Cleveland schools do more than educate. They wrap the students in support, to find solutions to food scarcity, housing insecurity and homelessness, violence and sometimes the trauma of losing parents to the criminal justice system. To illustrate that work, we embedded reporters Cameron Fields and Hannah Drown in a Cleveland elementary school. The result, Cleveland’s Promise, returns this week, with the students we followed in Miss Lenahan’s fourth-grade classroom now in fifth grade. The series has provoked a flood of community support and raised awareness about the vital services provided by the district’s family support specialists – services that could be in jeopardy if government officials fail to bridge a critical funding gap for the program in the coming months. Impact editor Leila Atassi tells you how you can help. - Laura |
Overnight Scores and Weather |
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Many readers have reached out in the past six months, asking how they can support the children and families featured in the Cleveland Promise series. |
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Cleveland’s Promise: An integral part of the Say Yes Cleveland college scholarship program are the family support specialists who help kids succeed at all grade levels. School, county and federal funds split the $9.3 million annual cost, but Say Yes still needs $1.7 million through July. If it doesn’t come, there could be layoffs, writes Leila Atassi. Kids will lose the extra help that allows them to focus on learning. Laundry help: Maria is dealing with a constant barrage of bullying over her clothes, which smell of cat pee. Like many aspects of life in poverty, laundry, too, can be overlooked, as a long list of basic necessities demand attention. So a support specialist at her Cleveland elementary school washed Maria’s clothes in the school washing machine, reports Hannah Drown as part of the Cleveland's Promise series. Householder trial: A former lobbyist charged in the House Bill 6 corruption probe testified on Monday that he directed a client to give ex-Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder a $500,000 campaign contribution in exchange for nuclear bailout legislation the company had previously sought unsuccessfully. Jake Zuckerman and Andrew Tobias report that Juan Cespedes described a pair of October 2018 meetings in which he and other officials with FirstEnergy Solutions, the company that owned the two financially troubled Ohio nuclear plants the legislation would have subsidized, gave the campaign contributions to Householder. Those meetings included a $400,000 check. COVID-19 emergency: The federal government’s declaration of a COVID-19 public health emergency dating back to near the start of the pandemic has made it easier for people to protect themselves from the virus. But in a few months, access to COVID-19 at-home tests and treatments along with vaccines at no cost to patients will depend on health insurance coverage through private policies, Medicare or Medicaid, reports Julie Washington. Today in Ohio: Jake Paul is a boxer, a venture capitalist, a YouTube celebrity, TikTok personality, social-media influencer and -- now -- co-founder of betr gambling app. Not bad for a kid who grew up in Westlake. We’re talking about what sets betr apart from other mobile sportsbooks on Today in Ohio, cleveland.com’s daily half-hour news podcast. |
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Train derailment: Last week’s East Palestine train derailment released three other hazardous chemicals into the environment besides the vinyl chloride that officials preemptively set afire, according to federal environmental regulators. Jeremy Pelzer reports butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, and ethylene glycol monobutyl either were or continue to be released in the air, soil, and/or surface waters as a result of the derailment, according to a letter sent Friday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to Norfolk Southern, the owner of the railroad operating the derailed train. Ohio presidential candidate? Vivek Ramaswamy, a wealthy entrepreneur from Cincinnati, is putting together what looks like a longshot presidential campaign as he weighs running for the White House next year. Andrew Tobias reports Ramaswamy, who passed on running for an open U.S. Senate seat as a Republican in 2022, had been considered a potential outside-of-the-box challenger to Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown’s 2024 reelection campaign. Reporter arrest: Gov. Mike DeWine has not said he will take any action against the head of the Ohio National Guard for arguing with and pushing a reporter who was arrested at a news conference on the East Palestine train derailment. Jeremy Pelzer reports the governor’s office is “reviewing” the situation. |
