December 9, 2010 | 8:49 AM | By Anna
Good morning, DCentric readers!
Wells lessens blow for grandparents in D.C. cuts “A subsidy program for grandparents who take care of their children’s children has not been cut as deeply as Mayor Adrian Fenty proposed, after some late maneuvering by Ward 6 Councilman Tommy Wells. Fenty proposed slashing the subsidy program by half, or nearly $2.7 million. But Wells was able to find $900,000 in the city’s Child and Family Services Agency budget to reduce the cut to less than 25 percent instead of 50 percent. “We’re delighted some of the money was restored,” said Judith Sandalow, the executive director of D.C.’s Children’s Law Center. The budget, though, “it still taking from the poorest people in our city who are” taking care of our children and keeping them out of foster care.” (Washington Examiner )
After graduating from Project Empowerment, three students test the job waters “As a child, Taylor, who grew up in Woodland Terrace, fought boys without a second thought. She says she felt no pain when she was stabbed in the head as a teenager. She punched a man in a bar because his friend hit her friend. “I’m from the ‘hood,” she says. “If one fight, all have to fight.” But now, she says she realizes that what stands between her and success is as little as a glance and a bad decision. “If I get mad, everything I’ve been working for is going to be over,” she says. “And it ain’t worth it.” (The Washington Post)
Where locals spend their money: D.C. edition “Washington has been analyzed through the lens of fashion, political leaders, and race, but what about spending habits? Using data from Mint.com, which ranks establishments based on visitor count and average purchase amount from four million Mint users, The List analyzes where District residents spend and what it says about them. (For example) The great cupcake debate is over Locals spend on average $10.13 at Baked & Wired. Georgetown Cupcake didn’t even make the list.” (tbd.com)
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December 8, 2010 | 9:58 PM | By Anna
Michael Paolantonio
Andrew Barnett of SMYAL
I wish I had seen this earlier, so I could have posted it when you were all bored at work and more likely to see it. After reading the following preview, I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s Kojo Nnamdi show and I thought some of you might be interested in it, too:
Bullying and suicide often come to mind in daily conversations about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth. But young people from these communities confront a wide range of challenges their straight peers never see, often with little support from their families or schools. We hear about the personal experiences and activism of local LGBT youth.
One of the scheduled guests, Andrew Barnett, is Executive Director of the Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL). The KNS website has the following video of a local 16-year old named Sydney, who goes to SMYAL just so she can “be (herself)”.
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December 8, 2010 | 4:30 PM | By Anna
http://www.acitydivided.americanobserver.net/
As promised, here is my interview with Jeremy Borden of “A City Divided“. Jeremy was the Managing Editor of this special edition of the American Observer, which examined many of the same issues DCentric does.
::
I asked him about the reaction ACD has received:
It’s been great as a whole. Even though people have their specific critiques, that shows they’re looking at the stories and reflecting on them. That is advancing the conversation in a way that is very positive.
What was the impetus behind the project?
What we tried to do was hone in on the broader trends that came out of the September primaries. We knew there was all this divisiveness that had been written about in a broad way; we wanted to focus on specific narratives that exposed divisions in the city and also illuminated the big issues of that election. That’s a difficult thing to do, but I think one of the things that has been most pleasing to me is that we did hone in on narratives that matter to people. Look at the conversations people are having, they are good conversations about the issues affecting this city.
What about the smattering of negative reactions you’ve received online?
As journalists we do the best that we can within the constructs set out for us. What I think is extremely unfair– and there was only one comment like this, that felt we were being racist in our coverage…I felt the need to respond to that. Not everyone will have the same point of view, but all in all it’s been a really positive thing.
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December 8, 2010 | 1:29 PM | By Anna
DDOTDC
Gabe Klein
I apologize, readers. A few hours ago, I wrote that Gabe Klein “has announced that he will leave his post on January 1, rather than stay on under a Gray administration”…well, it looks like he wasn’t exactly given the option to stay (via WaPo):
Several city officials have already announced they are leaving the Fenty administration, including transportation chief Gabe Klein, who on Wednesday became the first Cabinet official to publicly say he is not being kept in his post by Gray.
