University of Minnesota President Rebeca Cunningham gave a report about Monday’s occupation of Morrill Hall at the University Senate meeting Thursday, saying the actions of protesters Monday were unacceptable.

The protests and occupation of Morrill Hall were led by UMN Students for a Democratic Society. The occupation lasted several hours, during that time windows were broken inside the building, security cameras were spray painted and doors were barricaded. Many members of staff were in the building.

“This is clearly unacceptable behavior within our University community,” Cunningham said. “And to be clear, this was not a peaceful protest and not a First Amendment-protected activity. These activities crossed the line into illegal activity.” 

Cunningham said the actions of protesters Monday endangered the safety of the University community and undermined the legitimacy of important causes that students, faculty and staff care about.

This is the first protest this academic year where arrests occurred. Eleven protesters were arrested and released Wednesday, and one faces charges.

“We’ve seen many peaceful protests already this semester, both before Monday and even after that without incident,” Cunningham said. “However, what happened in Morrill Hall on Monday was different. The situation involved intimidating employees and their workplaces, hampering their ability to move about freely and destruction of University property.”

Cunningham spoke directly about Minnesota Daily reporter Tyler Church, who was briefly detained Monday and had his belongings confiscated by the University of Minnesota Police Department (UMPD), which were not returned until Wednesday. 

“I want to reiterate that we’re all committed to ensuring our journalists are able to safely and freely carry out their responsibilities and be in the eyes and the ears of the public, and we’ll continue that commitment to be at the forefront of our work,” Cunningham said.

UMPD released a similar statement which states they are committed to ensuring journalists can safely and freely do their job. 

Cunningham said UMPD is investigating the occupation of Morrill Hall with Hennepin County, including what was observed by employees and what was captured on building and campus security cameras.

“When I have tearful, frightened staff calling from their office, that is the time for our campus police to restore safety,” Cunningham said. “This was vandalism and disruption of University operations.” 

There was a resolution from faculty to formally disapprove of UMPD for its involvement, but it was not discussed because of time constraints. The student senate censured UMPD earlier Thursday afternoon. 

The University senate will discuss the censure of UMPD at their next meeting Nov. 7.

Organizations across Minnesota and South Dakota received a $9.9 million grant from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to reduce roadway fatalities through the Southwest Minnesota Advancing Remote Tele-EMS grant, according to a Sept. 19 press release from the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Southwest EMS began collaborating with Minnesota Toward Zero Deaths and South Dakota-based Avel eCare to implement telemedicine into ambulances across 54 agencies in southwest Minnesota in September 2023. The Translational Center for Resuscitative Trauma Care, a research center dedicated to developing effective trauma care, joined to help research the effectiveness of the program in May 2024, according to Executive Director of Southwest Minnesota EMS Ann Jenson.

Technology from Avel consists of a small TV screen and camera near the back door of the ambulance in addition to two microphones by the patient’s cot allowing someone from Avel to see, hear and speak to the patient and paramedics, Jenson said. Two satellite disks will sit on top of the ambulance, constantly searching for cell phone signals to keep the ambulance in contact with Avel. 

Southwest Minnesota has no level one or two trauma centers and only three level three centers, Jenson said. This means residents in the area have to drive almost three hours to get to a hospital able to treat life-threatening injuries.

Jenson said she always thought using telemedicine, where doctors and patients communicate via phone, video chat or text, in the field would be helpful.

The pilot site for the program launched September 2023 in Slayton, Minnesota, where they perform around 500 ambulance runs a year, Jenson said. They only have one full-time ambulance director and a part-time employee. The rest of the staff consists entirely of volunteers.

“It was crazy, the stories of how this changed patient care, because now almost at first patient contact, they have a nurse, and then either a physician or a paramedic,” Jenson said.

In a rural area where most EMTs and paramedics are volunteers, some of them only doing one or two runs a month, Avel’s extra set of eyes in an emergency is helpful, Jenson said.

Southwest EMS opened a second site in February 2024 to collect further data on the program.

