MPR News with Angela Davis

Craig Leipold may be one of downtown St. Paul’s biggest boosters. He’s the owner of the Minnesota Wild, and his company manages the venues that bring two million people downtown every year for games, concerts and other events: the Grand Casino Arena, the Saint Paul RiverCentre and Roy Wilkins Auditorium.This year, he expanded his sports franchises to include a new women’s volleyball team that he hopes will attract even more fans to downtown. And he just became majority owner of the historic St. Paul Hotel, the century-old hotel overlooking Rice Park where he stays on the top floor when he isn’t home in Racine, Wis. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Leipold about his career, the business of sports, being a dad of five sons and what’s ahead for downtown St. Paul.

Many people underestimate how much they spend on subscriptions and memberships. Consumers think they spend around $90 a month, according to one survey. But when asked to actually add up those recurring fees, the average came to $220 a month — more than twice as much. MPR News host Angela Davis and her guests talk about the rise of the subscription economy, why recurring fees have become so common and how consumers can get a better handle on what they’re paying for.Guests:Demitri McGee is a financial coach, certified housing counselor and youth director at Build Wealth Minnesota, a nonprofit opportunity center dedicated to helping families through financial education, personalized coaching and community-based programs. Akshay Rao is a professor of marketing at the University of Minnesota, where he holds the General Mills chair at the Carlson School of Management.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Each minute after someone’s heart stops is a countdown towards death — nine in 10 people die if they experience a cardiac arrest outside a hospital. Dave Ogle beat the odds. The Woodbury man’s heart stopped seven years ago while he was at home watching TV. His wife Kris Patrow was able to perform CPR until paramedics arrived. And then he was rushed to one of the few hospitals in the world that was pioneering new techniques that could restore blood flow to his lifeless body. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Ogle and Patrow about his recovery, and with a cardiologist about the importance of CPR and why Minnesota has some of the best cardiac arrest survival rates in the country.

Minnesota's student population has grown significantly more diverse over the past few decades. Today, nearly 40 percent of the state's K-12 students identify as students of color.But, according to the Minnesota Department of Education, just 7 percent of the state’s teachers identify as teachers of color. The gap is even wider for Black educators. While Black students make up about 12 percent of Minnesota's student population, Black teachers account for just 1.4 percent of the state's teaching workforce. And Black men make up only 0.5 percent of all K-12 teachers in the state.MPR News host Angela Davis talks with leaders of Black Men Teach, a Twin Cities organization that’s working to recruit, prepare and support Black male elementary school teachers in Minnesota.Guests: Markus Flynn is the CEO of Black Men Teach, a nonprofit committed to increasing the number of Black male elementary school educators in the Twin Cities. He used to teach fifth and sixth grade science at Prodeo Academy in Minneapolis. Devon Minke teaches third grade at North Park School for Innovation in Columbia Heights. Keondre Lewis teaches second grade at North Park School for Innovation in Columbia Heights.

Whether you’re renting, trying to buy your first home, or making a move — many people are finding that affordable housing feels out of reach. Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari recently pointed to four major factors pushing up housing prices: High interest rates, rising construction costs, regulations and zoning rules, and a shortage of housing overall. MPR News guest host Catharine Richert talks about what more expensive housing means for renters and buyers across Minnesota — and what policymakers, builders and communities can do to make housing more affordable. Guest:Alene Tchourumoff is the senior vice president of Community Development and Engagement for the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Her team studies housing affordability and economic trends affecting low and moderate-income households across Minnesota. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.

Last March, President Donald Trump issued an executive order titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.”It mandated a shift in how American history is portrayed in federal institutions, with a goal of eliminating “improper, divisive or anti-American ideology.”Instead, according to the executive order, the focus should be on a more “patriotic” narrative. And to ensure that happens, funding was cut for anything that “degrades shared American values” or “divides Americans by race.”This order applied largely to federal institutions, like the Smithsonian museums and the National Parks System.But here in Minnesota, the funding restrictions and shifts in ideology were felt immediately. History museum directors and curators — the people who collect and keep Minnesota history — were alarmed at what might be coming their way.So what happened? Were their fears realized?North Star Journey Live went to Mankato to find out. At the annual conference for the Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums, Angela Davis hosted a live discussion to talk about the ramifications of the federal order in Minnesota. Guests: Jessica Potter, executive director of the Blue Earth County Historical SocietyDave Nichols, executive director of the Rice County Historical SocietyMai Vang Huizel, founder and director of the Hmong MuseumKyle Ward, director of the social studies education program at Minnesota State University MankatoSubscribe to MPR News with Angela Davis on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.

Over the past decade, police in America have shot and killed 1,939 people who were in the middle of a mental health crisis. That’s 20 percent of all police killings in that time. Those deaths helped fuel a movement. Instead of armed police, more than half of the country’s largest cities now send specially trained social workers and EMTs. This new generation of first responders handle 911 calls involving mental illness, substance use disorders, or suicidal thoughts. Call to Mind: The Fifth Branch is a special program made in partnership with the “Tradeoffs” podcast. This episode takes listeners to Durham, North Carolina, to meet people who have reimagined the city’s crisis-response system.For more reporting like this, subscribe and follow Call to Mind on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, TuneIn or wherever you get your podcasts.