Had some fun talking with Mya Curtis and Shy Jackson as we get set to celebrate Juneteenth this weekend in La Crosse at Riverside Park. The two are founders of Hope Restores in La Crosse, which does a lot of great things for the community. And when asked if white guy Rick should feel comfortable coming to Juneteenth or volunteering at Hope Restores, they had a pretty great answer! 

Had some fun talking with Mya Curtis and Shy Jackson as we get set to celebrate Juneteenth this weekend in La Crosse at Riverside Park. The two are founders of Hope Restores in La Crosse, which does a lot of great things for the community. And when asked if white guy Rick should feel comfortable coming to Juneteenth or volunteering at Hope Restores, they had a pretty great answer!&nbsp;

Listener conversations about the days events in and around the La Crosse area.  Weekdays from 5-6pm on WIZM 1410AM and 92.3FM

La Crosse Talk PM WIZM

Rick Solem talks about the days events in and around the La Crosse area. Weekdays from 5:07-6pm on 1410 WIZM

Rick Solem talks about the days events in and around the La Crosse area. Weekdays from 5:07-6pm on 1410 WIZM

WIZM - La Crosse

Let's make the white guy feel uncomfortable for a change

La Crosse School Board President Trevor Sprague in the WIZM studio for The Rick Solem Show discussing the district’s new brand and how they’re competing for students.

We get into the thinking behind the new ‘Grow here, go anywhere’ identity — and why Sprague sees the $100,000 rebranding effort as an investment in keeping students in the district.

We also discuss schools providing childcare, a lack of state funding, and Sprague details the latest meeting among La Crosse County area school board presidents on how one of their goals is to put the cost of school vouchers on property tax bills.

Lastly, Sprague shares two success stories: building a winning Harley-Davidson racing bike and Polytechnic being named an Apple Distinguished School for its innovative work, including with Apple Vision Pro.

Episode Highlights:
The new brand: What the district is trying to accomplish with a new name, logo, colors and “Grow here, go anywhere” motto.
The enrollment battle: La Crosse has gained more transfer students than it has lost — but the numbers tell a more complicated story.
The child care equation: Could the public schools play a bigger role in helping families with young children?
AI vs. story time: We joke about having AI read to your kids while you're doing the dishes — and get into why early literacy still starts at home.
A Harley winner: Central students built and customized a motorcycle for a flat-track racing competition — and won.
Apple Vision Pro: How Polytechnic is using the tech in a project that earned the school international recognition.
Voucher transparency: La Crosse area school boards want taxpayers to see the cost of voucher programs on their property tax bills.

La Crosse School Board President Trevor Sprague in the WIZM studio for The Rick Solem Show discussing the district&rsquo;s new brand and how they&rsquo;re competing for students.
We get into the thinking behind the new &lsquo;Grow here, go anywhere&rsquo; identity &mdash; and why Sprague sees the $100,000 rebranding effort as an investment in keeping students in the district.
We also discuss schools providing childcare, a lack of state funding, and Sprague details the latest meeting among La Crosse County area school board presidents on how one of their goals is to put the cost of school vouchers on property tax bills.
Lastly, Sprague shares two success stories: building a winning Harley-Davidson racing bike and Polytechnic being named an Apple Distinguished School for its innovative work, including with Apple Vision Pro.
Episode Highlights:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">The new brand: What the district is trying to accomplish with a new name, logo, colors and &ldquo;Grow here, go anywhere&rdquo; motto.</li>
<li aria-level="1">The enrollment battle: La Crosse has gained more transfer students than it has lost &mdash; but the numbers tell a more complicated story.</li>
<li aria-level="1">The child care equation: Could the public schools play a bigger role in helping families with young children?</li>
<li aria-level="1">AI vs. story time: We joke about having AI read to your kids while you're doing the dishes &mdash; and get into why early literacy still starts at home.</li>
<li aria-level="1">A Harley winner: Central students built and customized a motorcycle for a flat-track racing competition &mdash; and won.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Apple Vision Pro: How Polytechnic is using the tech in a project that earned the school international recognition.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Voucher transparency: La Crosse area school boards want taxpayers to see the cost of voucher programs on their property tax bills.</li>
</ul>

La Crosse School Board president Sprague on the new branding campaign, students building a racing Harley

No wrecking ball on the old Kmart in La Crosse yet, but Jeremy Novak from Three-Sixty Real Estate Solutions stopped in studio to talk about when that could finally happen, what's next for the $64 million Copper Rocks development and why the project has taken more than five years to get to this point.

Novak, Three-Sixty's vice president of development, also talks about the housing shortage in La Crosse, why the old Kmart site isn't being turned into single-family homes, and how a major state loan helped move the project forward.

And we have some fun brainstorming ways to take down the old Kmart, which closed in 2018.

Episode Highlights:


Demolition timeline: Heavy equipment won't be on-site this week, but when could the building finally come down?


$64M scope shift: What happened to the original plans for Copper Rocks — and what does the project look like now?


La Crosse housing demand: How did the 2008 housing crash help create today's shortage — and why haven't we caught up?


The single-family debate: Why isn't the old Kmart site being used for traditional houses — and what would those homes cost?


State funding boost: How a major state loan helped move the project forward.


Site layout & future tenants: What will the five-building development look like — and what kinds of businesses could end up there?


The mystery tenant: Three-Sixty already has a signed commercial tenant. So who is it?