Rebecca VandeKieft, the vice president and general manager of emergency and EMS services for Avel eCare in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, said the telemedicine in ambulances helps take some of the stress off paramedics.

“EMS workers are having to do about 20 things all at the same time, especially if it’s a really sick patient, and they’re having to do that while moving to wherever they’re going,” VandeKieft said.

Avel is also available to assist with translation services if necessary between the patient and paramedic, VandeKieft said.

While Avel eCare is based in South Dakota, VandeKieft said they are familiar with Minnesota’s healthcare system.

“We have been in the state of Minnesota for a long time as a healthcare partner in the telemedicine world,” VandeKieft said.

Gregory Beilman, a professor in the University of Minnesota’s Department of Surgery and director of the Translational Center for Resuscitative Trauma Care, said he heard of the Southwest EMS telemedicine program from the Minnesota Public Radio. From the moment he heard the story, he knew he wanted to help.

“I was listening to MPR driving to work last winter, and they talked about what Ann (Jenson) was doing down in southwest Minnesota with tele-EMS, and I said, ‘That’s what we need to be doing,’” Beilman said.

Beilman said the Translational Center for Resuscitative Trauma Care is most interested in the efficacy of the technology. They review how long it takes patients to get to the hospital, the treatment patients receive in the ambulance and if the hospitals are prepared when patients arrive.

“I think this technology has the opportunity to work in a number of ways, first and most importantly, it has a potential to save lives,” Beilman said.

While the grant is funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Beilman said he wants this technology to be used for other emergencies as well.

“The most common things that people come into the ER for that kill them are three things: road accidents, heart attacks and strokes,” Beilman said. “So if we focus on those three things, we’re going to make a difference for people in the state of Minnesota.”

Jenson said the partnerships between Southwest EMS, Minnesota Toward Zero Deaths, the Translational Center for Resuscitative Trauma Care and Avel eCare have made a difference in the development of the program.

“We are so grateful for our partnerships with everybody that’s helped us get to this point,” Jenson said.

A task force created by Provost Rachel Croson will define how academic freedom is outlined at the University of Minnesota for tenured faculty. 

The task force was created last spring to write the policy despite a standing committee responsible for issues of academic freedom. 

Phil Buhlmann is the head of the task force and a professor in the chemistry department. He previously served 10 years in faculty governance as chair of the Academic Freedom & Tenure Committee (AF&T) and chair of the Faculty Consultative Committee in 2020-2021. 

“The overarching goal is to make a lot of parties happy with this,” Buhlmann said. “Freedom of expression is not in question. Academic freedom, that needs to be protected.” 

Eric Van Wyk, the current chair of the AF&T Committee and a professor of computer science and engineering, said he has handled issues regarding academic speech and freedom for the past three years. 

The AF&T gave its expertise through a list of recommendations for the task force at the Sept. 26 Faculty Senate meeting. 

Van Wyk said the structure of shared governance is divided into three different groups: the Board of Regents, administration, and the Office of the President and faculty governance. 

“Task forces are administrative constructions, and so they fall under the administrative side of that,” Van Wyk said. “Even though they are populated by a lot of faculty, they’re not an element of the faculty senate.” 

This distinction can lead to a lack of communication, Van Wyk said. Faculty Senate meetings are open to the public and keep minutes, but the public is not informed of task force meetings, nor are the meetings widely advertised. 

The biggest point of debate among AF&T members was around academic unit, or department, statements, and how an academic unit is defined, Van Wyk said. 

“The big question is ‘Do academic units have academic freedom?’ Faculty, students, staff and anyone who contributes to the intellectual mission of the University has academic freedom, the question is, do units enjoy this?” Van Wyk said.

According to the Board of Regents Academic Freedom and Responsibility policy, academic freedom is “the freedom, without institutional discipline or restraint, to discuss all relevant matters in the classroom, to explore all avenues of scholarship, research and creative expression, and to speak or write on matters of public concern as well as on matters related to professional duties and the functioning of the University.”

Defining a unit has proved difficult for both the AF&T committee and the task force. 

