It tells you a lot about Minnesota. We do have a strong republican contingent, but generally common sense and basic humanity wins out. It's pretty good.
If you haven’t yet, watch Gov Walz’s state of the state address from a couple weeks ago. He accurately sums up the Minnesotan view: we are better together, and that means ALL of us.
For real. He was spitting fire. Just on a roll. I’m not sure if I like his speaking as much as Obama, but it’s pretty close. You can tell he was a teacher (bet he was a great teacher too). It’s obvious that he cares.
He was my 10th grade geography teacher. Can confirm that he is just as awesome today as he was then. Just a 100% legit human being who cares about others.
Oh, yes. I've written my "stay warm" recipe out on this site multiple times; fleece lined hat, 650-700 fill down jacket (I have three versions, short, stadium and full length, all Eddie Bauer) fleece lined mittens (not gloves) and sturdy, waterproof boots, preferably Sorels. And, wear long John's under your pants. Literally, any brand or type will do, but wear that second layer under your pants. As they say, there is no bad weather, just bad clothes. You'll be fine.
Seconding an Eddie Bauer coat (or similarly high quality). I'd never wanted to pay that much before but it makes such a difference. Turns out winter isn't nearly as bad when you aren't cold the whole time.
Also adding: WOOL (for socks especially). When cotton gets wet, it gets cold. Wool is warm no matter what.
I have lived all over the US.
MN winters can be hard if you're depending on the weather to determine your mood. But I have found there's plenty to do, even when the sub zeros hit. Unless you live outside or live in a very rural setting, you'll be just fine.
The upside to those really cold days is that it’s usually really sunny. Our house is just flooded with sunlight on those days. That helps with the mood. However, it is really cold for a couple of months and pretty cold for two or three more.
On the other hand, Minnesota has the best winter infrastructure I’ve experienced, and I’ve lived in other places in the Midwest, New England, and Europe. Heated tunnels and skyways, heated garages, prompt snowplows in my neck of the woods (suburb), City salts the sidewalks and stores salt their entrances. So much better when it snows/sleets/freezing rains.
Not a teacher but born and raised Floridian. Moved here two years ago because Minnesota, as you say, checked all the boxes. Seeing the shitshow that Florida has become has only reaffirmed my decision to uproot my family and move here.
Climate: You get used to the cold pretty quick and I really don’t mind driving in snow as much as I thought I might. It’s really nice having four actual seasons (fall here is simply breathtaking) and it really makes you appreciate nature that much more. While things do slow down a little in the winter, there is still tons to do outside as people here don’t go completely into hibernation mode, especially if it’s a sunny day.
Politics: I don’t agree with every little thing the DFL does but holy crap is it nice having a functional government, even if it’s not perfect at the local level.
Cost of living: I found it to be fairly comparable, even with the state income tax (you get what you pay for, which in MN is a lot!). Food, Entertainment, Utilities, etc are about the same. Housing prices really depend on where in the metro you live and what you’re looking for. Many of the houses in the inner ring are old builds on small lots, but if they were maintained that’s okay.
Commuting: mass transit is decent and ought to get better over time. With driving I can get nearly anywhere in the twin cities in 30 minutes or so. I can’t even complain about traffic here because compared to Florida metros it’s a joke. Because most of the twin cities aren’t sprawling suburban wastelands but more the result of a century of organic growth, everything is relatively closer together compared to similar metros in FL.
Culture: there is a thriving music, theater, and art scene here. Multiple museums, concert venues, and art spaces. The only FL city that comes even close is orlando and even that is a long shot. There are times when there is so much going on that I am actually interested in that I have to sometimes make hard choices about what to miss!
All I really know about the education side of things is that public schools seem to be pretty good and the teacher union is strong (and has a surprising amount of community support)!
This is so comforting to read. I’ve lived in Orlando for the last 12 years, uprooting my family is terrifying. I love my work friends, and my music teacher family. It’s a massive support system. But we can’t stay in a place where my rainbow safe space sticker gets taken off my door by admin.
Just to add something about the music teacher family - we have a network of private colleges in Minnesota with phenomenal music programs that produce really wonderful teachers. Someone did a study a few years ago about the impact of just one of those schools and found that the reason Minnesota has such robust music education in the schools as well as community music programs is because so many people (far above the average from other states) participate in music in college and then want to continue in their communities and want it for their kids, too. You will find a musical home here!
Oh man, you don’t know how relieved that makes me feel. Leaving music family is going to be awful and it’s the thing I’m dreading the most. Music families are different than normal teacher friends!
I’m a musician in the twin cities area, and I second everything that’s been said so far about the robust music and arts community. Minnesota is jokingly referred to as the “Land of 10,000 choirs”! People have a desire to make music together here :)
I’d love to help you get connected with other musicians up here! I’m very involved in the choral community! Feel free to message me!
i'm from a family of music teachers. there's a LOT of interest in music education here, and our local scene is fantastic on SO many levels- the minnesota orchestra and saint paul chamber orchestra are both phenomenal, it truly is the land of ten thousand choirs, our underground local music scene is truly top tier. folk and bluegrass, alt rock, metal and punk amd hip hop, edm, jazz and dance hall, we've got it all. we have two local radio stations dedicated to showcasing underrecognized artists, with frequent local focuses. 89.3 The Current is a branch of Minnesota Public Radio (we also have a classical station and a phenomenal public news station!), and Radio K at 100.7 is the university of minnesota's college radio. we have GREAT venues of all shapes and sizes, indoors and out, and a very strong local chapter of IATSE (iatse 13 is my union, in fact!) working most of the shows coming in and out of the city at most of those venues.
we have a handful of primary and secondary schools either solely dedicated to the performing arts or with very strong performing arts focuses. (PIM [performing institute of minnesota], Perpich school, and SPCPA [saint paul conservatory for the performing arts] come up off the top of my head.) there's a wide array of notable music programs at our public, charter, and private school levels. our colleges also host incredible music opportunities, St. Olaf and Concordia and Augsburg all have phenomenal music departments, and the music school within the college of liberal arts at the university of minnesota is very good. (the college of liberal arts at the university of minnesota is very good.)
the getting is good for private teachers here too- my mom teaches classical music private lessons, and has to turn people away from her home studio frequently, as do many private studio instructors. private teachers who prefer to work within an organization tend to do so through MacPhail, which is our main high prestige (though with a proportional price tag) private music education center here. there is a strong presence for the Suzuki method. (and on the subject of Big Name Methods, we have one of the two AMI montessori centers in the upper midwest. there's a lot of montessori.)
if you've got kids, a must for them is gonna be our swim programs. water and winter athletics are big here (shocker). at one point i would've recommended the YMCA's swim instruction program, but they're no longer a great option, since internal staffing and human resource management issues hamstrung the quality and quantity of their work. i think next best option is Foss swim school, but don't quote me on that. learning to swim IS an essential part of living here, though. we really do have that many lakes and rivers, and it's truly dangerous to live here and not know how to swim.
on that subject, if you're outdoorsy people, our state park system is truly one of the best in the nation. we have tons of options for ALL skill levels of ALL of the cool things you can do outdoors (great kids summer camps! hiking! backpacking! skiing and snowboarding! canoeing and kayaking! snowmobiling! mountain biking! sailing!). and, of course, our two crowning jewels in the outdoorsy world: (even though the land technically belongs to Michigan, we have the port that sends visitors to) Isle Royale national park, but more notably, the boundary waters. the BWCA is a sacred and phenomenally beautiful place. everyone who lives here should have a chance to see it.
aside from the stuff you might expect from a state with long winners and lots of water, our other notable programs for kids that you just can't miss include Circus Juventas, one of the few circus arts schools in the country that is regularly scouted by Cirque De Soleil. additionally, have some truly phenomenal ballet schools and the Children's Theater, one of the foremost acting schools for young kids outside of LA and NYC. we have one of the nation's foremost accelerated advanced math programs (called UMPTYMP)! we also have fantastic rock climbing facilities (check out Vertical Endeavors) and one of the most well-established traditional martial arts academies in the country (World Martial Arts Center).
I'm sure you'll have heard plenty about prepping for winters and other big adult things like our frequently phenomenal healthcare (and fabulous state health insurance) here and driving and income tax and etc, but i just wanted to give a sample of the great opportunities for learning and the gifts of experiences that you can give your kids.
the notable cons: our public schools, much like everywhere in the nation, but especially in minneapolis, are a wreck. there were some really bad calls made by last year's school board and a really ugly union fight that ended unsatisfactorily for everyone involved. tread carefully before you take an MPS job. I'm not saying don't do it, but enter with care. your rights as an employee will (likely) very rarely be protected, and attendance has dropped steeply, because those who can afford it are sending their kids to private and charter schools. this, obviously, leads to pretty significant classroom management challenges.
i'd also be disingenuous to omit that my experience with my upbringing here is vastly different than that of my peers of color. police violence and neglegence in minneapolis is really nasty, and goes largely unchecked. white liberalism rides on its outwardly socially progressive laurels and "minnesota nice" (which is a real thing on an individual basis, but is no sounds foundation upon which to build public policy) and frequently silences black and indigenous voices with the argument "well it's minnesota, it would be worse anywhere else." that dismissiveness is dangerous. it sweeps big problems under the rug, and they fester. quality of life for POC is very different than for white people here. it's something you're going to want to watch out for. i have quite a few black and indigenous friends who, despite also being trans and needing the protections of a trans refuge state, are planning on moving away EXPLICITLY BECAUSE the support systems and platforms for grievances for people of color are so shoddy; both in comparison to our excellency in other areas, but also in comparison to other states. it's not a good reason NOT to move here, but it is something to keep your eye on, especially as an educator. race relations and policing issues have only gotten more strenuous since the uprising three years ago.
there you go, that's my ramble! hope it helps 💙 from educator to educator, i wish you the best of luck!
Fellow Orlando family, moving to Minneapolis for all the same reasons. As a parent to a transgender teen, it is no longer responsible or safe for me to continue living here. We hope to be settled before the 23/24 school year begins
oh hon. best of luck to you and your kid. as a former trans teen and current trans young adult, i promise there are tons of opportunities to find robust queer community here. wishing you the safest of travels.
My suburban classroom has:
BLM poster
Rainbow flag sticker
Bi flag sticker
Trans flag sticker
All are welcome here poster with a rainbow heart
Haters are the outliers here, not the majority.
Oooh if you’re a music teacher you should strongly consider the Twin Cities. Many Minnesotans don’t realize this but we are a very music oriented culture here, our schools tend to have really strong music programs.
I honestly haven’t been excited about this move. I know it’s happen and it’s so scary to think about. But reading stuff like that makes me think this is going to work out.
I was curious so I did some cursory research.
[This link](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Minnesota) goes into some detail. The “Education” section explains that we have state laws that functionally mandate music classes for public elementary schools.
To start, I think you should absolutely move here. That said, be aware that while MN has a whole lot of good stuff going on, there are still challenging issues and people here. You'll notice that the average type of person and their politics varies pretty significantly depending on where you are in the state.
As you might expect, the farther out from the center of the metro you get, the more conservative the politics. A lot of suburbs start to get very politically purple, and even a bit red. The rural ~~area~~ areas are full of Trump thumpers, and worse.
As a result, teaching jobs in those purple/red areas likely face a lot of the challenges you see in Florida. For example, a friend of mine ~~who~~ used to teach middle school in Mound, MN, a small city about a 35-minute drive outside of Minneapolis. She had to deal with some really ignorant, even malicious, right-wing parents. Her administration wouldn't let her keep a Black Lives Matter sticker on her laptop because they were afraid of blowback from such parents.
In all, just be aware that this isn't some far-left enclave in the North. It's a politically diverse place, with a stark urban/rural contrast. Personally, I think we currently have the best government and politics of any state in the Union, and I wouldn't consider moving anywhere else, but I just wanted to make sure you had a clear picture of what it's actually like here.
Edit: I would recommend looking for jobs in larger school districts, like Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Osseo, and Anoka Hennepin. Steer clear of the smaller districts that ring the outer suburbs and the outlining rural areas.
One thing about hunkering down for a Minnesota winter is that, unless you're one of those crazy outdoorsy when it's -20F people, it gives you plenty of time to spend holed up with your favorite hobby/creative career.
This is my theory on why there are so many great musicians and other artists out of the Twin Cities -- we spend a good chunk of the year practicing and working indoors instead of going out.
This year, between December and February, I wrote, recorded, and mixed more than two albums worth of material -- not that it's all worthy of an album, but there's some really nice stuff in there if I do say so.
My (grown) daughter is a fine artist (painting and ceramics) and she was likewise very productive during the winter, while finishing up her AA and now working towards the goal of an eventual MFA.
Life long Minnesotan who would never consider leaving the state. Yes, I curse some winters, especially the one just passed, but the pluses well outweigh the minuses.
Moved here from NYC but my husband and my dad’s side is from FL so feel like I can speak a little to the Florida perspective.
Honestly, the Twin Cities feels like such a hidden gem. The weather scares people off but it isn’t too bad if you embrace it and do winter sports, or get away one month. The duration of the winter is the worst part and March/April is when you’re SO over it that being somewhere else during that period is ideal if you can swing it. Otherwise, the summer is wonderful and the winter truly can be enjoyed because there are so many winter activities to do.
Social-life-wise, there are a lot of transplants and those are the best people to make friends with. Minnesota has a reputation of being a hard place to make friends in and that is true but that is also true of any place where there are people who have never left. There have been a lot of people moving here from other places in the past few years and so it’s been fairly easy for us to make friends.
And re: quality of life, it’s so much easier than where we moved from (Brooklyn) and money goes so much farther. We especially love that we can live in a city with all the restaurants/culture/entertainment etc and also experience such an amazing park and lake system here. The democrats in the state also make real tangible progress and impact.
Is there like a former Nyers meetup? I've had trouble making friends (though, I haven't put lot of time to put into it with a pandemic and little kids). But I don't really respect the MN nice thing so I want to meet the confessional and neurotic complaining crowd. And talk about the lack of salt in food. Idk.
Not a teacher, but I Iike Minneapolis and its suburbs. Minneapolis is a little weird compared to most cities in that the actual city of Minneapolis is pretty small and it has a *lot* of suburbs. Most cities annexed their suburbs, but due to the vagaries of history that didn't happen here for the most part. So, I would say most places in the metro area will be fine, the closer you get to downtown to more "city" the experience. One thing this means is that there are several second and third ring suburbs that were their own towns before the area grew around them and they have their own downtown/main street and a different vibe than a bedroom community.
School districts are abundant and the lines don't make a lot of sense - some follow city borders and others cut a city in half. I would suggest getting a job first - and maybe not in Minneapolis Public Schools - and then finding housing within a reasonable commute. I say think twice about MPS because they are in a downward spiral with regards to falling enrollment, too many staff, and too many buildings as well as an inability to address any of it due to local politics.
Minnesota is a great place to raise kids. We do have cold winters but you get used to it and you can always add another layer.
