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demmiblue

demmiblue's Journal
demmiblue's Journal
March 22, 2016

Detroit to provide tuition-free college to DPS graduates

Source: Freep



Mayor Mike Duggan’s office said today that it will unveil details of the Detroit Promise program that will provide two years of free tuition for all Detroit high school graduates.

Duggan’s office said the new program has a permanent funding source for Detroit’s graduates to attend community college tuition free for two years.

The Detroit Promise is based on a program former Gov. Jennifer Granholm initiated in 2009, creating 10 Promise Zone communities in cities with high poverty rates. Detroit and school districts in Pontiac, Hazel Park, Saginaw, Lansing, Jackson, Benton Harbor, Baldwin and Battle Creek were eligible.

The goal of the program is to provide access to at least an associate’s degree for all children in those communities. It was based on the Kalamazoo Promise, the program launched in 2005 in which anonymous donors pay for tuition at state universities for graduates of that city’s public high schools

Read more: http://www.freep.com/story/news/education/2016/03/22/duggan-backs-bills-dps-plans-education-initiative/82115622/

March 22, 2016

Detroit to provide tuition-free college to DPS graduates

Source: Freep




Mayor Mike Duggan’s office said today that it will unveil details of the Detroit Promise program that will provide two years of free tuition for all Detroit high school graduates.

Duggan’s office said the new program has a permanent funding source for Detroit’s graduates to attend community college tuition free for two years.

The Detroit Promise is based on a program former Gov. Jennifer Granholm initiated in 2009, creating 10 Promise Zone communities in cities with high poverty rates. Detroit and school districts in Pontiac, Hazel Park, Saginaw, Lansing, Jackson, Benton Harbor, Baldwin and Battle Creek were eligible.

The goal of the program is to provide access to at least an associate’s degree for all children in those communities. It was based on the Kalamazoo Promise, the program launched in 2005 in which anonymous donors pay for tuition at state universities for graduates of that city’s public high schools.


Read more: http://www.freep.com/story/news/education/2016/03/22/duggan-backs-bills-dps-plans-education-initiative/82115622/

March 22, 2016

Today’s winning Google Doodle invoking Black Lives Matter was designed by high school sophomore

Source: Washington Post




“My Afrocentric Life,” by Akilah Johnson (courtesy of Google 2016)

<snip>

This year’s contest theme was: “What makes me…me.” Akilah drew a box-braided Doodle, titled “My Afrocentric Life,” using color pencils, black crayons and Sharpie markers. The Doodle includes symbols of black heritage and signs representing the Black Lives Matter movement.

“Although it felt like forever making this picture, it only took me about two weeks,” Akilah told Comic Riffs last month.

“I based this picture off my lifestyle,” she stated as part of her entry, which is featured today on Google’s home page.

“As a child, I attended Roots [Public Charter School] and Roots [Activity Learning Center], so I was raised in the ‘Afrocentric lifestyle,’ ” Akilah told The Post, referring to educational institutions in Northwest Washington that tout “culturally relevant curriculum” and the aim to serve “the specific needs of children of African heritage.”

“One of my teachers from Roots, Baba Camera, is really [who] made me look at art in a different way,” Akilah said. “As I grew older, I … realized that the black people [who] came before us … made us into what we are today, so of course I had to include them in some way.” (“Of all the things I chose to include,” Akilah writes on Google’s site, “the six most special to me are the Symbol of Life [the ankh], the African continent, where everything began for me and my ancestors, the Eye of Horus, the word ‘power’ drawn in black, the woman’s fist based on one of my favorite artist’s works, and the D.C. flag — because I’m a Washingtonian at heart and I love my city with everything in me!”)

<snip>

Akilah’s composition reflects bright childhood themes on the left, then moves into more serious reflections on society. “Just as we read from left to right, my goal was to make the picture turn heads from the color to the meaning,” Akilah told Comic Riffs last month. “I have a book that I use that’s full [of] quotes, and the one I went by for this picture was: ‘Be the type of person [who] not only turns heads, but turns souls.’ ”


Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2016/03/21/d-c-student-wins-national-google-doodle-contest-with-art-that-invokes-black-lives-matter/

March 14, 2016

Missouri State Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal Endorses Bernie Sanders, Asks for Help

Source: Daily Kos

My Fellow Progressives:

This week, the Missouri Democratic Senate caucus filibustered for 39-hours against SJR 39, a measure making it legal for institutions to discriminate against gays and lesbians.

I stood on the floor through the night and into the long morning for LGBT residents in my district because to do less would be unacceptable. Now more than ever, Democrats must hold true to our most basic principles, to stand for our friends and neighbors. Ferguson taught me I will not ever be silent when our rules and laws are not respected.

<snip>

Now is the time for Democrats to roar into DC. We need an American truth teller, and it is why I am proud today to endorse Senator Bernie Sanders for the US Presidency.

Our Democracy needs new perspectives, new viewpoints and a bold, aggressive Democratic outlook for the future. I believe Senator Sanders sees that future and will work hard to deliver it for all Americans, no matter where they live.

To give him the congress he needs, we need more Democrats who are willing to rock the boat. We need Democrats who don’t see being a politician as just another job.


Read more: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/3/12/1500391/-Missouri-State-Senator-Maria-Chappelle-Nadal-Endorses-Bernie-Sanders-Asks-for-Help


March 12, 2016

Orkestra Obsolete play Blue Monday using 1930s instruments - BBC Arts

New Order's Blue Monday was released on 7 March 1983, and its cutting-edge electronic groove changed pop music forever. But what would it have sounded like if it had been made 50 years earlier? In a special film, using only instruments available in the 1930s - from the theremin and musical saw to the harmonium and prepared piano - the mysterious Orkestra Obsolete present this classic track as you've never heard it before.



More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/qnLLpZgBW92dSrV2mmGyCb/new-order-olden-style-a-unique-take-on-blue-monday
March 9, 2016

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