“Central to what we’re doing in the task force, when people are speaking as a group, they really need to represent well what group they’re speaking on behalf of,” Buhlmann said.

Both groups are concerned with dissenting voices, and how to make sure those who disagree with a unit they belong to can express their opinion.

“We spent a lot of time asking, ‘Can this conflict be navigated?’” Van Wyk said. “We felt that it could be, and so then there’s a lot of stuff in the report and the recommendations about how to do that right, how to make sure that the voice of the majority is not silenced, but the voice of the minority is also not trampled upon, and no one feels like they are compelled.” 

Buhlmann said it is important to include groups beyond academic departments like the Weisman Art Museum and the Arboretum, as they are also academic units on campus.

Academic Freedom has a broad approach across the University, Social Sciences Director of Libraries Danya Leebaw said. 

“I and other librarians have research and publishing expectations, part of it is that our jobs are faculty-like,” Leebaw said. “To bring our expertise into our work, we really also need those freedoms and responsibilities that academic freedom is intended to provide.”

Two librarians sit on the AF&T committee, and Buhlmann said the task force has committed to working with groups across campus.

“The membership of that task force is very broad,” Buhlmann said. “This is really affecting a lot of what faculty are doing in departments. There are a lot of faculty members in this group from various parts of the University.”

There is currently no draft of the policy available, but the current plans are to finish the report in mid-October and present it to the president’s office, Buhlman said.

“We’re working with that goal that the Provost and the President would like to have a policy in place by the beginning of next year,” Buhlmann said. “When the (state) legislator in Saint Paul is going to start their session, and so that’s why we were kind of put on hyperdrive, really. We’ve been almost meeting weekly as a task force.”

Policy is something that develops over a long period of time, according to Van Wyk.

“It takes a long time for two reasons,” Van Wyk said. “One, it’s difficult. There’s a lot of thought that has to go into it, a lot of analysis, a lot of discussion. And also, it’s not my real job. The Senate meets once a month. Last spring, I was teaching 300-odd undergraduates, that’s my real job. And so going to meetings in the right sequence takes months because they meet once a month, it takes a long time.”

An email from the University of Minnesota Office of Human Resources sent Sept. 12 outlined the “dos” and “don’ts” for staff who participate in campus protests. 

Faculty are critical of specific statements in the email, including “do participate during personal time,” and “seek permission when necessary.” The email informs faculty and staff about guidelines on civic engagement and compliance with University policies.

Michael Gallope, a professor and chair of the Department of Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature and vice-chair of the CLA assembly, reacted to the emails. 

“I was shocked,” Gallope said. “The University has no legal basis for regulating employees’ speech on breaks or during lunch or after work. And the entire thrust of the email I interpreted as a direction to supervisors to instruct employees about how they might protest, and the University has no legal basis for doing so.”

There have been seven protests on campus about the war in Gaza this semester. More than 100 people were present at the Oct. 7 protest, including faculty. 

“It was very concerning to me, particularly at a time when there were so many topics of sensitive public debate,” Gallope said. 

Gallope said the University has a constitutional obligation to respect the First Amendment rights of employees

“The community relations email claims that every community member at the University needed to distinguish their speech from that of the University’s at all times. That’s not right,” Gallope said. “There’s no basis for that in state law or board policy.”

How faculty members are able to speak has been an issue of debate, said Eric Van Wyk, chair of the Academic Freedom and Tenure (AF&T) committee. The AF&T committee and the faculty senate have discussed academic freedom and free speech for several years. 

“If those are rules that can be interpreted as applying to speech outside of working conditions, then this isn’t explicitly violating anyone’s academic freedom, because no one’s been punished,” Van Wyk said. “But it has what’s called the chilling effect, and that makes it a violation. Then people are self-censoring themselves because they’re worried about some implications.” 

Van Wyk said language is impactful, and this email crossed a line.

“You know the elf on the shelf, right? The idea is that you get your children to behave because someone’s watching,” Van Wyk said. “And that’s not a healthy environment for children, nor for faculty or staff or students. So that’s sort of the concern.”

