.”

“I’m very happy that jazz, the greatest American music, is being recognized through this honor, and I’m grateful to accept this award on behalf of the gods of our music,” Rollins said on his website, of receiving

2010 National Medal of Arts •Robert Brustein •Van Cliburn •Mark di Suvero •Donald Hall •Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival •Quincy Jones •Harper Lee •Sonny Rollins •Meryl Streep •James Taylor

Bellamy From 1 and held in jail until they promised never to perform Shakespeare again. Bellamy said, “It was made clear to me by the department in no uncertain terms that although my research was indeed interesting, and though I was allowed to pursue it if I so chose, I would still be held accountable for the body of information taught and therefore sanctioned by the department. Now this defense of academic propriety only thinly veiled the eurocentrism rampant in the department at the time, and as a nascent intellectual the sting of this rebuke was acute. I think now of the trust I share with our graduate students today and I realize just how vulnerable I was then. How severely that rejection could have derailed my sense of self-worth and my intentions to participate in the world of theater.”

Instead in 1976 Bellamy with a group of like-minded artists seeking refuge in the freedom of Black expression in theater founded Penumbra Theater at Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center in the historic Rondo Community of St. Paul, Minnesota.

Bellamy said, “In 1972 I could not have imagined that I would be standing here today: that the University would have so deeply impacted my art and that my art would have so deeply impacted the University. I want us now, from this vantage point, to dream bigger still.”

For Bellamy a bigger dream includes providing opportunities for African American students to build on a legacy of African American culture and history in Theater.

Bellamy said, “Making formal the informal relationship which has been forged between the University of Minnesota Theater and Dance Department and Penumbra Theater is from my perspective the most sensible action to achieve this in. Is it

NAACP From 1 NAACP has, it appears, blatantly overlooked the value of the Black press in slighting and disrespecting the Philadelphia Tribune and when you disrespect one of our papers, you disrespect all of our papers,” said NNPA Chairman Danny Bakewell.

Bakewell says the Black Press has continuously supported the NAACP. “Whenever they have a need the Black press carries their message without question or qualification because we

Lou Bellamy

Courtesy of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts

possible for us to ensure that the information gleaned from my experience, the nationally acclaimed and culturally based professional art and education in Penumbra programming, might be available to any young African American graduate or undergraduate seeking a degree in theater at the University of Minnesota? I join anyone who would commit to working toward this end. It means funding, dollars for scholarship, staffing, and developing and improving appropriate curriculum. The challenge is great, but the rewards might be even greater.”

Seated amidst a diverse crowd celebrating Bellamy’s life work, was a student influenced

by Bellamy’s teaching. H. Adam Harris embodies the legacy of Bellamy’s commitment to advancing the presence of African American history and culture in American Theater. Four years

ago Harris was a freshman at the University of Minnesota in the Guthrie Theater Bachelor of Fine Arts Actor Training Program. He came to the Twin Cities by way of Detroit, Michigan seeking in depth training of classical theater.

He perused the class offerings for his first semester and discovered the class, “Blacks in American Theater.”

He immediately identified, and began researching the class instructor Lou Bellamy.

Harris scheduled a meeting with Bellamy and literally and figuratively sat at his knee absorbing his experience, wisdom and knowledge concerning race in regards to theater. Harris said, “[Bellamy] basically grilled me on every question and what I thought Black theater should be and what I thought art meant to me. And in response to that I told him everything. I told him how I felt. I told him that I believe that art that I do, and the art that he does is a

crossroads of theater and who we are. And both my forefathers and his forefathers were August Wilson and Shakespeare, and Anton Chekhov along with Ed Bullens, and I think the combination of those adds a certain life and a certain love to what we do as Black artists, as Black theater artists.” From this fateful meeting, Harris as a freshman was secured a spot in two graduate theater courses taught by Bellamy. Harris recalled, “He said you need to be in there. And frequently he would stop class no matter who else was in there, and he would point directly at me as the only young Black male actor in the room, who the class was about, he would stop and point directly at me and say you need to hear this.”

Harris, graduating in May 2011, is now serving as an understudy for the Penumbra Theatre production of August Wilson’s ‘Ma Rainey’s Black

Bottom.’ He is also walking through the path paved by Bellamy’s blood, sweat and tears for freedom of expression as a Black male and Black voice within American theater. “They call Lou a race man and I have become a race man… And I think over the four years here I have incorporated so much of [Bellamy’s teaching] into my thinking and my mindset.

