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Phoo lef by Jeffrey Fara A h of sprg a Luca’s
Cre ..............................................................5Hoopg ...........................................................8ECCO Repor ............................................11Souh Asa Dg .................................12CARAG Repor .........................................13
 By Colette Davidson
This is the second in a two-part series where we take a look at the No Child Left Behind  Act in the Minneapolis Public Schools.
When President Bush’s No Child Left Behind education law was passed in 2002, edu-cators around the U.S. caused a ruckus, unhappy with the changes and unmotivated to work with the new system. For Lyndale Elementary School Principal Ossie James, NCLB is all she knows.“When I started, [NCLB] was evolving. The philosophical discussions were happening,” says James, who began working as the school’s principal in 2000 after a long career as a Speech Pathologist, “no one thought it would come to fruition, but the political landscape was rational for it coming.”Now, James gets weekly inter-net updates on curriculum and the continually changing education system. Despite feel-ing relatively new to the job, James has an innate confidence and know-how in her position. Still, she says, “it’s been chal-lenging. I’m not sure I knew what I expected. The role of the principal has changed–it’s ever-evolving–it’s a dynamic type of position and there are a myriad of facets to this job.”One of the challenges for James is to keep students and teach-ers happy while abiding by the laws set by the U.S. Depart-ment of Education. As NCLB comes up for renewal by Con-gress this year, small, indepen-dent commissions have been given the job of analyzing the existing law and looking for ways to improve it, now list-ing over 75 suggestions for amendment. New evaluations are being made as to whether teacher and administrative per-formance can be directly linked to student progress, thus thrust-ing ineffective educators out of high-poverty school systems. The standards may also be set higher for math and reading test scores, and science may become a required component of testing.Another possible change is tracking each individual child’s progress from year to year instead of looking at each grade level. James, who still believes that the old tests were only able to identify general trends and not specifics about a child’s level, is in favor of this new aspect of the law. “It’s unfair. Every year, you look at a new set of students. We are penal-ized for kids who aren’t even here anymore,” James says.What is good about the test-ing, regardless of how it is tracked, is its ability to rate a child’s performance on a given day in order to have something to report to parents. “I wish it were a different kind of infor-mation, though,” says James. The tests are not completely in vain however, she says, because
Covering the Neighborhoods of
CARAG
 and
ECCO
 in the Uptown AreaMarch 2007 • Volume 3, Number 3
inside
 By Jacqueline Varriano
Thousands of people drive down Lyndale every day past a building so loud it almost becomes non-descript. The outside, covered in beautiful street art courtesy of the annual B-Girl Be festival, both draws and deflects attention. This building is Intermedia Arts, a multidisciplinary arts center that houses artist mentorship programs, a 117-seat theater, an art gallery, a poetry library and a digital art lab. Plus, it is home to the 2007 Minneapolis 55408 show. In its 11th year, the multi-media, multi-artist show exhibits work by any artist who meets the fol-lowing criteria: they must be either a resident of 55408, work in the zip code or be a donor, employee or board member of Intermedia Arts.The 2007 exhibition kicked off on January 25 and is open to the public through March 17. This year, according to Artistic Director, Theresa Sweetland, 47 artists are displaying their work both at Intermedia Arts and Calhoun Square. Over the years, the number has ranged from 40 to as many as 90, vary-ing from professional artists to first time public exhibitors. Locally lauded portrait artist, Ben Olson, has been a resident of 55408 for about five years and has been participating in the exhibit since he moved here. You may recognize his beautiful, somewhat haunting paintings of his wife, Emma and himself in a variety of publications and locations, including the cover of
 American  Painter
, a solo show at Rogue Buddha Gallery, as well as
Let the powers of 55408 Unite!
Intermedia Arts showcases huge talent in small spaces 
Phoo by Jeffrey Fara
55408: A celebration of the most creative zip code in Minneapolis.
55408 EXHIBIT
 continued on page 9
Lyndale Principal’s Goals Exceed the Letter of Education Law
Phoo by Barclay Horer
Lyndale Principal, Ossie James works hard to ensure that her students succeed and take pride in themselves.
CARAG’s Chilly Chili Fest
Mikey and his dad show off the T-shirt he won at CARAG’s Chilly Chili Fest
Weekend snow didn’t stop about 160 neighbors from trekking to Bryant Square Park for Chilly Chili Fest on February 25th. They enjoyed delicious bowls of hot chili and won raffle prizes donated by area businesses. The event raised $550 for Joyce Food Shelf (1222 West 31st Street). This event is organized by the CARAG Livability Commit-tee and staffed by hard-work-ing volunteers who made the whole day look effortless!
Phoo by Jll Bode
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND
 continued on page 3
 
