By Tashi McQueen, AFRO Political Writer, Report For America Corps Member After winning the Democratic primary on July 19, gubernatorial nominee Wes Moore now moves on to face Dan Cox, the Republican rival backed by former President Donald Trump, on Nov. 8. Moore is making his rounds throughout Maryland to engage with local communities and […]
Category: NEWS
Posted inBUSINESS
Kidsplosion Nation helps youth discover and develop their natural gifts and abilities
By Megan Sayles, AFRO Business Writer, Report for America Corps Member, msayles@afro.com When Carlena Evans was a young girl, she would often ask God what she was supposed to do with her life, and in time, he gave her an answer. Evans’ dive into entrepreneurship emerged from what she called a “two-finger tap from God.” […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Family grieves loss of beloved 15-fifteen-year old NyKayla Strawder
By Tinashe Chingarande, Special to the AFRO tchingarande@afro.com and Alexis Taylor, AFRO News Editor, ataylor@afro.com NyKayla Strawder was only 15 years old when she faced the evil of gun violence on the front porch of her West Baltimore home on Aug. 6. In an instant, a bullet stole the promise of her life and every […]
Posted inNational News
What the Inflation Reduction Act could mean for homeowners considering rooftop solar
By Cathy Bussewitz, The Associated Press As the head of the nation’s largest rooftop solar installer, Mary Powell has a stake in the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act, which includes tax credits to make rooftop solar more affordable. But the CEO of Sunrun’s excitement about the bill’s passage goes beyond business. Powell was passionate about […]
Posted inHealth
WHO wants name change for ‘Monkeypox’ virus, calling it ‘discriminatory and stigmatizing’
By Black Press USA NNPA NEWSWIRE – The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced plans to find a new name for the viral disease informally known as ‘monkeypox,’ which the world body says is “discriminatory and stigmatizing.” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in a briefing on the matter, said the virus is no longer behaving […]
Posted inWord In Black
A back-to-school letter to my daughter
By Rashaad Thomas, Word In Black News about school shootings, achievement gaps, the digital divide, COVID-19, and monkeypox inundate us daily. Watching my 7-year-old daughter walk onto her school campus for her first day of second grade makes not worrying about all that extremely difficult. My wife and I struggled with the decision to send […]
Posted inWord In Black
What Black homeschooling parents want you to know
By Maya Pottiger, Word in Black When Jania Otey started researching public schools in 2008 to enroll her son, she was disappointed with her options. She started connecting with people in her church community who were homeschooling, and she and her husband decided to give it a try. “There are some really good schools out […]
Posted inWord In Black
Baltimore schools prep for a school year with COVID-19, safety and teacher shortage concerns
By Kara Thompson, Special to the AFRO As August draws to a close, back-to-school preparations are kicking into high gear. Teachers and school systems across the country are making arrangements to welcome students back to the classroom, including Baltimore County and Baltimore City. At the start of the last school year, school systems in the […]
Posted inWord In Black
School Discipline in Black and White
By Maya Pottiger, Word In Black Even in a school year derailed by a pandemic, Black students were disciplined at higher rates than white students across the country. Using statewide discipline data from the 2019-2020 school year, Word in Black analyzed which students in California, Georgia, Maryland, Texas, and Washington state were facing higher rates […]
Posted inWord In Black
Why these five diseases disproportionately affect the Black community– and how to avoid them
By Mylika Scatliffe, AFRO Women’s Health Writer The United States is generally considered to be one of the most powerful nations in the world both economically and in terms of military power. It’s also generally known to lag behind most other developed countries when it comes to health and health care– leading to significant racial […]
Posted inBaltimore News
Kindergarten readiness- is your child prepared?
By Ama Brown, Special to the AFRO This week, the AFRO took a look at Kindergarten readiness for new students in the Baltimore City School System (BCPSS). We spoke with a few of the city’s early education teachers, Karan Greene, an early learning teacher at DaySpring Headstart’s Dukeland site, and Baltimore City Public Schools Teacher, […]
Posted inWord In Black
Prince George’s County Schools resume mask mandate as students return
By Deborah Bailey, AFRO D.C. Editor Officials in Prince George’s County have announced that students will start the 2022-2023 school year with masks on. The PGCPS website recently notified parents that masking is now required of Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) students and employees. “In light of the highly contagious COVID-19 BA.5 variant, Prince […]