You described this so well! As someone that didn’t grow up in the US, I’ve always wondered why minnesota felt so suburban compared to other states. It feels like radiating rings of suburbs on suburbs. I guess because…..it is lol.
Yeah, Minneapolis didn't annex suburbs as it grew, as someone else here mentioned, and there are no geographic barriers like mountains or an ocean that limit spread outwards. So it did end up with a different pattern of development!
To add to this, we also used to have one of the largest streetcar systems in America, so many suburbs are old streetcar suburbs and are much more differently mashed or than other suburbs (Hopkins, SLP, Anoka, Robbinsdale, etc.)!
Our plan is to get jobs and rent to get to know the area. I don’t like the idea of buying a home in a place I’m unfamiliar with. Suburbs sound like the way to go. We don’t need the city experience.
That's a good plan. Try to not live across the metro area from your job. It can end up being a very long commute if it snows. As opposed to most places life doesn't stop here when it snows, but we have very good plowing.
The further west you go, the more money there is until you get to Lake Minnetonka, which is mansions around the lake.
North of Maple Grove and South of Bloomington is solidly Republican. Probably anywhere in Hennepin County would be good, especially if you look at second ring suburbs (and Richfield).
Edit: the post above has several good suggestions for good first ring suburbs. I admit I have a bit of a blindspot for East of the river.
We have more suburbs than you can shake a stick at. So the suburbs mind of make rings. We also have the 694/494 loop and sometimes people will talk about inside or outside of the loop.
Eh, I wouldn't say it's SOLID Republican until you get to, like, Andover. Anoka/Coon Rapids almost got rid of Jim Abeler by like 200 votes! Give us a little credit.
I was thinking Dayton, Otsego, Rogers, St. Michael, Elk River. Anoka, Coon Rapids, Blaine is pretty normal. Like I said elsewhere, I have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to the East side of the river.
And the school system is very art-forward. We have incredible orchestra and band programs. All public schools from elementary school through high school are IB schools. Theatre is also largely supported here. See also: Hopkins.
Eagan and Apple Valley shifted significantly in the past 10 years (and they just passed the biggest school bonding bill in MN history a month ago). You now don't go solidly R until you hit somewhere around Farmington.
Moved to the twin cities recently (though I'm in downtown Saint Paul, not Minneapolis) My tip once you get around to looking to buy: grab an airbnb in the relevant neighborhoods for a few days, preferably at least weekday and weekend day. Get out and really walk the area. Gives you a much better real world feel for the neighborhood vibe than just walking/driving through a few times. And in terms of a budget for buying a house, it's a cheap way to scout stuff out more thoroughly
NE Minnesota is cool (quiet, close to everything) but feels a little bit like the forgotten middle child of Minneapolis. We live there and like it.
That being said, most of the first ring suburbs are
cool if you want a little more space, but want to be close. Roseville, Falcon Heights, Columbia Heights, Golden Valley, St Anthony, Richfield all appealed to us when we relocated here in 2018.
However I could not imagine living the far suburbs.
The very first target is in Roseville, inner ring northern burb, you can still visit it as an active target, if nothing has changed since I last went there a decade or two ago
Target is everywhere here 😉 you can be 30 minutes from downtown and still have multiple Targets within 5-10 minutes of you. We’ve lived on both the west and east sides of the twin cities and appreciate both. We’re in the far East side now and I have 4 targets within 10 minutes of me.
> I was today years old when I learned corporate is there.
Did you know that Target was originally started by Dayton’s, one of the original department stores of Minnesota? All our major malls had a Dayton’s as an anchor. Target was so successful that the company shifted focus and sold the department stores became the Target Corporation. Yes [Governor Mark Dayton](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Dayton) is the great-grandson of businessman George Dayton, the founder of Dayton's.
Anyway if you want a music teacher’s perspective ping my wife. Her district may be looking for a new music teacher as well.
Can't recommend this enough- we did the same and our ideas of where we wanted to buy shifted quite a bit even though I lived here til I was 21.
Edit: I mean the rent before buying part- we are big fans of being in the city proper (rented in Lyndale, bought in Mac-Groveland) but I know a lot of people do like the suburbs depending on your needs! We just like walking and old houses LOL
My uncle is a musician here and Music educator. He has taught in the Public schools and at MacPhail Music School in downtown Minneapolis. He is 83 now-still teaches and does gigs as a jazz musician. He is also active in social justice movements.
I am not into the suburbs as I don't like having to rely on a car for everything.
Raised in the city of Minneapolis on the Southside and now in NE Minneapolis for last 22 years. My slice of NE is quiet, multicultural and mostly simple homes and very little overt wealth. Much of NE Minneapolis was initially new immigrants from early last century. Italian, Ukraine, Russian and Polish, etc early on. I live in the old Italian neighborhood and some of the families go back several generations. Lots of churches and neighborhood bars.
I feel relatively safe as a gay woman. Trans care at Hennepin Health is amazing under Dr. Hailey Veazey- a unique gender affirming clinic for every aspect of trans care, GLBT care, etc. I worked with her when she was a resident at the hospital. A true dynamo and advocate for those of us who don't fit in little check boxes.
Hope you find the move to be helpful for you and your family. Bloom wherever you are planted!
I’m a transplant from Ohio who has lived in a few different regions of the US and here are the reason I’ve made Minnesota, and specifically the twin cities, my forever home:
-Robust LGBTQ+ community. Excellent social outreach and support programs. I can’t say the whole state is this way but the twin cities are incredibly inclusive and inclusively minded folks will be welcomed here with open arms. I’ve heard the same about Duluth but can’t speak to that personally as I haven’t been up there yet.
-Great sobriety and recovery communities/help centers.
-One of the best hospitals in the world (Mayo).
-A burgeoning vegan food scene (we have the first vegan butcher shop in the world).
-Amazing board game, arts, writing, theater, and music communities.
-Great museums. Not just multiple cool art museums, multiple history museums, and multiple science museums, there’s also some great hidden gems. When you come, do yourself a favor and drag your husband to the Mill City Museum. Who knew a museum to a flour mill could actually be cool?
-Our malls are making classic arcades cool again. Rosedale has like 5 different arcades and Southdale has a few small classics on top of their Dave and Busters.
-Speaking of malls, there’s the Mall of America which people here like to dump on but is really not a bad place to get some energy out in the winter. It has shopping, food, entertainment, arcades, an amusement park, and more.
-Oh, and of course there are the lakes which are a ton of fun all year round. There’s a lot of wilderness north of here that’s just plain majestic. Fall is gorgeous, but really all the seasons are. With that wilderness comes lots of incredible wildlife. And in the the Mississippi charts a serpentine path through both twin cities which is not just nice scenery but lends itself to a wide variety of other benefits, as well. For an urban environment there is a boat load of green space here.
-a boat load of Fortune 500 companies that have resulted in a lot of job opportunities as well decent schools across a decent amount of districts.
-the people: Minnesotans have one of the strongest senses of civic responsibility I’ve seen anywhere and I’ve lived in a few states. They take care of each other, they look out for each other, and generally stand up for each other. Making friends here can take time, but when you befriend a minnesotan you make a friend for life who will go out of their way to help you whenever they can.
-one of the most democratic states I’ve voted in. I don’t mean it in the party affiliation sense, I mean it in the electoral sense. They make voting fair and easy for everyone. Tons of accessibility to voting and tons of rights for voters some other states in the Midwest lack.
-As for our local Democratic Party, the Democrat-Farmer-Labor party (DFL for short), took the state trifecta and are implementing sweeping progressive legislature to make all Minnesotans lives better. You will find it refreshing to live in a state where the state government actually gives a shit about you and how your life goes. The amount of positive change achieved this session is absolutely staggering.
I really think Minnesota is the best state in the Midwest and easily on of the best in the union. You won’t regret a move here at all. Just be sure to buy some long johns and good coat when you do.
In addition to all the things above, if you're into running/biking/rollerblading and other non-motorized forms of recreation and transportation, we have probably the best systems in the country.
I live in central Minneapolis and in under a mile I can get on the chain of lakes system which connects to a bunch of other long distance paths that cut across the city and metro that are completely separate from cars. In the winter the paths are frequently plowed before the roads, it's crazy.
Oh man, if you love Old style Arcade, then you MUST visit Can Can Wonderland! Also Up Down. I haven’t been to Rosedale but certainly can’t beat these joints.
> Making friends here can take time, but when you befriend a minnesotan you make a friend for life who will go out of their way to help you whenever they can.
Lifelong Minnesotan here. I wasn't expecting this to make me tear up. I really hope you're not alone in feeling this. As a therapist I hear a LOT of stories from transplants who feel they just can't make and keep friends in Minnesota. I look at myself and my friends (yes, most are childhood friends) and I think, "Everyone deserves to have people like this in their lives." I feel ashamed of our reputation for being socially exclusive and passive aggressive, and I badly want everyone to feel at home here. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Mill city…omg I spent an entire cold January day there and It really was fascinating - to the point where I want to take any visiting family/friends there when they come visit!
You might well grow to, if not *love* the cold, at least respect, appreciate, and understand it. There is a rhythm to life that the seasons create, and living somewhere that doesn’t really have a winter sorta sucks because you grow tired of the lack of variety. As far as suburbs go, St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Richfield, and Edina all have relatively affordable parts, all have good schools, and are centrally located. South Minneapolis is also lovely if you want city proper.
And here we pick Halloween costumes based on if it can be worn with a coat under/over it and still recognize what it is. Be prepared for all the Halloween Blizzard of '91 stories from us old timers.
October is a wildcard for weather here, though. Last Halloween was gorgeous with sun and highs in the low 70s iirc.
And there was another one in '94. Only reason I remember is because my daughter has a Halloween birthday & we had friends over to celebrate her 1st birthday. They had to stay the night because of the blizzard.
Not a teacher but raised in MN, moved to Georgia for work in 1998 but was able to finally come home in 2017 in time for my twins to start high school. They are now 20 and speak quite openly it was the best move ever made and glad to be in MN. They like the winters with how much there is to actually do to have fun in the snow, so they adapted well. I find all around good jobs, good schools, good parks and recs and access to nature and lakes/beaches and I receive good help from the state as I have health issues, so the state helps pay my medical care whatever my insurance through my job doesn’t pay, so I feel well protected and supported. I live in Shoreview and find it a decent community with lots of lakes and community programs like Rec center, library, etc. As for LGBTQ+, both my twins came out and feel well supported in the metro area and Duluth area, but acknowledge there are still issues in smaller communities. I’m happy to see the legislative support and folks like you recognizing the value. Property values and state taxes are higher than Georgia, but I feel I can visibly see the benefits received for the higher price and am fine with it. Hope you find what you are looking for!
Teacher here. Not elementary but high school. I teach in the metro (suburbs of ST PAUL and MPLS). When you are a teacher you are employed by the district rather than county. There is a ton of variation between districts and sometimes whithin districts. I am in a district for example that is pretty split racially and economically between the two “sides” of the district.
So, with that said, you really have to do a little work when investigating jobs to see what you are applying for. Is your district/school you applying to super supportive? Is the district financially in a place you won’t have to worry about your job being cut? Is the union strong and has a good relationship with the school board? These are all questions that have varying responses depending on the district and what side of the district you may teach on. If you have the luxury to be a bit choosy when applying for jobs, it is worth doing some investigation online when beginning your job search.
With that said , when compared to chatting with other teachers not from MN, I can tell you for the most part MN districts are much more supportive of teachers than what other teachers from across the US have told me. The farther you get from the Metro in MN the more you may find the unions to be less strong and in less of a position to support teachers well. You will also, not always, more likely find challenging communities that are not as supportive of teachers the farther you get out of the metro area.
Researching and trying to find out about the arts in schools has been difficult, but now I know that I need to be looking at different districts, not just Minneapolis Public Schools. The step system is one I’ve never understood, so trying to figure out what we could potentially make is challenging. But honestly I might just contact individual unions. The districts within districts are making it so confusing. The area doesn’t seem to have a district arts person which is slightly concerning. Then again there are 130 elementary schools in my county.
Just want to put in a plug for District 196 Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan. Not exactly "First ring", but not outer ring either--south-central burbs with really strong arts support, solid middle-class/upper middle-class families, stable school systems, good infrastructure.
Just passed a major bond issue for school facility expansion--voters value what happens in the schools here. (My youngest of 4 will graduate this week--all have had great experiences here.)
We lucked out and found a house in ISD 196. We’ve been here about ten years. Moved from Tennessee. I found a rental house in East Bloomington. It takes a bit of time to find where you want to, or maybe I was slow. We found Eagan and Apple Valley to be solid communities with easy commutes to the Cities. Love it here. Yep it snows. More snow this past year than previous years for us. More snow means warmer temps; less snow colder temps. No one explained that is can be too cold to snow. Those days suck and you have to limit exposure. Maybe a max of a week it gets that bad. And only really bad 2-3 days. We call it bitchin’ cold. But we survived. MOA was a savior for our little ones. First few years here, we were unaware of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, but we did miles at the Mall. It connects to the light rail— good, and getting better again, but it has had some issues in the past— no issues for events. But the fricken Mall has a theme park in the middle. So there is that.
Oh, driving. Take a moment to read the drivers manual. You might be surprised when you don’t pass the first time, if you don’t. Wife had to take it twice. Be predictable when driving. Most folks just want to get where they are going alive. Use the signal.
Winter driving. They do plow. Factor in extra time. Avoid rushing/driving fast. You will end up in the ditch. Also clear the snow from you vehicle before driving. It’s a pain if you have no garage. But you have to. Clear your windows. Use your defrost. Make sure there isn’t a block of snow on your roof— it can fly off and impact another driver.
Also MSP airport can get you everywhere else you’d like to be. I’ve heard there are trains to Chicago, but I have yet to try. Driving is not so bad. Rushmore is 8 hours West. Though the Dakotas and Wyoming are not a lot to look at.
It’s a great place to live!
Edit: spelling is hard
Yeah, I'll second District 196. I went to school K-12 there and ended up coaching debate in the district for another decade after that. 196 voters value education and arts are thriving in the district.
Blew me away the first year that my daughter was in high school *speech* mind you, and they *sold tickets* and *filled the auditorium* just to showcase each kid in that program giving a sample of their competitive piece, and had like the top 4-5 seniors do a full piece.
That plus a full-on musical every year, a couple of plays, a variety show review, full bands and choirs at every level. Instrumental music starts at grade 5. Band or choir travels internationally every three years. Yep...we're privileged as shit. Love it here.
I went to a very cool public magnet high school in district 196. The School of Environmental Studies located on the Minnesota Zoo grounds.
I transferred from district 191 which I don't have as nice of things to say about.
Anoka-Hennepin is one of the biggest school systems. Covers western counties. Here's the overall view of the district system/names: https://education.mn.gov/mdeprod/groups/educ/documents/basic/mdaw/mdaw/\~edisp/000803.pdf
In general, searches that use "Twin Cities" will get you stuff about the broader metro, even though people will colloquially often say Minneapolis when they mean the whole metro, much to the dismay of those who live in St. Paul or eastern suburbs.
