Q- Comp
What is Q-Comp? It is an interesting question and on one level, an excellent example of how laws and initiatives are made at State Government. I know it is often described by the metaphor of making sausage, a process most don’t want to watch. But in another way it is like those powerful forces of nature that through the added elements of time and circumstance can transform substances into things no one ever dreamed they might become. The way a warm calm day in the tropics might turn in to a hurricane. 
Governor Pawlenty who has his eyes set on higher office has a notion that he needs an initiative that will win him the attention of national conservatives. Education is a popular whipping horse for politicians. Pawlenty is not alone in his attempts at this kind of initiative. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts and Arnold Schwarzenegger of California have both tried in their states. Never having spent a day in a classroom other than as an observer they of course know better than any one else what is the key to improving education. In Pawlenty’s mind and others the key is to tie the success that students have with teacher pay. He and his supporters might even add this is how the rest of the world works. Their belief is quality equals prosperity and survival. If you’re good at something, then people buy what you sell and you prosper. In my mind, this assessment of how the rest of the world works ignores some very important economic factors, but that is too much to enter into at this moment.
On the other hand you have teachers who want to be paid a fair wage so they can have some job security and continue to do what is their chosen profession. Over the years they have realized that being assured of equity (equal pay for equal work) means you don’t have to think about money so much and you can go on with the work of teaching. But it would be nice not to be so isolated. Some support from other teachers would be good, and also having the sense that there were some career ladders in the profession so that you could continue teaching (not become a principal) and yet take on different responsibility and grow in skills and accomplishments. This is what might create quality. Teachers say, “I would do a better job if I were supported in my profession and if I had the opportunity to better myself by mentoring other teachers or providing guidance and leadership to others.”
Late in the night, with economic forces clamoring for resolution to hostilities, a deal was made: two ideas from different sets of worldviews were forced into the same bill and the result is Q-Comp. Both sides now are spinning the law so it more closely reflects what they want it to say. The Governor through his administration (MDE) are trying to push for an interpretation that will get what he wanted, that is elimination of steps and lanes (a pay system that was developed to do away with pay discrimination) to be replaced by pay for performance. Pay for performance makes sense on the assembly line where you are paid for the number of boxes you are able to assemble. Educating children is far different from that. A high pressure system is not only unfair to teachers who do not have control over all variables effecting learning but it is unfair to children as well as it puts them in a pressure cooker environment where they must perform or be discarded.
On top of the spin we have folks coming out of the woodwork, even legislators saying the bill will accomplish things it was never intended to do, such as eliminate bad teachers and get rid of tenure. Another problem as I see it is that these plans are being implemented with no evidence that they will work at the same time that districts are being told they must abandon old ways of doing things even though their results are known.
So back to the question what is Q- Comp? It is a ‘pay for performance’ system of pay combined with a professional development program involving teacher mentors and master teachers. Districts that adopt it could receive up to an additional $206 per pupil in revenue. For districts that have been starved for funding for 10 years, it looks like a golden nest egg. But there are several problems, one being the fact that there is not enough money for every district to do this. Funding was allocated for only about 48% of the state’s students. The money is allocated into three pools: one for seven county metro schools, one for out state districts and one for charter schools. To further complicate things there is a limited time frame for submitting a plan to the Minnesota Department of Education. A letter of intent must be sent by Sept. 30th, and then the full proposal must be submitted for approval by no later than December 31st. If approval is denied, a district has 30 days to rectify the proposal.
Why is this change needed? Several reasons are given. Among them are the predictin that 40% of teachers will retire in the next five years, and there must be ways to attract teachers to the profession. The ‘steps and lanes’ method of compensation and advancement is viewed by some as outmoded and stagnating. Teachers who left the profession in the first five years site lack of support as a major reason for leaving. Finally, it is believed by some that tying performance results to teacher bonuses will increase teacher efforts and success.
