MARCH 29, 2016 ROTARY IN REVIEW:
Rassoul Dastmozd
Jerry Faletti, Lethert, Skwira & Schultz, led the club in God Bless America with “Father” Bob Jones on the piano. This dynamic duo also led us in a round of Happy Birthday to the many stellar Rotarians celebrating March birthdays. Brianna Vujovich, Dignity Memorial, offered an inspirational minute about the power of wearing the Rotary pin. She boasted four today and it was noticing someone wearing a pin at a funeral that turned her into a member! Peter Pearson, Friends of the St Paul Public Library, introduced guests of Rotarians.
Thanks to Annette Kuyper, Beyond the Yellow Ribbon and yours truly for greeting. Annette, who is hosting one of the Rotation Day lunches next week, encouraged members to sign up.
Doug Bruce, UBS Financial, encouraged members to participate in our final Feed My Starving Children packing event at Summit Brewing Company this April 23-24. Please be there to help pack our ONE MILLIONTH meal!! Scott Van and Mindee Kastellic have volunteered to be shift leaders – see them to sign up or go online.
Past President John Andrews presented Elmer Andersen awards (for gifts totaling $1,000 to the St. Paul Rotary Foundation) to Donovan Schwichtenberg and David Laird.
Peter Pearson collected happy dollars from Doug Hartford (first glass of wine on the deck last night!), Linda Mulhern (in honor of her daughter on her exchange, working hard and getting credit!), Lynne Beck (in honor of Park Square Theatre’s upcoming gala “Springtime in Paris” on April 4), Chuck Standfuss (in honor of having guests from Protocol 46 each week this month). Doug Bruce (just back from a great trip to La Jolla). Doug talked about our wonderful club and was at the mic too long – he wound up with a $75 fine from their “wheel of misfortune,” and Jim Delamater (in honor of great skiing at Breckenridge.
Program: Dr. Rassoul Dastmozd, President, St. Paul College, introduced by Donovan Schwichtenberg
The concern in the marketplace has shifted from the need for jobs to the need for qualified workers.
The college reflects the tapestry of humanity that makes up the Twin Cities – so much more than 40 years ago when Rassoul first came to Saint Paul, when “diversity” was mostly Swedes, Norwegians and Germans!
Trades in Minnesota’s Education and Workforce Outlook:
- Population Growth Declining. More citizens leave than move here, creating more competition for workers and fewer students for St. Paul College and the MNSCU system overall.
- Fewer Minnesotans live outside the metro, and the urban growth is mostly coming from new immigrants and people of color.
- The Graying Population. The next ten years will see hundreds of thousands of Boomer exiting the workforce as they retire.
- Lack of viable talent to fill available positions.
- Eliminating racial disparities is crucial to our success.
- Diversity in greater Minnesota is growing. These workers are stuck in neutral, with little wage expansion in the last two decades.
MNSCU serves 400,000 students, including 62,000 students of color (more students of color than any other post-secondary institutional system in the state).
St. Paul College is more than tech school – graduates transfer to more than 350 schools, including Ivy League Schools. The college is ranked #1 in the nation for student engagement.
Enrollment is just under 10,000 students, about 3,000 full-time. Our graduates are in your life from morning to night all day long in all the trades and professions (except mortuary science, which is taught at the U of M). 86% of our students find jobs immediately after graduation. Enrollment has grown 82% since 2002 – the fastest growing higher ed institution in the state.
Respectfully submitted,
Michael-jon Pease