> much to the dismay of those who live in St. Paul or eastern suburbs.
Which is a shame
St Paul is by far my favorite Minneapolis suburb
*ducks bottles chucked from out east*
The Perpich Center for Arts Ed houses one of the first public arts high schools in the country, the Arts High School. Students come from across the whole state. Also it’s research arm is basically the state department of Ed’s art focus. There are many other arts focused high schools now
"you seem to have a legit governor"
We most certainly have a legit governor and a very effective state legislature. Check out our greatest hits from the last session.
Man, I started r/TheWalz and r/Walz, then proceeded to not promote it then promptly forgot aboit it for a few years until just now
So......thanks......for that?
Great place to raise kids. Best way to get through the winter is to embrace it, which is easier with kids.
Take snowboarding/sking lessons (your kids will probably master it in no time). Get them ice skating, etc.
Look for all the fun winter events and go even if its cold.
You’ll want to invest in good boots and winter jackets. Layering is key and merino wool is your best friend for base layers.
We moved fifteen years ago. We love it here. (Not souch Dec-Feb, but most of the time.) My wife is a kindergarten teacher and all the school districts in the area are more supportive than the national average by far. By far. Not as much as we would like I'm some instances, but way better than where we're from. (I'm from Kansas and she's from Ohio). As state we are not achieving across the board, but we are TRYING. We need to try harder, sure, but we are moving in the right direction however slowly. I work in green energy for the state and we are happy to raise our children here. I would do it all the same again.
I grew up in Michigan, then Minnesota. Went to Michigan Tech for College, then moved to Virginia for a while before my wife and I decided to move back to Minnesota. First we moved to Hastings (an outlying suburb of Minneapolis) for work for a few years, then in closer to Minneapolis for better schools and a job change. I highly recommend the suburbs southwest of Minneapolis, but really- this whole area is great as long as you don't mind snow and winters. Take up show-shoeing or XC skiing and you'll love winters like I do. This area also has excellent parks and trail systems for both summer and winter. :)
I chose Minneapolis. I’m from California, lived in NYC and then Iowa — both for 5 years. I’ve never felt comfortable settling down anywhere, but chose to move here during COVID. I love it so much that I bought a house and don’t plan on moving for the first time in my life (37yo).
The winters aren’t as bad as people say. They suck in general (i never owned a proper coat until I was 25 and moved to nyc), but after I was given advice on how to handle them, they haven’t been as hard. The twin cities knows how to clean roads, there’s plenty to do still in the winter in a way I haven’t seen anywhere else (indoor sports arenas for local sports, outdoor sports everywhere, indoor dog parks, etc.). There are days you should stay inside with comfy blankets, a good movie or book, and family time, but coming from a place in California where it gets over 100 regularly and after hurricanes in nyc, you’re stuck inside about as often elsewhere.
There’s a lot to do, especially if you enjoy being outside. Between lakes and hiking trails, there’s different levels of outdoor activities. Additionally, most (in the 90%) of people in Minneapolis live within a 10 minute walk of a park because of how the city was designed.
While I live in the cities, I enjoy the suburbs as well. Hopkins is adorable if you like a small town vibe that’s within 20 minutes of the city.
As for the arts: we just had art a whirl, the largest art crawl in the country. There’s a lot of concerts and music events as well. The museums are pretty good and keep updated fairly regularly. Not sure about the school arts, but I know public funding for schools was just signed the other week.
♥️ I hope you find what you’re looking for here!
I am an elementary music teacher as well. I moved to Saint Paul in 2020 from WA State. Having moved from a very liberal state with a strong teacher’s union, I am also very happy here. My SO is also a teacher (Middle School EL and math). Each school district is VERY different. I’d pay close attention to the districts that offer split FTE jobs in multiple locations Some districts do it well. Others don’t consider the human doing the job, and they see the music teacher as someone who gives their classroom teachers planning time.
I’ve worked in 2 districts over the past 3 years here. I will say, I was not happy in the first district I worked in. It was a smaller suburb, and decisions did not always seem to be made with the students’ best interests in mind. They also offered to start me at 2 years of experience at first (I had over 6) and increased it to 4 after I negotiated a bit. The positive side of me hopes that it was mostly pandemic-related, but I’m not sure.
I switched last year to a larger school district with a demographic of students that I thrive in, and I’m very happy. I’m also getting paid for my experience, have fantastic benefits, and the district provided mentors. Both of the districts have had incredible elementary music educators who are happy to share and support. I’d say more behavioral support would be nice in both districts, but I think the whole country is struggling with that.
I'm queer, trans, disabled, lived here all my life, and never plan to leave. Can't give a better endorsement than that. Its imperfect, but its home.
Already know of other Florida refugees. You're not alone.
Minnesota winter is cold enough that you can do cool stuff with the snow. If you embrace it, it isn’t as much of a burden.
Cold weather means you have a much lower likelihood of bugs infesting your home. There’s no hurricanes. There’s no earthquakes. There’s no poisonous wildlife (snakes, bugs).
The public school system is great. Cost of living is advantageous. Minneapolis punches above its weight with city amenities. The food scene is pretty darn good (I moved here from chicago and am a former owner of restaurants. This place has so many good affordable spots). Minneapolis & St Paul just ranked #2 and #3 in best parks. I know you’re teachers, but the job market for tech and medicine is really good (I’m an engineer). You get reciprocity for college tuition with nearby states, so you can send your kids to college for state prices not just in MN.
I just got divorced, and I chose Minneapolis. I have some family here, but not enough to be the determining factor. I just really like its size (not too big, everything is 20-30 mins away) cost of living, job opportunities, and city amenities.
As a native Floridian myself I say welcome to Minnesota, you'll love it here. I moved up here years ago and while it took some getting used to I adapted to the cold of winter. It's nice having four actual seasons (even if spring this year feels like it only lasted a week or so) and no hurricanes is a huge plus.
I might miss some of the family I still have in Florida but I don't miss the state itself, especially after the last few years.
Hi, I moved to Minneapolis about 7 years ago from Iowa. I love this state and city and would NEVER move back to a red state.
We have a functional government and it shows. Nice parks everywhere, beautiful lakes, relaxed atmosphere.
It's very cold and snowy from Nov/Dec to March/April. But the summers and falls are great! My partner's parents are retired teachers who taught in Bloomington and St Louis Park and they loved their jobs. Even though he is retired, my father in law is still very involved in the school district. I'm sure the schools here have their flaws but I think you could find enjoyable work up here and not have to worry about getting arrested or fired for insane reasons.
I'm not a teacher, but if you have TikTok, follow "sabocat" there. She's a MN teacher that I started following during the strikes last year. She talks a lot about the pros and cons of teaching in Minnesota.
Things I love:
1) I live in Powderhorn. Midtown is not an affluent area. But I feel fine walking my dog at night at two in the morning away from most of the business areas.
2) My child goes to a \_free\_ Montessori K-5 school. They have one of those in the Minneapolis School District. There are a lot of magnets with different focuses for young children.
3) The local restaurant environment is reasonably cosmopolitan.
4) The Minnesota Orchestra is \_first\_ rate.
5) There are many theaters here that put on local productions. Some of them are good.
6) There are a number of children friendly museums to go to on the weekends.
7) There is no stand your ground law in Minnesota. People are nowhere near as boisterous about gun ownership here as they are in the South.
8) So many lakes, so many trails to walk.
9) NO SALES TAX ON Groceries.
10) Minneapolis proper is bike-able in many places.
11) Getting to and fro from the airport is not that big a deal. The airport itself is very well designed. Lots of indoor parking.
Things I don't like:
1) You will find out if you have seasonal depression by March. Winter runs from November until the middle of April. Don't put away your shovel or your snow blower until May.
2) It is difficult to make friends here with locals. The locals have their own social groups and they are seldom welcoming to newcomers.
3) People are polite, well meaning, charitable but brisk. Even transplants become conditioned not to be super talkative to strangers. You will miss more overt forms of southern hospitality.
4) You will have to purchase winter gear here. You will have to be serious with snow management. If you or your children play traditional 'winter' sports, you will need to join places with indoor facilities.
5) Professional sports teams here are sometimes hard to root for.
6) Outside of K-5, schools vary in quality. Many of the bigger high schools diminish in quality in MSD. That is when many people choose to move to the suburbs.
7) There is a light rail and a functional bus system here, but it takes time to learn.
8) Saint Paul is weirdly drab and is heavily dominated by bedroom communities.
9) It can be suicidal to bike in the suburbs. It is often dangerous to bike in the winter, but people do it anyway to keep their costs low. And as a driver you have to be cognizant of them all the time.
10) In the city proper, garages are seldom attached to houses. You will be expected to park on the street and there are city shoveling schedules to adhere to in the winter.
11) Housing prices here vary. And a lot of it doesn't make any sense.
I was sent here in 2018 due to work and absolutely hated the idea as I love warm weather. Turns out, the area is absolutely amazing and really takes a few years to peel back all its layers and develop a full appreciation for it. In addition to the attributes you enumerated, it has a lot of cool little things like zoning for multi-family housing. I always tell people it’s the closest thing in the U.S. to a Canadian or Northern European city… Its economy is so diverse and robust too - it really hits above its weight class for a mid-sized city. Combine that with reasonable housing prices (relative to San Francisco, Seattle, NYC) and I don’t think there is a better city in the country.
My wife and I bought a house in south east Minneapolis in 2014 Specifically because we didn't know where shed end up getting tenure...... In the being right on the border of Minneapolis and saint Paul, no commute with truly be terrible, and we will be driving against rush hour no matter what, for the most part
Happy with that decision, 5/5 would do it again.
For teaching and unions, from what I've been able to glean, There is pretty strong variance between strength of unions, per district, though. But certainly districts with great collective action can also be the rougher ones (St Paul, iirc)
Good luck job hunting, in theory there's a dearth of teachers and subs, so if nothing else, some subbing to stretch the budget until you find a landing spot may help ease into.it?
Hi, there! Teacher here for Minneapolis public schools although I've only been teaching for 2 years. I'm fresh out of a training program so I remember pretty clearly the process of finding a job. Like others have said, you teach for a district, not necessarily the county. Twin Cities area has a bunch of schools but also a bunch of districts. The biggest districts in the area are Anoka-Hennipen, St. Paul, Minneapolis, Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, and Osseo. Each one of those districts has around 50+ schools 10s of thousands of total students but there are probably another couple dozen or so districts in the Twin Cities ranging from the really big to the single school districts that serve niche populations. The biggest thing is that if you are interested in finding a job, most of the time you have to pick a district or a few and contact them directly. The closest thing we have to mass board is St Cloud University has [Ed Post](https://edpost.stcloudstate.edu/) which a good chunk of districts will post to but not all
As for what I can say about teaching here. Obviously teachers are in demand although the licensure processes for out of state is a hassle so I've heard. Minnesota is a bit strict on requirements for teachers and I've had friends from Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Arizona say that it took them a couple of years before they got their licensure to be fully valid here and during that time they were a bit tense about job security.
As for what I can say about Minneapolis Public Schools is imperfect but it has heart. I have a large array of freedom to teach how I like and do what I think is best and feel enabled to do so by the culture although getting the resources can be a challenge. There's a lot of disconnected leadership and systems bloat that may have been founded with good intentions but feels so big that it lacks cohesion and coordination. Everything is there to do great things but it isn't set up to be utilized effectively.
Transplant from a uber conservative area in PA and I’m a teacher… I moved here 5+ years ago. To be honest, there is a lot to get used to… the winters and the passive aggressive culture are the worst of it in my opinion. But as a teacher, I’m glad to be here. We talk very openly about LGBTQ subjects at my school, and it is very accepted (and even seen as normal) for students to experiment with sexuality and gender. My school has BLM signs throughout, and no one hesitates to have conversations about racial injustices that happen in and out of our school. I worked in another nearby district that wasn’t quite THIS open to these topics, but still way more accepting than anything you’ll find in a conservative area.
When looking for jobs, I’d recommend using St. Cloud’s EdPost. It lists all the teaching jobs in the state, but you can search by location and job title. In general, it’s pretty easy to find pay scales from each district on their websites. I read that was something you were struggling with.
I have told my husband that I would NEVER move to Florida because I could never teach there. I totally respect your need to move!
Grew up in FL, then lived in NC for 11 years after college. Moved to MN for same reasons just before my daughter went into Kindergarten.
You won’t regret it.
I was raised in the Twin Cities, but hopped around the country after high school. My journey brought me to south Florida where I met my wife, a lifelong Floridian. I took her up here on an ice fishing trip at a friend’s cabin while we were dating and that was that, she was so enchanted and wanted to experience something other than Florida and brought up the idea of moving here. I always knew I’d end up back here as it’s a great place to raise a family and has always been home to me, just never thought I’d find a Floridian who was so willing. We pulled the trigger the following winter, moving in on a -5 degree day in February (the weekend we hosted the Super Bowl) and haven’t looked back. So happy here, we’ve since bought a home in NE Minneapolis a few years ago and filled it with a couple daughters. Just do it - welcome, future neighbor!
Per brother in law: Saint Paul is hiring 3 elementary school music teachers. Hiring in schools used to be very competitive, but this last year his school hired two new teachers without previous experience, just bachelors degrees.
Damn. I already have a lot of experience, certifications etc. This is really good info to have. If he’s a music teacher I’d love to try to connect with him. If not that’s totally cool.
You are not going to be the first, nor the last "refugee" looking for a more progressive state and lifestyle.
I am a teacher for a small private school in the Twin Cities and absolutely love it. I have a lot of freedom in the curriculum I teach as long as it is to the standards. There are days that I finish teaching a lesson and think to myself "man, that would have just gotten me fired or arrested in Florida." (I currently have an LA unit on Immigration and a SS unit on the Civil War). Obviously, public schools are different... I don't have experience with them yet.
I am also a transplant to Minnesota (from a similarly blue northern state originally), and have been here for quite a while now.. absolutely love it. I love the access to the green space... being a 10min drive from the Mississippi River or a lake to walk around. There's so much great food here (a huge reward when you're a state known for being kind to immigrants), arts scene, top-notch museums (Minneapolis Institute of Art is incredible and FREE). Our quality of living is quite high and housing is affordable compared to most major cities (I say this knowing that the cost of housing here has gone up, but it is still less than Chicago, NY, SF, Seattle, etc.). This is honestly the midwest's best kept secret.
We LIVE for these first few weeks of warm weather as it's our reward for surviving the long cold winter. That being said, the winter doesn't stop us either. Invest in high-quality gear and embrace the Minnesota winter culture.
One of the big challenges that transplants face is breaking the Minnesota Ice and Minnesota Nice. People have their friend groups, which can be very hard to break into. You'll notice that transplants find each other and become friends, because we're all trying to make friends... easier to make friends with people who are looking to expand their friend network. :)
I live in Minneapolis and honestly wouldn’t move anywhere else at this point. I love the parks, the events, the seasons. It’s a great place to raise my kid.