According to the email, faculty should “participate as private citizens during their non-working hours.” 

Gallope said this is confusing. He discussed how Board policy is narrow, with one policy stating that community members should speak as private citizens when speaking to government bodies.

“The guidance in the Government and Community Relations email was impractical and overly broad.  But students, staff and faculty, in their everyday speech — and certainly when they are protesting in a public forum — are not required to habitually explain that they are not speaking on behalf of the University,” Gallope said. 

Faculty met with President Rebecca Cunningham sometime last week to discuss the emails. As of Oct. 9, there have been no revisions, and no updates have been sent to faculty. 

Administration did not comment to requests made by the Minnesota Daily in time for publishing. 

 “They should communicate any revisions to the entire campus community, otherwise they’re meaningless,” Gallope said

The last economic impact study about the University of Minnesota was completed in 2017, which found the overall economic impact of the University to be $8.7 billion. 

The study details the total jobs and dollars generated by the University’s research and involvement in the community and greater Minnesota. This data has been crucial for the University in the last seven years to help people understand the influence of the University on the state economy, but it may be outdated.

Jennifer Goodnough, the chair of the Faculty Consultative Committee, said the University needs another study like this. 

“What I have seen of the use of the (data), I think that is something that communicates the value and represents the economic engine that the University is, and it makes me feel like I can quantify that I’m doing good,” Goodnough said.

The previous study looked specifically at the outcomes of the 2017 financial year. Goodnough said the data may be outdated given the changes in higher education over the past seven years.

“I think if I was a betting person, I would best bet that our impact has gone up, not down in that,” Goodnough said. “If my intuition is correct then we really want to do this.” 

There have been several changes to the University since 2017, including increases in tuition and admissions that could influence economic impact. 

In-state tuition for full-time students increased to roughly $18,000 for the 2024-25 academic year after from $12,800 in 2017-18. Admissions increased from 51,848 to 54,890 in that span. 

“I want to emphasize that, as faculty, as staff, as students, as alumni, we believe in the University of Minnesota,” Goodnough said. “We believe we’re doing good work and I think it’s nice whenever we can see a number that sort of pairs with that feeling that’s a little more qualitative.” 

The Director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Minnesota-Duluth Monica Haynes conducted an economic impact study for Duluth in 2022.

“The study is meant to provide an estimate of the typical year of operations of the University,” Haynes said. “What economic impact or contribution does the University provide to the region?”

Duluth conducts economic impact studies biannually, Haynes said. She said it helps to more accurately describe the financial influence the University has on the community. 

Haynes said the point of the study is to show that the University has a major effect on the operations of its facilities and staff.

 “Students who can live here during their academic years, all of the visitors that they bring to the region, all of that has an additional impact and then you know the capital,” Haynes said. “I think just showing off that multifaceted impact that is not just one thing that someone might think of when they think of (the) university.”

Economic impact studies help display quantitative data clearly about the University. Goodnough said the study recognizes the important work students and faculty do in the community.

“It’s probably implicit, and maybe we should say it more explicitly, it’s part of our Land Grant Mission, that we should be having a very large impact on the state and someone should be checking that,” Goodnough said.

Eighty percent of University of Minnesota students voted in 2020, the highest voter turnout rate of any four-year institution in the country. While there are resources and opportunities for students to learn about voting on campus, students were unable to miss class to vote until May 2024, according to the University’s Policy Library on excused absences and makeup work. 

The University regularly updates its policy regarding attendance every six years, according to Seth Beccard, the policy program compliance officer. Previous policy stated that “voting in a regional, state, or national election is not an unavoidable or legitimate absence.”

Jessica Kuecker Grotjohn, assistant director for the Office of Undergraduate Education, said she helped review the attendance policy. The policy was due for an update in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the update until fall 2022. 

“The University absolutely encourages students to vote and be active citizens,” Kuecker Grotjohn said. “But with changes made to the voting process, like absentee ballots (and) early voting, a decision was made.” 

