Washington Post • 12th August 2023

‘A bit of a rush’: Summer academy lets teens train to become pilots

Ryan Tran, a rising freshman at the University of Southern California, didn’t spend his summer packing his bags for college. Instead, he found himself piloting planes. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. Tran spent eight weeks at the U.S. Navy Summer Flight Academy at Delaware State University, a tuition-free program designed to enhance aviation expertise while promoting diversity within the field. “Flying planes was kind

Washington Post • 10th August 2023

Phylicia Rashad to step down as Howard fine arts dean after school year

The university said Rashad played a pivotal role throughout her tenure in revitalizing the prominence of the fine arts college, including attracting noted scholars, artists and creatives to the institution. “Dean Rashad has successfully led the reestablishment of the College of Fine Arts as an independent college that continues to attract a high caliber of nationally and internationally recognized scholars, artists, and creatives who serve as department chairs, mentors, teachers, and role model

Washington Post • 10th August 2023

Morgan State enrollment is surging. Students will live in hotels.

As enrollment surges at some historically Black colleges and universities, Morgan State University has hit over 9,000 students for the fall semester for the second time in the university’s history. But the campus can house only 2,571. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. To address the shortfall, the university is partnering with a hotel in Baltimore that will provide 350 extra beds for new and returning students. “Our goal

Washington Post • 31st July 2023

D.C. spice shop owner creates affordable spaces for Black businesses

After seeing there was limited affordable property for business owners in D.C., Angel Gregorio wanted to build a space to support other Black entrepreneurs like herself. “I have friends who do hair and nails,” said Gregorio, founder of Black + Forth. “I noticed they had been paying exorbitant amounts of money to have spaces in D.C., so I decided to start a conversation about affordable commercial space in a city where we always talk about affordable housing.” Black + Forth officially launched e

Washington Post • 15th July 2023

Man accused of impersonating police in Maryland is arrested

Greenbelt police said a man who is accused of impersonating police in Maryland has been arrested. Authorities said Carl Colston Jr., 47, of District Heights, has been charged with three misdemeanors: having a handgun on person, having a handgun in a vehicle and impersonating police. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. An officer responded to a report of an armed individual near the off-ramp of Greenbelt Road at Maryland Rou

Washington Post • 15th July 2023

HBCUs revise admissions policies amid expected surge in applications

Leaders at historically Black universities are considering changing some of their admissions practices in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action — and, in some cases, are anticipating becoming more selective as they brace for an influx in applicants. The ruling, which bars colleges from using race as a factor when considering which students to admit, has shaken higher education, dismantling a tool that some schools had used to increase diversity. However, at historically

Washington Post • 11th July 2023

Bowie State reaches $50 million fundraising goal — two years early

Bowie State University said Tuesday that it has raised $50 million to support scholarships, building renovations and other initiatives at the oldest historically Black college in Maryland. The fundraising effort, dubbed “BSU Bold: The Campaign for Excellence,” is the largest in the university’s history, and Bowie State officials said they met their goal more than two years ahead of schedule. “We think that it’s extremely significant not just because we reached our goal early, but most important

Washington Post • 9th July 2023

At this Black nerd convention, ‘It feels like a family reunion’

Blerdcon, the celebration of Black nerd culture, buzzed Saturday in Crystal City, its attendees adorned with pink wigs, bedazzled wings and elaborate face paint designs, meticulously re-creating the appearances of their favorite anime and animated characters. Here came Spider-Man. Over there was Sailor Moon. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. Within the halls of the Hyatt Regency, the air was filled Beyoncé music and a con

Washington Post • 1st July 2023

People line up as recreational marijuana becomes legal in Maryland

Mayberry said the dispensary in Silver Spring was only a few blocks away from his childhood home, where he was briefly kicked out at 19 after being caught smoking weed alongside a few friends. Now, Mayberry hopes to educate others about recreational and medical marijuana use, and shatter the stigma associated with it. He said his mother was issued a medical marijuana card several years back, which has helped her mobility and chronic pain issues. Existing medical marijuana businesses converted t

Washington Post • 1st July 2023

‘I have no hope’: Student borrowers devastated by high court ruling

“I feel like the Supreme Court is supposed to be representing us and our best interests. Do they not care? Or is it because they’re so far removed from it, they don’t have to think about it,” said Shyra Bluminberg, a 26-year-old graduate of Eastern Illinois University. “They don’t have to understand or see from the perspectives of regular people who can’t just afford that extra expense.” Bluminberg, who works as an FMLA claims specialist, said what she earns is not enough to manage the $450 per