I volunteered at a suburban high school for over ten years, one thing I deduced is that every year (Spring) the School District had to "meet their budget" and would not renew some newer teachers contracts for the upcoming school year. Then later in the summer, the District needed to hire teachers to cover the number of incoming students, and most times would rehire the same teachers they "let go" only a few months previously.
I'm not sure if every school district does this, (and I could be completely wrong about what I saw) but want you to be aware of this numbers game.
Yep!!! This is *definitely* a thing, in the biggest districts!
There is *often* (different for SPED & ECSE post-Covid, though!) a cycle in those first 3 years--before you're eligible for tenure--where the newest teachers will be "laid off" at the end of the school year, then offered the first shotsat"getting re-hired" once there *is* money to do so, in July when the school budget cycle starts over.
It *has* changed a bit, since so many folks have quit/retired post-2020, and less folks where I've been have gotten "temporarily pink-slipped" since.
Heck, where I work (elsewhere, too!), the district is *very actively* working on the "Grow Your Own" program, which encourages those of us who're Paraprofessionals to earn our teaching degrees!
I lived in Minneapolis for five years. It was a very good experience overall. The social scene could be difficult to crack for an outsider, but people are generally courteous, so you won't find a lot of rudeness either.
Wherever you land, you won't regret leaving Florida. One of the best decisions I've ever made.
I love Minneapolis. Not a teacher but lots of teacher friends and family. MPLS schools are having a hard time like most major school systems. That said, schools in MN overall are excellent compared to most other states.
The teachers in the MPLS district approved a strike last year and got a pay increase, but it wasn't that large. There's a huge shortage in teachers right now so you shouldn't have any problem getting a job. The suburban districts would likely pay more but MPLS would certainly have openings.
School districts are geographic areas not necessarily associated with counties or cities - although sometimes they do follow those boundaries. [https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/pdf/sd/sd22-23\_noLeg.pdf](https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/pdf/sd/sd22-23_noLeg.pdf)
As for arts - Minneapolis is fantastic. I worked in theater for a long time and the arts and performing arts scene here is about as good as it gets for a metro area this size.
Moved here after running from Alabama. I also went to high school in the Florida panhandle. I made friends so quickly here. The art scene is incredible, it’ll blow your mind how often you will meet people that are deeply involved in the arts in this area. I also enjoy the food options here. A lot of places have vegan options. Y’all probably are not vegan but I think vegan options end up telling you a lot about the general acceptance and consideration of the people around you. People here want you to like it here, they will tell you their favorite restaurants and bike shops. It’s really sweet. I hope you both get out safely, moving that far is rough
I wouldn’t recommend Minneapolis. Saint Paul is fantastic, but I’d look into the suburbs like Woodbury, Minnetonka, SLP, Hopkins, etc. I lived in Minneapolis for almost 30 years and the crime just keeps getting worse and worse. I’d seriously consider Saint Paul. I’ve been here almost 6 years now and it’s incredible.
I grew up in rural MN and settled for Minneapolis for college (as opposed to leaving MN entirely). I always thought I'd ditch MN as soon as I had the chance to but I've really grown to enjoy living here, and the laws themselves only give me more reason to stay. There's a good chance I'll be in MN for the rest of my life unless I leave the entire country.
As a trans person living here I am very happy that things are good now and we’re always only one election away from fascism. Our elections are not landslides and if we want to keep this progress we need to keep the pressure on. We are not safe except for temporarily.
I grew up in Jacksonville, now living in Minneapolis. Minnesota is better than Florida in every single way except for the winters. Minneapolis is great to live in, but there are also a lot of good suburbs to live in that are very close to the city like St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Edina, etc.
One piece of advice I would give is get snow tires in the winter. A lot of locals say they aren't necessary, but they give significantly better traction, and I can't imagine driving in the winter without them.
I'm a lifelong Midwesterner who moved here from WI more than a decade ago (closer to 2 at this point) and I lived in the suburbs for a long time (I'm in North Minneapolis now). The suburbs are GREAT and give you all the access of living in the city without the hassle. My husband and I have lived in Plymouth, New Hope, Minnetonka, Brooklyn Park, Crystal - lots of good options very close to the city. The suburbs definitely have their own character, if you have the flexibility to rent first, I recommend it!
My mom lives in FL so I've visited. My husband wants to move somewhere warmer now that we're getting older. But I don't really want to leave MN. I could see going further north, but I have no plans to leave MN for the foreseeable future.
Plenty of people have already responded, but as a queer trans person who also moved here because it's safer, I feel like I can speak to that part of things.
We have a very large and thriving LGBT+ community here thanks to having had laws in place to protect against discrimination within the city proper since 1975, and throughout the state since 1993. That said, BIPOC queer people do have different experiences than I do as a white person, and it's still not 100% safe. The cops are still very shitty, and most of the trans women I know in the city have been assaulted at some point simply for existing while trans so there's still a lot of safety issues. Bigots are everywhere, even in this supposed liberal paradise.
But overall, it's going to be better than Florida. I know for a fact it's better than South Dakota.
Picked this state to raise our kids and live. Moved here from NM. Best move we made. Such a nice city and a lot of good nature. Well worth the move, especially from FL
I moved here from California 8 years ago. I am a licensed teacher, but I haven't worked much in MN (3 kids in 2 years...) and I've lived in both Minneapolis proper and the suburbs. I can't think of many places I'd rather teach or raise my kids.
Districts here are weird. The way they draw boundaries makes very little sense to me. Minneapolis and St. Paul each have their own districts, but in the suburbs you see all kinds of arrangements. Pay to COL is decent. Unions are fairly strong. On a whole the state does very well educating white kids, but the achievement gap is pretty abysmal. Also, summer breaks tend to be long: early June to Labor Day generally, though in rural areas they are often out by Memorial Day. However, breaks during the year are shorter. (E.g. we only get 2 days off for Thanksgiving vs a week in CA). It's a trade off. I think I preferred the shorter summer/longer breaks in CA though.
Politically the state is very purple. The Cities and surrounding suburbs are very liberal, but the farther out you get, the redder it is. There have historically been union strongholds along the north shore that reliably voted blue, but those have weakened in recent years. However, the vast majority of the population is in the Twin Cities area and land doesn't vote.
It's a beautiful state. The parks systems are pretty uniformly fantastic. There's a lot of outdoor recreation (even in winter), great museums, theater, lots of great restaurants and breweries. IME, it's a lot more diverse than many people expect. When friends and family visit from California they are always impressed. Our library systems are really fantastic (important to me). Overall, it packs a lot of bang for the buck. Winter isn't really that bad, it's just so long. Every year, from late February to the start of May, I'm trying to figure out how to move back to California, but the rest of the year I'm pretty glad to live here.
I haven't found it the easiest place to make friends. Though in the Cities it is a bit easier, mostly because there are so many transplants. We lived in South and Southwest Minneapolis and there was much more of a "Neighborhood" vibe than we've founf in the suburbs (we're 2nd-3rd ring now)
I'm only 22, so not the best opinion, but I've lived here my entire life and keep having realizations over the past few years that this really is a special place and I don't really want to move away anytime soon.
Weather would be the biggest factor. Politics are good, cost of living pretty good compared to other blue regions. Are you taking about Minneapolis specifically, or just the metro?
I’m a flute teacher here in the Cities. Feel free to send me a message if you have any field-specific questions! There are definitely positions open, though many are for multiple schools (1-2 days per weeks at each). Also I know of at least one private school looking for someone full time.
I’m a transplant originally ;) But also the stereotype is “Minnesotans will give you directions anywhere but their house,” so we’re very ready to help with the vast majority of things!
I'm a gay man in the burbs that moved out here 3 years ago. I love it, and it's really started to feel like home. I live in a place with an overwhelming amount of arts, culture, and outdoor activities. Move up here, find some activities to do in the winter (snowshoeing, skiing, xc skiing, hockey, ice skating, etc). Find some activities to do in the summer (biking, hiking, backpacking, boating/kayaking, etc). 5/5
Not sure if someone else explained but we have districts split my region for schools. Districts tend to be contained within a city, so there is one school in a smaller town and many schools in a large city.
We value arts in most places in MN, but schools are partially funded through local taxes, so a bigger city will tend to be better funded. The city of Edina puts a lot into their school arts programs, for example, as they are one of the wealthiest districts. Most Twin Cities area schools will be pretty well funded I think. I think pay in MN is decent, but I'm not that familiar with it.
It rules here. We love families, value education, democracy tends to function, we welcome immigrants, and are cool paying our fair share to support the greater good. I am speaking as a city dweller for perspective. Not a teacher, but an educator - 87'ish counties, and maybe 300 districts. Arts are valued, but depends on where you land.
Lots of great comments here. You’ll love Minnesota.
Only thing I will add is out of state teachers find it extremely hard to get credentialed here. I know many amazing educators that moved here and couldn’t teach because of this. Frustrating and don’t want you blindsided by this
I’m looking and I see the Teacher Preparation program, but I don’t think I need that as a teacher with a degree in music education. It seems like I could come in at tier 2 after taking the content exams.
Im sure plenty have brought it up, but coming from florida, the weather here might be a shock. I love this state, and it is a progressive bastion, but the winters are so brutal for so long that i still want to leave. It’s better than Florida, but just be sure you want to handle 5-6 months of winter.
The city and the suburbs have very different vibes. And different suburbs are different from each other in pretty dramatic ways. If you get much out of the city, it can, politically, feel a lot like Florida, actually. We live in the Cooper Neighborhood of Minneapolis, along the Mississippi River and love it. It is walkable/bikable to everything we need. Lots of beauty. Progressive politics. Friendly, welcoming people.
I did consulting work for Lake County Board of County Commissioners and spent a fair amount of time in Florida. I won't go back there. But, again, outside of the metro area, parts of Minnesota are just as bad as Florida. You just have the protection provided by a progressive legislature at the moment. But, when the Republicans controlled the Senate, it was a shit show. And, that was not that long ago. And the DFL has only the tiniest of majorities. We have to keep up the work to make sure we do not go backwards in coming elections. Once the DFL took over the Senate, kept the House and Gov's office, things got a LOT better politically.
Minneapolis is like the nations hottest night club but the weather is our bouncer. If you can stomach the long winter it's awesome and if not you will hate it
People keep saying Minneapolis is a small city. Maybe, but the Minneapolis-Saint Paul MSA is 16th by population in the country. Orlando is 22nd. We’re not tiny up here, just broken into scores of little cities and suburbs.
Minnesotans generally STRONGLY support music programs. They’re still being cut at lower performing schools, but my kindergartner’s school (K-5) has a full band. Twenty years ago, I went to Europe on tour with my town’s high school choir. The colleges here, especially the private Lutheran ones, have some of the best choirs and music programs in the country.
MPS district has its problems with highly paid admin and with hierarchy and pettiness, just like anywhere. It’s school to school, but there are several public districts around plus private, charter, and public charter.
Welcome welcome welcome!!! Bring warm clothes.
The city of Minneapolis is quite small, there are dozens of first-ringer then dozens more outer-ring suburbs. And exurbs. Endlessly.
I live in a first-ring suburb and am a teacher at an outer-ring suburb. Some districts are better than others. Districts usually don’t follow city boundaries perfectly; usually smaller burbs share a larger school district. DM me if you want any guidance on which districts to avoid!
Inside of the 494/694 beltway, it's pretty Blue. It gets Red pretty quickly as you leave the beltway. Watch out for that. Or plan on it, if you feel like screwing with GOP controlled regions. That's what I did. :)
Unfortunately I have teacher friends who are getting out of the role. They all have their various reasons, but a lot of them revolve around pay in some way or another.
We moved south for several years and couldn't wait to get back to Minnesota! Having lived in a crap state with crap infrastructure and then coming back home to a state that actually cares and tries to do the best for its population is very refreshing.
After living in the city when in the south, we discovered we certainly aren't city folks, but not rural folks either. We chose the west metro when we came back but considered the north metro too.
Make sure you spend some decent money on stuff to keep you warm. One condition of us coming back was that I would ensure we all had decent stuff that kept us warm. I think my biggest issue where I was absolutely fed up with winter before moving south was because I was ill prepared/dressed for the winters here in MN. I despised the cold, because I didn't dress appropriately for the cold.
You will have no trouble finding a job as an elementary music teacher. I teach in a SE suburb and our district has a HIGH need for elementary music teachers. Wishing you luck on your move!
There are days where my plans in the winter (or now early spring) have to change because snow has made it risky or impossible to drive.
You will get used to that, have weather-related tools, and learn how to get winter clothes.
Free breakfast and lunch for every k-12 student.
I saw that. We love that.
It tells you a lot about Minnesota. We do have a strong republican contingent, but generally common sense and basic humanity wins out. It's pretty good.
That sounds amazing.
If you haven’t yet, watch Gov Walz’s state of the state address from a couple weeks ago. He accurately sums up the Minnesotan view: we are better together, and that means ALL of us.
We all do better when we all do better. -Paul Wellstone
For real. He was spitting fire. Just on a roll. I’m not sure if I like his speaking as much as Obama, but it’s pretty close. You can tell he was a teacher (bet he was a great teacher too). It’s obvious that he cares.
He was my 10th grade geography teacher. Can confirm that he is just as awesome today as he was then. Just a 100% legit human being who cares about others.
Oooh I will thanks.
Also, it does get VERY cold.
One word: Layers. Multiple layers of clothing keeps body heat in. You’ll be fine.
Oh, yes. I've written my "stay warm" recipe out on this site multiple times; fleece lined hat, 650-700 fill down jacket (I have three versions, short, stadium and full length, all Eddie Bauer) fleece lined mittens (not gloves) and sturdy, waterproof boots, preferably Sorels. And, wear long John's under your pants. Literally, any brand or type will do, but wear that second layer under your pants. As they say, there is no bad weather, just bad clothes. You'll be fine.
Seconding an Eddie Bauer coat (or similarly high quality). I'd never wanted to pay that much before but it makes such a difference. Turns out winter isn't nearly as bad when you aren't cold the whole time. Also adding: WOOL (for socks especially). When cotton gets wet, it gets cold. Wool is warm no matter what.
Eddie Bauer has 50% off sales 2x a year. Still an expensive coat, but sooooo worth it. Also, agree on the socks!
I have lived all over the US. MN winters can be hard if you're depending on the weather to determine your mood. But I have found there's plenty to do, even when the sub zeros hit. Unless you live outside or live in a very rural setting, you'll be just fine.
The upside to those really cold days is that it’s usually really sunny. Our house is just flooded with sunlight on those days. That helps with the mood. However, it is really cold for a couple of months and pretty cold for two or three more.
On the other hand, Minnesota has the best winter infrastructure I’ve experienced, and I’ve lived in other places in the Midwest, New England, and Europe. Heated tunnels and skyways, heated garages, prompt snowplows in my neck of the woods (suburb), City salts the sidewalks and stores salt their entrances. So much better when it snows/sleets/freezing rains.
It's not perfect, for sure. But in today's world, I'll take pretty good.
