GREATER GRAND FORKS

"'Greater Grand Forks'" is the name used by some people to designate the twin cities of Grand Forks, North Dakota and East Grand Forks, Minnesota as well as the surrounding area. The two cities lie directly across from each other on both sides of the Red River of the North. The metropolitan area also includes residents of the nearby Grand Forks Air Force Base. Officially, the "Grand Forks, ND-MN Metropolitan Statistical Area" has a population of 96,523 and comprises Grand Forks County, North Dakota and Polk County, Minnesota.
The metropolitan area is also sometimes called "'The Forks'." An effort was made several years ago to "brand" the metropolitan area as "'The Grand Cities'." This name has not found widespread use in the area, although several buildings and organizations in town now bear the "Grand Cities" title. Occasionally, the city of Grand Forks uses the nickname "The Sunflake City".

Contents

Communities

Core cities

Surrounding communities

Education

K-12

Public schools

Private schools

Higher education

Media

Print

Television

Radio

Notes

Communities

Core cities

★ Grand Forks, North Dakota

★ East Grand Forks, Minnesota

Surrounding communities

Many nearby towns have become "bedroom communities" for the metropolitan area, although many of these communities do have their own distinct economies.
In North Dakota:

★ Buxton

★ Emerado

★ Gilby

★ Grand Forks Air Force Base

★ Hillsboro

★ Larimore

★ Manvel

★ Northwood

★ Reynolds

★ Thompson
In Minnesota:

★ Crookston

★ Fisher

★ Oslo

Education

K-12

Public schools

The Grand Forks Public Schools system serves Grand Forks, Manvel's high school students, and Grand Forks Air Force Base. The district consists of 12 elementary schools, four middle schools, two high schools, an alternative high school, an adult learning center, and a Head Start program.
The East Grand Forks School District serves East Grand Forks and the surrounding rural areas. The district consists of two elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school.

Private schools

In Grand Forks, St. Michael's Catholic Church and Holy Family Catholic Church both have Catholic elementary schools. There are no Catholic middle or high schools in Grand Forks, but East Grand Forks is home to Sacred Heart Catholic Church's school, which educates from kindergarten through the 12th grade. East Grand Forks is also home to Riverside Christian School, a nondenominational elementary school.

Higher education

★ University of North Dakota (Grand Forks)

★ Northland Community & Technical College (East Grand Forks)
★

★ University of Minnesota Crookston (Crookston)
''
★ also has a campus in Thief River Falls, Minnesota''

Media

''See Media in Grand Forks, North Dakota for a list of newspapers, television stations, and radio stations''

Print

The major daily newspaper is the ''Grand Forks Herald''. The only other daily newspaper in the area is the ''Crookston Daily Times'' of Crookston. ''The Exponent'' of East Grand Forks is a weekly newspaper. ''The Dakota Student'' is a campus newspaper published twice a week (during the school year) by students of the University of North Dakota. There are also several other weekly newspapers in the area including the ''Hillsboro Banner''.

Television

The metropolitan area receives all major broadcast networks over the air, along with cable, and satellite television. The major cable television company is Midcontinent Communications.
The only broadcast stations based in the metro area are WDAZ-TV 8 (ABC) and KCPM-TV 27 (MNTV). KVLY-TV and KXJB-TV both have news bureaus in Grand Forks, though the stations are based in Fargo.
Local TV stations include:

★ KGFE Channel 2 (PBS) (KCGE-DT digital/HD Channel 16) - main studio in Fargo, ND, cable channel 13

★ KXJB-TV Channel 4 (CBS) (digital/HD Channel 38) - based in Fargo, ND

★ WDAZ-TV Channel 8 (ABC) (digital Channel 59)

★ KBRR Channel 10 (Fox) - rebroadcasts KVRR of Fargo, ND

★ KVLY-TV Channel 11 (NBC) (digital/HD channel 44)

★ K17HG Channel 17 (3ABN) - religious programming

★ KCPM-TV Channel 27 (MNTV) - cable channel 9

★ K49FF Channel 49 (TBN) - religious programming

★ Fargo CW Cable channel 7 (The CW) - based in Fargo, ND, cable channel 14 in smaller communities

Radio

:''See Media in Grand Forks, North Dakota for a list of all radio stations''
There are several radio stations available in the area. All of the commercial radio stations in Grand Forks are owned by either Clear Channel Communications or Leighton Broadcasting. The area is also served by stations of North Dakota Public Radio (KUND 89.3 FM and KFJM 90.7 FM) and Minnesota Public Radio (KQMN 91.5 FM classical music and KNTN 102.7 FM news/talk). Several religious organizations have Christian radio stations throughout the area.

Notes

1. U.S. Census Bureau 2005 estimates for metropolitan statistical areas