Black students in Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools are disproportionately more likely to be suspended than white students, and the lack of a reflective student to teacher population is to blame, according to experts from the Southern Coalition for Social Justice.
This week, the SCSJ released their annual “racial equity report cards,” and their findings revealed that Black students in CMS are seven times more likely to receive short term suspensions than white students.
That disparity is again reflected in the total percentage of suspensions served, where Black students in CMS serve 74.3% of all short term suspensions.
High percentages like these are…
Emily Hill roles out of bed at 9 a.m.; her class starts in 15 minutes, but she isn’t rushing out the door. Downstairs her mother makes her a fresh breakfast of granola and scrambled eggs. She sits down at the desk in the corner of her room after brushing her hair and donning an Oxford University T-shirt. Zoom is already open on her desktop and she clicks to join her first class of the day. She turns the camera on and off as she pleases and takes her notes free from the distractions of anything else.
It is a pressure…
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board announced they are cutting over 250 jobs from the popular After School Enrichment Program (ASEP) during a budgetary meeting this Tuesday.
The news comes from Chief Academic Officer Brian Kingsley, who explained during the board’s most recent meeting that the COVID-19 pandemic has financially crippled ASEP, leaving them with no choice but to suspend the program.
ASEP services 95 locations while providing over 500 jobs and is the largest licensed childcare provider in all of Mecklenburg County, or at least they were. Those numbers are shrinking fast in the wake of the pandemic, and following the…
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Gertrude Stein lived out most of her life in Paris. It was there in the early 20th century that she became enamored with the work of Pablo Picasso. Stein helped propel him into stardom, but she gained as much from Picasso as he did from her. Picasso’s style of abstract art, particularly his use of cubism, is a central element of Gertrude Stein’s own work. In her seminal piece Tender Buttons, Stein flexes her artistic muscles with sprawling, abstract, and at times nonsensical poems that break nearly all grammatical and poetic conventions. One I was drawn…
1995 was a monumental year for music, and not just because the Wu-Tang clan released Liquid Swords. It marked the beginning of the definitive voice in music, Pitchfork. That year, Ryan Schreiber launched the site from his humble basement in Minnesota with no inclination as to what it would eventually become. By 2006, the site was growing rapidly and gaining a reputation as a rising voice in the industry. 9 years later, the site was acquired by Condé Nast the multimedia mega-corporation responsible for some of the most well-known magazines and publications. Pitchfork would now be joining the likes of…
The year’s best in music from the likes of Megan Thee Stallion, Ichiko Aoba, Rina Sawayama, and so many more.
Digital and internet based artists are always seeking feedback on their work, but how does this feedback affect them? Is there a secret sauce that makes your feedback better? Or more likely to be used? Well I attempted to find out, sort of.
Crowdsourcing feedback has emerged in the past decade as a popular way for designers and businesses alike to receive broad reactions on products and ideas. Online communities and message boards have been quick to add feedback tabs and sections to capitalize on the possible advantages of crowdsourcing. There has been a fair amount of research done in…
I thought it might be fun to publish some of the poetry I worked on last year during school. None of this has been seen before, all of it is original, some of it I am proud of. This one is titled “thank you W.W.”
Brown, brittle pages float between my fingers
words from Whitman whisper along the pages
telling stories of nature and its wonders
His voice reverberates with ever intricate detail
the world around me comes alive with every breath
of mine
and of his
green leather grasps the words and warms my hands
the whispers cease as I close the doors on the outside world
dead trees leave my cradle for another
we’ll sojourn until the next study
until then I read the words of the world.
I thought it might be fun to publish some of the poetry I worked on last year during school. None of this has been seen before, all of it is original, some of it I am proud of. This one is untitled.
a Gate that always stays open
Trees that stay put and leaves that
change with the seasons
A downhill road that I have traveled before
with friends with lovers with family
the Bridge creaks and crones as I step across it t
he winding Path ahead that takes me exactly where I need to be
When I finish
the Bridge cries out once more upon my exit
the Road is now steep and tiresome the leaves have all fallen
and the Gate stays open
I thought it might be fun to publish some of the poetry I worked on last year during school. None of this has been seen before, all of it is original, some of it I am proud of. This one is called “Edisto.”
By quiet waves lapping the shore
Wind whispering sweet nothings into my ears they never cease
Because the soft sand between my toes
Because the shells I shift through to find treasure
Because the sky is the color I painted my room at nine
a soft color that reflects the calm waters
Because the rolling dunes fall…