With his advocacy of bicycle and pedestrian amenities, promotion for public transit, and unorthodox approach to traffic and parking, Klein developed a devoted following among advocates of “smart growth,” who have emerged as a potent political force. But he was also at the center of a significant political headache for Gray during his campaign: the city’s streetcar program, which was canceled then restored under pressure during council budget negotiations.
Klein, along with several other agency heads, was delivered a termination letter Tuesday. Retaining Klein, along with planning director Harriet Tregoning, had been the goal of broad campaigning among some planning and neighborhood advocates. But other groups called for Klein’s ouster, criticizing him and his department for inadequate planning and community outreach.
December 8, 2010 | 10:59 AM | By Anna
Current District Department of Transportation chief Gabe Klein (whose name is trending right now on Twitter, locally) has announced that he will leave his post on January 1, rather than stay on under a Gray administration (which he characterized as “not a good fit” for him). Aaron Morrissey, Editor-in-Chief of DCist.com, just tweeted this about Klein:
Klein discussing age divide, as opposed to racial divide, as reason for many of DC debates over new transpo projects. I’ve never thought of it that way, but it makes a little bit of sense. Some of my older relatives don’t understand why anyone would want to ride a bike on the crazy streets of D.C. when they could be driving or on the Metro. Having typed that, I would be very wary of downplaying the “racial divide” that exists here; when certain residents of this city see the passion exerted over bike lanes, they wonder where that same energy is, when it comes to the social problems that vex some of our neighbors.
December 8, 2010 | 8:32 AM | By Anna
Good morning, DCentric readers! Ready for some links?
Job-training program aims to empower the District’s hardest to employ “This is Project Empowerment, the District’s most expensive job-training program, aimed at one of its most desperate populations. The goal: Take participants from the only Washington they’ve known, where unemployment is chronic, and show them a city they’ve watched from afar, where women wear practical heels and men match their belts to their wingtips. Of more than 800 participants the program serves each year, nearly all are African American, 80 percent have criminal records and many have never held a full-time job.” (The Washington Post)
Sgt. Pepperedjane
826DC: The Museum of Unnatural History
Hidden tutoring centers provide ‘unnatural’ education “826 National is on track to serve 24,000 students this year through its tutoring centers and school outreach programs. Sisters Teah and Janea Green have been visiting 826DC most afternoons since it opened. “This place is awesome,” said Janea, 10, as she worked on her multiplication homework with volunteer Matt Lemanski. “I really, really need help with my homework and my parents are busy sometimes. Sometimes we do poetry, sometimes we do math,” said Teah, 9. When she doesn’t have homework, she works on the story she is writing about a mermaid named Katopia.” (CNN)
Was Slain Principal Targeted Because He Was Gay? “High-profile attorney Gloria Allred is pushing for a federal hate crime investigation in the murder of Brian Betts. Betts was a beloved principal at Shaw Middle School in the District. He was murdered inside his Silver Spring, Md., home in April. Alante Saunders, 19, plead (sic) guilty last month to killing Betts after meeting him on a gay chat website. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison, with the possibility for parole after 20. “If he was targeted because he was on that chat line, then we believe it would fall under the Matthew Shepard Hate rime Law,” said Allred…” (NBC Washington)
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December 7, 2010 | 6:15 PM | By Anna
Amphis d'@illeurs
Danny Harris
Last night, I finally met and had a fantastic conversation with Danny Harris, the man behind the popular local website,”People’s District“. Danny is a photographer, DJ and oral historian who collects the stories of D.C. residents. Here’s why:
People’s District was my way of meeting the people I saw every day, but never stopped to introduce myself to: Carolyn, the crossing guard on my street; Cedric, who ran by my office most days, spinning in circles while yelling ‘HOOT, HOOT’; Dave, who rides his bike up and down my street in a finely tailored suit and fedora; and Josh, who checks my ID at the 9:30 Club. I saw these people more often than I saw my own family, yet I had never exchanged more than a ‘good morning’ or ‘thank you’ with them.