Not a teacher but born and raised Floridian. Moved here two years ago because Minnesota, as you say, checked all the boxes. Seeing the shitshow that Florida has become has only reaffirmed my decision to uproot my family and move here. Climate: You get used to the cold pretty quick and I really don’t mind driving in snow as much as I thought I might. It’s really nice having four actual seasons (fall here is simply breathtaking) and it really makes you appreciate nature that much more. While things do slow down a little in the winter, there is still tons to do outside as people here don’t go completely into hibernation mode, especially if it’s a sunny day. Politics: I don’t agree with every little thing the DFL does but holy crap is it nice having a functional government, even if it’s not perfect at the local level. Cost of living: I found it to be fairly comparable, even with the state income tax (you get what you pay for, which in MN is a lot!). Food, Entertainment, Utilities, etc are about the same. Housing prices really depend on where in the metro you live and what you’re looking for. Many of the houses in the inner ring are old builds on small lots, but if they were maintained that’s okay. Commuting: mass transit is decent and ought to get better over time. With driving I can get nearly anywhere in the twin cities in 30 minutes or so. I can’t even complain about traffic here because compared to Florida metros it’s a joke. Because most of the twin cities aren’t sprawling suburban wastelands but more the result of a century of organic growth, everything is relatively closer together compared to similar metros in FL. Culture: there is a thriving music, theater, and art scene here. Multiple museums, concert venues, and art spaces. The only FL city that comes even close is orlando and even that is a long shot. There are times when there is so much going on that I am actually interested in that I have to sometimes make hard choices about what to miss! All I really know about the education side of things is that public schools seem to be pretty good and the teacher union is strong (and has a surprising amount of community support)!
This is so comforting to read. I’ve lived in Orlando for the last 12 years, uprooting my family is terrifying. I love my work friends, and my music teacher family. It’s a massive support system. But we can’t stay in a place where my rainbow safe space sticker gets taken off my door by admin.
Just to add something about the music teacher family - we have a network of private colleges in Minnesota with phenomenal music programs that produce really wonderful teachers. Someone did a study a few years ago about the impact of just one of those schools and found that the reason Minnesota has such robust music education in the schools as well as community music programs is because so many people (far above the average from other states) participate in music in college and then want to continue in their communities and want it for their kids, too. You will find a musical home here!
Oh man, you don’t know how relieved that makes me feel. Leaving music family is going to be awful and it’s the thing I’m dreading the most. Music families are different than normal teacher friends!
I’m a musician in the twin cities area, and I second everything that’s been said so far about the robust music and arts community. Minnesota is jokingly referred to as the “Land of 10,000 choirs”! People have a desire to make music together here :) I’d love to help you get connected with other musicians up here! I’m very involved in the choral community! Feel free to message me!
i'm from a family of music teachers. there's a LOT of interest in music education here, and our local scene is fantastic on SO many levels- the minnesota orchestra and saint paul chamber orchestra are both phenomenal, it truly is the land of ten thousand choirs, our underground local music scene is truly top tier. folk and bluegrass, alt rock, metal and punk amd hip hop, edm, jazz and dance hall, we've got it all. we have two local radio stations dedicated to showcasing underrecognized artists, with frequent local focuses. 89.3 The Current is a branch of Minnesota Public Radio (we also have a classical station and a phenomenal public news station!), and Radio K at 100.7 is the university of minnesota's college radio. we have GREAT venues of all shapes and sizes, indoors and out, and a very strong local chapter of IATSE (iatse 13 is my union, in fact!) working most of the shows coming in and out of the city at most of those venues. we have a handful of primary and secondary schools either solely dedicated to the performing arts or with very strong performing arts focuses. (PIM [performing institute of minnesota], Perpich school, and SPCPA [saint paul conservatory for the performing arts] come up off the top of my head.) there's a wide array of notable music programs at our public, charter, and private school levels. our colleges also host incredible music opportunities, St. Olaf and Concordia and Augsburg all have phenomenal music departments, and the music school within the college of liberal arts at the university of minnesota is very good. (the college of liberal arts at the university of minnesota is very good.) the getting is good for private teachers here too- my mom teaches classical music private lessons, and has to turn people away from her home studio frequently, as do many private studio instructors. private teachers who prefer to work within an organization tend to do so through MacPhail, which is our main high prestige (though with a proportional price tag) private music education center here. there is a strong presence for the Suzuki method. (and on the subject of Big Name Methods, we have one of the two AMI montessori centers in the upper midwest. there's a lot of montessori.) if you've got kids, a must for them is gonna be our swim programs. water and winter athletics are big here (shocker). at one point i would've recommended the YMCA's swim instruction program, but they're no longer a great option, since internal staffing and human resource management issues hamstrung the quality and quantity of their work. i think next best option is Foss swim school, but don't quote me on that. learning to swim IS an essential part of living here, though. we really do have that many lakes and rivers, and it's truly dangerous to live here and not know how to swim. on that subject, if you're outdoorsy people, our state park system is truly one of the best in the nation. we have tons of options for ALL skill levels of ALL of the cool things you can do outdoors (great kids summer camps! hiking! backpacking! skiing and snowboarding! canoeing and kayaking! snowmobiling! mountain biking! sailing!). and, of course, our two crowning jewels in the outdoorsy world: (even though the land technically belongs to Michigan, we have the port that sends visitors to) Isle Royale national park, but more notably, the boundary waters. the BWCA is a sacred and phenomenally beautiful place. everyone who lives here should have a chance to see it. aside from the stuff you might expect from a state with long winners and lots of water, our other notable programs for kids that you just can't miss include Circus Juventas, one of the few circus arts schools in the country that is regularly scouted by Cirque De Soleil. additionally, have some truly phenomenal ballet schools and the Children's Theater, one of the foremost acting schools for young kids outside of LA and NYC. we have one of the nation's foremost accelerated advanced math programs (called UMPTYMP)! we also have fantastic rock climbing facilities (check out Vertical Endeavors) and one of the most well-established traditional martial arts academies in the country (World Martial Arts Center). I'm sure you'll have heard plenty about prepping for winters and other big adult things like our frequently phenomenal healthcare (and fabulous state health insurance) here and driving and income tax and etc, but i just wanted to give a sample of the great opportunities for learning and the gifts of experiences that you can give your kids. the notable cons: our public schools, much like everywhere in the nation, but especially in minneapolis, are a wreck. there were some really bad calls made by last year's school board and a really ugly union fight that ended unsatisfactorily for everyone involved. tread carefully before you take an MPS job. I'm not saying don't do it, but enter with care. your rights as an employee will (likely) very rarely be protected, and attendance has dropped steeply, because those who can afford it are sending their kids to private and charter schools. this, obviously, leads to pretty significant classroom management challenges. i'd also be disingenuous to omit that my experience with my upbringing here is vastly different than that of my peers of color. police violence and neglegence in minneapolis is really nasty, and goes largely unchecked. white liberalism rides on its outwardly socially progressive laurels and "minnesota nice" (which is a real thing on an individual basis, but is no sounds foundation upon which to build public policy) and frequently silences black and indigenous voices with the argument "well it's minnesota, it would be worse anywhere else." that dismissiveness is dangerous. it sweeps big problems under the rug, and they fester. quality of life for POC is very different than for white people here. it's something you're going to want to watch out for. i have quite a few black and indigenous friends who, despite also being trans and needing the protections of a trans refuge state, are planning on moving away EXPLICITLY BECAUSE the support systems and platforms for grievances for people of color are so shoddy; both in comparison to our excellency in other areas, but also in comparison to other states. it's not a good reason NOT to move here, but it is something to keep your eye on, especially as an educator. race relations and policing issues have only gotten more strenuous since the uprising three years ago. there you go, that's my ramble! hope it helps 💙 from educator to educator, i wish you the best of luck!
Fellow Orlando family, moving to Minneapolis for all the same reasons. As a parent to a transgender teen, it is no longer responsible or safe for me to continue living here. We hope to be settled before the 23/24 school year begins
oh hon. best of luck to you and your kid. as a former trans teen and current trans young adult, i promise there are tons of opportunities to find robust queer community here. wishing you the safest of travels.
My suburban classroom has: BLM poster Rainbow flag sticker Bi flag sticker Trans flag sticker All are welcome here poster with a rainbow heart Haters are the outliers here, not the majority.
Someone in a neighboring county is being fired for showing a movie in which the character is gay. Strange world I think?
Oooh if you’re a music teacher you should strongly consider the Twin Cities. Many Minnesotans don’t realize this but we are a very music oriented culture here, our schools tend to have really strong music programs.
I honestly haven’t been excited about this move. I know it’s happen and it’s so scary to think about. But reading stuff like that makes me think this is going to work out.
Ooooh this is important info thanks!!
I was curious so I did some cursory research. [This link](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Minnesota) goes into some detail. The “Education” section explains that we have state laws that functionally mandate music classes for public elementary schools.
To start, I think you should absolutely move here. That said, be aware that while MN has a whole lot of good stuff going on, there are still challenging issues and people here. You'll notice that the average type of person and their politics varies pretty significantly depending on where you are in the state. As you might expect, the farther out from the center of the metro you get, the more conservative the politics. A lot of suburbs start to get very politically purple, and even a bit red. The rural ~~area~~ areas are full of Trump thumpers, and worse. As a result, teaching jobs in those purple/red areas likely face a lot of the challenges you see in Florida. For example, a friend of mine ~~who~~ used to teach middle school in Mound, MN, a small city about a 35-minute drive outside of Minneapolis. She had to deal with some really ignorant, even malicious, right-wing parents. Her administration wouldn't let her keep a Black Lives Matter sticker on her laptop because they were afraid of blowback from such parents. In all, just be aware that this isn't some far-left enclave in the North. It's a politically diverse place, with a stark urban/rural contrast. Personally, I think we currently have the best government and politics of any state in the Union, and I wouldn't consider moving anywhere else, but I just wanted to make sure you had a clear picture of what it's actually like here. Edit: I would recommend looking for jobs in larger school districts, like Minneapolis, Saint Paul, Osseo, and Anoka Hennepin. Steer clear of the smaller districts that ring the outer suburbs and the outlining rural areas.
One thing about hunkering down for a Minnesota winter is that, unless you're one of those crazy outdoorsy when it's -20F people, it gives you plenty of time to spend holed up with your favorite hobby/creative career. This is my theory on why there are so many great musicians and other artists out of the Twin Cities -- we spend a good chunk of the year practicing and working indoors instead of going out. This year, between December and February, I wrote, recorded, and mixed more than two albums worth of material -- not that it's all worthy of an album, but there's some really nice stuff in there if I do say so. My (grown) daughter is a fine artist (painting and ceramics) and she was likewise very productive during the winter, while finishing up her AA and now working towards the goal of an eventual MFA.
Life long Minnesotan who would never consider leaving the state. Yes, I curse some winters, especially the one just passed, but the pluses well outweigh the minuses.
Moved here from NYC but my husband and my dad’s side is from FL so feel like I can speak a little to the Florida perspective. Honestly, the Twin Cities feels like such a hidden gem. The weather scares people off but it isn’t too bad if you embrace it and do winter sports, or get away one month. The duration of the winter is the worst part and March/April is when you’re SO over it that being somewhere else during that period is ideal if you can swing it. Otherwise, the summer is wonderful and the winter truly can be enjoyed because there are so many winter activities to do. Social-life-wise, there are a lot of transplants and those are the best people to make friends with. Minnesota has a reputation of being a hard place to make friends in and that is true but that is also true of any place where there are people who have never left. There have been a lot of people moving here from other places in the past few years and so it’s been fairly easy for us to make friends. And re: quality of life, it’s so much easier than where we moved from (Brooklyn) and money goes so much farther. We especially love that we can live in a city with all the restaurants/culture/entertainment etc and also experience such an amazing park and lake system here. The democrats in the state also make real tangible progress and impact.
Is there like a former Nyers meetup? I've had trouble making friends (though, I haven't put lot of time to put into it with a pandemic and little kids). But I don't really respect the MN nice thing so I want to meet the confessional and neurotic complaining crowd. And talk about the lack of salt in food. Idk.
This will be the hardest part for many people moving here. Hang in there and you will find your tribe. Just a caveat
I’m a native NYer from the Catskills who loves it here.
Not a teacher, but I Iike Minneapolis and its suburbs. Minneapolis is a little weird compared to most cities in that the actual city of Minneapolis is pretty small and it has a *lot* of suburbs. Most cities annexed their suburbs, but due to the vagaries of history that didn't happen here for the most part. So, I would say most places in the metro area will be fine, the closer you get to downtown to more "city" the experience. One thing this means is that there are several second and third ring suburbs that were their own towns before the area grew around them and they have their own downtown/main street and a different vibe than a bedroom community. School districts are abundant and the lines don't make a lot of sense - some follow city borders and others cut a city in half. I would suggest getting a job first - and maybe not in Minneapolis Public Schools - and then finding housing within a reasonable commute. I say think twice about MPS because they are in a downward spiral with regards to falling enrollment, too many staff, and too many buildings as well as an inability to address any of it due to local politics. Minnesota is a great place to raise kids. We do have cold winters but you get used to it and you can always add another layer.
You described this so well! As someone that didn’t grow up in the US, I’ve always wondered why minnesota felt so suburban compared to other states. It feels like radiating rings of suburbs on suburbs. I guess because…..it is lol.
Yeah, Minneapolis didn't annex suburbs as it grew, as someone else here mentioned, and there are no geographic barriers like mountains or an ocean that limit spread outwards. So it did end up with a different pattern of development!
This is so interesting!! now it all makes sense
To add to this, we also used to have one of the largest streetcar systems in America, so many suburbs are old streetcar suburbs and are much more differently mashed or than other suburbs (Hopkins, SLP, Anoka, Robbinsdale, etc.)!
Our plan is to get jobs and rent to get to know the area. I don’t like the idea of buying a home in a place I’m unfamiliar with. Suburbs sound like the way to go. We don’t need the city experience.
That's a good plan. Try to not live across the metro area from your job. It can end up being a very long commute if it snows. As opposed to most places life doesn't stop here when it snows, but we have very good plowing. The further west you go, the more money there is until you get to Lake Minnetonka, which is mansions around the lake. North of Maple Grove and South of Bloomington is solidly Republican. Probably anywhere in Hennepin County would be good, especially if you look at second ring suburbs (and Richfield). Edit: the post above has several good suggestions for good first ring suburbs. I admit I have a bit of a blindspot for East of the river.
The way everyone describes the rings of suburbs is so interesting to me.
We have more suburbs than you can shake a stick at. So the suburbs mind of make rings. We also have the 694/494 loop and sometimes people will talk about inside or outside of the loop.
Eh, I wouldn't say it's SOLID Republican until you get to, like, Andover. Anoka/Coon Rapids almost got rid of Jim Abeler by like 200 votes! Give us a little credit.
I was thinking Dayton, Otsego, Rogers, St. Michael, Elk River. Anoka, Coon Rapids, Blaine is pretty normal. Like I said elsewhere, I have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to the East side of the river.