 •
UPtOwn nEiGHBORHOOD nEwS
mARCH 2007
ruminations
NEWS, TIPS & LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
uptownnews@yahoo.com UNN, 711 West Lake St. #303 Minneapolis, MN 55408
 
(612) 259-1372
SENIOR EDITOR
Scott Schiefelbein
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Colette Davidson
ADVERTISING
Susan Hagler (612) 825-7780 susanhagler@earthlink.net
MANAGING BOARD
 
Appointed/Elected Reps:
 Kay Nygaard-Graham, Chair (CARAG) 825-3637 Gary Farland, Vice-chair (ECCO) 824-6744 Anna Matthes, Treasurer (CARAG) Carrie Menard (ECCO) Jill Bode (CARAG) Ralph Knox, Secretary (ECCO)
Volunteer Members:
 David Peterson Mary Ann Knox
CALENDAR EDITOR
Wendy Auldrich
CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS
Jill Bode, Jeffrey Farnam, Wendy Hinz, Barclay Horner, Naomi Oshiro, David Peterson
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Kay Anderson, Gary Farland, Sue Lundquist, Kay Nygaard-Graham, Aaron Rubenstein, Mike Rylander, Jacqueline Varriano
GRAPHIC DESIGN & PRODUCTION
Kelly Newcomer 824-1092
NEWSPAPER CIRCULATION
CARAG/ECCO Circulation: Bill Boudreau 825-0979
MINNEAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL
Tenth Ward Ralph Remington, 673-2210 ralph.remington@ci.minneapolis.mn.us
CRIME PREVENTION SPECIALIST
Tom Thompson, 5th Precinct SAFE Unit, Sector 2, 3101 Nicollet Ave Minneapolis MN 55408 Serving the neighborhoods of; CARAG, East Harriet, ECCO, Kingfield, Linden Hills, Lyndale, West Calhoun
5TH PRECINCT COMMUNITY ATTORNEY
Lisa Godon 673-2005
Uptown Neighborhood News reserves the right to refuse publication of articles or advertisements as it sees fit. But we will see fit to publish most things, don’t worry. Copyright © 2006 Uptown Neighborhood News.
UPTOWN NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS
Uptown Neighborhood News
is a monthly publication of Calhoun Area Residents Action Group (CARAG) in cooperation with the East Calhoun Community Organization (ECCO). UNN covers the news of and is delivered free to households within the area bounded by Lyn-dale Ave. S. and Lake Calhoun, between Lake Street and 36th St. W. Extra copies are distrib-uted to businesses in the Uptown area, along Lake Street, and Lyndale and Hennepin Aves. Circulation is 5,100, with a pass-along readership of 10,000. Publication and distribution is near the first weekend of every month. Subscriptions are available for $30 per year, prepaid. Send check to: UNN, 711 W. Lake St., Suite 303, Minneapolis, MN 55408.Contributors are area residents who volunteer their time to bring the news of the area to resi-dents. Articles, letters to the editor and story ideas are welcomed and encouraged. The editor reserves the right to edit for length, clarity, relevance to the area, or other reasons. Editorial and advertising guidelines are available. Please contact the editor:
DEADLINEfor submissions to the March Issue of Uptown Neighborhood News is WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21.
 By Mike Rylander
There is a disturbing trend on the city buses of Minneapo-lis that I feel must be brought to the public’s attention, if it has not been already. In fact, maybe when you read this arti-cle, you will be instantly com-pelled to jump right off your cushy coffee shop couch and, with a brazen attitude of vindi-cation, triumphantly proclaim to your fellow caffeine addicts, “Yes! I am not the only one who notices! I am not the only one irritated!” Or, maybe you won’t. Maybe, you will instead feel your head begin to slowly droop in shame as you realize, “Wow...he’s talking about me...I’m the one who annoys him...I’m the one who makes this guy’s life slightly less enjoy-able...” Or, maybe you will just scoff in utter disgust at the actual concept of “riding a city bus.” (“Eww! Buses are icky and they’re filled with poor people who smell like they don’t have a home!”). Well, if this is the case, then I suggest you dis-continue reading this article and just go about your busi-ness as per norm (living in an “Uptown Condo,” shopping at the Banana Republic & hang-ing out with your Sigma Upsi-lon buddies at Williams Peanut Bar on Thursday nights). Or, maybe you’ll just say, “Uh, duh, dude...this is why we have city buses.” Whatever the case, the trend I speak of is–of course–”City Bus Performance Art.” Let me explain. Have you ever found yourself seated on a moving bus–pen in hand, New York Times crossword in lap–attempting to conjure up a seven letter word that begins with ‘J’ and means “vividly refreshing,” when all of a sudden you and your concentration hear the rhyth-mic verbal entrance of a new commuter? “Cuz’ my game be tight! My phatty grillz gots some bite! The honies be all up on me like dynamite!”–Do you see where I am going with this?–”Times for me to get paid! Times for me to get laid! Gonna buy me a ballin’ crib and hires me a maid!” That’s right, my friends–nothing, and I mean nothing, sets the stage for some hip-hop freestylin’ like the number 4 route to New Brighton. But does it? Now, be sure that you don’t misinterpret what I am saying. I do most defi-nitely feel that hip-hop is an art form and a style of music that deserves respect. Like many others, I appreciate a good beat and thought-compelling street poetry. All I am suggesting is that there is a time and a place for it. In the studio: yes. Mess-ing around with friends: yes. Performing at the 7th St. Entry: most definitely. Sitting next to me on the 6E Southbound trav-eling into the city of Edina: no. Never. Not ever is this a proper forum for flowin’ flava.All I want to know is, why? Why, why, why are there so many “bad rappers” who feel the urge to release their “art” into the world on a city bus in Minneapolis? What is the moti-vation? Do you really think that the sixty-four other people on the bus are going to erupt in spontaneous applause after you spit some lines about “how whack your parole officer is?” Do you really think that this is how you are going to be “dis-covered?” Is this how Kanye West got his start? Or Fitty-Cent? Or even the immortal Chuck D? I doubt it. I serious-ly doubt it. Without any formal research on the subject, I am willing to state that not one famous hip-hop artist was discovered by a record mogul while “spitting flow” on a Minneapolis City Bus. Not a single one. If there is one, tell me, and I will detract all I have said. Until then, can’t we all just commute in peace?
 Mike Rylander is a CARAG  resident and an actor, writer, improviser, bartender, dude  next to you at the bar. You  may also know him has “The Timberwolves Announcer Guy.”  Mike has a website too – www.mikerylander.com.
You be Killin’ my Flow, Yo!
The Metro Transit System: Public Commuter Network or Hip-Hop Record Label?
Phoo by wedy Hz
VOLUNTEER WRITERS!
Are you yearning to be heard? Do you Love Uptown? The UNN is looking for writers who want to write about books, crime, politics, art. We are also looking for submissions for our Rumi-nations section – do you have reflections on living in this area? We want to hear from you! Call 612.259.1372 or email
uptownnews@yahoo.com 
.
 
