School briefs

How do St. Paul parents define school success for their children, and what are their expectations for the St. Paul Public Schools?

These are the questions school officials will ask parents and residents at a series of public meetings titled: "Together With Families: Focus on Success."

The school district plans five community-input meetings, three of them to be held in minority languages. Here is the meeting schedule:

In English:

6:30 to 8:30 p.m. April 24, at the Rondo Red Atrium, 560 Concordia Av.

6:30 to 8:30 p.m. April 29, at Mounds Park All Nations School, 1075 E. Third St.

In other languages:

Somali session, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday at the district administration building, 360 Colborne St.

Hmong session, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Monday at the district administration building.

Spanish session, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. May 7 at the district administration building.

In addition, the public is invited to provide input on the St. Paul schools' 2008-09 budget before the school board's final vote on the budget in June. The budget will be presented to the Committee of the Board at its meeting May 6. The public is invited to attend an input session at 8:15 p.m. May 20 at 360 Colborne St. The budget public input session will immediately follow an abbreviated school board meeting. Breakout sessions on the budget will be held in English, Hmong, Spanish and Somali.

For more information about the community meetings, go to www.spps.org or call the district's Office of Community Relations at 651-767-8110.

JAMES WALSH

Two St. Paul students have each won a $20,000 scholarship to college from the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans.

Daniel Chahla and Mustafa A. Yusuf were among 108 students from across the country to be awarded scholarships. They also spent several days in Washington, D.C., as part of a National Scholars Conference.

They were picked for the Horatio Alger National Scholarship Program because they have faced and overcome great obstacles in their lives, program officials said. The scholarships are need-based.

Chahla attends St. Paul Central High School and Yusuf is a student at Higher Ground Academy, a St. Paul charter school. Both are seniors.

JAMES WALSH