School districts that have been involved in this kind of experiment have spent years preparing it. The Governor’s plan allows for three months to develop a plan that must meet the approval of administration and staff in order to move forward and be submitted for state approval. This is a massive undertaking involving risk, politics and the future of teacher livelihood and the well being of students. At the very least we must proceed cautiously and thoughtfully toward an end result. It is worth exploring because it has the potential of bringing much needed funds to the table.
An alternate view:
Skimping on teacher pay has little merit (StarTribune)
I 35 Summit in Bridgewater Township
Aug 28, 2005 News, Transportation
I went from the infectious enthusiasm of students looking forward to school success and getting on with their futures to Bridgewater Town Hall to listen to leaders from local and county units of government discuss and try to find some common ground on the commercial industrial development proposed for I 35 and County Rd 1.
It was a civil meeting where development ideas were discussed freely and some offered words of caution and concern for the project. Gary Ebling, Bridgewater Township supervisor, facilitated the meeting and kept the conversation moving around the table. He allowed participants (mostly local government officials) to express concerns and then invited Rice County Commissioners Jim Brown and Jessica Peterson to respond. Visitors like myself were not allowed to ask questions or offer opinions.
Bruce Morlan, Dundas Planning Commissioner, described the project as a train speeding down the track while we try to lay the track. In response to Commissioner Brown’s explanation that the plan was necessary because the cost of road maintenance in Rice County far outpaced the ability for the county to pay, Bruce said in his research he has learned it is impossible for small units of government to develop their way out of debt. On top of that often government ends up taxing the businesses that are already in the county to subsidize their competition. As an analyst he look at things that are potential problems that most don’t see. Roads are a concern but he added there are many others.
Tom McMahon, Dundas City Engineer, suggested slow and partial development would be advisable starting at 19 and going south rather than starting at County 1. The costs are high and people are anxious about where the money will come from. Little thought seems to have been given to how to market or develop the project. He agreed that the project needs to slow down and consider costs and potential for development.
Gordon Kelley, of the County Planning Commission said the I-35 corridor development presented a unique opportunity for a developer who wanted to be closer to the metro area and have quick access to the freeway. He also indicated he knew of an interested developer but was not able to offer the name.
Dixon Bond, Northfield City Council member took a middle ground indicating that development does help all residents of the county. But it has the potential if not strategic in its plan to pull development away from cities. Not that competition is all bad.
Jim Pokorney, Northfield City Council, reiterated his concerns that development should be contiguous with cities and effort to protect the rural character of the county. He was skeptical that even though this project may be best for certain freeway dependent businesses that zoning could restrict other development.
Lee Lansing, Mayor of Northfield responding to comments that attempts had been made to work with the cities without success, encouraged all parties not to dwell on past problems but to work together now and cooperate for the betterment of the whole county.
Gary Ebling who had not seen the proposed development map commented that from his experience working in retail if a site was an asset it should be marketed in that way so we get exactly the type of development we want. He suggested it could be a premier corporate distribution center where the corporations would want to preserve the rural feel of the development and would have low infrastructure use and low impact on neighborhood.
Leif Knecht, Bridgewater Township Supervisor suggested the cost of upkeep and upgrade of east west roads will be great and we will need help covering the costs. The county transportation plan is key to making this work. People will find the shortest route and take it no matter the condition of the road. The number of semis coming from Rochester on 246 is proof of that.
Mike Groth, Northfield township supervisor, supported Leif’s concerns about roads and added speaking to rumors that the county could help itself by being more open and upfront with people and getting the information out.
Commissioner Brown was not happy with criticism of and rumors about the project and suggested he had tried to talk to city representatives but no one was interested. He indicated they rely on The Faribault Daily News to report on their meetings and it just doesn’t work getting the word out to people. Speaking to concerns about who would pay he said the plan all along was to have a ‘pay as you go system’ where developers would incur the costs but then added – to bring people in they may have to look at incentives of various kinds. It was hard to understand how one could have both incentives and a ‘pay as you go’ strategy.