mARCH 2007
 
UPtOwn nEiGHBORHOOD nEwS •
they are teaching children test-taking skills, which will be necessary to get through high school. “[The tests] teach chil-dren how to respond in a coher-ent and cogent manner,” says James.
A big problem with the tests is how they address English Lan-guage Learners (ELL). Fifty-four percent of the students at Lyndale School, all of whom are fully integrated in regular classes, fall into this category. All children, regardless of how long they have been in the U.S., are required to take the same test as native English speakers. The only modifications are with the math tests, where teachers are allowed to read the question aloud if a child doesn’t understand. “If a kid has been here one year, they have to pass it,” says James, becoming rattled, “I couldn’t go to Somalia with a college degree and pass a test.” Besides infre-quently reading questions for ELL students, teachers and even Principal James herself are not authorized to look at the tests before or while they are given. “We are like the building proxy,” James says.
With the testing comes the reporting and, like Principal Ray Aponte at Jefferson School, James is often frustrated by the current scoring of students. “If you start at 1426 [for your final school score] and next year, you get 1424, you are penalized for those two points, for a dif-ferent group of students” says James. While some schools may consistently be achieving their desired scores, James isn’t so sure about the majority. “From a statistician’s viewpoint,” she says, “that means everyone isn’t hitting that number.” When the results come in, James often has to deal with the burden of seek-ing new resources to improve the scores for the following year. Money is often sparse, and with Bush’s proposed education bud-get cuts of over $2 billion dollars this year, being resourceful is a difficult task. “Sometimes, that can be stressful….you have to budget creatively,” she says.Speaking of creativity, there is an abundance of it at Lyn-dale School. Besides stressing a peaceful and loving environ-ment, the school incorporates arts education into its cur-riculum and sequence of study, which they call, “Core Knowl-edge.” Alongside the usual Art and Music classes, Lyndale ben-efits from the resources within the neighboring community. One example is the Children’s Theater Company, who comes in and works with the third graders on a regular basis, read-ing Greek and Roman mythol-ogy culminating in projects and performances. Whether the second graders are doing an assembly on immigration or the first graders are tap dancing to multiplication, Lyndale School teachers try to make learning fun. “I depend on the creativ-ity and professionalism of the teachers,” says James, “they’re not spending the whole day on reading and math.”While James realizes that fol-lowing the rules of standardized tests and NCLB procedures are important, she is just as deter-mined to teach her students life skills that they can carry with them well beyond their fifth grade education at Lyndale. With eighty-nine percent of stu-dents on free or reduced lunch, teaching confidence, diversity appreciation and mutual respect are very important to Principal Ossie James. No U.S. mandated education law can change her ultimate goals for her students.“I want every one of these stu-dents to be the best possible citi-zens they can be,” says James, “I want them to be responsible, resourceful and humane. I want them to love themselves and love the universe. I want them to know that they matter.”
Colette Davidson is Associate  Editor of the Uptown  Neighborhood News.
               
