North Dakota
Shaw: A courageous boy and a welcome lawsuit
Bravo to 12-year-old Tate Dolney, of Fargo, for his bravery and integrity! Tate is a transgender boy who has publicly put himself out there in a state that’s hostile to people like him. Still,
Tate is taking on the state of North Dakota,
so he and other transgender children can rightfully receive the medical treatment they need.
Tate and two other children have filed suit against the state. They are taking on the bullies. Those bullies include the extremist Republican legislators who passed House Bill 1254 and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who signed the brutal bill. A bill that fixes a problem that doesn’t exist.
That bill bans transgender children in North Dakota from receiving puberty blockers and hormone treatment. These are proven treatments that have worked. Treatments that are strongly recommended for minors by highly respected medical groups, such as the American Medical Association and the American Association of Pediatrics.
“Before the puberty blockers, Tate was depressed and harmed himself,” Devon Dolney, his mother, told me. “Now, he’s a normal kid who can enjoy himself.”
“I started feeling more confident and much happier,” Tate said of receiving this health care. “I started doing better in school and was having more fun with my friends and my brother doing things I love to do. I was finally able to just be who I truly am.” That’s great!
It’s disgraceful that the unqualified Legislature and governor decided to interfere with Tate and others’ health care. Why did they do that? It certainly wasn’t based on medicine, science or what’s best for the patients. It was based on bigotry, hatred and ignorance. They deliberately demonized and marginalized a small vulnerable group. It was also unconstitutional.
Somehow, legislators with no medical qualifications decided to take away treatment from transgender children. The point is, whether it be treatment for heart disease, cancer or gender dysphoria, the Legislature has no business getting involved.
Hypocritical legislators, who claim they are all about the rights of parents, decided they have the final say on medical treatment. Not parents, patients and doctors, the way it should be.
Fortunately, this welcome lawsuit gives hope to transgender families. Similar lawsuits have been filed in other extremist states, with much success. Federal Judge James Moody in Arkansas threw out that state’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth, calling it unconstitutional.
“Rather than protecting children or safeguarding medical ethics, the evidence showed that the prohibited medical care improves the mental health and well-being of patients and that by prohibiting it, the State undermined the interests it claims to be advancing,” the judge wrote. He’s spot on!
“Tate knows what it’s like to be bullied,” his mother told me. “He’s been called a fag, told he will go to hell, punched and pushed off a school bus. He comes home crying.”
Tate has demonstrated remarkable courage in pushing for his rights and the rights of others. He has more guts than the Legislature and governor combined. That courage should be rewarded in the courts.
InForum columnist Jim Shaw is a former WDAY TV reporter and former KVRR TV news director.
North Dakota
Northwest North Dakota's County Teachers of the Year
WILLISTON, N.D. (KUMV) – The North Dakota Department of Public Instruction has named 49 teachers from 48 counties County Teachers of the Year. They were nominated by their peers and scored by a committee of education professionals. KUMV-TV’s Michael Anthony had a chance to speak with the winners in the northwest part of the state.
Williams County – Kari Hall, Williston High School
Kari Hall is a social studies teacher at Williston High School and has been educating students for 25 years. Her classes include U.S. History, Psychology, and a Holocaust class that she started about five years ago.
“I’m a tough teacher. I’m not always a fun and games teacher. I have expectations and sometimes that’s hard, but in the long run I hope my students realize that I’m prepping them for the real world,” said Hall.
As a struggling learner herself, Hall says she became a teacher to better help others.
“I remember when I figured it out, that learning could happen for anyone, so I always investigated that possibility of how a student and a teacher can work together,” said Hall.
When asked about winning the county teacher of the year award, Hall credits the people who helped her develop as an instructor.
“It takes an army to build a teacher,” Hall said.
Hall says her hope for her students once they leave her class is that they become somewhat knowledgeable about the world around them.
“If they don’t learn about history, they may never learn about it. If they don’t learn about psychological disorders, they may not understand their neighbor next door. Everything we teach in school, it may not seem like it, but it is part of how you function in life,” said Hall.
Hall says teachers face many challenges, but she remains dedicated to her profession.
“I think teaching is a calling. You don’t give up when it’s hard, you figure out how to do it well because the students still need you. My 25 years at Williston High School, I’ve never thought about leaving my career… I’m dedicated to what this is,” said Hall.
Hall was selected from a crowded field. The department of public instruction says 166 teachers were nominated from Williams County. That’s nearly half of the total nominations across the state.
