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K-12 TV

K-12 TV Episode #74

Taping Date: 7/23/09

In the first segment, MDE Commissioner Alice Seagren interviews Faribault High School automotive instructor Mark Lessman; Mike Kawell, former Faribault student and competitor in the 1996 Ford/AAA National Student Competition, and Mike Lehn, state manager of the Automotive Youth Education System.  In the second segment, Commissioner Seagren interviews Faribault High School students Justin Dwyer and Matthew Ludwig, First Place winners of the 2009 Ford/AAA National Student Auto Skills competition in Dearborn, Michigan.  The team bested 49 other teams to become the nation’s top high school automotive technology students.

K-12 TV Episode #73

Taping Date: 10/13/09

In this episode, guest host MDE Communications Director Bill Walsh talks with Education Commissioner Alice Seagren, Assistant Commissioner Karen Klinzing, and Edina Superintendent Ric Dressen about the federal Race to the Top funding application.  The Race to the Top fund is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) and provides competitive grants to states that are engaged in education innovation and reform.

K-12 TV Episode #72

Taping Date: 9/15/09

In this episode, host Minnesota Education Commissioner Alice Seagren talks with Minnesota Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Sanne Magnan regarding the Novel H1N1 influenza—what it is, what are the symptoms, how it spreads and why we should be concerned.  In the second half, Commissioner Magnan is joined by State Epidemiologist Dr. Ruth Lynfield, to talk about preventative measures at home and in the school environment.

K-12 TV Episode #71

Taping Date: 5/19/09

In In the first segment, guest host Assistant Commissioner Karen Klinzing talks with John Stanoch, Minnesota President of Qwest, regarding their collaborative efforts with the Itasca Project and the Minnesota Business Partnership to devise strategies for helping improve K-12 education in Minnesota; address the achievement gap and improve education outcomes in order to help develop a world-class workforce for our state.  In the second segment, Karen Klinzing continues her discussion with John Stanoch and welcomes Taylor Pettis, STEM Education Program Manager at the Minnesota High Tech Association (MHTA), who talks about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), the support provided by MHTA and the resources provided through the getSTEM Website.

K-12 TV Episode #70

Taping Date: 4/24/09

In the first segment, guest host Assistant Commissioner Karen Klinzing talks about the 1st Minnesota Governor’s Real World Design Challenge with John Raphael, Trades & Industrial/Technology Education Specialist at MDE, and Dr. Robert Monson, engineer from Lockheed Martin.  Both were instrumental in providing expertise and support in Minnesota’s Challenge program. The goal of the Real World Design Challenge is to inspire and engage all students in STEM and systematically highlight the potential future for those who choose science and engineering careers. In the second segment, Karen Klinzing talks with team coach Daryl Lundin, Hutchinson High School; Jesse Brooks, student participant of the winning team (The Hutch Innovators), for the 2009 Minnesota Real World Design Challenge; and Hutchinson H.S. pre-engineering student Ethan Smith.

K-12 TV Episode #69

Taping Date: 2/10/09

In Segment One, Education Commissioner Alice Seagren talks with guest Tom Boatman, MDE Supervisor in Research and Assessment, regarding the recently announced Minnesota's Growth Model—A tool to calculate proficiency and growth at the individual student level.  Minnesota’s Growth Model is available on the MDE Website at www.education.state.mn.us in the School Report Card section. In Segment Two, Commissioner Seagren interviews Assistant Commissioner Karen Klinzing and Patricia King, Director of School Improvement, regarding Q Comp and the Governor’s proposed initiative called Teaching Transformation Act.

K-12 TV Episode #68

Taping Date: 12/9/08

In the first segment, Education Commissioner, Alice Seagren, talks with Beth Berry, coordinator of the TORCH (Tackling Obstacles and Raising College Hopes) program at Northfield High School—a program to help Latino and low-income students graduate from high school and pursue post-secondary education; and Mayra Gutierrez and Giovanni Casillas, Northfield High School students who participate in TORCH.  In the second segment, Commissioner Seagren talks with Jan Mandell, a coordinator for the Seeds of Change program at Central High School; and Central High student Wesley Hampton and Khymyle Mims, a Central High alumnus. The goals of Seeds of Change are to increase the graduation rate of African American males in the St. Paul Public Schools and increase the awareness and support of higher education opportunities, procedures and encourage enrollment into post-secondary education.

K-12 TV Episode #67

Taping Date: 11/24/08

In the first segment, MDE Commissioner Alice Seagren interviews Wade Setter, Director of the Minnesota School Safety Center.  They talk about the Center’s role in partnering and collaborating with state agencies, organizations and law enforcement to provide guidance and resources to schools about school safety matters. In the second segment, Commissioner Seagren talks with Mark Dunaski, Chief of the Minnesota State Patrol, about driver safety concerns regarding young drivers, and a new video, available for high school classrooms, titled “How to Save a Life.”

K-12 TV Episode #66

Taping Date: 10/14/08

In the first segment, MDE Commissioner Alice Seagren interviews Tim Hoogland, Director of Education Outreach Programs at the Minnesota Historical Society; and Wendy Jones, Manager of the Minnesota History Center Museum, who talk about Minnesota History Day and the resources available for teachers.  In the second segment, Commissioner Seagren talks with Sade Ogundiron and Cambria Camillo, students who both won 1st place at the Minnesota History Day, and 1st place and 2nd place (respectively) at the 2008 National History Day competition.