Phil's Focus

September 2, 2017

Hall-of-Fame Coach Fleming Models Respect, Earns Respect

Twelve years ago, I posed the possibility to my son, Ian, that he try running as a fall sport as he started his high-school career at Mounds View High School. I brought him to Mounds View on an August day in 2005; we entered the school, not knowing where to go. A short, non-descript man came by and said, “Wrestling gym.” Even though my oldest daughter knew some of the athletes on his championship track teams, I didn’t have a clue about this man…little did I know.

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August 24, 2017

Update: Minnesota School of Business Appeals Court Order; Minnesota Supreme Court Rules Institutional Loans Were Illegal

The Minnesota School of Business and Globe University (MSB/Globe) are still fighting adverse court decisions almost a year after a district court found that they engaged in consumer fraud and deceptive trade practices by misrepresenting the job opportunities available for their criminal-justice graduates.

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August 10, 2017

I Love the Lynx

With the start of August, the media are saturated with coverage of the Vikings training camp and the inaugural Gopher football season of Coach P.J. Fleck. Yet the biggest sports story that should not be ignored is the ongoing success of the Minnesota Lynx basketball team.

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August 8, 2017

Big Brothers Big Sisters Is Stronger Than Ever in Serving Minnesota Youth

Finding a path to a positive, productive future can be challenging for any young person but especially for youth facing adverse family situations. Effective mentoring programs, however, can help children overcome obstacles by enabling youth to gain confidence, to avoid negative behaviors, to improve in school, and to plan for the future.

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July 30, 2017

Coaching for College Helps Students Select, Apply to, and Pay for Education

As the 2017-2018 school year approaches, many high-school seniors are far along in planning for their education beyond graduation while others are in the early stages. The student’s goal should be to develop a plan to pursue a college education that best matches the student’s personal, educational, and career goals.

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July 23, 2017

Who Is Pernell McPhee? Talk to the Passenger Next to You and Find Out

Who is Pernell McPhee?

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June 30, 2017

Free Throws Are a Given: Don’t Give Them Away

When I was in seventh grade, I entered my junior high school’s free-throw contest. Entrants shot 25 free throws and then, based on their total made, were seeded for match play competition—best of ten. In both seventh and eighth grades, I won the school championship. In ninth grade, I set the school record by swishing 25 straight shots in qualifying—but I was upset in match play.

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June 20, 2017

Opportunities Lead to Success for Gopher Women’s Teams

When I was growing up, few opportunities existed for women in athletics. I wondered which of my female classmates would have excelled in sports. Covering sports for the Minnesota Daily in the late 1960s, we rarely reported on female athletes because women’s teams did not exist.

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June 4, 2017

Marshall H. Tanick: Brilliance at Age 70 In Law and Writing

To ensure a happy life, it is important to have a few good friends—and a good lawyer. I have been fortunate to have both in Marshall H. Tanick for about 50 years. In May, Tanick turned 70, an elite age he shares with President Trump and Governor Dayton.

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May 23, 2017

MSB/Globe Served Constituents Well But Failed to Acknowledge Mistakes

When a college decides to close, the decision significantly affects the students, faculty, staff, and the communities it serves. At the end of December 2016, after several years of expanding, the Minnesota School of Business/Globe University discontinued most of its operation. The two for-profit schools are part of a family business owned and operated by Terry and Kathryn Myhre. The Myhre family bought Globe (founded in 1885) in 1972 and the Minnesota School of Business (founded in 1877) in 1988. For this blog post, the schools will be referred to as one entity—MSB/Globe.

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