Dec 14 Trump eases rules for religious social service providers By Collin Binkley, Associated Press Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie said the changes will "remove unfair obstacles." Critics, however, said the changes will remove important protections for LGBTQ people and others who may face discrimination from religious groups. Continue reading
Dec 13 More U.S. churches are committing to racism-linked reparations By David Crary, Associated Press The Episcopal Diocese of Texas acknowledges that its first bishop in 1859 was a slaveholder. An Episcopal church in New York City erects a plaque noting the building’s creation in 1810 was made possible by wealth resulting from slavery. Continue reading
Dec 07 Students return to New York City schools once more after COVID-19 closure By Associated Press Public preschool students and children in kindergarten through fifth grade whose parents chose a mix of in-school and remote learning are back inside buildings Monday in the nation's largest school district. Continue reading
Nov 30 ‘I’ve never seen the campus’: What it’s like to attend Harvard from your childhood bedroom By Charlotte West, The Hechinger Report Zoom lectures haven’t been as bad as she thought they would be, though the upstairs neighbor’s vacuuming is distracting when she’s trying to pay attention. Continue reading
Nov 29 Poet uses runaway slave ads to tell a story of resistance By Connie Kargbo, Lisa Overton St. Mary's College of Maryland unveiled a new memorial this month honoring the lives of enslaved people of southern Maryland, including some who lived on the very land their campus is on. Seattle-based poet and educator Quenton Baker contributed poetry… Continue reading
Nov 26 Thanksgiving lessons jettison Pilgrim hats, welcome truth By Collin Binkley, Associated Press More U.S. schools are rethinking traditional Thanksgiving lessons that focus on the English settlers but teach little about Native Americans. Continue reading
Nov 25 How deteriorating schools fuel the inequality crisis amid COVID-19 By Meredith Kolodner and Bracey Harris, Neal Morton, The Hechinger Report The rampant spread of the coronavirus has exposed a crisis of crumbling and dilapidated school buildings brought on by decades of underfunding and neglect. Continue reading
Nov 22 Watch 6:10 A Maryland college honors the lives of enslaved people By Ivette Feliciano, Connie Kargbo St. Mary's College of Maryland unveiled a new memorial yesterday honoring the lives of enslaved people of southern Maryland. It tells the story of "resilience, persistence, and creative problem-solving that defined the lives” of the enslaved people that lived there… Continue watching
Nov 21 Watch 5:35 LGBTQ foster kids have a harder time finding permanent homes By Ivette Feliciano, Zachary Green According to a recent study, more than a third of kids in New York City's foster care system identify as LGBTQ. Most of those children end up in group homes and treatment centers, rather than finding permanent homes with families. Continue watching
Nov 18 New York City schools to close again as city fights virus surge By Jennifer Peltz, Associated Press New York City's mayor says he's shuttering schools to try to stop the renewed spread of the coronavirus. It's a painful about-face for one of the first big U.S. school systems to bring students back to classrooms this fall. Continue reading