Press Forward Minnesota today announced the recipients of its 2025 Civic Health and Community Collaborations grant round, awarding $1 million to partnerships between local newsrooms and community-based organizations across the state.
These collaborations will equip residents with the information they need to be civically active, foster trust in local institutions, and ensure all Minnesotans can participate fully in civic life. The two-year grants will fund partnerships that promote civic participation, provide paywall-free content, and strengthen connections between residents and their local news sources.
“Minnesotans care deeply—about the issues affecting our communities, about the decisions that shape our lives, for each other, for our shared future,” says Tsega Tamene, Associate Vice President of Community Impact at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, one of the coalition partners for Press Forward Minnesota. “This year has already revealed who we are, and our local newsrooms are an extension of that care, equipping and empowering Minnesotans across the state to show up.”
Press Forward Minnesota conducted a 2025 statewide survey in partnership with Corona Insights that informs this grant round. The study gathered responses from more than 2,000 Minnesotans about their relationship with local news and revealed a significant “confidence gap”: only 22 percent of respondents said they felt very confident knowing how to vote for candidates who reflect their priorities, while nearly one-third said they felt not very or not at all confident.
The research also found a strong connection between local news engagement and civic confidence. Minnesotans who financially supported state or local news were more than twice as likely to feel confident understanding where local officials stand on key issues.
“Local journalism plays a critical role in helping people understand how decisions are made and how they can participate in civic life,” said May Yang, Director of Democracy Programs at the Minnesota Council on Foundations, who serves as the Director of Press Forward Minnesota. “All Minnesotans deserve access to information that empowers them to take civic action regardless of whether they can pay for news. These grants invest in partnerships that strengthen community connections, and support informed participation across Minnesota.”
To ensure these collaborations meet community needs and measure their impact, grantees will use the Civic Information Index, a national, data-driven framework that examines how access to news and information shapes civic health. The index, or similar localized data, will help them identify information gaps, tailor interventions, and measure long-term impact across indicators such as civic participation, equity and justice, and health and opportunity.
Grantees represent a wide range of newsroom sizes, geographies, and community partnerships across Minnesota:
KAXE (Northern Community Radio): Partnering with ICTV, Lakeland PBS, League of Women Voters, and Majority in the Middle, the organization will focus on rural election coverage to ensure residents have the information they need to vote. “This investment will help us build on our comprehensive election coverage and ensure that rural Minnesotans have access to the local information they need to make informed decisions at the ballot box,” said Sarah Bignall, CEO and General Manager of KAXE.
Sahan Journal: Partnering with Comunidades Organizando el Poder y la Acción Latina (COPAL) and Civic Bridgers to co-create reporting on environmental health. “Support from Press Forward Minnesota strengthens Sahan Journal’s ability to go beyond publishing stories to helping communities make sense of issues that affect their lives,” said Vanan Murugesan, Executive Director of Sahan Journal.
Minnesota Public Radio (MPR): Collaborating with White Earth Land Recovery Project, Niijii Radio, and ThreeSixty Journalism to support community-informed reporting and youth media education. “This work uplifts local priorities and cultural knowledge while supporting the next generation of storytellers,” said Andrea Pierre, Director of Community Engagement at MPR.
Xidig TV in partnership with Center for African Immigrants (CAIRO Minnesota): Building trust and expanding access to reliable information for often-overlooked communities. “This support means a great deal to me and to Xidig TV. It gives us the ability to better serve our community by building trust, strengthening local partnerships, and making sure people who are often overlooked have access to reliable information and a voice,” said Mohamed Jama, Founder of Xidig TV.
Winona Post: Working with Engage Winona to empower citizens to explore local challenges and hold leadership accountable. “This grant is going to help us enhance that vital role: empowering citizens to learn and get involved, exploring challenges and solutions, and holding leaders accountable,” said Winona Post Editor Chris Rogers.
Through these investments, Press Forward Minnesota aims to increase Minnesotans’ confidence in taking civic action, improve access to local and community information, and strengthen long-term partnerships between newsrooms and community organizations. The initiative also seeks measurable improvements in civic health indicators in counties served by the funded collaborations.
About Press Forward Minnesota:
Press Forward Minnesota is a collaborative initiative that brings together funders, media organizations, and community partners to re-center local journalism as a cornerstone of community cohesion, civic engagement, and government accountability, with a strong focus on racial equity.
Press Forward Minnesota is one of the inaugural chapters of Press Forward, a national movement to strengthen communities by reinvigorating local news. Press Forward Minnesota is housed at the Minnesota Council on Foundations.