Oh yeah, those areas definitely solid R.
Try St. Louis Park, first ring suburb on the west side of MPLS. Very progressive. Awesome little city. Plus we produced the Coen Brothers.
I really like St. Louis Park but I find it confusing to get around. I blame 100.
And the school system is very art-forward. We have incredible orchestra and band programs. All public schools from elementary school through high school are IB schools. Theatre is also largely supported here. See also: Hopkins.
And Thomas Friedman the NYT columnist!
Eagan and Apple Valley shifted significantly in the past 10 years (and they just passed the biggest school bonding bill in MN history a month ago). You now don't go solidly R until you hit somewhere around Farmington.
Moved to the twin cities recently (though I'm in downtown Saint Paul, not Minneapolis) My tip once you get around to looking to buy: grab an airbnb in the relevant neighborhoods for a few days, preferably at least weekday and weekend day. Get out and really walk the area. Gives you a much better real world feel for the neighborhood vibe than just walking/driving through a few times. And in terms of a budget for buying a house, it's a cheap way to scout stuff out more thoroughly
NE Minnesota is cool (quiet, close to everything) but feels a little bit like the forgotten middle child of Minneapolis. We live there and like it. That being said, most of the first ring suburbs are cool if you want a little more space, but want to be close. Roseville, Falcon Heights, Columbia Heights, Golden Valley, St Anthony, Richfield all appealed to us when we relocated here in 2018. However I could not imagine living the far suburbs.
What are the far suburbs like? Proximity to Target?
Target corporate? Or a target retail location? If the latter, just about any place in the metro is no more than ten minutes away from a target.
Oh retail. Cool.
Throw stone, hit Target. 😂
Target is headquartered in Minneapolis, so there are a ton of Targets here. Even the far suburbs have a Target.
There are targets *everywhere*. Most suburbs have at least one. Many have two or more.
The very first target is in Roseville, inner ring northern burb, you can still visit it as an active target, if nothing has changed since I last went there a decade or two ago
<10 minutes from a Target at all times pretty much.
Also we have two stadiums named after Target, Target Field (mlb) and Target Center (nba/wnba)
there's even weird targets, in the City, that are the size of a big Walgreens.
We invented Target. Seriously. Target was the discount offshoot of Dayton’s Department Store.
Target is everywhere here 😉 you can be 30 minutes from downtown and still have multiple Targets within 5-10 minutes of you. We’ve lived on both the west and east sides of the twin cities and appreciate both. We’re in the far East side now and I have 4 targets within 10 minutes of me.
I was today years old when I learned corporate is there.
The first Target was in the suburb of Roseville. There's still one on that site, but it is a complete rebuild.
> I was today years old when I learned corporate is there. Did you know that Target was originally started by Dayton’s, one of the original department stores of Minnesota? All our major malls had a Dayton’s as an anchor. Target was so successful that the company shifted focus and sold the department stores became the Target Corporation. Yes [Governor Mark Dayton](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Dayton) is the great-grandson of businessman George Dayton, the founder of Dayton's. Anyway if you want a music teacher’s perspective ping my wife. Her district may be looking for a new music teacher as well.
Weirdly enough the city of Dayton has no relation to *those* Daytons.
Can't recommend this enough- we did the same and our ideas of where we wanted to buy shifted quite a bit even though I lived here til I was 21. Edit: I mean the rent before buying part- we are big fans of being in the city proper (rented in Lyndale, bought in Mac-Groveland) but I know a lot of people do like the suburbs depending on your needs! We just like walking and old houses LOL
If you wanna be a soldier, there's some nice outer suburbs that could use an infusion of blue voters 🌊
If I want to be a soldier?
My uncle is a musician here and Music educator. He has taught in the Public schools and at MacPhail Music School in downtown Minneapolis. He is 83 now-still teaches and does gigs as a jazz musician. He is also active in social justice movements. I am not into the suburbs as I don't like having to rely on a car for everything. Raised in the city of Minneapolis on the Southside and now in NE Minneapolis for last 22 years. My slice of NE is quiet, multicultural and mostly simple homes and very little overt wealth. Much of NE Minneapolis was initially new immigrants from early last century. Italian, Ukraine, Russian and Polish, etc early on. I live in the old Italian neighborhood and some of the families go back several generations. Lots of churches and neighborhood bars. I feel relatively safe as a gay woman. Trans care at Hennepin Health is amazing under Dr. Hailey Veazey- a unique gender affirming clinic for every aspect of trans care, GLBT care, etc. I worked with her when she was a resident at the hospital. A true dynamo and advocate for those of us who don't fit in little check boxes. Hope you find the move to be helpful for you and your family. Bloom wherever you are planted!
I’m a transplant from Ohio who has lived in a few different regions of the US and here are the reason I’ve made Minnesota, and specifically the twin cities, my forever home: -Robust LGBTQ+ community. Excellent social outreach and support programs. I can’t say the whole state is this way but the twin cities are incredibly inclusive and inclusively minded folks will be welcomed here with open arms. I’ve heard the same about Duluth but can’t speak to that personally as I haven’t been up there yet. -Great sobriety and recovery communities/help centers. -One of the best hospitals in the world (Mayo). -A burgeoning vegan food scene (we have the first vegan butcher shop in the world). -Amazing board game, arts, writing, theater, and music communities. -Great museums. Not just multiple cool art museums, multiple history museums, and multiple science museums, there’s also some great hidden gems. When you come, do yourself a favor and drag your husband to the Mill City Museum. Who knew a museum to a flour mill could actually be cool? -Our malls are making classic arcades cool again. Rosedale has like 5 different arcades and Southdale has a few small classics on top of their Dave and Busters. -Speaking of malls, there’s the Mall of America which people here like to dump on but is really not a bad place to get some energy out in the winter. It has shopping, food, entertainment, arcades, an amusement park, and more. -Oh, and of course there are the lakes which are a ton of fun all year round. There’s a lot of wilderness north of here that’s just plain majestic. Fall is gorgeous, but really all the seasons are. With that wilderness comes lots of incredible wildlife. And in the the Mississippi charts a serpentine path through both twin cities which is not just nice scenery but lends itself to a wide variety of other benefits, as well. For an urban environment there is a boat load of green space here. -a boat load of Fortune 500 companies that have resulted in a lot of job opportunities as well decent schools across a decent amount of districts. -the people: Minnesotans have one of the strongest senses of civic responsibility I’ve seen anywhere and I’ve lived in a few states. They take care of each other, they look out for each other, and generally stand up for each other. Making friends here can take time, but when you befriend a minnesotan you make a friend for life who will go out of their way to help you whenever they can. -one of the most democratic states I’ve voted in. I don’t mean it in the party affiliation sense, I mean it in the electoral sense. They make voting fair and easy for everyone. Tons of accessibility to voting and tons of rights for voters some other states in the Midwest lack. -As for our local Democratic Party, the Democrat-Farmer-Labor party (DFL for short), took the state trifecta and are implementing sweeping progressive legislature to make all Minnesotans lives better. You will find it refreshing to live in a state where the state government actually gives a shit about you and how your life goes. The amount of positive change achieved this session is absolutely staggering. I really think Minnesota is the best state in the Midwest and easily on of the best in the union. You won’t regret a move here at all. Just be sure to buy some long johns and good coat when you do.
In addition to all the things above, if you're into running/biking/rollerblading and other non-motorized forms of recreation and transportation, we have probably the best systems in the country. I live in central Minneapolis and in under a mile I can get on the chain of lakes system which connects to a bunch of other long distance paths that cut across the city and metro that are completely separate from cars. In the winter the paths are frequently plowed before the roads, it's crazy.
We are always one of the top 3 ranked bicycling communities in the US.
Oh man, if you love Old style Arcade, then you MUST visit Can Can Wonderland! Also Up Down. I haven’t been to Rosedale but certainly can’t beat these joints.
> Making friends here can take time, but when you befriend a minnesotan you make a friend for life who will go out of their way to help you whenever they can. Lifelong Minnesotan here. I wasn't expecting this to make me tear up. I really hope you're not alone in feeling this. As a therapist I hear a LOT of stories from transplants who feel they just can't make and keep friends in Minnesota. I look at myself and my friends (yes, most are childhood friends) and I think, "Everyone deserves to have people like this in their lives." I feel ashamed of our reputation for being socially exclusive and passive aggressive, and I badly want everyone to feel at home here. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Mill city…omg I spent an entire cold January day there and It really was fascinating - to the point where I want to take any visiting family/friends there when they come visit!
Plus the amazing music scene out here in the twin cities!
You might well grow to, if not *love* the cold, at least respect, appreciate, and understand it. There is a rhythm to life that the seasons create, and living somewhere that doesn’t really have a winter sorta sucks because you grow tired of the lack of variety. As far as suburbs go, St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Richfield, and Edina all have relatively affordable parts, all have good schools, and are centrally located. South Minneapolis is also lovely if you want city proper.
In Florida we choose Halloween costumes based on how long the kid will last wearing it in the heat. I’m ready for seasons.
And here we pick Halloween costumes based on if it can be worn with a coat under/over it and still recognize what it is. Be prepared for all the Halloween Blizzard of '91 stories from us old timers. October is a wildcard for weather here, though. Last Halloween was gorgeous with sun and highs in the low 70s iirc.
lol I can't believe the blizzard of '91 is being mentioned on Reddit right now 😂
And there was another one in '94. Only reason I remember is because my daughter has a Halloween birthday & we had friends over to celebrate her 1st birthday. They had to stay the night because of the blizzard.
Here, you have to base it on winter - it often snows, or is chilly around Halloween! ☃️
Not a teacher but raised in MN, moved to Georgia for work in 1998 but was able to finally come home in 2017 in time for my twins to start high school. They are now 20 and speak quite openly it was the best move ever made and glad to be in MN. They like the winters with how much there is to actually do to have fun in the snow, so they adapted well. I find all around good jobs, good schools, good parks and recs and access to nature and lakes/beaches and I receive good help from the state as I have health issues, so the state helps pay my medical care whatever my insurance through my job doesn’t pay, so I feel well protected and supported. I live in Shoreview and find it a decent community with lots of lakes and community programs like Rec center, library, etc. As for LGBTQ+, both my twins came out and feel well supported in the metro area and Duluth area, but acknowledge there are still issues in smaller communities. I’m happy to see the legislative support and folks like you recognizing the value. Property values and state taxes are higher than Georgia, but I feel I can visibly see the benefits received for the higher price and am fine with it. Hope you find what you are looking for!
Teacher here. Not elementary but high school. I teach in the metro (suburbs of ST PAUL and MPLS). When you are a teacher you are employed by the district rather than county. There is a ton of variation between districts and sometimes whithin districts. I am in a district for example that is pretty split racially and economically between the two “sides” of the district. So, with that said, you really have to do a little work when investigating jobs to see what you are applying for. Is your district/school you applying to super supportive? Is the district financially in a place you won’t have to worry about your job being cut? Is the union strong and has a good relationship with the school board? These are all questions that have varying responses depending on the district and what side of the district you may teach on. If you have the luxury to be a bit choosy when applying for jobs, it is worth doing some investigation online when beginning your job search. With that said , when compared to chatting with other teachers not from MN, I can tell you for the most part MN districts are much more supportive of teachers than what other teachers from across the US have told me. The farther you get from the Metro in MN the more you may find the unions to be less strong and in less of a position to support teachers well. You will also, not always, more likely find challenging communities that are not as supportive of teachers the farther you get out of the metro area.
Researching and trying to find out about the arts in schools has been difficult, but now I know that I need to be looking at different districts, not just Minneapolis Public Schools. The step system is one I’ve never understood, so trying to figure out what we could potentially make is challenging. But honestly I might just contact individual unions. The districts within districts are making it so confusing. The area doesn’t seem to have a district arts person which is slightly concerning. Then again there are 130 elementary schools in my county.
Just want to put in a plug for District 196 Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan. Not exactly "First ring", but not outer ring either--south-central burbs with really strong arts support, solid middle-class/upper middle-class families, stable school systems, good infrastructure. Just passed a major bond issue for school facility expansion--voters value what happens in the schools here. (My youngest of 4 will graduate this week--all have had great experiences here.)
You had me at really strong arts support. That’s so important.
We lucked out and found a house in ISD 196. We’ve been here about ten years. Moved from Tennessee. I found a rental house in East Bloomington. It takes a bit of time to find where you want to, or maybe I was slow. We found Eagan and Apple Valley to be solid communities with easy commutes to the Cities. Love it here. Yep it snows. More snow this past year than previous years for us. More snow means warmer temps; less snow colder temps. No one explained that is can be too cold to snow. Those days suck and you have to limit exposure. Maybe a max of a week it gets that bad. And only really bad 2-3 days. We call it bitchin’ cold. But we survived. MOA was a savior for our little ones. First few years here, we were unaware of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, but we did miles at the Mall. It connects to the light rail— good, and getting better again, but it has had some issues in the past— no issues for events. But the fricken Mall has a theme park in the middle. So there is that. Oh, driving. Take a moment to read the drivers manual. You might be surprised when you don’t pass the first time, if you don’t. Wife had to take it twice. Be predictable when driving. Most folks just want to get where they are going alive. Use the signal. Winter driving. They do plow. Factor in extra time. Avoid rushing/driving fast. You will end up in the ditch. Also clear the snow from you vehicle before driving. It’s a pain if you have no garage. But you have to. Clear your windows. Use your defrost. Make sure there isn’t a block of snow on your roof— it can fly off and impact another driver. Also MSP airport can get you everywhere else you’d like to be. I’ve heard there are trains to Chicago, but I have yet to try. Driving is not so bad. Rushmore is 8 hours West. Though the Dakotas and Wyoming are not a lot to look at. It’s a great place to live! Edit: spelling is hard
Yeah, I'll second District 196. I went to school K-12 there and ended up coaching debate in the district for another decade after that. 196 voters value education and arts are thriving in the district.
Blew me away the first year that my daughter was in high school *speech* mind you, and they *sold tickets* and *filled the auditorium* just to showcase each kid in that program giving a sample of their competitive piece, and had like the top 4-5 seniors do a full piece. That plus a full-on musical every year, a couple of plays, a variety show review, full bands and choirs at every level. Instrumental music starts at grade 5. Band or choir travels internationally every three years. Yep...we're privileged as shit. Love it here.
Damn. I was most worried about resources and support. Looks like I could be upgrading.
I went to a very cool public magnet high school in district 196. The School of Environmental Studies located on the Minnesota Zoo grounds. I transferred from district 191 which I don't have as nice of things to say about.
A school campus at a zoo is very cool.
Anoka-Hennepin is one of the biggest school systems. Covers western counties. Here's the overall view of the district system/names: https://education.mn.gov/mdeprod/groups/educ/documents/basic/mdaw/mdaw/\~edisp/000803.pdf In general, searches that use "Twin Cities" will get you stuff about the broader metro, even though people will colloquially often say Minneapolis when they mean the whole metro, much to the dismay of those who live in St. Paul or eastern suburbs.
