The Central Minnesota Arts Board recently awarded $70,386 in organizational development grants. Some of the awarded organizations were the following: Great River Educational Arts Theatre ($10,000), Lyricality ($10,000), Paramount Center for the Arts ($10,000), SOAR Regional Arts ($10,000), St. Cloud Municipal Band ($4,790) and Youth Chorale of Central Minnesota ($10,000).
Stearns History Museum recently received a Historical & Cultural Heritage Program Large Grant from the Minnesota Historical Society for the care of three-dimensional collections. The project, Three-Dimensional Collections Evaluation & Clean-up, focuses on the inventoried collections database from 2016-present, which includes just more than 3,500 objects. Two temporary staff will be hired to assess these records, clean up the metadata and control language in the system, and take high quality photographs of each artifact. Once complete, the daily use of the collections database will be more efficient and the museum staff’s ability to locate and share information about the more than 30,000 artifacts in the collection will be more straightforward. The long-term goal is to allow the public greater access to the Stearns History Museum collection in an online format. The original digital inventory was completed in 2015 and this $120,342 evaluation project is the next step in that process. Work on the grant began Dec. 1 and will run through Dec. 1, 2023.
The Metro Bus Training & Safety Department is honored at the Nov. 15 Metro Bus board meeting. Members are the following (left to right): Metro Bus CEO Ryan I. Daniel, Board Member John Libert, Waite Park Mayor Rick Miller, Training & Safety Specialist Josh Sachs, Training & Safety Manager Scott Stark (a Sartell resident), Training & Safety Specialist Dean Henkemeyer, Sauk Rapids Mayor Kurt Hunstiger and Metro Bus CAO Sunny Hesse.
The Metro Bus Training & Safety Department was recently awarded the Management Innovation Award by the Minnesota Public Transit Association at its yearly conference in St. Cloud in October. MPTA presents the Management Innovation Award to individuals or organizations that have implemented a project that is innovative to the field of transit or have established a creative new partnership or method of addressing concerns of transit users. Metro Bus Training and Safety Manager Scott Stark resides in Sartell.
Caroline Brand of St. Stephen recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Minnesota State University, Mankato.
Eleven Sartell students recently graduated from Minnesota State University, Mankato.
They and their degrees are as follows: Joshua Bechtold, bachelor’s in sport management; Darah Coleman, bachelor’s in creative writing (magna cum laude); Jenna Eibes, bachelor’s in communication disorders (magna cum laude); Mathew Huver, bachelor’s in nursing (magna cum laude); Lauren Lindmeier, bachelor’s in elementary education (summa cum laude); Jacob Mumm, associate’s in liberal studies; Colin Nord, bachelor’s in theater arts; Jarrett Rogers, bachelor’s in sport management (cum laude); Reese Schwarzentraub, bachelor’s in mass media; Melissa Thompson, associate’s in liberal studies (cum laude) and bachelor’s in nursing (cum laude); and Cole Zunker, bachelor’s in accounting (cum laude).
Jay Olson (Sartell), Darren Brix (Sartell), Patty Boeder (Gaylord), Molly Krueger (Gaylord), Allan Karki (Owner), Michele Castellano (Sartell), Alexis Eggers (Norwood), Mike Feterl (Gaylord), Kim Eggers (Norwood)
A Act One Insurance of Eden Prairie has merged with Alloy Insurance Agency, 1101 Second St. S. Ste. 110 of Sartell. The two Minnesota insurance agencies – both independent – will merge under the Alloy Insurance name, and Eden Prairie’s longtime location will continue to serve the Eden Prairie community. In addition, customers of A Act One will benefit from additional markets, coverages and rate options, as Alloy Insurance Agency has built established relationships with many of the nation’s top carriers.
The Sartell-St. Stephen Education Foundation recently awarded more than $22,000 in grants to support leading-edge ideas and programs (Pre K-12) in the Sartell-St. Stephen School District. The programs receiving grants include: Early Childhood SMART Course Initiative – Oak Ridge Elementary Learning Center; Mindfulness Calming Corners – Riverside Intermediate School; Project Lead the Way VEX Robotics Upgrade – Sartell Middle School; Formative to Inform Instruction – SMS; Plant Grow Lab – SMS; Student Advocates for Equity Club – Sartell High School; NASP Archery – SHS; Sabre Book Club – SHS; and Eagle’s Nest Project – K-12. The Sartell-St. Stephen Education Foundation has given more than $684,000 in grants and scholarships since 2001.