No Child Left Behind Law Anticipates Renewal 
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NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND
 continued from page 1
Phoo by Barclay Horer
Students prepare for the many tests they must take under Bush’s education law.
 By Aaron Rubenstein
Calhoun Pet Supply opened February 10 at 901 West 36th Street, on the southwest corner of 36th and Bryant. It is owned by the husband/wife team of Fuliang “Joe” Zhou and Qing (pronounced “Ching”) Liu. They have owned Kyle’s Market at the northeast cor-ner of the same intersection since 1995. In September 2005, they bought the inventory and equipment from Sam’s Food Mart after it closed; Sam’s was located where the pet supply store is now located.Calhoun Pet Supply sells pet food, supplies, and toys for cats, dogs, and small animals such as fish, hamsters, birds, guinea pigs and rabbits. It will carry basic fishing supplies starting in April. Zhou said that seventy percent of the product line is premium and thirty percent is regular. Store hours are 10 to 7 on weekdays, 10 to 6 on Satur-day, and 10 to 4 on Sunday. The store will handle special orders, and offers delivery for larger orders and to the Walker Meth-odist residences. The store’s phone number is 612.824.1094.Some of the brands sold are Solid Gold, Science Diet, Cani-dae, Eukanuba, Precise, Dia-mond, Felidae, Iams, and Nutro. The store has one full-time and one part-time employee; Zhou works there as needed. Zhou said the new business has “had a very good, positive response from the neighborhood.”Responding to the question of how he came to choose this type of business, Zhou said he “wanted a business to serve the neighborhood.” He and his wife considered opening a gift/ card shop and dry cleaning sta-tion. They did an informal sur-vey of Kyle’s customers, Zhou said, “asking them what they want and feedback on ideas.” The first choice, he said, was a combination of take out Chi-nese food and pizza. But the building owner didn’t want a restaurant and there would be a parking issue, he said. Plus, “there are a lot of pets in the area,” he noted.Zhou lives in Eden Prairie and has two children. The fam-ily used to have a dog and two cats. Now, they are too busy and without pets, he said. Man-darin Chinese is Zhou and Liu’s native language; at home they speak both English and Mandarin–sometimes mixed together.Zhou and Liu grew up in China–Liu in the city of Hang-zhou, and Zhou in the country-side 120 miles from Hangzhou. Zhou studied English at Hang-zhou University and met his future wife later when working for a travel business. He came to the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul in 1989, right after the Tiananmen Square pro-tests and massacre. His sponsor was a Minneapolis travel agent. Zhou earned a Masters of Inter-national Management degree.Zhou said his immigration to the U. S. was related to the Tiananmen Square incident. “Many people, like me, thought it was time to leave the coun-try,” he said, “because of the use of force and no future for young people.” He was 32 or 33 years old at the time.Liu came to the Twin Cit-ies one year after her husband did. She had studied account-ing and worked in small retail in China. She and Zhou were looking to buy a small business in 1995 and came across Kyle’s Market.Last August, the couple bought a café, Café Max, in the South-dale Office Center at 6700 France Avenue South from a friend. Their son Michael, 21, manages it. It is open for break-fast and lunch on weekdays, primarily for office building tenants.
 Aaron Rubenstein is the Zoning Committee Chair.
Calhoun Pet Supply Opens

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