About the Area

Solutions covers a geographic area roughly aligning with Interstate-94, beginning with Fargo-Moorhead and ending at St. Cloud, MN. The internship is out of Solutions’ Moorhead and Detroit Lakes offices, which are roughly 200 miles from the Minneapolis-St. Paul (“Twin Cities”) area.

Fargo-Moorhead

Fargo is the most populous city in the state of North Dakota, with a census of about 120,000. Its sister city, Moorhead, MN, which is separated from Fargo by the Red River of the North, is the county seat of Clay County and has a population of about 40,000. The metropolitan area of Fargo, West Fargo, Moorhead and Dilworth, MN has a current population of 240,000. The median age in Moorhead is 29 (Fargo is 30.5). Moorhead’s median household income is $55,343. The percent of individuals in poverty is 14.9%. The Fargo-Moorhead area is a regional center of education, commerce, and healthcare, and is considered a vibrant and growing area. Forbes recently ranked Fargo as the fourth fastest growing small city in the US. Fargo boasted a population growth of nearly 28% between 2000 and 2013, and also had 28% job growth during that time. This area has four colleges and universities, numerous youth programs, locally acclaimed theater, and semi-professional baseball and hockey teams. This is serious hockey country!  

While the Fargo-Moorhead population continues to be largely Scandinavian and German, there are an increasing number of new Americans from India, China, Bosnia, and the eastern European and African nations. Fargo has been a designated refugee relocation site. Fargo-Moorhead's demographic data suggests the following racial/ethnic information:  Caucasian (90%), Asian (3%), African American (2.7%), Native American (1.4%), and two or more races (2.1%). Minnesota demographic data, which includes the larger Twin Cities, has greater diversity:  Caucasian (86%), African American (6.2%); American Indian (1.3%); Asian (4.9%); Pacific Islander (0.1%), two or more races (2.4%); Hispanic or Latino (5.2%).

Follow this link to the Fargo-Moorhead visitors guide:  https://www.fargomoorhead.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/2017-Fargo-Moorhead-Visitors-Guide_LR.pdf

Detroit Lakes

Solutions’ Detroit Lakes office is located in Becker County, about 40 miles east of Moorhead, outside the Red River Valley and into “lakes country.” Detroit Lakes has a population of about 9,000. It has a much higher unofficial population during summer months due to seasonal residents and tourists (13,000). The median income there is about $37,103. Its median age is 39.7 years. 19% of its individuals are considered in poverty. The largest racial/ethnic groups are white (88.8%) followed by American Indian (4.2%), 2% bi-racial, and Hispanic or Latino (1%). Detroit Lakes is known for its summer fun on the lakes, and sports a variety of outdoor activities, including fishing and camping. The area hosts a number of seasonal festivals and events.

Follow this link to the Detroit Lakes visitor guide: https://www.visitdetroitlakes.com/