In this issue:
- Commissioner Bob Jacobson: In years of change, there remain significant constants
- OJP: Executive director leaving DPS; interim director leading office
- ECN: Leah Palmer chosen as ECN director
- DVS: Schedule your road test for January and avoid the rush!
- SFM: Be careful with alternative heat sources
- Positive Press: Minnesota State Patrol advocates safe driving on game day with a touch of team spirit
- Featured social media
Around the world, as moments straddled Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, so many celebrations signified that 2024 was over and 2025 was beginning. Fireworks lit up skies and hundreds of thousands of revelers were united at various times singing Auld Lang Syne.
Here in comparatively sleepy Minnesota, I took time reflecting on the last two years as your commissioner and thinking about what the next year may bring.
Since Gov. Tim Walz honored me by appointing me the Department of Public Safety’s 15th commissioner in January 2023, it’s been truly astounding to see what you have accomplished. Life-saving rescues, being the calm voice on the other end of the phone or across the counter from Minnesotans who may have needed your help or simply helping the DPS machine move as smoothly as is possible isn’t easy.
Our agency has grown in ways that were desperately needed. We’re still growing, bringing on quality people who hear the same calling you have heard and the same one of which you often hear me speak.
Inevitably, in the first daylight of 2025, my thoughts also traveled to the work being done by our public safety colleagues in New Orleans, as they worked through the horror of an attack on a New Year’s Eve celebration. They were serving their community with the same commitment and dedication we can see amongst ourselves.
This work is not always easy — but it is absolutely necessary. It is commendable. It also can be rewarding in ways so many might never fathom.
We get to be there when people meet life-changing milestones, like that first driver’s license that brings tears of joy to so many. We go home knowing that what we do on any given day helps keep those drivers and all those around them safer. While tragic, in the past two years, we also had the honor of offering comfort to family members of loved ones who lost their lives while serving our state.
As we look ourselves in the mirror at the end of each day we can say, “I made a difference today.” As we look ourselves in the mirror as we get ready for work, we can say, “I get to make another difference today.”
Those are amazing rewards that can be just ours in those private moments.
With 2025 now upon us, I can promise you this: New challenges will come. As is proven time and again across the country, in any of our professional lives, we never know what the next day or even the next hour will bring. I can also promise you this: together, we have the fortitude to ensure that each challenge has the potential to evolve into success.
I can make one last promise. The true constant that will come with whatever change 2025 brings will remain: We all can seize that opportunity to make a difference in Minnesotans’ lives.
For that, as I have done in the past and will do so as often as is possible, I thank each of you.
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 Kate Weeks (left) and Kim Babine (right)
Kate Weeks, executive director of the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), has accepted a new role at the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) as Assistant Commissioner of Economic Opportunity and Youth Services.
In her new position, Director Weeks will provide strategic insight and guidance on supplying resources to youth and their families around food security and wellbeing as she continues the work she started at OJP by supporting the work of the Youth Justice Office and Office of Restorative Practices, which are moving to DCYF in 2025.
Director Weeks joined DPS in 2014 and became OJP’s executive director in 2018. In this role, she’s been responsible for the development and execution of all OJP programs.
Under Weeks’ leadership, OJP has grown from 38 to more than 65 employees. She oversaw the establishment of three new offices: the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Office, the Missing and Murdered Black Women and Girls Office and the Office of Restorative Practices. She also worked to build a more robust Youth Justice Office, which supports the Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee and youth justice-related investments.
Director Weeks’ last day is Jan. 7.
Kim Babine will serve as interim director of OJP. She joined DPS in 2023 as deputy director of programs. With more than 10 years at the state of Minnesota, her background is in policy, the state legislature, program operations and management.
In her role as deputy director of programs, Deputy Director Babine provides policy, programming and funding direction for OJP’s grant programs. She is responsible for ensuring grant funds are safeguarded and OJP grantees comply with state and federal laws and regulations. During her tenure, she helped establish a new grantmaking unit. Deputy Director Babine also provides leadership to Minnesota’s Youth Justice Office and the statewide gang and drug coordinator.
 Incoming ECN Director Leah Palmer
Leah Palmer will become the new director of our Emergency Communication Networks (ECN) division on Jan. 8.
She started her career as a public safety telecommunicator with the City of Minneapolis and has more than 15 years of experience in public service, almost all focused on public safety.
Director Palmer most recently served as the manager of the Transit Rider Investment Program (TRIP) at Metro Transit. In that role, she led the effort to create a team of agents dedicated to working with law enforcement and other transit officials to improve the rider experience. TRIP agents ensure fare compliance, connect people with needed resources and help to enforce Metro Transit’s Code of Conduct.
As ECN director, Palmer will manage and support the state’s 911 program and other emergency communications networks across the state, working to ensure prompt and efficient delivery of public safety services to Minnesotans.
 Schedule your road test in January
Ah, that satisfied feeling of getting your driver’s license! Want to get that road test done sooner rather than later? Then consider scheduling your driver’s test in January!
Our Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS) division posts road test appointments up to 30 days in advance. Most months, these slots fill up quickly. However, there’s generally more availability for road tests in January, which means it could be easier for you to find an open appointment. In fact, sometimes you can get a road test on the same day.
- More than 20 percent of road test appointments are no-shows or are canceled. When other test-takers cancel properly in advance, the appointment is put back into the system for others to schedule — including you!
- There’s also an online subscription waitlist feature that notifies you of available appointments at several different exam stations. This is a great tool so you don’t have to continuously search our website looking for appointments.
- Some extra preparation can help you pass no matter what the winter road conditions! Watch our video “DVS Road Test – What to Expect” and arrive with confidence.
Visit the DVS Online Services webpage and select “Manage your appointment availability subscriptions" to get started. This is also the same page where you can schedule an appointment.
 Don't let that blanket drape too close to a space heater
With the bitter cold, many Minnesotans will crawl under blankets and quilts to stay warm. If the furnace isn’t enough, we may curl up under those blankets near a nice, hot space heater or fireplace. Who doesn’t love listening to the crack of a roaring fire?
However:
- If that fireplace isn’t covered by a screen, those sparks could turn your entire home into one big fireplace
- If that blanket of yours lays too close to that hot space heater, it might become fuel for a fire
Heating equipment is a leading cause of fires in the U.S., particularly during winter months. Did you know that most home fires in Minnesota occur in fireplaces and chimneys?
Here are tips to help prevent heating-related fires in your home:
- Keep anything that can catch fire, such as furniture and blankets, at least three feet from portable heaters, fireplaces and furnaces.
- Do not use space heaters to dry wet items, such as mittens or towels.
- Turn portable heaters off when leaving the room or going to sleep.
- Always plug space heaters directly into an outlet; never plug it into an extension cord or outlet strip.
- Never use your oven to heat your home.
- Have your home heating system and chimney cleaned and inspected annually.
- Make sure your wood stove is properly installed and ventilated.
Visit our blog for more information about fire safety in your home.
 Whether it's "Skol" or "Go Pack Go," be a team player and drive safe
A recent article posted in Hoodline Minneapolis shared our lighthearted social media message about a serious topic: safe driving.
“As fans gear up for game day,” the article begins, “a serious reminder comes from the Minnesota State Patrol.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re cheering ‘Skol!’ Or ‘Go Pack Go!’ Be a team player by designating a sober driver or calling a rideshare.”
“Enjoy the game, but don’t let jail become your end zone.”
The article continues by mentioning that the patrol's “humorous tone does not mask the serious ramifications of drinking and driving, a concern especially pertinent during events like football games where alcohol consumption spikes.”
Read the entire Hoodline Minneapolis article.
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