Category: Washington D.C. News

The District of Columbia and its Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi have been named the primary defendants in a multi-million dollar lawsuit filed by a former District government administrator, who claims to have been wrongfully terminated for failing to cancel a contract awarded to a firm co-owned by a friend of Mayor Adrian Fenty. The […]

When Allen Sessoms, president of the University of the District of Columbia, began implementing his vision last year for a new and improved institution of higher learning, that also apparently meant presenting an updated pictorial of the historically Black campus. Since then, full-page advertisements detailing Sessoms’ vision have been published in major newspapers including the […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With the time drawing for the District Columbia City Council’s final vote on a medical marijuana bill, At-large Councilman David Catania, head the committee overseeing the issue,  is confident that it will pass. The Council has already taken two votes on “Initiative 59,” which has received overwhelming support of District residents. And, […]

OXON HILL, Md. — Oxon Hill Middle School sits in the middle of a quiet, middle-class neighborhood in southern Prince George’s County. But its tranquil exterior belies chaos within its walls, parents claim. On April 22, concerned parents gathered in the school’s auditorium and expressed their frustrations over deteriorating safety in the school, saying their […]

COLLEGE PARK – A popular diversity officer at the University of Maryland is considering the presidency at a historically Black college in Virginia, nearly six months after the announcement that his position would be terminated amid budget cuts. The university publicized plans last November to replace associate provost for equity and diversity Cordell Black with […]

The City Council just passed a bill it believes to be a catalyst for creating more jobs in the District where the jobless rate exceeds 10 percent. But according to its author, At-large Councilman Kwame Brown, the bill, “District Job Growth Incentive Act,” models a component of President Barack Obama’s stimulus package by providing franchise […]

WASHINGTON — Students at Friendship Collegiate Academy Public Charter School in Northeast Washington, who plan to pursue medical professions, got a chance earlier this month to explore their career dreams with assistance from people already working in the field. But more importantly, they realized that by remaining in school, they stood at the forefront of […]

As Jack Johnson prepares to leave office as Prince George‘s county executive, many are looking back at his administration to see the legacy he leaves behind. When Johnson gave his last State of the Economy address for Prince George’s County April 22, he seemed very retrospective about his tenure as county executive. “Before I moved […]

For 12 years, the Patriots Technology Center in Seat Pleasant, Md., has hosted an annual youth technology summit. On April 24, the center will hold its 13th edition of an event planners say has grown by leaps and bounds. “It certainly was more of a community focused group 13 years ago in the Seat Pleasant […]

After years of raised expectations and crushed hopes, just about every District resident thought 2010 would be the year that the city’s voting rights bill would finally meet congressional approval. Such was not the case this week, however, after the controversial legislation –which was poised to give the District a voice on Capitol Hill and […]

Whether a $34 million surplus exists in District of Columbia Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s 2009 budget remains to be seen. But amid the “yes-we-have-the-money-no-we don’t” exchanges that have been taking place between Rhee and the city’s chief financial officer, Natwar Gandhi, irate officials at the Washington Teachers Union said during a press conference late […]

A new study reveals that while the race gap in the commission of violent crime has significantly narrowed in certain parts of the country, murder arrest rates for African Americans has been out-distancing those for Whites, particularly in large urban areas like the District of Columbia and Atlanta, where the rates have grown significantly over […]