The direct reference to voting was removed from the policy and moved to the FAQ section.

“The intent with the FAQ is to really encourage students to find other ways that minimize any sort of conflict,” Kuecker Grotjohn said. “There is value in attending classes and so that needed to be stated as part of our guiding principles and so intent behind how the FAQ is worded is that this is supposed to encourage students to vote and minimize their conflicts.”

The Executive Vice President’s Office released a statement providing students with information on how they could vote. 

Merrie Benasutti, a University spokesperson and the University’s Twin Cities voting coordinator, said the University values voting.

“It’s because of what the students are doing, the staff and faculty are just trying to get behind the students, but the students lead the way,” Benasutti said. 

In the statement, the Executive Vice President’s Office highlights the three different modes of voting — in-person, early voting and voting by mail.

“It’s not just about registering to vote, it’s about voter education,” Benasutti said. “I would say that’s the purpose of higher ed in general. Young people, becoming active citizens and voting is a part of being an active citizen.”

Students can begin early voting on Sep. 20. Students living on campus have the opportunity to vote at community spaces like Grace Lutheran Church, Van Cleve Park Recreation Center and The Weisman Art Museum.

Grace Lutheran Church has been a polling place for a long time, according to co-pastor Justin Lind-Ayres. 

“For the 2020 election, it was astounding how long the line was,” Lind-Ayres said.  “It wove all through our sanctuary space and people waited for a long time to vote, which is really encouraging.”

Election day is Nov. 5. Lind-Ayres said given the history, he predicts voting turnout to be high. 

The opt-out deadline for Course Works was Sept. 16, leaving students who opted in with the University of Minnesota’s new textbook service introduced this fall. 

With a flat rate of $279, the new service has led to some complaints. Students are concerned over the wastefulness of Course Works, with a majority of students who participated in a poll by the Minnesota Daily’s Opinions Desk reporting feeling disappointed by the program.

Paige Rohman, associate vice president for auxiliary services at the University, said 61% of students systemwide stayed opted into the program, with 24% choosing the select program and 15% opting out completely.

The previous system required students to purchase textbooks on their own terms, whether from the University Bookstore or a third-party source.

“In general, an increasing number of students didn’t have their course materials, and that could be for a variety of reasons,” Rohman said. “Maybe they were too expensive, maybe they didn’t have the cash flow at the time to be able to afford them.” 

With the introduction of Course Works, the University hopes to simplify the process, Bookstore Director Neil Olness said. He said the University is the first institution to attempt a service like Course Works with upfront pricing. 

Rohman said the technologies used for the individual pricing were created specifically for this project with the help of engineers. 

When asked about the new technologies used, Rohman said, “(the) middle screen, that had an actual price on it? We had to ask the software for the ebook provider, Red Shelf, to develop that because no other school made it that clear to students.”

With Course Works, the library has the opportunity to expand its outreach to students, according to  Director of Affordable Learning and Open Education at the University Libraries Shane Nackerud.  

“In the last decade, we have found that students don’t want to come to the library and check out a book for three hours, so we have really focused our efforts on digitizing and creating digital materials,” Nackerud said. 

Course Works also allows faculty a way to provide resources to students directly through the Shelf, Rohman said. 

The Bookstore is not making money off Course Works, but instead supporting students, Rohman said. 

“We have a process where we go through, now that opting is closed, and the team looks to see if there are any students who had zero course materials that had a cost,” Rohman said. “In this case, we do have 1,666 of those students and those students will have their $279 refunded automatically if they haven’t already opted out, because again, the philosophy that we have is this is not a money maker.”

Olness said the University Bookstore helps students get textbooks and other course materials across all five campuses. 

“One thing that’s critical to that is we are an independent bookstore,” Olness said. “So many institutions have other entities, third-party entities running their bookstore. We are independent. We’re within the institution and it enables us to have partnerships with various groups around campus to offer the students the best possible experience at the lowest cost.” 

However, a major criticism of Course Works is the current price, which Rohman said will hopefully go down. 

