Regional Features: Archive by Date

September 2000

Racing to Beat the Welfare Clock
Posted Tuesday, September 26
The welfare deadline is fast approaching. On October 1st, thousands of welfare recipients in Ohio will lose their benefits. They are the ones that have been on the public dole for at least three years. Most have already received their last check and a termination letter from the state. Many people are already on the way to becoming self-sufficient, but other barriers, such as not speaking English, are still a major concern. 90.3 WCPN's Tarice Sims reports on how a local Hispanic woman is working to overcome the hurdles in the race to beat the welfare clock.

3-Year Welfare Limit Ready to Expire: The Next Steps For Those About to Leave Welfare
Posted Monday, September 25
In just six days the first in a wave of Ohio's poor will lose their welfare benefits. Reforms enacted in 1997 limit welfare recipients to three years of cash benefits, after which they must find some other means of financial support. Those three years are up October 1st for people who have continually received monthly checks since the law took effect. Some still have no way to replace that lost income. In the first of two reports, 90.3's Bill Rice looks at what the government has in mind for those who still aren't ready for the end of welfare as we know it.

Hispanic Leadership in the Community: New Program Trains Future Latino Leaders
Posted Thursday, September 21
While Hispanic population is growing in Ohio, it hasn't kept pace with representation in state government or decision-making roles among the area's corporations. The city and county of Lorain has the second largest number of Latinos in the state, outside of Cleveland. And their work to become a united political and economic front, while not easy, is beginning to reap some rewards. 90.3's Yolanda Perdomo reports on what some community leaders are doing to have their say when it comes to public policy.

AIDS and the Hispanic Community: Social Stigmas Hurt Those Most In Need of Help
Posted Thursday, September 21
There's a growing problem within Cleveland's Hispanic community. Drug abuse among Latinos has led to an increase in the reported number of AIDS cases. In fact, according to the Cleveland Free Clinic, about 19% of the clients who use the needle exchange program are Hispanic, up 10% from just two years ago. But social stigmas within the community are hurting those that are most in need of help. 90.3's Yolanda Perdomo reports.

Taking Lakefront Development to the Streets: White Administration Begins Holding Public Meetings
Posted Wednesday, September 20
Last night Cleveland Mayor Mike White's administration held a public meeting on its proposed Lakefront Development Project. It was one of five such meetings to be held around the Cleveland metropolitan area this week. About 40 Cleveland residents turned out at the Slovenian National home in the city's St. Clair Superior neighborhood. 90.3's Bill Rice was there and filed this report.

You’re not in Kansas Anymore…
Posted Monday, September 18
In honor of the 2000 Cleveland Air Show, 90.3's April Baer checked out a leisurely way to fly, with Bill and Sandy Cloninger of LTA Aviation. This Chagrin Falls couple has been ballooning for 11 years, ferrying customers from their home to a balloon launch site at the Geauga County fairgrounds in Burton. Listen to the whole story as April leaves the earth and gives us the bird's eye view. Aired September 18, 2000.

Drug-Resistant Bacteria On the Rise: Overuse of Antibiotics In Animals May Be a Cause
Posted Monday, September 18
Scientists are worried that overuse of antibiotics is speeding the development of drug-resistant bacteria, and are calling for more scrutiny of when and how they are used. One target is the livestock industry which routinely administers low levels of antibiotics to hogs, poultry and cattle, a practice deemed by some to be unnecessary. Livestock industry advocates say farmers have already cut back on such usage, but they oppose a bill introduced in Congress that would make such cutbacks mandatory. 90.3's Bill Rice reports.

New Environmental Center Creates Waves:  Oberlin’s Lewis Center Gains International Attention
Posted Friday, September 15
A remarkable new classroom for sustainable living will be dedicated today at Oberlin College. The Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies is much more than an energy-efficient building. Designers say its mission is to change the way we think about our place in the natural world. Already a ripple effect has begun. Just months into its operation, the new building is attracting national and international attention from businesses, architects, and educators - and even the federal government. 90.3's Karen Schaefer reports.

Making Multiple Trips to Juvenile Detention: Does Lack of Structure Hinder Juvenile Reform Process?
Posted Thursday, September 14
The juvenile correctional system in Ohio professes to have a structured environment to help reform youth offenders. But throughout the state a large number of teens aren't being reformed their first time in lock up. Some believe the lack of structure outside those walls causes them to fall again and again. Infohio's Tarice Sims reports.

The Legacy of House Bill 920:  How It Has Affected School Funding
Posted Tuesday, September 12
Ever since the State Supreme Court ruled that Ohio's reliance on property taxes to fund public schools was unconstitutional, lawmakers have struggled to devise a substitute system. Some observers connect this financial dilemma to the legacy of a law created by George Voinovich, back in the mid-1970s. 90.3's David C. Barnett reports that, depending on who you talk to, House Bill 920 is one of the greatest - or the worst - things that ever happened to school funding in Ohio.

Keeping Cleveland’s Neighborhoods Beautiful:  Cleveland Fix-up Fund Help Owners Maintain Their Homes
Posted Friday, September 8
Lately the publicity surrounding the state of housing in Cleveland has been largely negative. Stories of quick-buck property transactions involving dilapidated city houses have raised hackles throughout the city. But housing authorities say recent property-flipping schemes are an aberration, and that the health of Cleveland's real estate climate hasn't suffered from them. Efforts to boost the quality and appearance of Cleveland's neighborhoods are very much alive, in the form of programs designed to help homeowners maintain and improve their homes. One such program, the Cleveland Fix-up Fund, is relatively young, but growing. 90.3's Bill Rice reports.

New Electric Car Helps Save Money at Gas Pump
Posted Thursday, September 7
Gas prices are on the rise again. After a summer of record increases at the pump, state and federal lawmakers are meeting to talk about what can be done. Meanwhile, two Japanese auto makers are done talking and have now introduced a car that would use less gas and more electricity - reducing the need to fill-up. 90.3's Yolanda Perdomo reports this new hybrid is being marketed to young people as the ride of the future.

Financial Woes Trouble Cleveland San Jose Ballet:  Monetary Problems Hinder 25th Anniversary Season
Posted Wednesday, September 6
The Cleveland/San Jose Ballet continues to slip on the red ink of its balance sheet, despite a cost cutting program that has scaled back salary and staff. For the last decade, the company has danced around some deep financial chasms. But now, as the Ballet prepares to celebrate its silver anniversary season, dancers and management are having a hard time finding a silver lining in the dark clouds above them. 90.3's David C. Barnett reports.

Katherine Wright Haskell: The First Lady of Flight
Posted Friday, September 1
Many women have played important roles in the development of aviation. While schoolchildren might recognize the names of Amelia Earhart and Anne Linbergh, others--like Harriet Quimby and Bessie Cochran --are not so familiar. One woman whose accomplishments have been largely forgotten was arguably the most important of all--Katharine Wright, sister of the Wright brothers. 90.3's Karen Schaefer has this report.