FARGO — Reading test scores are declining across the U.S., but North Dakota is working to reverse that trend.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as “The Nation’s Report Card,” reported a significant decline in U.S. reading scores between 2019 and 2022.

A statewide plan in North Dakota is focusing on key areas of development: Phonics, vocabulary, comprehension and oral reading fluency, or reading aloud.

It’s called “The Science of Reading in North Dakota.”

“COVID played a big role in this. We certainly went backwards after COVID, and that’s unfortunate, but I think we’re taking the correct steps to move forward now,” Nick Archuleta, president of North Dakota United, said. North Dakota United is the union of the North Dakota Education Association and the North Dakota Public Employees Association.

A recent survey by the National Literacy institute shows 21% of adults in the U.S are illiterate and 54% have a literacy rate below a sixth-grade level.

JAMESTOWN — State and local officials went on a tour of three businesses in Jamestown on Friday, Dec. 13, that highlighted recipients of the Automate ND Grant Program.

The tour included stops at Champ Industries USA Inc., Agri-Cover Inc. and Midmach.

Champ Industries received a $240,500 grant for an automated tool-loading brake press.

“This program helped a lot,” said Kyle Johnson, plant manager at Champ Industries. “Automation is definitely something that we were going towards, and this allowed us to take the first step much sooner than we anticipated.”

Agri-Cover received a nearly $283,000 grant for robot arms and autonomous carts. Midmach received $500,000 for three robotic welding cells.

The North Dakota Development Fund received $5 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funding for a grant program during the 2023 legislative session. The program was developed in response to the workforce shortage in North Dakota, according to the North Dakota Department of Commerce’s website.

The one-time program made grants of up to $500,000 available to primary-sector certified businesses in North Dakota. The grants could not be more than 50% of the machinery, equipment or software being purchased.

“We’ve had legislators reach out to us with interest in advancing and sponsoring a bill to run it into the future and create something or at least do another one-time funding,” said David Lehman, advanced manufacturing business development manager for the state Commerce Department.

The Automate ND Grant Program had 42 applicants with $13 million in requests in a three-month application window from 21 communities, said Shayden Akason, deputy director of economic development and finance with the state Commerce Department. He said 18 applicants were funded from 13 communities.

“It just showed the type of demand and interest that companies have in automation to help their workforce challenges,” he said. “ … The quality of those applications, we probably would have funded another dozen of them. That’s how good they were and that’s how competitive the process was.”

The state needs about 30,000 to 40,000 people to fill its workforce gap, Lehman said. He said the manufacturing sector has around 26,000 to 29,000 employees in the state.

“If you took every graduating high school student and every graduating college student, we still wouldn’t fill our workforce gap in North Dakota,” he said.

Lehman said there are three ways for the state to dig itself out of the workforce issue — improving processes, focusing on Visa workers and legal immigration to increase workforce and automation.

“If you can’t, if you can’t improve your processes, you can’t get enough people, then you have to automate it,” he said.

Lehman said automation can be difficult in the short term because the state doesn’t have a strong infrastructure for it and the upfront costs are more expensive.

“But in the long term, so North Dakota, who has consistently been in the top three lowest unemployment states since the Bakken hit, has the opportunity,” he said. “So it’s painful now, but as we automate, it should make us more productive and better.”

Akason said workforce is the No. 1 challenge to expansion and economic development in North Dakota. He said the one-time Automate ND Grant Program was created to help alleviate the workforce shortage and keep manufacturers competitive so they can maintain or expand their market share.

Masaki Ova joined The Jamestown Sun in August 2021 as a reporter. He grew up on a farm near Pingree, N.D. He majored in communications at the University of Jamestown, N.D.

HANKINSON, N.D. — Investigators are working to determine the cause of a fire at St. Philip’s Catholic Church in Hankinson, which broke out late Wednesday afternoon, Dec .16.

Fire crews from multiple agencies responded to the 114-year-old church at about 4:30 p.m. Smoke could be seen billowing from the bell tower as firefighters worked for over two and a half hours to contain the fire.

Hankinson Fire Chief Josh Lenzen said the call came in after someone noticed smoke coming from the building.

“I believe it was reported as someone driving by, seeing smoke coming from the vents in the attic area,” Lenzen said.

The church, which is undergoing a $2 million renovation, suffered smoke and structural damage. The fire appeared to originate in the attic near a stained-glass window, according to Lenzen. Crews used a ladder truck from the Wahpeton Fire Department to access the church’s roof.

“The attic area had vents that were not close-able, and some of the access areas to the top of the attic area, it’s a very steep roof, high roof, and only one access point to get into it,” Lenzen said.

Firefighters faced windy conditions, but Lenzen said wind did not play a significant role in battling the blaze.

The fire comes as the church community prepares for Christmas services. Lenzen noted that while plans are still uncertain, the congregation will have options for worship.

Crews from Hankinson, Lidgerwood, Fairmount, and Wahpeton assisted in extinguishing the fire. The North Dakota Fire Marshal’s Office is leading the investigation. More details are expected to be released Thursday, Dec. 17.

No injuries were reported.

The church was originally built in 1908, with construction finished in 1910.

Hankinson is about 64 miles south of Fargo.

Isak Dinesen joined WDAY-TV as a reporter in September 2024. He previously worked as a multimedia journalist at WAOW-TV in Wausau, Wisconsin for three years. He graduated from NDSU in 2020, majoring in Journalism and minoring in Sports Communication at MSUM.