No one at the table talked about the impact on the environment, neighbors across the street, or preserving the land as it is. I left feeling that something we don’t know about is driving this project. The county planners seem gripped by the notion that this development is inevitable and it won’t be long before Northern Rice County looks just like Northern Dakota County. They assume we might as well get ready for it.
“Connecting is Key” – HCI Luncheon
Jim Blaha introduced the Lewis Appledorn Award at the Healthy Community Initiative Luncheon with a tribute to Lewis describing him as a husband, father, grandfather, veteran, businessperson, boss, mentor, friend, and youth asset-builder. The latter being the purpose for the award and the preceding list the prescription of roles a person performs to become one. It all boils down to the description of someone who actively cared about and took an active interest in his community – his neighbors. To quote the tribute, “What he did so naturally is what we call youth asset-building. His contributions are testament to the idea that we can build a positive climate for youth by nurturing those with whom we share space and time.” Read the rest of this entry »
Marnie Thompson’s remarks in her keynote essentially said the same thing. We all need to reach out to the youth around us to connect and help them see they matter. Too many believe they go unnoticed and uncared for. I believe young people need to be seen and recognized by adults and we can either extend that recognition in a friendly way or wait until they get our attention some other way. It is not easy building and nurturing that sense of community but it is done by those folks among who show particular interest in the youth around us who are our future and will remember how we related to them.
River Heights and IALA
This past week I visited with some long time education friends. Bill Zimniewicz, of River Heights Charter School, and the gang of four who started IALA.
Below, that’s Bill, Dan Daly of Liberty Charter, Wayne Jennings of Designs for Learning and Wally Campbell MAAP STARS founder and then there’s me who took the picture – I guess that would make us the gang of five.
The goal of our organization IALA is to promote choice and diversity in education across the nation by promoting small schools with the capacity to promote relevance, relationship and rigor. We have connections with educators around the world hence the name International Association for Learning Alternatives. One of the founding members Don Glines started the Wilson Campus School in Mankato, which was called by many “the most innovative public school in the country.”
Don is a visionary who challenged the status quo and proposed a city of the future where school would be integrated into the workings of the community. A true reformer who believed in learner centered schools, empowering students to interact with the world around them in meaningful ways. Something author and child development expert Joseph Chilton Pearce says is what the journey from childhood to adolescence is all about.
This is just the kind of school that Bill has created at River Heights Charter in West St. Paul. I stopped in at his school to pick up some ideas for the coming school year. As you may know, the Northfield ALC is undergoing a huge transformation. Bill served as President of the Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs(MAAP)after my term and for years was the Director of South St. Paul ALC. About 5 years ago he embraced the work of Alfie Kohn, author of The Schools our Children Deserve, and decided he wanted to create a school 
that would treat students humanely and encourage them to pursue educational endeavors that would empower them to become critical thinkers, active citizens and creative individuals. With the help of an innovative schools grant he transformed his ALC, but when he realized the system would undermine this transformation he left with a few of his teachers and started River Heights Charter. Now he is promoting Dennis Littky and the Big Picture founder of the Big Picture school movement based on his school The Met in Providence, RI.
Unfortunately most of the current school reforms on the national and state levels are about standardization. A movement that promotes the belief that there is ‘one best way’ to teach and ‘one best set’ of things for students to learn. We just need to open their heads and pour it in. A system based on a notion of hierarchy that offers a pat on the back for those who comply and punishment for those who disobey or stray from the standardized norm. The tests do rightly draw our attention to the needs of various struggling learners. But the message I get from the performance gaps that exist among income and racial groups in our system is that we need to try different things for different needs and different learners.