Washington Post • 28th June 2023

Education Department ends sexual harassment case at Montgomery College

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has resolved a sexual harassment investigation against a professor at Montgomery College’s Takoma/Silver Spring Campus. The agency said the professor had female students remove their shirts and wear only their bras in the guise of role-playing a medical assessment. He then made comments about their bodies. The department said the lesson did not require those comments or the removal of the students’ clothing. “We appreciate the Dep

Washington Post • 28th June 2023

Teachers cite abuse, demand principal’s resignation at Eaton Elementary

D.C. public school officials are investigating claims of misconduct at John Eaton Elementary after staff accused their principal of creating a hostile work environment and called for his resignation. A parent’s association is also calling for the leader’s removal. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. A June 14 letter signed by 40 staff members, including every teacher, detailed several allegations against Principal Steven Es

Washington Post • 25th June 2023

After family’s long fight, Lena Ferguson gets honor from the DAR

In 1980, Lena Ferguson wanted to connect with her ancestry and aimed to join the Daughters of the American Revolution. But after multiple attempts, she was denied by a local D.C. chapter. It led to a fight to make the organization more inclusive of Black and other women of color. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. Four decades later, Ferguson is being recognized with a plaque in a memorial garden at DAR’s National Headquar

Washington Post • 24th June 2023

A year after Roe’s fall, Women’s March returns to press for abortion access

On the one-year-anniversary of Dobbs, Washington Post reporters spoke to pro-choice and pro-life supporters about what a post-Roe America looks like. (Video: Joyce Koh, Whitney Leaming, Alice Li/The Washington Post, Photo: Craig Hudson/The Washington Post) Janisann Hay, 65, beamed with pride as she and her granddaughter, 16-year-old Sophia Paxton, made their way Saturday to the gathering spot for the 2023 Women’s March outside Union Station. “I’m so proud of you,” Hay said to her granddaughter.

Washington Post • 16th June 2023

Parents protest teacher turnover at D.C.’s Mundo Verde charter

Parents at D.C.’s Mundo Verde Bilingual Public Charter say too many of the school’s teachers are leaving, their students aren’t getting the quality education they deserve, disciplinary incidents have increased, and school administrators are ignoring their concerns. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. For two days this week, parents and students lined the sidewalk outside the school’s Northwest Washington J.F. Cook campus wi

Washington Post • 16th June 2023

Parents protest teacher turnover at D.C.’s Mundo Verde charter

Parents at D.C.’s Mundo Verde Bilingual Public Charter say too many of the school’s teachers are leaving, their students aren’t getting the quality education they deserve, disciplinary incidents have increased, and school administrators are ignoring their concerns. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. For two days this week, parents and students lined the sidewalk outside the school’s Northwest Washington J.F. Cook campus wi

Washington Post • 26th November 2022

20 years after ‘Drumline,’ HBCU bands credit film for boosting visibility

Janae McCloud didn’t always know how to read music perfectly, or the technicalities of playing the alto saxophone. She just did whatever she needed to keep going with the music. But in her sophomore year of high school, she watched the film “Drumline” and felt seen in the fictional story of talented band member Devon Miles, who couldn’t read music. It inspired her to keep performing. “I’m a biology major, and I want to become a doctor,” McCloud said. But “I’m still using things that I’m learnin

Washington Post • 10th November 2022

George Mason University launches College of Public Health

George Mason University has officially renamed the former College of Health and Human Services to the College of Public Health, refocusing its efforts on public health education, research and practice. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. It will be the first college of public health in Virginia, the university said. The college will implement new programs at the undergraduate master’s and doctoral levels that include a focu

Washington Post • 9th November 2022

Muriel Bowser projected to win third term as D.C. mayor

Bowser, 50, will be the only leader since “mayor for life” Marion Barry to serve a third term. She easily coasted to reelection Tuesday, after beating two challengers to her left in the spring’s Democratic primary, on promises that she will focus her third term on guiding the city’s economic recovery from pandemic shutdowns and on increasing the size of the police force to combat crime. While Bowser’s victory was never in much doubt, other races remained uncalled Tuesday night, including one of

Washington Post • 2nd November 2022

American University boosts patrols after report of sexual assault in dorm

American University increased patrols around its residence halls after a sexual assault was reported in a dorm earlier this week. The university’s police department is working with D.C. police to investigate the incident that took place at about 2 a.m. Monday in Leonard Hall on the campus in Northwest Washington, according to the university. No arrest was announced as of Wednesday. “The safety of our community is a top priority, and any incident that affects students in the residence halls that