'It made my heart broke': Marshall first-graders, parents grieve loss of classmate to COVID-19 Michael Osterholm, an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota who leads the university’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, said that severe cases of COVID-19 in children are still rare. According to state Health Department data, kids younger than 15 make up about 9% of all of Minnesota’s COVID-19 cases. Written By: Hannah Yang / MPR News | 4:00 pm, May 3, 2021 × Jase Nelson, 6, sits on his mom's lap and looks at a picture of his kindergarten class taken last year at Park Side Elementary School in Marshall, Minn. Michelle Nelson, 33, encouraged her son to share memories of one of his classmates, a 6-year-old girl who died over the weekend from complications of COVID-19. (Courtesy of Michelle Nelson)