Not so many years ago we used to hear more about ‘choice’ and individualized teaching. I still believe in public education and recognize that there are students who find success in the traditional setting. However, if we are talking about reform to fit the knew knowledge about learning and think about what our students need in “the 21st cetury world” – we need to think differently about reform and the many ways in which students learn. I think it is possible to have a system that maintains its goals as a public institution, but meets the needs and releases the potential of more students. The way I see Dennis Littky doing at The Met.
Q Comp
Speaking of reform, Wednesday I joined other District Staff for the MN Dept. of Education’s conference on the Governor’s new initiative ‘Quality Compensation’. To my surprise I did find some good proposals in the legislation. In particular money for meaningful professional development and recognition of teacher professionals who wish to take on a role of promoting teaching in their schools. However, the biggest problem with the reform is the Governor’s insistence on replacing the ‘steps and lanes system’ of compensation with an unproven and suspect system of ‘pay for performance.’ Pay for performance on the surface makes sense to a lot of people and I realize I need to explain my concerns about it.
First, I should say that teachers should be encouraged to do a better job, even the best teachers can improve and looking at test scores and growth in the classroom can be a helpful and meaningful way to approach it – though not the only way. But most of what I see in ‘No Child Left Behind’ and in the ‘performance pay’ side of this proposal is the misuse of testing in an attempt to use an outmoded hierarchical punitive system to improve the ‘behavior’ of teachers. By ‘misuse’ I mean to use the test scores as a measure of teacher or school performance (a suspect venture because of the many variables involved – to say nothing of the potential to corrupt such a system) and not use it for meaningful information about how well students are doing so improvements can be made. This is a carrot and stick approach, which fits into a scheme of master/slave mentality where the master is coercing the slave to be obedient and do the master’s bidding whether he wants to or not.
I want teachers to be good teachers and make improvements because they believe in it and because it is the right thing to do not because they will be punished or rewarded for doing so. It is in my view, an insult to the profession to be treated this way. I would prefer to have teachers focused on teaching not on pay linked to their class room behavior. The thought that kept running through my mind was if there is improvement in student learning how will we know if it is the improved professional training and career ladders or pay for performance that caused it.
The Governor addressed the 800 administrators and teachers quoting Bill Gates, who says “the American High School is obsolete.” I thought it interesting that Pawlenty would quote Gates’ concern but not mention what Gates believes the solution would be. Gates says we need “smaller schools where better relationships can develop around more relevant material in a more rigorous environment.” The Governor went on to quote a study of teachers who left the teaching profession after five years. A number of them said they left the profession because “they did not feel supported and they did not like the degrading behavior of the students.” I can see how the professional development plan of the Governor’s proposal will help with the first concern, but I don’t see how either concern is remedied by a pay for performance scheme. It might be that smaller schools, and lower student teacher ratios would help with student behavior but that would cost more money.
Some who really haven’t studied the legislation believe it will get rid of ‘bad’ teachers, and end tenure. They want administrators to have the ability to get rid of a teacher if they don’t like them. I did not find that as part of this bill. Nor did I find that seniority or pay for experience would be eliminated – they could be in some way considered. This bill puts in place a system where some teachers can take on greater responsibility for helping other teachers grow in their profession and those teachers will be recognized for their willingness to take on this role. (Northfield had such a system in place after a study I participated in to find ways to attract and retain quality teachers, but it was cut for lack of funds.) Other teachers will be given a base pay and through the pay performance plan, could be paid additional moneys for meeting established goals of the academic growth of their students.
The details of the plan would be established by negotiation between teacher representatives and administration, as would the criteria for finding Master and Mentor teachers and what they might do. The method for determining student’s academic growth is also something to be designed and implemented by the local plan. But the plan is subject to approval by the Department of Education.
