Sen. Tina Smith tours Red Wing college nursing program, discusses new funding

RED WING, Minn. (KTTC) – United States Sen. Tina Smith (DFL) toured the Minnesota State College Southeast nursing simulation lab Tuesday. Smith recently helped to secure funding to expand the lab.

Sen. Smith helped to secure $825,000 in federal funding to update the nursing lab, which allows nursing students to get practice on treating patients in a simulated hospital. It comes equipped with hospital beds and mannequins representing different ages and genders. The funding will allow for updated teaching tools that will better equip students for when they go out into the workforce.

Sen. Smith met with college president Marsha Danielson, Red Wing Ignite leaders and Goodhue County officials to talk about impact federal funding has on smaller communities.

“People think of rural places and small towns as places with deficits,” Sen. Smith said. “They don’t have healthcare, they don’t have access to all the benefits that people might have in a big city. I think that’s completely backwards. I think they’re missing the incredible innovation and collaboration that happens in rural places. And that’s exactly what we’re seeing here in Red Wing.”

Sen. Smith also secured $103,000 in federal funding for two projects by Red Wing Ignite, a nonprofit organization that works with the community to promote entrepreneurship and economic growth.

Red Wing Ignite was was awarded $19,000 to provide a woodworking summer camp for young girls and $84,000 to develop Youth Coding Leagues in the seven school districts of Goodhue County.

Additionally, Sen. Smith also helped to secure more than $3.2 million in funding for broadband expansion in Goodhue County.

Representatives from Goodhue County said that expanded broadband is very much needed in the area, as they realized during the pandemic that some students didn’t have access to internet during online learning. People who worked from home struggled, too.

According to count leaders, Nuvera Communications has started laying down infrastructure in the area, but it’s waiting on the funds to be dispersed before it can continue.