When I go to a piece of theater, I say, ‘what are the power dynamics taking place?’, ‘how does race play into that?’, and ‘what are the stories we are telling?’ You know we watched a lot of video, and we read a lot of great pieces that were concerning themselves about race on stage and watching Lou direct and seeing how he works with race on stage it’s all very powerful and very potent and its definitely changed the way I look at theater and what I do.“ Dominic Taylor, Associate Artistic Director at Penumbra

Theatre said, “The fact that he has skills as an artist is one thing but where his heart sits and why he thinks his work is important and why he continues to do it is awe inspiring. I think we don’t appreciate educators or artists who engage not just in the practice for the sake that they are good at it or for the sake that they are smarter than somebody else but for the simple fact and the impossible task of trying to change the world.

He actually is trying to reposition how all of you think about the world... I think that if somebody understands how open he is with the students, he is actually open with everybody that I have ever seen him come in contact with.

That is one of the reasons we are honoring him, and I also think that is one of the reasons why the University is really, really going to miss Lou in ways that you don’t know.”

believe in the mission, and it seems as though, from this action, that the NAACP, under Mr. Jealous, is losing their way and that troubles me greatly,” he said.

“You have to ask the question of who are they trying to get to watch the Image Awards. It is a Black program. It is without question a quality program, and is it something that they are trying to get white people to watch, taking for granted that Black people will watch it?” said Bakewell, who publishes the Los Angeles Sentinel.

The Los Angeles Sentinel, which is the city’s oldest and largest Black newspaper, did not carry the insert either.

“This is not the first time that something like this has happened. We would expect that the NAACP would, without any hesitation, ensure that the Black press is the primary vehicle for communicating its message about the Image

Awards or any other issues that come up,” Bakewell said.

NAACP officials could not be reached for comment by the Tribune’s deadline. “At the end of the day this is not just about communication, this is about economics. The fact that they

are buying the message from the White papers and they want us to convey the message free in Black papers is insult to injury,” Bakewell added.

“We have supported them and we will continue to support them in the future but this has

got to stop. We want a full explanation and a declaration of what the NAACP’s actions will be towards Black newspapers in the future,” said Bakewell.

Contact Tribune staff writer Ayana Jones at (215) 893-5747 or AJones@phillytrib.com.

Page 12 • March 14 - March 20, 2011 • Insight News

insightnews.com

SPORTS Quietly emerging young Wolves Mr. T’s Sports Report

By Ryan T. Scott ryan@insightnews.com Lost in another of Kevin Love’s huge milestone statistical performances was perhaps the birth of “What the Wolves really need”. Rookie Wesley Johnson kept the intent look on his face during a stretch of game-winning offensive and defensive plays against the Golden State Warriors recently. That evening seemed to put a stamp on Johnson’s increased role now that former defensive prodigy Corey Brewer has departed for the New York Knicks. While his peer Demarcus Cousins, whom many preferred the Wolves draft over Johnson, is fighting in the locker room in Sacramento, and occasionally ‘beasting’ on the court, Johnson just keeps his steady look of determined intent through the highs and lows of his early growth.

Johnson’s game winning play, in which he perfectly guarded one of the NBA’s best offensive players Monte Ellis, ended with the type of swatting block that an older brother

Food From 7 pounds of food to 10,595 households representing 30,643 people. In addition, the organization distributed 78,618 pounds of fresh produce at its produce distributions.

Furthermore, over 52 percent of the food shelf clients

gives his younger sibling. In Johnson’s initial post-draft press conference, I asked him about the influence of his almamater Syracuse University.

Syracuse has a long stream of solid professionals and mature, successful NCAA tournament teams that their men’s basketball program can boast of. Both Johnson’s defense on the mentioned play against Monte Ellis, and his reaction thereafter, finally answered that question. Wes Johnson is simply a sound, hard-nosed, professional basketball player.

It takes sound defense to guard a shifty Monte Ellis, and it takes a professional to come back in the next game and give Kobe Bryant everything that a rookie can give on defense.

Though many are lauding Johnson’s defensive emergence, it was his lack of fear shooting the ball that stood out from day one. Johnson’s 17.5 ppg average during the recent four-game stretch ending with a victory over the Detroit Pistons shows that he really doesn’t have to get too much better shooting the ball; if this is something he can do consistently. The intent look on his face says that he can, and that he’ll likely be intent upon sharpening his shooting ability over the coming offseason.