The Governor and the Department have made it clear they want to do away with the ‘steps and lanes’ of existing contracts. They believe that linking pay to student performance will improve student learning. There is little evidence to support this belief. In my view it is based on a simplistic and cynical view of human behavior. Most quality studies show that increased quality is enhanced by giving employees greater control and ownership in the work they do. The first part of the proposal offers a good chance for this to happen and I believe it remains to be seen whether pay for performance helps or hurts in this effort. The risk to teachers is that the system of steps and lanes, which created pay equity for teachers at a time when there was rampant pay discrimination against women, could be traded for an untested and uncertain plan. The promise is that teachers will feel more professional as they can by greater effort increase their income.
Because the Governor is willing to put $260 per student on the table for trying this, we like many other districts will put forward a plan to see if we can make it work. A big problem is that there is only enough money in the system for 48% of the students in the state. So some districts even if they applied won’t be able to take part because there won’t be enough money to go around and there is no guarantee that after ’06 Pawlenty will be around to continue the experiment. I will make every effort to be open minded about the proposal as we enter into discussion with the district and listen to concerns and interest that teachers may have. It will be interesting to see what will happen.
Here’s a recent story from the Duluth superior paper:
Teachers, Administrators Get Lesson on New Performance Pay System
By Brian Bakst, Assoc. PressST. PAUL – Hundreds of teachers and school administrators got a crash course Wednesday on a new system for tying teacher raises to performance instead of seniority, but only a couple of districts are on the verge of making the switch.
Participants came armed with questions about how to apply, how to structure raises and how to get buy-in among teachers. They left with tips on setting standards, analyzing data and going forward with negotiations.
“It’s not a simple conversion,” said Linda Trevorrow, the state Department of Education official in charge of the program, dubbed QComp. “It’s not just about the salary change. It’s more about a systematic change.”
The department put on the seminar to provide more details about the voluntary salary swap the Legislature and Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed off on a month ago. More than 800 people attended, exceeding organizers’ expectations.
The heavy turnout was understandable given the financial incentives lawmakers attached to QComp. Districts where administrators and unions agree to overhaul traditional pay models can qualify for $260 more per child in state aid, part of an $86 million pot statewide.
Before the Qcomp incentives, districts are entitled to at least $4,783 per student in state aid for the coming year.
“People are curious,” said Education Commissioner Alice Seagren. “The money is very tantalizing. They’d like to see if they can make it work.”
For decades, teacher pay has been determined by locally developed steps-and-lanes grids, which reward years of service and college credits earned on the side.
Under QComp, 60 percent of raises will be based on teacher evaluations and gains by students at the classroom and school levels. In participating districts, administrators and teachers will come up with local plans for measuring performance, subject to approval by the state. Teachers can never lose pay for missing their goals.
ARTSWIRL
Aug 15, 2005 News
Storytellers
A mix of whimsy, humor and poignant meditation captured the audience at the “Real Lives Aloud” event presented by a group of Northfield storytellers lead by Paul Krause and Don Forsberg. Other storytellers were Bernadine Hughes, Mary Flaten, Carol Fridrickson, Victor Red Oak and Bill Gurnon. I enjoyed several of the Artswirl events though I could not make all of them. This event was a particular delight because as the show title implies it is living art – works in progress. Artists boldly practicing their craft right in front of an audience that they can feel and play to. It takes courage and confidence to perform this way.
Jazz night
I took in another set of performers at the ArtOrg Jazz Series Steve Jennings, Karl Koopman, Jeff Baily, Tim Snow and Alicia Wiley
entertained an enthusiastic and appreciative crowd at the upstairs Rueb. 
Writer’s Night
On the following night I joined eight other writers in the NAG Seasonal Writer’s night in Central Park. This evening’s theme was Errors and Comedy, which may have been chosen by the judges, Philip Spensley and Leslie Schultz, because the current NAG theater production being performed at the park was Shakespeare’s ‘Comedy of Errors’. To carry that connection further the first reading was Steve Swanson’s series of Shakespearian Sonnets, titled ‘On Buying My Grandson Laertes His First Used Car.’ I enjoyed hearing Steve’s mid-American voice and syntax in iambic pentameter, it was an excellent blend of craft and regional sensibility an excellent choice capturing both humor and human erring to the start the theme off.