During one of those proverbial wake-up moments in July 2009, I stopped my first person to ask, ‘So, what’s your story?’ Joe, my first interviewee, spoke passionately about growing up on U Street and his first experience of going downtown after the end of segregation. After Joe came Andrew, talking about overcoming homelessness, then Eric and Maddie, discussing the D.C. hardcore music scene. Each story shed light on a new slice of D.C. life and brought me into the world of a complete stranger who was kind enough to share his or her story with me.
Each of those tales is compelling and while this is the part of my post where I’d normally exhort you to visit Danny’s online collection of D.C. stories, I probably don’t have to– the number one question I get from DCentric readers is, “Have you seen this site called ‘People’s District’?”. I’m not surprised (both of our sites explore race, class and the city), but I am grateful for the recommendation (seriously– feel free to tell me what you are reading). If I did introduce you to a new addition for your reader, then I’m glad I was able to shine some light on a worthy endeavor.
December 7, 2010 | 3:28 PM | By Anna
http://www.acitydivided.americanobserver.net/
An hour ago, I spoke to Jeremy Borden; he’s the Managing Editor of “A City Divided”, the multi-media-enhanced special edition of American University’s graduate online publication, the American Observer.
“A City Divided” has (rightly) received coverage from the City Paper, DCist, NBC and other sites that focus on D.C. and its neighborhoods– but all of those posts were intended to alert readers about the project’s existence. I wanted to know more, so I reached out to Borden and interviewed him about ACD, the reactions it has received and…why the buzzed-about story “Priced out in Columbia Heights” featured three compelling interviews with residents of Mt. Pleasant.
I’m due to speak to him again, in a few minutes– he generously agreed to be interviewed while he tries to finish up projects/classes at AU– so look for that post, tomorrow. In the meantime, if you haven’t already seen it, check out “A City Divided“. Any regular reader of this blog will recognize the themes of gentrification, racial lines and community tensions; you might enjoy the spirited conversation the project has inspired, too.
December 7, 2010 | 12:48 PM | By Anna
istolethetv
Double-taxes for this well-groomed, flexible Frenchie!
No one enjoys higher or additional taxes, but judging from some of the pleas for support I’ve received from various groups that are worried about how budget cuts will affect the poorest, youngest, most vulnerable residents of our city, I wonder if taxing yoga and sweet-smelling dogs is preferable (or more ethical). Via the City Paper:
Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry wants to extend D.C.’s sales tax to include: pet grooming, health clubs, armored car services, private investigations and admission to live performances.
You’ll recall that similar measures were considered last budget go round, but the all-powerful Yoga lobby put a squash to them.
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December 7, 2010 | 10:20 AM | By Anna
rockcreek
Charter School in NE
After consuming some tasty morning bytes, I’m reading this interesting listicle from Smart Money: “10 Things Charter Schools Won’t Tell You”. Here’s the first “thing”:
1. We’re no better than public schools. For all the hype about a few standout schools, charter schools in general aren’t producing better results than traditional public schools. A national study by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes at Stanford found that while 17% of charter schools produced better results than neighborhood public schools, 37% were significantly worse, and the rest were no different. (Not that public schools are perfect, as many parents know. See our earlier story, “10 Things Your School District Won’t Tell You,” for more.)
A host of other studies on charter school outcomes have come up with sometimes contradictory results. As with traditional public schools, there are great charters – and some that aren’t so great. “There’s a lot of variation within charter schools,” points out Katrina Bulkley, an associate professor of education at Montclair State University who studies issues related to school governance. “In fairness to organizations that are running high-performing schools, many of them are very frustrated with the range of quality, because they feel that it taints charter schools as a whole,” Bulkley says…
And here’s a bit of #4, “Students with disabilities need not apply.”:
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