By Alexa Spencer, Word In Black As the Black community grapples with the ongoing impact of COVID-19, research shows that the faultiness of pulse oximeters on dark-skinned people contributed to poor outcomes during the pandemic. When clipped onto a patient’s finger, pulse oximeters send a beam of light through the skin to calculate oxygen levels. […]
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Black women in tech might be the key to climate justice
By Nadira Jamerson, Word in Black Toxic air. Dirty water. It seems we find out every day about another Black neighborhood being damaged by environmental pollution. The Justice Department recently filed a complaint against the city of Jackson, Miss. — which has been without clean water since August — over its alleged violations of the […]
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Why healthy relationships matter for people with breast cancer
By Alexa Spencer, Word In Black After breastfeeding all four of her children, finding out in 2020 that she had breast cancer was the biggest shock of 32-year-old Tulsa, Oklahoma resident Aisha Patterson’s life. She’d now become a part of the 9% of American women diagnosed with the disease before age 45. And, as a […]
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Claudine Gay appointed as first Black president of Harvard University
By Word In Black Since 2018, Claudine Gay has served as the Edgerley Family Dean of Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS), the University’s largest and most academically diverse faculty, spanning the biological and physical sciences and engineering, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts. As dean, she has guided efforts to expand […]
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Striving for success: six tips for avoiding holiday learning loss
By Maya Pottiger, Word in Black The holiday break is just around the corner, and you and your kids might have very different ideas of how to spend the time off from school. Though it’s absolutely critical for students to rest their bodies and minds — seriously, let them sleep! — it’s also important to […]
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The Pioneering Black LGBT Activist You Probably Don’t Know – But Should
By Dawn Suggs, Word in Black On a bright, crisp morning in October, a crowd of Donald Suggs Jr.’s friends, neighbors, and family from across the country gathered at the southwest corner of East 6th street and Avenue B in New York City’s East Village. In front of a verdant community garden, they witnessed the […]
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Activist: addressing violence in schools requires a comprehensive approach
By RayJaun Stelly, Word in Black Over the last eight years, safety at many schools in the state of Washington has come into question. During that time, there have been 10 shootings during regular school hours or school related activities in K-12 schools across the state. The most recent shooting took place a few weeks […]
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Building a Black male pipeline into public education
By Aziah Siid, Word in Black South Side of Chicago-native Abdul Wright, grew up the oldest of several siblings. His family moved through low-income housing — at one point they found themselves in a homeless shelter. But Wright, who was named 2016 Minnesota Teacher of the Year, is a prime example of how an excellent […]
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Treating COVID-19 ‘long haulers’ is rife with guesswork
By Blake Farmer, Word In Black Medical equipment is still strewn around the house of Rick Lucas, 62, nearly two years after he came home from the hospital. He picks up a spirometer, a device that measures lung capacity, and takes a deep breath — though not as deep as he’d like. Still, Lucas has […]
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The kids are not alright: addressing student trauma
By Maya Pottiger, Word in Black There’s a new incident every day. Most recently, it was three Black football players being shot to death following a school field trip. Right before that, there was the video of a White teacher telling Black students that his race is “the superior one.” Earlier this year, a different […]
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Education was on the ballot; Here’s how key issues played out
By Maya Pottiger, Word in Black A week after the midterm elections, not all of the races have been called, but we’re starting to see how key issues in the K-12 space will play out amidst new leadership and policies. With at least seven state superintendent seats and 51 state boards of election seats up for […]
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Why do holidays take a toll on teen mental health?
By Maya Pottiger, Word in Black It’s the happiest time of the year — right? Not for everyone. Actually, 3 in 5 Americans — more than half — report that the holiday season negatively impacts their mental health, according to a 2021 Sesame report. Though a break from school is supposed to be celebrated by […]