David Fierke read a satirical prose piece, ‘God’s Gravity’ blending a subtle humor with error’s of thought and perception. David is a very precise writer and I enjoy hearing his prose. Sharol Nau read her poem, ‘Cacophony of the night’ and then I read a poem and an exerpt from an essay. Here’s the poem:
MAGIC
A crow sits watching me from the blue spruce
The sheen from his feathers reminds me of the
greased black hair of the toughs from my childhoodThey were bigger, smoked cigarettes, wore white
t-shirts and blue jeans, and watched menacingly
waiting for a chance to frighten or intimidateThey hung around Lee’s Used Car Lot on the corner
a small brick building with a very small lot, a few cars
In the big office window Lee kept exotic primateswith big eyes they watched the children loitering
before school – The children of course looked back
until their greater interest in each other took overA bushy haired brown skinned girl used to chase
the other children and play at being retarded so they
might tolerate her – When I didn’t run away sheglowered at me and told the big boys to beat me up.
They pushed at me blew smoke but then left me alone
Curious, I followed her home up a steep hill sheturned and yelled at me to go away, but I kept following
She found a path in tall grass, her feet found old stone steps
covered over – In the shade of trees at the top of the hillan old woman head wrapped in a kerchief sat by a fire
she looked at me in a stern and watchful way – A crow
flew down and waddled around her as she sat – “He wouldn’tleave!” The girl said – The old woman lifted her head and
looked at me in a way that made my heart grow cold and my eyes
tear up – The girl stroked my golden hair and the old womanslowly pulled the kerchief from her white head and said
“There is no one here, so what you are looking for
must be inside you” – I blinked and the kinkachoo blinkedLee came out from the little building and said, “Don’t stand
too close to the glass he doesn’t like it if you get too close”
I stepped back and almost fell over the black crow
In ‘A cake for the Bishop’ Nancy Cantwell tells a humorous story of preparing a cake for a celebration of Bishop Whipple, renowned First Episcopal Bishop of Minnesota.
After a brief intermission Marc Robinson read his story, ‘The Superhero: Or Jonah and the Bass’ by far the most outrageous and humorous of the stories, about a not so simple morning walk to the mailbox. Doug Green read his poem, ‘School Choice’ not really about the politics of schooling but the frustrations of modern life. In the ‘Root of Absent-Mindedness’ Tom Swift explains his unfortunate absentmindedness is not really his own fault but can be traced genetically to his mother’s unusual condition at least he hopes that’s true.
The final piece was by far the most poignant. David Maitland, retired Carleton College Chaplain, in ‘Unfinished Business’ wonders as he faces his nineties what more is there for him to learn about life. He writes with honesty and wisdom of his mistaken belief that he understood the suffering of others. It was not until he grieved for the loss of his wife Betsy that he understood what he could not have previously known. He learned also that the public tears he shed, though embarrassing to him were immensely helpful to others. It was indeed a inspiring and a pleasure to share the stage with this talented group of writers and share with the audience our efforts.
The Play’s the thing
‘Comedy of Errors’ a delightful play of mistaken identities, director Susan Carlson did a great job casting believable twins. The story rambles its way through a series of mishaps involving two look-a-like merchants and their look-a-like servants, which culminates in a revelation of twins separated at birth that would fit easily into the University of Minnesota study.
Thanks to all those who worked so hard to bring this play and Shakespeare in the park to Northfield, I know it has been a labor of love for many years and we are the beneficiaries. Thanks also to all those who made the ArtSwirl event a success.
I feel greatly enriched by the small number of events I was able to take in.
