Saint Paul -- Governor Tim Pawlenty today announced the Jim Linscheid to the Governor's Council on Minnesota's Coastal Program (Coastal Council).

Linscheid retired in 1995 after over 30 years of service to the Lake Superior School District. He worked as a fifth grade teacher at MacDonald Elementary in Silver Bay. Linscheid currently serves as a member of the Lake County Planning Commission, the Lake County Board of Adjustment, and the Lake County Water Plan Advisory Committee. He received a B.S. in Elementary Education from Minnesota State University-Mankato. A resident of Lake County since 1961, Jim and his wife Jacquelynn currently reside in Silver Bay.

Linscheid is appointed to a Coastal Council seat for a resident of Lake County. The Lake County Board of Commissioners previously endorsed Linscheid's appointment to the Coastal Council. He will serve a term which ends January 1, 2007. Linscheid fills the seat formerly held by Grace Louise Thureen.

The Governor's Council on Minnesota's Coastal Program (the Coastal Council) was created by executive order in 1999. The Council provides Lake Superior area residents influence in the administration of Minnesota's Lake Superior Coastal Program. This includes providing grant funding recommendations to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The Council consists of 15 members appointed by the Governor, including at least three members from each of the four counties within the coastal zone (Carlton, Cook, Lake, and St. Louis Counties).