News

Closing the wage gap – part 2

Highest paying occupations drive the difference between the Twin Cities seven-county metro and the rest of Minnesota. Kelly Asche, Senior Researcher March 2024 As the search for workers intensifies throughout Minnesota, the conversation around wages and the gap between rural areas and the seven-county metro continues to come up. To try and add some nuance ...

Season 4, Episode 5: Proposed housing legislation with Scott McMahon

March 2024 On this episode, Kelly Asche, Senior Research with the Center for Rural Policy and Development, speaks with Scott McMahon, Executive Director of the Greater Minnesota Partnership about proposed legislation in the Minnesota legislature. The Greater MN Partnership has been advocating for state investment in rural housing and in 2023 they successfully advocated to ...
Hands holding a family cut out from paper

The power of community

Marnie Werner Vice President of Research & Operations   My dad once told me his boss had a sign on his door that read: “Are you part of the problem or part of the solution?” When I first started at the Center in 2000, I think rural Minnesota was at a crossroads of sorts. The ...

Research webinar – The suicide epidemic in rural Minnesota

The Center for Rural Policy & Development and the Citizens League are excited to continue our “Interconnected” series highlighting  topics important to both rural and urban audiences. In this webinar, hear a presentation from Vice President of Research, Marnie Werner, providing an overview of the Center for Rural Policy and Development’s newest research – “The ...

Season 4, Episode 4: Suicide research with Dr. Tracie Rutherford Self

Our most recent research highlighted the suicide epidemic in rural Minnesota. On this episode, researchers and authors of the report, Marnie Werner and Tracie Rutherford Self, discuss the various elements of how we got to this point in rural areas, the factors that are playing a role, and ways in which we can move forward ...
Happy girl looking out over a beach.

The Suicide Epidemic in Rural Minnesota: How we got here and how we move forward

  A report in partnership with the Center for Rural Behavioral Health, Minnesota State University, Mankato. As suicide rates race upward, rural residents struggle with a lack of services, information, and answers. Marnie Werner, VP Research, Center for Rural Policy & Development & Tracie Rutherford Self, Ph.D., Minnesota State University Mankato February 2024 Click here ...

Closing the wage gap

Is it realistic for rural areas to close the wage gap? Probably not. By: Kelly Asche, Senior Researcher Most of rural Minnesota is discussing ways to grow the labor force. Increasing the affordable housing stock and childcare capacity are two primary strategies being discussed at the legislature. One of the underlying issues that makes these ...

Season 4, Episode 3: Launching Your Future Today (LYFT) Initiative

Our most recent research highlighted the importance career and technical education played in the Southwest’s region’s labor force. On this episode, Kelly Asche (Senior Researcher) chats with Eriann Faris, the Career and Technical Education Program Coordinator for Southwest West Central Services Cooperative and leads the Launching Your Future Today (LYFT) initiative. Eriann explains how LYFT ...

What’s happening in Greater Minnesota? – Part 5, Deaths of despair

On February 7th, Sourcewell hosted the Center for Rural Policy to broadcast a presentation and discussion highlighting the Center’s most recent research. In part 5, Director of Research Marnie Werner provides a preview of upcoming research highlight suicide and deaths of despair in rural Minnesota.