Cannon River and the CRWP festival
Aug 7, 2005 Environment, News
My first memories of Northfield are of coming to visit my grandmother who lived in the house I now live in on Lincoln Street. We would pass through town and over the bridge by the Ames Mill and the dam. Once at the home my brother and I would race back and forth over the cracked sidewalk under the two towering elm trees. With my father we might venture down to the swamp to the north that Lincoln Street emptied into. There we might catch frogs or salamanders. If we brought them back my grandmother would tell us stories about them and how they fit in to the web of life never missing the opportunity to apply her skills as a teacher. Sometimes we’d make our way downtown and watch the river the fish. My grandmother died on April 1st in 1960 and we moved to Northfield that year to take over the home she left behind.
The river became more apparent to me first as a geographic boundary that divided the town – east and west. I was a Westsider and with some trepidation I would ride my bike across the rickety second street steel frame bridge. I didn’t think much about where the water came from or where it went. I was curious about the fish that occasionally leaped up or tasted the air. My father told me stories about how college rivals might meet en masse at the bridge threatening violence to each other.
Secondly, I knew the river as a fascination, I went with my father once spring to photograph the rising waters crashing over the dam. Even when the waters were not rising it was mesmerizing to watch the river fall over the dam. It seemed to take years before Northfield realized the aesthetic advantages of the river we now enjoy from Fifth Street down Second. As a boy scout I began to explore the river as something to explore and enjoy. As an adult I commuted several years to Faribault to teach and appreciated another aspect of the river as it flowed along the highway offering glimpses of its beauty.
All of these images and thoughts entered my mind when I wrote the poem for last years Cannon River Watershed Partnership Festival:
CANNON RIVER REVERIE
A rounded black stone at the river’s edge
A great blue heron waits for the wind to settle
Below huge carp fan the mud with their fins
As the river meanders through rolling hills
Chickadees hop along the shore picking up twigs
And a water bug skates across the surface unaware
Of what the river could remember of ancient ice and
Ancient campers trading along the banks
Black water fed by streams and rivulets winds its way
Past the wheels of commerce and indifferent travelers
Boys and recent immigrants cast their thin lines into the flow
Catching the feel of its pull and hoping to distract a fish
Snowmelts and summer rain make it powerful beyond
Its ordinary sense of self and hypnotizes passersby
Once a center of life now a quiet but pleasant distraction
That connects us to the beginnings of life and civilization
Civilizations emerge around rivers grow grain
Harness the river’s power and bathe in its natural
Tendency toward regeneration – rivers are the flow of time
And touch the brief moment we all exist in
Those living along the river learn to live within
The boundaries of the delicate balance that nourishes all
And like the river we become what we put into it
So if we strive for purity we must live a life more pure
Like the great blue heron at the river’s edge
We wait while the busy world passes over us
Newcomers strangers and rememberers we stand
Together with the pull of time and spin of stars
When I got an e-mail to help with this years CRWP festival it was an easy commitment to make. The partnership for those of you who don’t was created in 1990 to put forth several initiatives to protect and clean up the area waters in the watershed. I remember reading about it and being interested in their work but unable to commit the time to help. I had read poet Gary Snyder’s essay urging that a watershed is an ancient and natural region that watershed natives could organize around and manage locally. ” . . . the watershed is the first and last nation, whose boundaries, though subtly shifting, are unarguable . . . and the life that comes to flourish within it constitutes the first kind of community . . . The lessons we learn from the wild become the etiquette of freedom. We can enjoy our humanity… and take ourselves as no more and no less than another being in the Big Watershed.” –Gary Snyder, (The Practice of the Wild). He argued that if across the country the various watersheds could be organized and protected in this way it would be a natural way to connect people to the land and preserve the environment.
Judging by the commitment and enthusiasm of the various people setting up booths Saturday morning I would say Snyder has something. After setting up tables and chairs and helping various participants find their booths I was asked by Charlie Skinner to help with the Canoe and Kayak races. 
I set up more tents, pounded stakes, and mounted signs. Finally, I settled in for a leisurely afternoon by the river. I watched the paddlers race against each other once I’d started them off with the clang of a cowbell. Time and the river let me enjoy the flow and the visitors to its banks until the canoes returned. 