“It will continue to evolve as soon as spring as this gets refined and as more students are in the program and (we) have more power to negotiate to buy more library materials,” Rohman said.

Corrections: A previous version of this article misstated Paige Rohman’s position. He is the associate vice president for auxiliary services at the University. Other edits made for spelling, clarity.

New data reveals only 49% of Minnesota students are proficient in reading,  a decade low for students’ reading scores, according to data from the Minnesota Department of Education

Literacy rates have fallen since 2016 and hit a record low in 2023. State and Federal Legislatures have taken action to fix this, but the University of Minnesota says they look at more than these test scores in the admission process.

Marek Oziewicz is the chair of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University and has studied literacy rates in the U.S. for more than 20 years. 

“I think we are now in this transformational period where we see something that doesn’t work as we would like it to,” Oziewicz said. “So we need to fix something. An intervention is needed.”

Data shows that literacy rates began to drop before the pandemic when a majority of students were online. The Minnesota Department of Education released no data in 2020, but between 2019 and 2021 there was a 5% drop in literacy rates. 

“There are very clear advantages of online learning,” Oziewicz said. “But there are also disadvantages so that each of these modalities in-person, hybrid or online, has its own advantages, but also it’s not a silver bullet, it will not solve everything for everyone.”

When asked if literacy rates will impact admissions, the University’s Admissions Office would not specifically comment. In an email to the Minnesota Daily, they reiterated their holistic review process, saying they look beyond test scores. 

The University Admissions Office website says, “Individual circumstances are also considered as part of the overall assessment of each application.”

Legislatures at the state and federal levels have introduced legislation to support students. The data only reveals the problem and Oziewicz said the solution is not as clear. 

“The system, as it works in schools, it’s composed of several layers,” Oziewicz said. “You have teacher training, you have curricula, you have standards, you have assessment, and you have schools and teacher support.”

The Minnesota State government made literacy a priority, and in May 2023, Gov. Tim Walz signed the Read Act into law, which provides comprehensive changes to education. Walz, a former geography teacher at Mankato West High School, prioritized education in his term, creating the Due North Plan.

The Due North Plan requires school districts to provide a plan to support literacy beginning in kindergarten. It requires districts to flag students who are at risk, and if needed, allows them access to dyslexia screenings. Districts must submit this data twice a year to prevent students from falling behind.

At the federal level, education has been a major concern. On Sept. 4th, the Biden-Harris Administration announced new federal grants to develop state testing, with Minnesota among 10 states to receive funding. 

The U.S. Department of Education also announced grants to specifically support literacy and resources to target chronic absenteeism. 

All of these developments aim to improve education and literacy rates, but Oziewicz said the best way is to support teachers. He added that teachers have direct contact with students and teacher burnout directly impacts students. 

“Most teachers are very dedicated, and for them, every single child matters,” Oziewicz said. “Helping this group of children is what teachers are in it for.”

The Minnesota Primary election will be held on Aug. 13, with seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, state legislature and school board on the ballot.

The race for the 5th Congressional District is considered the most competitive, with progressive incumbent Rep. Ilhan Omar facing a rematch against Don Samuels.

Winners of the primary election will reappear in the general election ballot on Nov. 5.

U.S. Senate Election

In the U.S. Senate election, incumbent Sen. Amy Klobuchar is the main Democratic contender. Klobuchar is the senior senator in Minnesota having served since 2007. Klobuchar is a high-profile member of the Senate and ran for president in 2020 before dropping out to support Joe Biden.

While there are several other Democratic candidates on the ballot, including Steve Carlson, Ahmad R. Hassan and George H. Kalberer, none have the same level of support, funding or name recognition as Klobuchar. 

Eight Republicans are running for the Senate seat, with the main candidates being Joe Fraser and Royce White. 

Fraser served as a Naval intelligence officer for 26 years. Fraser describes himself as a pro-Trump Republican running on increasing law enforcement funding. 

