Meet Minnesota State Fair’s new CEO

Happening today 

☀️ Partly clouds skies with high temperatures in the mid-70s. Looking ahead, it’ll be warming into hot for Memorial Day weekend, which will be the driest Memorial Day weekend we’ve seen in years. Friday will feature sunshine and a high of around 78 degrees, followed by highs in the low 80s and sunshine on Saturday and Sunday. 

🚨 On the third anniversary of the murder of George Floyd, several events and memorials will be taking place across the state. At the regular meeting of the Minneapolis City Council, Council Members will vote on a resolution honoring victims of police brutality, their families, and their communities.

🖊️ Governor Tim Walz will sign a bill providing paid family and medical leave for Minnesotans into law.

❄️ Students at Osseo Middle School will meet Blizzo the snowplow for the first time today. These students championed Blizzo’s name during MnDOT’s 2022-23 “Name a Snowplow” contest, helping the name make the list of winners. The name is inspired by popular music artist, Lizzo, who has roots in Minnesota.

Meet Minnesota State Fair’s new CEO

• This week Renee Alexander officially took over her new role as the CEO of the Minnesota State Fair. She becomes the first woman to run the fair and the first new CEO in nearly 30 years.
• Alexander may be new to this role, but she has a long history with the fair. She’s a Coon Rapids native and started her career at the fair as an intern in 1989. After that, she worked for 11 years in live event production outside the fair. In 2005, she returned to the Minnesota State Fair with a focus on live event production. Since 2006, she’s been in charge of booking entertainment acts for the Grandstand.
• Something new she hopes to bring to the table is continuing the fair’s effort to bring more diverse vendors and attractions to the fair to better represent all of Minnesota.

“I mean the fair is, for a lot of people, is about traditions. And those traditions will remain. That is such the key of what our success is coming back and being able to do those same things year after year with friends and family. But we always add in some new things as well. It’s really kind of a wonderful mix,” Alexander said.

“It’s super important that all communities of Minnesota feel represented at the fair. So it’s something we’re looking at through our entertainment, through all of our programming, obviously with guests and everyone else – we want everyone to feel included at the fair,” Alexander explained.