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MetroHealth K9: Hope is the first and currently the only police dog in the MetroHealth Police K9 unit, and is in a new dual role of guardian and emotional support animal for the hospital’s daily visitors and staff. Gretchen Cuda Kroen reports Hope already has assisted in one arrest has helped avoid gun violence and de-escalated a conflict in the emergency department. Police discipline: Two Cleveland police chiefs showed signs of improving the way the police department handled discipline for officer misconduct, though the team that monitors the department under a court-enforced police reform says some problems still persist. Adam Ferrise reports the city’s former chief, Calvin Williams, and its current leader, Wayne Drummond, handed down just punishment in nearly all of the sample of 62 cases the monitoring team reviewed. County hires: Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne on Monday announced two new staffing hires to lead his housing and transportation initiatives. Sara Parks Jackson, who previously oversaw housing under the Department of Development, will now head Ronayne’s new, standalone Department of Housing and Community Development, reports Kaitlin Durbin. Annie Pease, who previously handled infrastructure projects for Cleveland, will now serve as Ronayne’s senior adviser for transportation. Superintendent resigns: The Akron Public Schools Board of Education accepted the resignation of Superintendent Christine Fowler Mack, effective March 4, at Monday’s board meeting. Mary Outley will serve as interim superintendent while the district searches for Fowler Mack’s replacement, Megan Becka reports. |
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Taxing bets: Ohioans were introduced to legal sports gambling in January. If their bets are good enough, they’ll be introduced to another new phenomenon next year — paying taxes on their winnings. Sean McDonnell reports that gambling winnings are income and will be taxed at the federal, state and local levels. Baker building: Long-discussed ideas to convert the century-old Baker Building on East Sixth Street in downtown Cleveland into a new hotel could be close to moving foward. Megan Sims reports a limited liability company called 1900 E 6th Street, owner of the building at that address, recently applied for tax increment financing through the city of Cleveland. Kia thefts: Thefts of Kia and Hyundai vehicles are surging, and that has opened the door to a new type of scam: companies claiming that they can track and find your stolen car. Sean McDonnell reports the Better Business Bureau of Greater Cleveland put out a warning after a local woman was scammed. |
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Cleveland police officer: An off-duty Cleveland police officer, accused of causing chaos at a Lakewood July Fourth party when he punched a 15-year-old in the face and waved his city-issued gun around, has been suspended for 20 days without pay. John Tucker reports Michael Glick, a patrol officer, initiated the violent incident and showed “utter disregard for policy,” according to a Feb. 3 letter signed by city Safety Director Karrie Howard. St. Ignatius: St. Ignatius High School closed Monday because of an online threat, reports Molly Walsh. Families received an email from the principal’s office Monday morning that said the school, located in Cleveland's Ohio City neighborhood, received information about “a potential and serious threat to the safety and security of our community.” Bodies in lake: Cleveland Metroparks police officers recovered the bodies of two men in Lake Erie this morning, reports Molly Walsh. Last week, two fishermen from Cleveland went missing following a family gathering Friday. |
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Movie wrapped: If you thought you spotted actors Martin Sheen, Dennis Haysbert or Jon Lovitz around town recently, you probably did, reports Joey Morona. The actors are part of the ensemble cast of “Lost & Found in Cleveland,” an independent film that wrapped up a four-week shoot in and around Cleveland last week. RV Rocking: The Kinzbachs are in the Las Vegas area getting ready to resume traveling this week. They plan to head to Bullhead City, Arizona, and take a side trip to Oatman, Arizona, where wild donkeys roam freely - definitely Old West history. Best cupcakes: Whether from a gourmet bakery or homemade, these tiny versions of a large layer cake add to the fun, nostalgia, or celebration of any occasion. Brenda Cain and Yadi Rodriguez teamed up with Yelp Cleveland to find the best cupcake purveyors in Northeast Ohio. |
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Masked men carjack man at gunpoint outside Akron bar Read more Maple Heights police investigating woman’s ‘suspicious death’ Read more Medina City Council discusses crosswalk safety, light installation Read more Lake Erie Nature & Science Center offers internships and closer contact with the animals Read more |
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