White is a former professional basketball player who ran for the 5th district in 2022 but lost. White’s campaign is focused on “culture clashes” and “the crisis of leadership worldwide,” according to his campaign website. 

White won the Republican Party endorsement in May but still needs to win the primary before officially becoming the Republican nominee.

The 5th Congressional District

The 5th District, which includes the City of Minneapolis, will see a rematch of the 2022 primary with incumbent Rep. Omar facing off against challenger Samuels. 

Omar has represented Minnesota in the 5th District since 2018. She is the first woman of color to represent Minnesota in Congress and the second Muslim woman to serve in the U.S. Congress. 

Throughout her three terms in office, Omar has caught national attention. She is a strong critic of former President Donald Trump and a member of “The Squad,” a group of left-wing members in the U.S. House of Representatives. Omar has also been an outspoken critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza.

Samuels is a former Minneapolis City Council member from 2003-2014. He ran for Congress in 2022 but lost by two percentage points. 

In an interview with the Minnesota Daily, Samuels said his campaign is not the same as his 2022 run.

“20 percent of the voters are undecided,” Samuels said. “With her having a hundred percent name recognition and me having still 25 percent name recognition, I have room to grow. She does not.” 

Only one Republican, Dalia Al-Aqidi, is running in the heavily Democratic 5th District. He is all but guaranteed to be on the ballot in November. 

Minneapolis School Board

In the Minneapolis School Board race, three candidates are running. 

The Minneapolis School Board race is nonpartisan, and there is one seat available. Kim Ellison, Elena Condos and Shayla Owodunni are all vying for that seat.

This primary will be followed by the general election, which will take place on Nov. 5. Early voting begins on Sept. 20. 

Mail-in ballots can be requested online at the Minnesota Secretary of State website, alongside information on where to vote and sample ballots.

The City of Minneapolis Health Department is offering free immunizations at pop-up clinics. 

Clinics are offered at farmers markets, neighborhood block parties and back-to-school nights. A variety of vaccines are available, including COVID-19, mpox and tetanus.

Sebastiana Cervantes, a senior public health specialist, said the project began in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic. The department did not just want to focus on immunizations but on creating a relationship with the community.

“Our job as the health department is to meet our community where they’re at and that was why we decided to do these pop-up clinics in tandem with our local organizations,” Cervantes said. “We’re here to foster trust. We’re here to say, ‘We want you to be as healthy as possible, and we’re going to give our community members all the options and ways of doing that.’”

The City provides all resources and staff needed for the events at no cost. They offer education and COVID-19 tests in addition to vaccines at larger clinics.

COVID-19 is the only vaccine available at every clinic hosted, which comes at a time when cases are on the rise in Minnesota and the United States. 

The health department said they hope the clinics will reach people who otherwise would not have access to vaccinations. Most clinics can provide vaccines to the uninsured at no cost. 

“We’ve had such success because we’re showing up even when we don’t necessarily have to be there,” Cervantes said. “But we should be there always and communities should be able to call on us at any time, whether it be about vaccinations or just general health issues.” 

With over 50,000 students, the University of Minnesota is a large community in Minneapolis that the city hopes to work with more in the future, Health Department Spokesperson Scott Wasserman said.

Ryan Fauglid, a third-year public health student, said vaccines are particularly important for University students who interact with so many people.

“Vaccines are one of our number one preventative ways to ensure the health and safety of all students,” Fauglid said. “Especially at a university the size of the University of Minnesota, we run the greater risk of both catching and spreading COVID-19.” 

With the upcoming school year, Cervantes said students should make sure they are prepared by discussing with their healthcare providers if vaccinations may be an option to protect against illness. 

“No one wants to be sick,” Cervantes said. “No one wants to miss classes. No one wants to miss football games. No one wants to miss the concerts going on during the school year or during the summer.” 

Flu shots will be available at clinics once the new vaccine is released for the 2025 flu season. There is a vaccination calendar on the Health Department’s website with information on the latest clinics.

“We’re really just trying to provide health services, vaccinations to our community members to build healthier communities,” Cervantes said.