White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities Names 2023 HBCU Scholars
The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity through Historically Black Colleges and Universities announces its ninth cohort of HBCU Scholars, recognizing 102 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students from 29 different states and countries for their accomplishments in academics, leadership, civic engagement and much more. The 2023 HBCU scholars are the largest cohort since the inception of this recognition program in 2014 and represent a record number of institutions, with the HBCU participation rate now over 70 percent.
HMAAC Expands Its Relationship with the Harris County Jail
Through a national project to expand arts programs in correctional institutions, the Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC) has begun working with California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) to bring arts classes to the Harris County Jail Women’s Empowerment Center. Classes began July 17, 2023. Through the “Arts in Corrections” project, CLA is adapting its successful strategy of building evidence-based demonstration projects to evaluate the benefits of arts programs in state prisons and county jails in Louisiana, New York, Michigan, Ohio, and Texas. Project funders include the National Endowment for the Arts, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, and the Art for Justice Fund.
Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Exploring The Green Book History Coming to Holocaust Museum Houston
The Negro Motorist Green Book, a new exhibition developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) in collaboration with award-winning author, photographer and cultural documentarian, Candacy Taylor will be on display in Holocaust Museum Houston’s Josef and Edith Mincberg Gallery Sept. 1 through Nov. 26, 2023.
City Council Member Plummer Celebrates Big Birthday
Houston City Council Member Letitica Plummer recently celebrated a milestone birthday with a vibrant Third Ward celebration. The event drew a crowd of enthusiastic supporters and generated excitement for the upcoming early vote election period from October 23 to November 3, just around 100 days away.
Unleash the Force at the Lone Star Flight Museum's Star Wars Day Saturday, July 22
Attention all Jedis, Siths, and fans of a galaxy far, far away! Prepare your X-wings and lightsabers because the Lone Star Flight Museum is gearing up for an epic Star Wars Day event on Saturday, July 22! Movie characters will be onsite and Hangar Talks about the aircraft that inspired the movie are hand. Dress up as your favorite Star Wars character and enjoy $2 off on general admission tickets. Then stay late for Star Wars: The Force Awakens movie night! The movie is not included in general admission, $5 per person. FREE for museum members! Event details:
Houston’s original creperie, Coco Crepes & Coffee, opens new location in Upper Kirby
Bella Restaurants Group opens the 9th Houston-area location; Grand Opening July 24
Houston’s first creperie, Coco Crepes & Coffee, has opened its ninth location. Located at 3303 Richmond Ave., formerly home to the Velvet Melvin Pub, the family-friendly cafe and coffee shop from Bella Restaurants Group will celebrate its Grand Opening on July 24 with giveaways including crepes, 100 days of free coffee and more.
Female soccer players earn 25 cents to the dollar of men at World Cup, new CNN analysis finds
Soccer players at the 2023 Women’s World Cup will on average earn just 25 cents for every dollar earned by men at their World Cup last year, a new CNN analysis found.
Drug shortages’ effects on cancer research may be felt for years to come
The United States is in the midst of some of the worst cancer drug shortages in history, affecting thousands of patients across the country who face delayed or cancelled chemotherapy appointments. But these shortages aren’t just bad for current patients, experts say; their effects on cancer research may be felt for years to come.
Shakira faces second investigation into alleged tax fraud in Spain
A judge in Barcelona has opened a second investigation into alleged tax fraud by Grammy-winning singer Shakira, a Spanish court said Thursday.
Kentucky governor declares emergency after heavy rainfall causes widespread flooding
Kentucky’s governor declared an emergency Wednesday after heavy – and potentially record-setting – rain caused widespread flooding throughout the state.
US airstrike kills 5 al-Shabaab militants in Somalia
The US military killed five al-Shabaab militants in a “collective self-defense airstrike” in Somalia, US Africa Command announced Thursday.
Louisiana juveniles are suffering dangerous heat and isolation in an old death row facility
Children in the custody of Louisiana’s Office of Juvenile Justice being held in a former death row building at an adult prison are suffering dangerous heat conditions and routine isolation in their cells that experts say could cause serious and irreversible harm, according to a federal court filing Monday.
Police say they cannot verify most of the information Carlee Russell, who went missing in Alabama after 911 call about a child on an interstate, gave to detectives
Police shared new details Wednesday on the case of Carlethia “Carlee” Nichole Russell, the Alabama woman who went missing for 49 hours last week after calling 911 to report a toddler walking alone on the side of the highway, saying investigators “have been unable to verify” most of Russell’s initial statement.
Wesleyan University joins other schools in nixing legacy admissions after Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling
Wesleyan University will stop giving preferential treatment to applicants who are the children of alumni – joining a growing list of schools to end legacy admissions after the Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action.
Florida Board of Education approves new Black history standards that critics call ‘a big step backward’
The Florida Board of Education approved a new set of standards for how Black history should be taught in the state’s public schools, sparking criticism from education and civil rights advocates who said students should be allowed to learn the “full truth” of American history.
‘Oppenheimer’ unleashes Christopher Nolan on the ‘father’ of the atomic bomb
“Oppenheimer” seeks to match the mythological nature of its central theme – an “American Prometheus,” punished for bringing humankind the seeds of its potential destruction – with a movie of equal heft, scale and (most of all) length. Writer-director Christopher Nolan’s epic film essentially consists of three chapters, with the middle, Atlas-like, holding up the weaker, drawn-out beginning and end.
‘Superpowered: The DC Story’ shows how all roads lead to Superman and Batman
Wading through 85 years of comics history is a daunting task, and “Superpowered: The DC Story,” a Max docuseries tries doing it in just three parts. Yet this voyage into comics history, in print and on the screen, comes at a crossroads for DC, one that suggests all paths usually lead back to Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.
Anger boils over as Kenya’s cost of living protests shake the nation
A wave of deadly protests has hit Kenya as anger over tax hikes and the cost of living spilled into the streets.
What we know about the 16 fake electors charged in Michigan
State prosecutors in Michigan announced criminal charges Tuesday against the 16 Republicans who served as fake electors in 2020, a watershed moment in the still-ongoing federal and state investigations into the 2020 election aftermath.
The Gilgo Beach killings suspect’s wife unknowingly helped in his arrest. She’s now filed for divorce
In her more than 27 years of marriage to Rex Heuermann, Asa Ellerup likely did not know about the gruesome double life her husband is accused of living, Suffolk County’s top cop says.
