The Minneapolis School Board met last night. It was the first meeting since Superintendent Ed Graff announced he will be leaving his position in June, when his contract expires.  

For nearly two hours, the Minneapolis Public Schools Board of Education heard public comments, most of which were about the negative impacts of the 42 minute extension to the school day and 10 additional school days that were added to the district calendar as part of the return to work agreement between the district and the MFT teacher and ESP chapters.

Chair Kim Ellison ended the meeting abruptly after Student Representative Kennedy Rance asked questions about the extended calendar, and protests could be heard outside of the board meeting room. A more detailed summary of the meeting will be coming soon. You can watch a recording of the meeting here.

Amongst all the commotion, the board did approve changing the name of Jefferson Elementary to Ella Baker Elementary. Formally a community elementary school, it is now a global studies and humanities magnet school.

The MPS School Board's finance committee meets today at 1 p.m. We will have a reporter covering the meeting. It will not be livestreamed. The meeting will be held at the Davis Center and the public can attend.

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If you're looking for a new spot to get an iced coffee with a friend, indulge in some fancy coffee drinks, or grab a healthy lunch, we have the place for you: Third Space Cafe. I spend a lot of time in coffee shops. In high school, I used to sit at a suburban Perkins and write in my journal. In college, I did most of my homework in smoky Milwaukee coffee shops.  In Minneapolis, I love to meet with people and write from the coffee shops of Southwest Minneapolis. But enough about me. This is about the article I wrote about Third Space Cafe, the newest coffee shop in the LynLake area.

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Ice cream alert! After an extended and not-intentional winter break, La La Homemade Ice Cream Luncheonette is now open at 3146 Hennepin Ave. S.  Spring hours are Wednesday-Sunday 11 a.m.-8 p.m. They serve hand-made ice cream, non-dairy frozen treats, baked goods, soups, sandwiches, and salads. La La loves is celebrating six years in their Hennepin storefront next month. 🍨

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LINK ROUNDUP 🔗

‍A free training program in Minneapolis hopes to diversify the city's clean energy workforce. (Energy News Network)

There is a new development planned in Whittier. Left Lane Ventures, LLC plans to construct a three-story residential building on what today is a vacant site located at 2607 Second Avenue S. (The Development Tracker)

If you or someone you know is applying for college soon, high school journalist Libby Kramer compiled a bunch of advice she got from college-aged people in her life. (The Navigator)

The Timberwolves won last night in a play-in game at home against the L.A Clippers. Howl. (Twitter)

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COMMUNITY RESOURCES 💪

‍Free groceries are available today in Whittier from 3-6 p.m. Pass it on! (And yes, the groceries are for you. There are plenty to go around and the more food that is taken, the less goes to waste and it shows the community demand for future donations.)

If you live in Lowry Hill East/The Wedge, you can apply to join the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association Board. LHENA is holding an election for six open board seats beginning on April 20 at its virtual Annual Meeting. Email LHENA's executive director, Paul Shanafelt, with any questions at paul@thewedge.org.

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OUT & ABOUT 🛵

If you are RPG-curious, check out this gathering tonight at Tower Games. Part of the "B Sides" series, players tonight will be introduced to Eclipse Phase. Perfect for "people who have never played an RPG, or who have only ever played Dungeons & Dragons to new game systems and settings."

Bad Posture Club, a folk duo made up of Maren Day and Morgan Kavanagh, play at The Icehouse tonight.