No wrecking ball on the old Kmart in La Crosse yet, but Jeremy Novak from Three-Sixty Real Estate Solutions stopped in studio to talk about when that could finally happen, what's next for the $64 million Copper Rocks development and why the project has taken more than five years to get to this point.
Novak, Three-Sixty's vice president of development, also talks about the housing shortage in La Crosse, why the old Kmart site isn't being turned into single-family homes, and how a major state loan helped move the project forward.
And we have some fun brainstorming ways to take down the old Kmart, which closed in 2018.
Episode Highlights:
<ul>
<li>
Demolition timeline: Heavy equipment won't be on-site this week, but when could the building finally come down?
</li>
<li>
$64M scope shift: What happened to the original plans for Copper Rocks &mdash; and what does the project look like now?
</li>
<li>
La Crosse housing demand: How did the 2008 housing crash help create today's shortage &mdash; and why haven't we caught up?
</li>
<li>
The single-family debate: Why isn't the old Kmart site being used for traditional houses &mdash; and what would those homes cost?
</li>
<li>
State funding boost: How a major state loan helped move the project forward.
</li>
<li>
Site layout &amp; future tenants: What will the five-building development look like &mdash; and what kinds of businesses could end up there?
</li>
<li>
The mystery tenant: Three-Sixty already has a signed commercial tenant. So who is it?
</li>
</ul>

Inside the $64 million plan for La Crosse’s old Kmart site — and who swings the wrecking ball

A discussion about rural health care on The Rick Solem Show ahead of two days of health and public health programs hosted by UW-La Crosse this week.

Two educators joined, looking at different pieces of the rural health puzzle — Dr. Caitlin Carroll of the University of Minnesota and UW-La Crosse’s Dr. Gary Gilmore.

Carroll is a health economist, whose work focuses on rural hospitals, mergers and closures, while Gilmore is a UW-L public health professor and director of community health programs.

Carroll is also previewing her free virtual UW-L talk Tuesday on rural hospital consolidation — what’s driving the closures and mergers, and what happens to access, prices and quality of care when they do.The conversation also gets into rural OB care, prevention and whether there’s a better way to keep essential rural health services available.

Carroll’s UWL talk: Causes & Consequences of Consolidation in Rural Hospital Markets — 12:50–1:50 p.m. Tuesday. Free and virtual; registration is required. Register for the free UWL presentation.

Gilmore’s Wisconsin Education Network program: The 40th annual program runs 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Wednesday focusing on public health outreach and quality assurance. Both programs are virtual and open to participants beyond the La Crosse area.

Episode Highlights:
Your bill could rise: A rural hospital closes — and the consequences can show up in your health care costs, even if you never went there.
The OB crisis: Rural hospitals are staying open while shutting down obstetric units. Why is delivering babies becoming so difficult to sustain?
Why rural clinics are merging: Fewer patients, lower reimbursement and financial pressure are pushing rural health care providers toward consolidation.
The monopoly question: What happens to prices when one hospital disappears and there are fewer places left to go?
More than a closure: When a rural hospital shuts down, you can lose doctors and primary care access along with it.
A different model: What if keeping a rural hospital open didn’t depend entirely on how many patients walked through the door?
Health beyond hospitals: Could sidewalks, bike paths and the way a community is built actually be part of the health care equation?

A discussion about rural health care on The Rick Solem Show ahead of two days of health and public health programs hosted by UW-La Crosse this week.
Two educators joined, looking at different pieces of the rural health puzzle &mdash; Dr. Caitlin Carroll of the University of Minnesota and UW-La Crosse&rsquo;s Dr. Gary Gilmore.
Carroll is a health economist, whose work focuses on rural hospitals, mergers and closures, while Gilmore is a UW-L public health professor and director of community health programs.
Carroll is also previewing her free virtual UW-L talk Tuesday on rural hospital consolidation &mdash; what&rsquo;s driving the closures and mergers, and what happens to access, prices and quality of care when they do.The conversation also gets into rural OB care, prevention and whether there&rsquo;s a better way to keep essential rural health services available.
Carroll&rsquo;s UWL talk: Causes &amp; Consequences of Consolidation in Rural Hospital Markets &mdash; 12:50&ndash;1:50 p.m. Tuesday.&nbsp;Free and virtual; registration is required. <a href="https://www.uwlax.edu/gel/ppd/meet/free-public-event/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">Register for the free UWL presentation</a>.
Gilmore&rsquo;s Wisconsin Education Network program: The 40th annual program runs 9 a.m.&ndash;4:30 p.m. Wednesday focusing on&nbsp;public health outreach and quality assurance. Both programs are virtual and open to participants beyond the La Crosse area.
Episode Highlights:
<ul data-spread="false">
<li>Your bill could rise: A rural hospital closes &mdash; and the consequences can show up in your health care costs, even if you never went there.</li>
<li>The OB crisis: Rural hospitals are staying open while shutting down obstetric units. Why is delivering babies becoming so difficult to sustain?</li>
<li>Why rural clinics are merging: Fewer patients, lower reimbursement and financial pressure are pushing rural health care providers toward consolidation.</li>
<li>The monopoly question: What happens to prices when one hospital disappears and there are fewer places left to go?</li>
<li>More than a closure: When a rural hospital shuts down, you can lose doctors and primary care access along with it.</li>
<li>A different model: What if keeping a rural hospital open didn&rsquo;t depend entirely on how many patients walked through the door?</li>
<li>Health beyond hospitals: Could sidewalks, bike paths and the way a community is built actually be part of the health care equation?</li>
</ul>

Let's make the white guy feel uncomfortable for a change

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