By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com Dana Green is no stranger to entrepreneurship, but when she opened Restocked in Leesburg, Virginia last summer, it was her first time heading a retail business. Raised in Clinton, Maryland, Green knew she wanted to become a business owner at a young age. […]
Author Archives: Megan Sayles AFRO Staff Writer
Megan Sayles is a business reporter for The Baltimore Afro-American paper. Before this, Sayles interned with Baltimore Magazine, where she wrote feature stories about the city’s residents, nonprofits and initiatives. Her love of music inspired her to be a writer. At a young age she realized it was not the melody that she was so infatuated with, but the lyrics that made up the song and connected with listeners. Sayles grew up in Pasadena, Maryland, and is a 2021 graduate of the University of Maryland, where for her senior capstone project she reported on how the coronavirus and inequality intersected in Baltimore. She also worked as a staff writer and copy editor for campus publications, including Stories Beneath the Shell and The Black Explosion. Sayles teamed up with a partner to report on how the pandemic had put many more responsibilities on the oldest child in families. The Associated Press and other news organizations picked up her story.
Posted inWashington D.C. News
Black-owned Célébrez en Rosé festival returns to D.C. and travels to Chicago for the first time
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com It’s time to break out your finest pink and white attire because the premier Black-owned festival for wines, champagne and lifestyle, Célébrez en Rosé, is returning to Washington, D.C. this June. This year marks the festival’s third anniversary in Washington, D.C., which will […]
Posted inBUSINESS
Childbirth educator creates Birth Class in a Box to mitigate expectant mother’s labor concerns
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com When Ashlee Johnson found out she was pregnant with her first child, she was excited, but, like many other mothers, she had a great deal of apprehension. On top of her dislike of hospitals and fear of needles, Johnson had heard stories from […]
Posted inHBCU
William Welch retired from Bowie State University as the oldest full-time faculty member, but that doesn’t mean his human resource development career is finished yet
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com When Professor William Welch retired at 92 from Bowie State University (BSU) in the winter, he was the oldest full-time faculty member. In his three decades at the historically Black university, Welch played a key role in developing the school’s human resource development […]
Posted inHBCU
Meet Paige Blake: the first student to serve on the President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com Bowie State University (BSU) rising senior Paige Blake has a disability, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at her. When she was four years old, she was diagnosed with a rare form of spina bifida, a condition that affects the spine. Because […]
Posted inBUSINESS
Altro app helps users build credit through non-traditional, recurring payments like Netflix subscriptions
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com While attending University of Southern California (USC), Michael Broughton ran into a problem. He didn’t have enough money to pay for his tuition, and despite his efforts to obtain student loans, he was denied from a number of lenders. “It kind of just […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Howard Hughes Medical Institute announces new program for early career faculty to diversify the scientific workforce
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), a science philanthropy that advances biomedical research and science education, on Thursday committed $1.5 billion to launch the Freeman Hrabowski Scholars Program for early career scientists who are dedicated to creating equitable and inclusive lab environments. Applications […]
Posted inARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Black-owned Célébrez en Rosé festival returns to D.C. and travels to Chicago for the first time
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com It’s time to break out your finest pink and white attire because the premier Black-owned festival for wines, champagne and lifestyle, Célébrez en Rosé, is returning to Washington, D.C. and Chicago this June. This year marks the festival’s third anniversary in Washington, D.C., […]
Posted inBaltimore News
University of Maryland, Baltimore’s CURE Scholars Program graduates first cohort of West Baltimore high school seniors
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member. msayles@afro.com The first cohort of University of Maryland, Baltimore’s (UMB) CURE Scholars Program recently became graduates. The 20 high school seniors, who reside in West Baltimore, joined the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) mentorship program during middle school, and on May 6, they […]
Posted inBUSINESS
1st Amazon Construction Services LLC serves as one of the only Black woman-owned construction companies in Baltimore
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com After 18 years in the construction industry, Baltimore native Krystal Walker has one particular project that stands out as her favorite, her porch project. She demolished and rebuilt the porch from scratch. Once the renovation was complete, the homeowner was ecstatic and informed […]
Posted inBUSINESS
Kinkistry ensures ‘no curl is left behind’ by providing 100% virgin hair extensions entirely for natural textures
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com African Americans have long faced discrimination as a result of their hair. School, workplace and U.S. military policies have prohibited or restricted natural hairstyles, including locs, afros, braids and bantu knots, and they have been used to justify the removal of African Americans […]
Posted inBUSINESS
Survivor created organization to empower women and families impacted by domestic violence
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com South Carolina native was 14 when she encountered her first abusive relationship. Her boyfriend at the time was a few years older than her, and she characterized their relationship as “teenage love.” The abuse started with face grabbing and eventually escalated to her […]