McKenzie County – Tiffany Olson, Fox Hills Elementary
Tiffany Olson is a fourth-grade math teacher at Fox Hills Elementary. The Watford City native has 32 years’ experience teaching, with the last five being back in her hometown.
“My daughter also teaches here at Fox Hills, so it’s awesome. It’s a different community than when I grew up here, but I love it,” said Olson.
The elementary became departmentalized this year, meaning Olson exclusively teaches math to nearly 100 students every day.
“I love math, so it’s pretty awesome,” said Olson.
Olson says she became a teacher because she loves to work with children.
“I teach because I love to be around students. I love kids. It’s pretty awesome to watch them learn new things and watch them grow throughout the school year. I love building relationships with them, and I wouldn’t want to do anything else,” said Olson.
While she hopes her students leave her class with better math skills, she also hopes they learn it’s okay to make mistakes.
“I just want them to try their hardest and making mistakes is learning. We’re going to make mistakes in math, I made a mistake, and they called me out on it, and I love it. That’s a part of learning,” said Olson.
Olson says she appreciates the recognition but notes that all teachers work hard.
Divide County – Rayme Haggin, Divide County Elementary
Rayme Haggin teaches second grade at Divide County Elementary School in Crosby. She moved to Crosby from Minot 14 years ago to begin her career.
“My original plan was to come here for a year or two and feel it out before heading back to the city, but I love it here so much. I love the accepting community; I love the students here and my co-workers. It’s awesome up here, I love it,” said Haggin.
Haggin says her class has a lot of fun, but they also get a lot of work done too.
“I try to keep them busy moving, and then give them some work. I help them learn and just become the best version of themselves they can possibly be,” said Haggin.
Haggin says this job is all about supporting her students.
“I love working with the kids. I know that’s a cliché answer, but I can’t picture doing anything else every day for the rest of my life. I have been having a lot of fun,” said Haggin.
Haggin says her message to her students is that anything is possible if they put in the effort.
“I want them to know that I truly believe that they can do anything they want to do in life as long as they continue to work hard and be themselves,” said Haggin.
Haggin also spent a couple years teaching kindergarten.
The recipients of the award are eligible to apply for state Teacher of the Year honors. The winner will be named on September 27.
A list of all the teachers can be found here.
Copyright 2024 KFYR. All rights reserved.
North Dakota
Cropland values increase across North Dakota
BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) – Just like everything else, inflation has impacted cropland prices, especially in the last couple of years.
NDSU Extension says over time, cropland values have increased. Part of that is the advances in technology and yield increases have gotten better over the years.
“It seems like right next to town, so like Bismarck, Minot, Fargo, some of those areas, we’ve got enough urban sprawl that is going on. I know even looking on some of the land values just a couple miles out of Bismarck, it went from $2,300 an acre, all of a sudden it’s upwards of $7,000 to $20,000 an acre,” said Tyler Kralicek, NDSU extension agent.
NDSU Extension says North Dakota cropland values increased 11.59% heading into the spring of 2024. The eastern part of the state is seeing more of an increase in land values.
Copyright 2024 KFYR. All rights reserved.
North Dakota
Ten apply for North Dakota Board of Higher Education seat
BISMARCK — Ten people applied for a seat on the North Dakota Board of Higher Education, which opens on July 1.
According to a press release from the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, candidates are:
- Autumn Bennett, middle/high school music and math teacher, Cavalier Public School, Walhalla.
- Donald Campbell, Vice President/Chief Human Resources Officer, Sanford Health, Mandan.
- Alan Goos, electrician, Advanced Electrical Systems, West Fargo. Residence in Fargo.
- Kari Cutting, consultant and former vice president of North Dakota Petroleum Council, Beulah.
- Nadine Hagen, speech language pathologist, Underwood Public School, Turtle Lake.
- Christie Jaeger, farmer, rancher and crop insurance adjuster, Esmond.
- Wendy Kopp, chief nursing officer, Sanford Health, Bismarck.
- Ruth Plenty Sweetgrass-She Kills, director of food sovereignty, Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College, New Town.
- Patrick Sogard, owner and chairman, American State Bank & Trust Co., Williston.
- Stan Schauer, director of assessments, North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, Bismarck.
Board members can serve two consecutive four-year terms. The person appointed to the board will succeed John Warford, board vice chair, who is not seeking a second term.
Members of the board are appointed by the governor. A nominating committee, chaired by State School Superintendent Kirsten Baesler, screens candidates.
The committee is scheduled to meet on Wednesday, May 8, to discuss applications and recommend finalists to Gov. Doug Burgum.
Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.
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