ArtOn Water Gallery
Aug 5, 2005 News
Dean Kjerland’s gallery is hosting the work of five artists, Dee and Tom Teller, Mary Ruth, Therese Harmsa and Dean is displaying framed Opal glass. I stopped by and visited briefly with Dee Teller a brush and collage artist who studied the Chinese art of painting horses in the traditional brush style. Many of her works are on display in the gallery. Having been to China I exchanged a few travel stories with her.
There’s a lot to see in this small gallery from batiks to hand crafted books, and beautiful hand turned wooden bowls and well worth the visit.
After visiting the gallery I wandered over to the Tavern to hear Mark Grundhoefer play guitar and piano. Mark a former student of mine at the ALC is quite an accomplished musician it was great to have the opportunity to hear him before he leaves with his band Down Lo for a tour to Colorado. I also visited briefly with John Larson another former student who occasionally plays guitar and sings at the Tavern as the ‘Norwegian Cowboy.’ I always feel blessed when I have the opportunity to visit with a former student, like Mark or John who can tell me years later how much the program meant to them and how well they are doing now.
Storytelling in the Park
Aug 5, 2005 News
Wednesdays have brought ‘Books and Stars’ music and storytelling to the parks around Northfield. I attended the event at the Oddfellow’s Park and took these photos of Dennis Warner singing and telling stories. 
The next event is August 10th at Riverside Park and features Eric the Juggler. The last event will be at Central Park where the Cannon Valley Regional Orchestra will play. You can also find shaved ice from the Cocoa Bean, get health tips from the hospital’s Wellness tent, and tell your story at the Northfield Sesquicentennial Tent.
THE PHIPPS CENTER FOR THE ARTS AND ARTSWIRL
Aug 5, 2005 News
John H. Potter, executive director of the Phipps Center for the Arts, addressed an interested crowd of artists and community members at this year’s first ArtSwirl event. The Phipps Center is a 1,000 member art organization housed in a $7,000,000 facility in Hudson, Wisconsin. The Center serves residents of the St. Croix valley region of Minnesota and Wisconsin. It was interesting to hear him describe the history and evolution of the Phipps Center and its relationship with other smaller arts groups through out the St. Croix Valley. Potter indicated he was unfamiliar with the ‘Arts Town’ concept and wanted to hear more about it.
This event was hosted by the Northfield Downtown Development Corporation, I appreciate the work that NDDC is doing and the conversation about what kind of town we should be and how to promote it. I talked awhile with NDDC President Dan Bergeson and he talked about their hard work and plans to increase their budget to do more. I asked Dan what he does to keep his spirits up and he said he has enjoyed playing his trumpet again. Dan and I were members of the same Boy Scout troop and I remembered how he was our bugle boy eons ago and a good one at that.
Potter’s talk was about the importance of art in community life and whole heartedly support this idea, but I am often concerned that we overlook or exclude some folks from access to the arts or reject some art forms because of class issues. I mentioned this in my blog a while ago. When thinking about an ‘Arts Town’ I hope our idea of what that encompasses is inclusive rather than exclusive. One reason I like community theater is that it draws people from all walks of life because we are all exposed to acting and drama. You do not necessarily have to be highly educated or experienced to get involved. But this can be true to lots of artistic expression if more opportunities for expression are offered.
The Arts Guild and ArtOrg are both attempting to do this by offering space and access to equipment in the visual arts. A simple example is the community painting at the ArtSwirl kick off on Thursday. 
But perhaps we also need to see art differently too. There are very creative people creating things around us that we may not at first glance think of as art but I argue perhaps we should take a second look. Art is and has been from the caveman to the present a celebration of community and the human spirit we all should have the opportunity to partake in it. For what it’s worth that’s my take on the ‘Arts Town’ idea.
