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St. Louis Wants More Artists to Drive Civic Engagement

Audrey F. Henderson

October 18, 2018 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, St. Louis, Missouri

Funded by earmarking hotel and motel occupancy taxes, the St. Louis Regional Arts Commission is funding projects focused on telling the story of the regions people and places. Through this process, the Arts Commission is providing artists with the opportunity to drive civic engagement.

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A New Twist on Salvation

James Meadows

October 16, 2018 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Church after church in Philadelphia is being slated for demolition. In times where funding for religious institutions are scarce, Sacred Places, Civic Spaces is trying to repurpose old churches for community use. By working with the Civic Design Center, church leaders will be able to work with free design consultants to reimagine ways that their spaces can add new value to their communities.

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This 24-year-old lawsuit could radically alter public education in North Carolina

Michael Cooper

October 15, 2018 |

Scalawag |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, North Carolina

Twenty years ago, five, poor, rural counties sued the state of North Carolina for failing to provide students with a good education, and won. In 1997 the Chief Justice Supreme Court judge ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in the case known as Leandro v. State. However, the decision wasn’t really enforced by the government, and until 2017 a court appointed agency was hired to investigate the state. “Leandro sets the bar but you still need to have elected officials, school officials and court officials willing to uphold it,”

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How an Unlikely Family History Website Transformed Cold Case Investigations

Heather Murphy

October 15, 2018 |

The New York Times |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Lake Worth, Florida

GEDmatch started as a "casual side project," but investigators have been using the genealogy website to solve murder and sexual assault cases, opening a new set of both opportunity and ethical questions. The site is free to all, so investigators have used it to match DNA information and find suspects using family connections - a strategy that concerned the founders of the site at first, although they've come around to the idea after seeing the positive impact it has had.

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The Love Story that Upended the Texas Prison System

Ethan Watters

October 11, 2018 |

Texas Monthly |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Texas

An unlikely relationship between Frances Jalet, an attorney, and Fred Cruz, an inmate, led to some of the most historic rulings against the Texas Department of Corrections. Jalet became a plaintiff in one of the suits, and alongside two dozen other inmates, called the Eight Hoe squad, they drafted a lawsuit. Despite targeted attacks against Jalet and the inmates by prison leadership, they won in the courts. In 1980, a federal judge declared that the Texas Department of Corrections was operating unconstitutionally.

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Why Public Transportation Works Better Outside the U.S.

Jonathan English

October 10, 2018 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

American cities can find solutions to low transit use by looking to other cities in Europe and Canada where the focus is on robust service and getting people to major transit hubs. These transportation systems use existing infrastructure and space with strategy so that transit is efficient and affordable. This in turn means more people are likely to use it because service is better.

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How 50 Years of Latino Studies Shaped History Education

Natalie Escobar

September 07, 2018 |

The Atlantic |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

In 1968 Cal State founded the first Chicano studies program, which focused on the history of Mexicans and their relationship to the U.S. Since then, several universities followed suit. The program was also made possible through the activism of 15,000 students, who walked out of class in the historic East L.A. walkouts demanding a better education. While there are critics, educators believe these type of programs are beneficial to Hispanic students. “Now they have tools to understand the microaggressions they’ve experienced or the economic struggles in this society, and that they’re not the only ones.”

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Stripped: The Search for Human Rights in US Women's Prisons

Adam Skolnick

September 07, 2018 |

Longreads |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Washington

After her client and friend gets sentenced to 13 years in prison at the Washington Corrections Center for Women, Laurie Dawson, an activist, sets out to reform prison practices. With the guidance of the Bangkok Rules, an international document that outlines 70 principles meant to reform women’s prisons, Dawson sets her sight on eliminating strip searches from WCCM, and succeeds.

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The searing photos that helped end child labor in America

Jessica Contrera

September 03, 2018 |

The Washington Post |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

In the 1900s Lewis Hine posed as a bible salesman so he could get inside factories and take pictures of child workers. At the time children from 10-15 were put to work, and had no legal protections. Years later his pictures became a catalyst for passing child labor laws.

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Conserve the Sound, an Online Museum Preserves the Sounds of Past Technologies–from Typewriters, Electric Shavers and Cassette Recorders, to Cameras & Classic Nintendo

Josh Jones

August 28, 2018 |

Open Culture |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Germany

An online German museum is collecting and creating access to the sounds of obsolete technology such as portable cassette players, modems, and rotary phones. Through this collection, the museum preserves a tangible physical history that would be otherwise lost.

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