And while Johnson’s rookie team peer Lazar Heyward is also showing had incomes at or below 100% of the federal poverty level and an additional 37% had incomes at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. About 11% of the food shelf’s clients had incomes above 200% of poverty.

An ongoing challenge in North Minneapolis, in addition to high unemployment, is the lack of access to affordable fresh foods, particularly fruits

customsportscovers.com

Wes Johnson some ‘belongonthecourtness’ (meaning he’s one of those players that doesn’t do anything great, but hustles and plays really smart—kids note that you can get to the NBA that way), and even second year Syracuse drafted guard Jonny Flynn is getting his scrap back, it is second year center/forward Anthony Randolph that just earned the ‘What do we have here’ Award.

Randolph was one of the

quiet elements in the recent trade that involved Corey Brewer from the Timberwolves, Carmelo Anthony from the Denver Nuggets, and a partridge in a pear tree.

Randolph quickly emerged in the game against the Detroit Pistons, displaying the athletic liveliness that the Wolves exactly needed. Randolph is another of Timberwolves General Manager David Kahn’s projects, which include

several highly drafted players whose fortunes have simply not jived in their previous NBA pit-stops. Forward Michael Beasley seems to be the crown jewel of that movement, though Randolph has shown some immediate abilities that could rocket him up the chain of command. Fortunately Randolph is a busy jumper in the middle, and thus may be able to earn his points without plays being specifically run

and vegetables. As a result, many residents purchase food at local mini-marts and gas stations where there is little if any high quality produce available.

The lack of grocery stores is compounded by the issues of poverty and lack of transportation faced by many residents of North Minneapolis. There is only one large grocery store, one

discount grocer, two standalone food shelves and only a few limited farmers’ markets/ produce stands.

Food shelf services include: Supplemental Food Supply, Non-food Items/Baby Supplies, Fruit and Vegetable Distributions, and Nutrition and Health Education.

The supplemental food supply allows visitors to receive a 3 to 4-day supply of

food every thirty days.

Baby supplies and hygiene products are also distributed when available. NorthPoint distributes fresh fruits and vegetables free of charge to the community every other Friday morning (May - August), and as available throughout the year. With nutrition health and education, visitors are offered point-of-contact nutrition education, along with cooking

for him. Together with 7ft Darko Milicic and the thick 7ft henchman Pekovic, Randolph provides some much needed length, which is necessary when the extra-long Lakers are reigning over the Western Conference.

The Wolves are a long way from worrying about beating the Lakers on any consistent basis, but even Lakers Head Coach Phil Jackson complimented the talent that the Wolves have surrounding their new All-Star Kevin Love.

Jackson seemed to feel that the Wolves were only a player away from being able to make a little noise in the conference.

Then again Jackson is retiring after this year, and former Laker player and assistant coach Kurt Rambis, now leads the Timberwolves team; a helpful compliment on the way out the door.

Spanish guard Ricky Rubio is on his way to the Timberwolves next year (supposedly). I’ve been a supporter of the strategy the Wolves have taken, and think that they just might… just might… be a year away. If you go to the inexpensive games now you can say that you aren’t a ‘frontrunner’ when they start to play good next year… or the year after… or the Lakers could just keep winning everything. Hope springs eternal for us all.

demonstrations, information on exercise, food budgeting and grocery shopping.

NorthPoint accepts cash donations, food donations and invites interested parties to volunteer. Donations may be delivered to NorthPoint 1311 Penn Ave N in Minneapolis.

To find out more about the drive contact Patrick Wilson at (612) 767-9180.

The New Face of Construction

Women in Construction Expo You are the new face. Be a part of the change.

Train for a new career in just 20 weeks in the in-demand field of construction, where you can earn an average consistent wage of more than $15/hr.

Strong

Contractors are looking to hire trained, skilled, professional women immediately.

Women Wear Hard Hats Too Tuesday, April 5 at 10 a.m.

Motivated

Determined

• Learn about Summit programs • Network with industry professionals • Talk with women who have gone through the program • Hear from representatives from the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit, FBI Building and Whipple Building projects

Get the skills, certifications and support needed to be hired.

Mark Your Calendar!

April 5, 2011 at 10 a.m.

(Must arrive on time to participate) 935 Olson Memorial Highway Minneapolis, MN 55405

Unified

call 612-377-0150 or visit www.saoic.org

935 Olson Memorial Highway • Minneapolis, MN • 55405 612-377-0150 • www.saoic.org