Journalism

Photo Credit: THINKGlobalSchool

Giving Brightest Kids The “Cram School” Experience, Online

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About 18 months ago, novice entrepreneur Sue Khim flew to San Francisco from her home in Illinois to take part in an uncommonly public version of a Silicon Valley rite of passage — the pitch. With thousands of other young techies in the audience, she was scheduled to be onstage at the Launch Festival, a showcase for “stealth” startups that have managed to keep their products out of the voracious tech press, or have as-yet-unreleased products to announce.

Khim’s presentation knocked it out of the park, bagging $75k for Alltuition, a “Turbo Tax for student loans.”

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(Paul Sableman)

Employing Young People May Prevent Violence, But Where Are the Jobs?

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Summer is here, which means that high school students across the United States are looking for jobs. And as it turns out, there may be an added benefit for them, besides having extra money in their pockets. According to a study conducted by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University employing young people may reduce violence.

Though the sample size is small — only about 400 young people from the Boston area — the study showed that participants committed about 50% less crime when they were enrolled in a job training and violence prevention program. In the initial survey, taken at the beginning of the summer, 15 percent of the young people hired claimed to have been involved in a fight in the last month. At the end of the program, this number reduced to 8 percent.

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(Photo Credit: Gideon Tsang)

A “Piece” Of Mind

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There were times when my main focus was to get a gun just so I could have a twisted version of peace of mind.

Growing up in West Oakland, I’ve witnessed things like people getting beat up for snitching to the authorities, and being paid to commit murders. I’ve even been there when my cousins loaded their guns before going to the grocery store.

I used to feel as if a gun was essential in my everyday life.

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Graphic: Teresa Chin

The Link Between Suspension And Dropout

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I remember the first student I ever suspended. He was 13 years old. It started off as a minimal disruption. He was stealing pencils from other students at his table. That turned into breaking pencils. Then, stealing homework.

I’ve been out of the classroom for three years now, and for the past year, I’ve been following teachers, students and school districts, trying to understand the latest research on school suspension and its effects down the line.

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