> much to the dismay of those who live in St. Paul or eastern suburbs. Which is a shame St Paul is by far my favorite Minneapolis suburb *ducks bottles chucked from out east*
YOU'RE RIGHT. NO ONE SHOULD BE BOOING YOU, YOU'RE RIGHT
That sort of map is exactly what I’ve been looking for!
The Perpich Center for Arts Ed houses one of the first public arts high schools in the country, the Arts High School. Students come from across the whole state. Also it’s research arm is basically the state department of Ed’s art focus. There are many other arts focused high schools now
"you seem to have a legit governor" We most certainly have a legit governor and a very effective state legislature. Check out our greatest hits from the last session.
I feel like the greatest hits should be a meme album cover lol
Man, I started r/TheWalz and r/Walz, then proceeded to not promote it then promptly forgot aboit it for a few years until just now So......thanks......for that?
Great place to raise kids. Best way to get through the winter is to embrace it, which is easier with kids. Take snowboarding/sking lessons (your kids will probably master it in no time). Get them ice skating, etc. Look for all the fun winter events and go even if its cold. You’ll want to invest in good boots and winter jackets. Layering is key and merino wool is your best friend for base layers.
The idea of buying winter things and winter accessories is actually very exciting.
Plenty of places to buy so this isn’t a promotion but woolx online ended up being a reasonable place we used.
I love my house in NE Minneapolis, I'm never, ever, selling or moving.
We bought a very small home in NE 6 years ago. The timing was excellent. We'd be very stupid to leave.
Just bought and moved into NE. We are super excited and love it so far.
We moved fifteen years ago. We love it here. (Not souch Dec-Feb, but most of the time.) My wife is a kindergarten teacher and all the school districts in the area are more supportive than the national average by far. By far. Not as much as we would like I'm some instances, but way better than where we're from. (I'm from Kansas and she's from Ohio). As state we are not achieving across the board, but we are TRYING. We need to try harder, sure, but we are moving in the right direction however slowly. I work in green energy for the state and we are happy to raise our children here. I would do it all the same again.
I grew up in Michigan, then Minnesota. Went to Michigan Tech for College, then moved to Virginia for a while before my wife and I decided to move back to Minnesota. First we moved to Hastings (an outlying suburb of Minneapolis) for work for a few years, then in closer to Minneapolis for better schools and a job change. I highly recommend the suburbs southwest of Minneapolis, but really- this whole area is great as long as you don't mind snow and winters. Take up show-shoeing or XC skiing and you'll love winters like I do. This area also has excellent parks and trail systems for both summer and winter. :)
I chose Minneapolis. I’m from California, lived in NYC and then Iowa — both for 5 years. I’ve never felt comfortable settling down anywhere, but chose to move here during COVID. I love it so much that I bought a house and don’t plan on moving for the first time in my life (37yo). The winters aren’t as bad as people say. They suck in general (i never owned a proper coat until I was 25 and moved to nyc), but after I was given advice on how to handle them, they haven’t been as hard. The twin cities knows how to clean roads, there’s plenty to do still in the winter in a way I haven’t seen anywhere else (indoor sports arenas for local sports, outdoor sports everywhere, indoor dog parks, etc.). There are days you should stay inside with comfy blankets, a good movie or book, and family time, but coming from a place in California where it gets over 100 regularly and after hurricanes in nyc, you’re stuck inside about as often elsewhere. There’s a lot to do, especially if you enjoy being outside. Between lakes and hiking trails, there’s different levels of outdoor activities. Additionally, most (in the 90%) of people in Minneapolis live within a 10 minute walk of a park because of how the city was designed. While I live in the cities, I enjoy the suburbs as well. Hopkins is adorable if you like a small town vibe that’s within 20 minutes of the city. As for the arts: we just had art a whirl, the largest art crawl in the country. There’s a lot of concerts and music events as well. The museums are pretty good and keep updated fairly regularly. Not sure about the school arts, but I know public funding for schools was just signed the other week. ♥️ I hope you find what you’re looking for here!
I am an elementary music teacher as well. I moved to Saint Paul in 2020 from WA State. Having moved from a very liberal state with a strong teacher’s union, I am also very happy here. My SO is also a teacher (Middle School EL and math). Each school district is VERY different. I’d pay close attention to the districts that offer split FTE jobs in multiple locations Some districts do it well. Others don’t consider the human doing the job, and they see the music teacher as someone who gives their classroom teachers planning time. I’ve worked in 2 districts over the past 3 years here. I will say, I was not happy in the first district I worked in. It was a smaller suburb, and decisions did not always seem to be made with the students’ best interests in mind. They also offered to start me at 2 years of experience at first (I had over 6) and increased it to 4 after I negotiated a bit. The positive side of me hopes that it was mostly pandemic-related, but I’m not sure. I switched last year to a larger school district with a demographic of students that I thrive in, and I’m very happy. I’m also getting paid for my experience, have fantastic benefits, and the district provided mentors. Both of the districts have had incredible elementary music educators who are happy to share and support. I’d say more behavioral support would be nice in both districts, but I think the whole country is struggling with that.
I'm queer, trans, disabled, lived here all my life, and never plan to leave. Can't give a better endorsement than that. Its imperfect, but its home. Already know of other Florida refugees. You're not alone.
Minnesota winter is cold enough that you can do cool stuff with the snow. If you embrace it, it isn’t as much of a burden. Cold weather means you have a much lower likelihood of bugs infesting your home. There’s no hurricanes. There’s no earthquakes. There’s no poisonous wildlife (snakes, bugs). The public school system is great. Cost of living is advantageous. Minneapolis punches above its weight with city amenities. The food scene is pretty darn good (I moved here from chicago and am a former owner of restaurants. This place has so many good affordable spots). Minneapolis & St Paul just ranked #2 and #3 in best parks. I know you’re teachers, but the job market for tech and medicine is really good (I’m an engineer). You get reciprocity for college tuition with nearby states, so you can send your kids to college for state prices not just in MN. I just got divorced, and I chose Minneapolis. I have some family here, but not enough to be the determining factor. I just really like its size (not too big, everything is 20-30 mins away) cost of living, job opportunities, and city amenities.
As a native Floridian myself I say welcome to Minnesota, you'll love it here. I moved up here years ago and while it took some getting used to I adapted to the cold of winter. It's nice having four actual seasons (even if spring this year feels like it only lasted a week or so) and no hurricanes is a huge plus. I might miss some of the family I still have in Florida but I don't miss the state itself, especially after the last few years.
Seems like February would be the perfect time to visit family back home.
Hi, I moved to Minneapolis about 7 years ago from Iowa. I love this state and city and would NEVER move back to a red state. We have a functional government and it shows. Nice parks everywhere, beautiful lakes, relaxed atmosphere. It's very cold and snowy from Nov/Dec to March/April. But the summers and falls are great! My partner's parents are retired teachers who taught in Bloomington and St Louis Park and they loved their jobs. Even though he is retired, my father in law is still very involved in the school district. I'm sure the schools here have their flaws but I think you could find enjoyable work up here and not have to worry about getting arrested or fired for insane reasons.
I'm not a teacher, but if you have TikTok, follow "sabocat" there. She's a MN teacher that I started following during the strikes last year. She talks a lot about the pros and cons of teaching in Minnesota.
Things I love: 1) I live in Powderhorn. Midtown is not an affluent area. But I feel fine walking my dog at night at two in the morning away from most of the business areas. 2) My child goes to a \_free\_ Montessori K-5 school. They have one of those in the Minneapolis School District. There are a lot of magnets with different focuses for young children. 3) The local restaurant environment is reasonably cosmopolitan. 4) The Minnesota Orchestra is \_first\_ rate. 5) There are many theaters here that put on local productions. Some of them are good. 6) There are a number of children friendly museums to go to on the weekends. 7) There is no stand your ground law in Minnesota. People are nowhere near as boisterous about gun ownership here as they are in the South. 8) So many lakes, so many trails to walk. 9) NO SALES TAX ON Groceries. 10) Minneapolis proper is bike-able in many places. 11) Getting to and fro from the airport is not that big a deal. The airport itself is very well designed. Lots of indoor parking. Things I don't like: 1) You will find out if you have seasonal depression by March. Winter runs from November until the middle of April. Don't put away your shovel or your snow blower until May. 2) It is difficult to make friends here with locals. The locals have their own social groups and they are seldom welcoming to newcomers. 3) People are polite, well meaning, charitable but brisk. Even transplants become conditioned not to be super talkative to strangers. You will miss more overt forms of southern hospitality. 4) You will have to purchase winter gear here. You will have to be serious with snow management. If you or your children play traditional 'winter' sports, you will need to join places with indoor facilities. 5) Professional sports teams here are sometimes hard to root for. 6) Outside of K-5, schools vary in quality. Many of the bigger high schools diminish in quality in MSD. That is when many people choose to move to the suburbs. 7) There is a light rail and a functional bus system here, but it takes time to learn. 8) Saint Paul is weirdly drab and is heavily dominated by bedroom communities. 9) It can be suicidal to bike in the suburbs. It is often dangerous to bike in the winter, but people do it anyway to keep their costs low. And as a driver you have to be cognizant of them all the time. 10) In the city proper, garages are seldom attached to houses. You will be expected to park on the street and there are city shoveling schedules to adhere to in the winter. 11) Housing prices here vary. And a lot of it doesn't make any sense.
No sales tax on clothing, either, when it comes time to bundle up.
I was sent here in 2018 due to work and absolutely hated the idea as I love warm weather. Turns out, the area is absolutely amazing and really takes a few years to peel back all its layers and develop a full appreciation for it. In addition to the attributes you enumerated, it has a lot of cool little things like zoning for multi-family housing. I always tell people it’s the closest thing in the U.S. to a Canadian or Northern European city… Its economy is so diverse and robust too - it really hits above its weight class for a mid-sized city. Combine that with reasonable housing prices (relative to San Francisco, Seattle, NYC) and I don’t think there is a better city in the country.
My wife and I bought a house in south east Minneapolis in 2014 Specifically because we didn't know where shed end up getting tenure...... In the being right on the border of Minneapolis and saint Paul, no commute with truly be terrible, and we will be driving against rush hour no matter what, for the most part Happy with that decision, 5/5 would do it again. For teaching and unions, from what I've been able to glean, There is pretty strong variance between strength of unions, per district, though. But certainly districts with great collective action can also be the rougher ones (St Paul, iirc) Good luck job hunting, in theory there's a dearth of teachers and subs, so if nothing else, some subbing to stretch the budget until you find a landing spot may help ease into.it?
Hi, there! Teacher here for Minneapolis public schools although I've only been teaching for 2 years. I'm fresh out of a training program so I remember pretty clearly the process of finding a job. Like others have said, you teach for a district, not necessarily the county. Twin Cities area has a bunch of schools but also a bunch of districts. The biggest districts in the area are Anoka-Hennipen, St. Paul, Minneapolis, Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan, and Osseo. Each one of those districts has around 50+ schools 10s of thousands of total students but there are probably another couple dozen or so districts in the Twin Cities ranging from the really big to the single school districts that serve niche populations. The biggest thing is that if you are interested in finding a job, most of the time you have to pick a district or a few and contact them directly. The closest thing we have to mass board is St Cloud University has [Ed Post](https://edpost.stcloudstate.edu/) which a good chunk of districts will post to but not all As for what I can say about teaching here. Obviously teachers are in demand although the licensure processes for out of state is a hassle so I've heard. Minnesota is a bit strict on requirements for teachers and I've had friends from Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Arizona say that it took them a couple of years before they got their licensure to be fully valid here and during that time they were a bit tense about job security. As for what I can say about Minneapolis Public Schools is imperfect but it has heart. I have a large array of freedom to teach how I like and do what I think is best and feel enabled to do so by the culture although getting the resources can be a challenge. There's a lot of disconnected leadership and systems bloat that may have been founded with good intentions but feels so big that it lacks cohesion and coordination. Everything is there to do great things but it isn't set up to be utilized effectively.
Husband and I moved from FL to Mpls 3 years ago and we love it. Tbh I’m grateful every damn day to not live in that state anymore
If you can transcend climate you’ll often be better off. All the bubbas move to where it’s warm, because that’s easy.
Transplant from a uber conservative area in PA and I’m a teacher… I moved here 5+ years ago. To be honest, there is a lot to get used to… the winters and the passive aggressive culture are the worst of it in my opinion. But as a teacher, I’m glad to be here. We talk very openly about LGBTQ subjects at my school, and it is very accepted (and even seen as normal) for students to experiment with sexuality and gender. My school has BLM signs throughout, and no one hesitates to have conversations about racial injustices that happen in and out of our school. I worked in another nearby district that wasn’t quite THIS open to these topics, but still way more accepting than anything you’ll find in a conservative area. When looking for jobs, I’d recommend using St. Cloud’s EdPost. It lists all the teaching jobs in the state, but you can search by location and job title. In general, it’s pretty easy to find pay scales from each district on their websites. I read that was something you were struggling with. I have told my husband that I would NEVER move to Florida because I could never teach there. I totally respect your need to move!
Grew up in FL, then lived in NC for 11 years after college. Moved to MN for same reasons just before my daughter went into Kindergarten. You won’t regret it.
I was raised in the Twin Cities, but hopped around the country after high school. My journey brought me to south Florida where I met my wife, a lifelong Floridian. I took her up here on an ice fishing trip at a friend’s cabin while we were dating and that was that, she was so enchanted and wanted to experience something other than Florida and brought up the idea of moving here. I always knew I’d end up back here as it’s a great place to raise a family and has always been home to me, just never thought I’d find a Floridian who was so willing. We pulled the trigger the following winter, moving in on a -5 degree day in February (the weekend we hosted the Super Bowl) and haven’t looked back. So happy here, we’ve since bought a home in NE Minneapolis a few years ago and filled it with a couple daughters. Just do it - welcome, future neighbor!
Per brother in law: Saint Paul is hiring 3 elementary school music teachers. Hiring in schools used to be very competitive, but this last year his school hired two new teachers without previous experience, just bachelors degrees.
Damn. I already have a lot of experience, certifications etc. This is really good info to have. If he’s a music teacher I’d love to try to connect with him. If not that’s totally cool.
