AM.MN: Mecca trip trips up Ellison

A spiritual journey for U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison will lead to an ethical review by a House committee concerned about who funded Ellison’s hajj to Mecca last year and how open Congress’ first Muslim has been about it. The Islamic nonprofit that footed the bill for the trip gets state aid to lease space for a charter school, and Ellison hasn’t said much about it.

Elsewhere in Minnesota news this morning…

STATEWIDE: MnSCU raises tuition, cuts staff. President Obama may tout community colleges for out-of-work Americans, but in Minnesota we’re trimming instructors and increasing costs. [Minnesota Public Radio]

DULUTH: Private colleges hike prices, too. At 3 percent, the College of St. Scholastica’s matches MnSCU’s and is the lowest among non-public colleges in Minnesota. [News Tribune]

WILLMAR: Now showing: Passive-aggressive governance. The personal is political, or vice versa, as city council members deny Willmar High School free use of the city’s Showmobile portable bandshell, then dig into their own pockets to pay for it. [West Central Tribune]

COLLEGEVILLE: State’s biggest solar farm planned. With the state’s largest wind farm okayed for southern Minnesota, St. John’s University wants to build the state’s biggest array of solar panels to provide as much as 20 percent of the campus’ electricity. [St. Cloud Times]

ALBERT LEA: Minnesota ranks fourth in the nation in wind-energy production, with an already installed wind capacity of 1,800 megawatts — enough to power 450,000 homes. Get wind of this: To capitalize on that status, Riverland Community College is launching a training program for windpower technicians. [Albert Lea Tribune; Minnesota 2020]

WOODBURY: Muslim man fired for saying prayers gets Wal-Mart job back. Abdi Abdi is back to stocking and loading — and praying, during breaks. [Associated Press]