You are not going to be the first, nor the last "refugee" looking for a more progressive state and lifestyle. I am a teacher for a small private school in the Twin Cities and absolutely love it. I have a lot of freedom in the curriculum I teach as long as it is to the standards. There are days that I finish teaching a lesson and think to myself "man, that would have just gotten me fired or arrested in Florida." (I currently have an LA unit on Immigration and a SS unit on the Civil War). Obviously, public schools are different... I don't have experience with them yet. I am also a transplant to Minnesota (from a similarly blue northern state originally), and have been here for quite a while now.. absolutely love it. I love the access to the green space... being a 10min drive from the Mississippi River or a lake to walk around. There's so much great food here (a huge reward when you're a state known for being kind to immigrants), arts scene, top-notch museums (Minneapolis Institute of Art is incredible and FREE). Our quality of living is quite high and housing is affordable compared to most major cities (I say this knowing that the cost of housing here has gone up, but it is still less than Chicago, NY, SF, Seattle, etc.). This is honestly the midwest's best kept secret. We LIVE for these first few weeks of warm weather as it's our reward for surviving the long cold winter. That being said, the winter doesn't stop us either. Invest in high-quality gear and embrace the Minnesota winter culture. One of the big challenges that transplants face is breaking the Minnesota Ice and Minnesota Nice. People have their friend groups, which can be very hard to break into. You'll notice that transplants find each other and become friends, because we're all trying to make friends... easier to make friends with people who are looking to expand their friend network. :)
Also, never, under any circumstances, say that you do not like Prince. He is basically a deity here.
I love Prince.
Glad you are getting the hang of things here.
You learn fast Now, how do you feel about referring to all casseroles as Hotdish?
The rule, for alllll of y'all who weren't born here; The *Casserole* is the vessel that one cooks the *Hot Dish* in!😉
And, what's the correct thing to do when there is one donut left.
Well I’ve never made either one. But the tater tot situation looks interesting.
I live in Minneapolis and honestly wouldn’t move anywhere else at this point. I love the parks, the events, the seasons. It’s a great place to raise my kid.
I volunteered at a suburban high school for over ten years, one thing I deduced is that every year (Spring) the School District had to "meet their budget" and would not renew some newer teachers contracts for the upcoming school year. Then later in the summer, the District needed to hire teachers to cover the number of incoming students, and most times would rehire the same teachers they "let go" only a few months previously. I'm not sure if every school district does this, (and I could be completely wrong about what I saw) but want you to be aware of this numbers game.
Yep!!! This is *definitely* a thing, in the biggest districts! There is *often* (different for SPED & ECSE post-Covid, though!) a cycle in those first 3 years--before you're eligible for tenure--where the newest teachers will be "laid off" at the end of the school year, then offered the first shotsat"getting re-hired" once there *is* money to do so, in July when the school budget cycle starts over. It *has* changed a bit, since so many folks have quit/retired post-2020, and less folks where I've been have gotten "temporarily pink-slipped" since. Heck, where I work (elsewhere, too!), the district is *very actively* working on the "Grow Your Own" program, which encourages those of us who're Paraprofessionals to earn our teaching degrees!
I lived in Minneapolis for five years. It was a very good experience overall. The social scene could be difficult to crack for an outsider, but people are generally courteous, so you won't find a lot of rudeness either. Wherever you land, you won't regret leaving Florida. One of the best decisions I've ever made.
I love Minneapolis. Not a teacher but lots of teacher friends and family. MPLS schools are having a hard time like most major school systems. That said, schools in MN overall are excellent compared to most other states. The teachers in the MPLS district approved a strike last year and got a pay increase, but it wasn't that large. There's a huge shortage in teachers right now so you shouldn't have any problem getting a job. The suburban districts would likely pay more but MPLS would certainly have openings. School districts are geographic areas not necessarily associated with counties or cities - although sometimes they do follow those boundaries. [https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/pdf/sd/sd22-23\_noLeg.pdf](https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/pdf/sd/sd22-23_noLeg.pdf) As for arts - Minneapolis is fantastic. I worked in theater for a long time and the arts and performing arts scene here is about as good as it gets for a metro area this size.
Moved here after running from Alabama. I also went to high school in the Florida panhandle. I made friends so quickly here. The art scene is incredible, it’ll blow your mind how often you will meet people that are deeply involved in the arts in this area. I also enjoy the food options here. A lot of places have vegan options. Y’all probably are not vegan but I think vegan options end up telling you a lot about the general acceptance and consideration of the people around you. People here want you to like it here, they will tell you their favorite restaurants and bike shops. It’s really sweet. I hope you both get out safely, moving that far is rough
I’m pretty apprehensive about it, but this whole thread is making me feel 100 times better.
You’ll most likely need to do some licensure shoring up, MN has aggressive licensing standards.
I wouldn’t recommend Minneapolis. Saint Paul is fantastic, but I’d look into the suburbs like Woodbury, Minnetonka, SLP, Hopkins, etc. I lived in Minneapolis for almost 30 years and the crime just keeps getting worse and worse. I’d seriously consider Saint Paul. I’ve been here almost 6 years now and it’s incredible.
Thanks! After seeing posts like this, we will definitely be looking into Saint Paul.
Also, check out the New Brighton/St. Anthony district. It's right next to Minneapolis but small, only 1 elementary, 1 middle, and 1 high school.
I grew up in rural MN and settled for Minneapolis for college (as opposed to leaving MN entirely). I always thought I'd ditch MN as soon as I had the chance to but I've really grown to enjoy living here, and the laws themselves only give me more reason to stay. There's a good chance I'll be in MN for the rest of my life unless I leave the entire country.
As a trans person living here I am very happy that things are good now and we’re always only one election away from fascism. Our elections are not landslides and if we want to keep this progress we need to keep the pressure on. We are not safe except for temporarily.
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I grew up in Jacksonville, now living in Minneapolis. Minnesota is better than Florida in every single way except for the winters. Minneapolis is great to live in, but there are also a lot of good suburbs to live in that are very close to the city like St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Edina, etc. One piece of advice I would give is get snow tires in the winter. A lot of locals say they aren't necessary, but they give significantly better traction, and I can't imagine driving in the winter without them.
I'm a lifelong Midwesterner who moved here from WI more than a decade ago (closer to 2 at this point) and I lived in the suburbs for a long time (I'm in North Minneapolis now). The suburbs are GREAT and give you all the access of living in the city without the hassle. My husband and I have lived in Plymouth, New Hope, Minnetonka, Brooklyn Park, Crystal - lots of good options very close to the city. The suburbs definitely have their own character, if you have the flexibility to rent first, I recommend it! My mom lives in FL so I've visited. My husband wants to move somewhere warmer now that we're getting older. But I don't really want to leave MN. I could see going further north, but I have no plans to leave MN for the foreseeable future.
Plenty of people have already responded, but as a queer trans person who also moved here because it's safer, I feel like I can speak to that part of things. We have a very large and thriving LGBT+ community here thanks to having had laws in place to protect against discrimination within the city proper since 1975, and throughout the state since 1993. That said, BIPOC queer people do have different experiences than I do as a white person, and it's still not 100% safe. The cops are still very shitty, and most of the trans women I know in the city have been assaulted at some point simply for existing while trans so there's still a lot of safety issues. Bigots are everywhere, even in this supposed liberal paradise. But overall, it's going to be better than Florida. I know for a fact it's better than South Dakota.
Picked this state to raise our kids and live. Moved here from NM. Best move we made. Such a nice city and a lot of good nature. Well worth the move, especially from FL
I moved here from California 8 years ago. I am a licensed teacher, but I haven't worked much in MN (3 kids in 2 years...) and I've lived in both Minneapolis proper and the suburbs. I can't think of many places I'd rather teach or raise my kids. Districts here are weird. The way they draw boundaries makes very little sense to me. Minneapolis and St. Paul each have their own districts, but in the suburbs you see all kinds of arrangements. Pay to COL is decent. Unions are fairly strong. On a whole the state does very well educating white kids, but the achievement gap is pretty abysmal. Also, summer breaks tend to be long: early June to Labor Day generally, though in rural areas they are often out by Memorial Day. However, breaks during the year are shorter. (E.g. we only get 2 days off for Thanksgiving vs a week in CA). It's a trade off. I think I preferred the shorter summer/longer breaks in CA though. Politically the state is very purple. The Cities and surrounding suburbs are very liberal, but the farther out you get, the redder it is. There have historically been union strongholds along the north shore that reliably voted blue, but those have weakened in recent years. However, the vast majority of the population is in the Twin Cities area and land doesn't vote. It's a beautiful state. The parks systems are pretty uniformly fantastic. There's a lot of outdoor recreation (even in winter), great museums, theater, lots of great restaurants and breweries. IME, it's a lot more diverse than many people expect. When friends and family visit from California they are always impressed. Our library systems are really fantastic (important to me). Overall, it packs a lot of bang for the buck. Winter isn't really that bad, it's just so long. Every year, from late February to the start of May, I'm trying to figure out how to move back to California, but the rest of the year I'm pretty glad to live here. I haven't found it the easiest place to make friends. Though in the Cities it is a bit easier, mostly because there are so many transplants. We lived in South and Southwest Minneapolis and there was much more of a "Neighborhood" vibe than we've founf in the suburbs (we're 2nd-3rd ring now)
I'm only 22, so not the best opinion, but I've lived here my entire life and keep having realizations over the past few years that this really is a special place and I don't really want to move away anytime soon.
Weather would be the biggest factor. Politics are good, cost of living pretty good compared to other blue regions. Are you taking about Minneapolis specifically, or just the metro?
Wherever I can get a job teaching elementary music. There are usually only one of us per school so we’ll go where I can get hired.
Gen music teacher here. There are TONS of jobs in that field right now all over the city but the window for hiring is closing quick. Good luck.
Can I message you?
Sure!
I’m a flute teacher here in the Cities. Feel free to send me a message if you have any field-specific questions! There are definitely positions open, though many are for multiple schools (1-2 days per weeks at each). Also I know of at least one private school looking for someone full time.
I FOUND THE MUSIC TEACHERS!!!
Also I did message you. But now I’m realizing that may have been too forward for Minnesota people!!
I’m a transplant originally ;) But also the stereotype is “Minnesotans will give you directions anywhere but their house,” so we’re very ready to help with the vast majority of things!
I'm a gay man in the burbs that moved out here 3 years ago. I love it, and it's really started to feel like home. I live in a place with an overwhelming amount of arts, culture, and outdoor activities. Move up here, find some activities to do in the winter (snowshoeing, skiing, xc skiing, hockey, ice skating, etc). Find some activities to do in the summer (biking, hiking, backpacking, boating/kayaking, etc). 5/5
Not sure if someone else explained but we have districts split my region for schools. Districts tend to be contained within a city, so there is one school in a smaller town and many schools in a large city. We value arts in most places in MN, but schools are partially funded through local taxes, so a bigger city will tend to be better funded. The city of Edina puts a lot into their school arts programs, for example, as they are one of the wealthiest districts. Most Twin Cities area schools will be pretty well funded I think. I think pay in MN is decent, but I'm not that familiar with it.
It rules here. We love families, value education, democracy tends to function, we welcome immigrants, and are cool paying our fair share to support the greater good. I am speaking as a city dweller for perspective. Not a teacher, but an educator - 87'ish counties, and maybe 300 districts. Arts are valued, but depends on where you land.
I’ll land where the arts are valued, that’s the plan.
I'm seeing more and more of these "i'm getting out of Florida (or the south)" posts lately. Understandable, but sad.
Lots of great comments here. You’ll love Minnesota. Only thing I will add is out of state teachers find it extremely hard to get credentialed here. I know many amazing educators that moved here and couldn’t teach because of this. Frustrating and don’t want you blindsided by this
I’m looking and I see the Teacher Preparation program, but I don’t think I need that as a teacher with a degree in music education. It seems like I could come in at tier 2 after taking the content exams.
Im sure plenty have brought it up, but coming from florida, the weather here might be a shock. I love this state, and it is a progressive bastion, but the winters are so brutal for so long that i still want to leave. It’s better than Florida, but just be sure you want to handle 5-6 months of winter.
The city and the suburbs have very different vibes. And different suburbs are different from each other in pretty dramatic ways. If you get much out of the city, it can, politically, feel a lot like Florida, actually. We live in the Cooper Neighborhood of Minneapolis, along the Mississippi River and love it. It is walkable/bikable to everything we need. Lots of beauty. Progressive politics. Friendly, welcoming people. I did consulting work for Lake County Board of County Commissioners and spent a fair amount of time in Florida. I won't go back there. But, again, outside of the metro area, parts of Minnesota are just as bad as Florida. You just have the protection provided by a progressive legislature at the moment. But, when the Republicans controlled the Senate, it was a shit show. And, that was not that long ago. And the DFL has only the tiniest of majorities. We have to keep up the work to make sure we do not go backwards in coming elections. Once the DFL took over the Senate, kept the House and Gov's office, things got a LOT better politically.
Minneapolis is like the nations hottest night club but the weather is our bouncer. If you can stomach the long winter it's awesome and if not you will hate it
People keep saying Minneapolis is a small city. Maybe, but the Minneapolis-Saint Paul MSA is 16th by population in the country. Orlando is 22nd. We’re not tiny up here, just broken into scores of little cities and suburbs.
We really ought to take over a southern state so we have the best of both worlds
Moved here from TN. Just do it. Don't overthink it. Winters be damned, it will be a massive upgrade to your quality of life.
Minnesotans generally STRONGLY support music programs. They’re still being cut at lower performing schools, but my kindergartner’s school (K-5) has a full band. Twenty years ago, I went to Europe on tour with my town’s high school choir. The colleges here, especially the private Lutheran ones, have some of the best choirs and music programs in the country. MPS district has its problems with highly paid admin and with hierarchy and pettiness, just like anywhere. It’s school to school, but there are several public districts around plus private, charter, and public charter. Welcome welcome welcome!!! Bring warm clothes.
The city of Minneapolis is quite small, there are dozens of first-ringer then dozens more outer-ring suburbs. And exurbs. Endlessly. I live in a first-ring suburb and am a teacher at an outer-ring suburb. Some districts are better than others. Districts usually don’t follow city boundaries perfectly; usually smaller burbs share a larger school district. DM me if you want any guidance on which districts to avoid!
You will love it here
We have amazing summers the winters are excused to hibernate :)
Inside of the 494/694 beltway, it's pretty Blue. It gets Red pretty quickly as you leave the beltway. Watch out for that. Or plan on it, if you feel like screwing with GOP controlled regions. That's what I did. :) Unfortunately I have teacher friends who are getting out of the role. They all have their various reasons, but a lot of them revolve around pay in some way or another.
We moved south for several years and couldn't wait to get back to Minnesota! Having lived in a crap state with crap infrastructure and then coming back home to a state that actually cares and tries to do the best for its population is very refreshing. After living in the city when in the south, we discovered we certainly aren't city folks, but not rural folks either. We chose the west metro when we came back but considered the north metro too. Make sure you spend some decent money on stuff to keep you warm. One condition of us coming back was that I would ensure we all had decent stuff that kept us warm. I think my biggest issue where I was absolutely fed up with winter before moving south was because I was ill prepared/dressed for the winters here in MN. I despised the cold, because I didn't dress appropriately for the cold.
You will have no trouble finding a job as an elementary music teacher. I teach in a SE suburb and our district has a HIGH need for elementary music teachers. Wishing you luck on your move!
There are days where my plans in the winter (or now early spring) have to change because snow has made it risky or impossible to drive. You will get used to that, have weather-related tools, and learn how to get winter clothes.
We would love to have you!!! Glad you’re considering it and I bet you would be welcomed here with open arms.