Raleigh Breaks Ground on First Permanent Affordable Housing Community

[caption id="attachment_13459" align="alignnone" width="1536"] LeVelle Moton (center) turns dirt on site of future Cottages of Idlewild. (Photo by Greg Childress/NC Newsline)[/caption] BY: Jordan Meadows  Staff Writer On Monday, the Raleigh Area Land Trust (RALT), in partnership with Raleigh Raised Development and the City of Raleigh, officially broke ground on the Cottages of Idlewild, the city's first permanently affordable cottage court community. Located in the historically Black neighborhood of Idlewild-the first

Elizabeth Cotten: Folk And Blues Legend

  By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Elizabeth "Libba" Cotten, born Elizabeth Nevills on January 5, 1893, in Carrboro, North Carolina, emerged as one of the most influential figures in American folk and blues music. A self-taught, left-handed guitarist, Cotten developed a singular playing style by flipping a right-handed guitar upside down, creating a distinctive technique in which her thumb played the melody and her fingers plucked the bass strings. This

Controversial Mixed-Use Development Near Smoky Hollow Approved

[caption id="attachment_13327" align="alignnone" width="1920"] A rendering of the potential redevelopment of Northgate Mall in Durham. Courtesy of Northwood Investors[/caption] By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Last week, Raleigh's Planning Commission unanimously approved a controversial rezoning request that would allow the West at Peace development-a proposed 30-story mixed-use tower near Smoky Hollow-to move forward. The development, backed by Raleigh Development Company, aims to bring over 900 residential units, retail space, restaurants, and

NC Central Univ Unveils State’s First Immersive Nursing Training Room

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer North Carolina Central University's Department of Nursing broke new ground in health education last Thursday, becoming the first university in North Carolina to implement an immersive interactive training room designed to revolutionize how nursing students train for real-world clinical situations. Located on the second floor of the nursing building, the new immersive room transports students into high-stakes medical scenarios, including everything from post-operative complications to

How NC’s School Voucher Program Is Impacting Black Education Access

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer North Carolina has found itself at the center of a fierce national debate over the future use of private school vouchers. A program launched in 2014 to help low-income families access private schooling has now grown into a nearly billion-dollar initiative, driven by aggressive legislative expansion, rising private school tuition, and new opportunities introduced by federal policy. The state's Opportunity Scholarship Program was initially underutilized,

Matthew Henson Was The First Man At The North Pole

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Just outside the nation's capital, in the suburban sprawl of Montgomery County, Maryland, lies a serene 116-acre stretch of forested land named in honor of a man whose legacy was nearly lost to history-Matthew Henson. Matthew Henson State Park Stream Valley Park is threaded with a 4.2-mile paved trail that winds through woodlands and wetlands, with deer, wild turkeys, and birds making frequent appearances. Most

Free Classroom Supplies for Wake County Teachers

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer North Carolina teachers often spend over $900 of their own money on classroom supplies. To help lighten that burden, WakeEd Partnership, an independent nonprofit working to improve public education, created Tools4Schools, a free classroom supply store serving Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) teachers. Since opening in 2022, Tools4Schools has given away more than $1.6 million worth of new school supplies to WCPSS teachers. In

The Woman Who Brought Black Girls Into the Girl Scouts

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Josephine Amanda Groves Holloway, born on March 10, 1898, in Cowpens, South Carolina, was a determined pioneer who worked to ensure African-American girls had a place in the Girl Scouts. The seventh of ten children born to Emma Gray Groves and Methodist minister John Wesley Groves, she was raised in a household that deeply valued education. After completing Brewer Normal School in Beaufort, she followed

One Man, A Thousand Cheers: The Story Of “Big Mike”

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer Mike Whiting, affectionately known across the Triangle as "Big Mike," is more than just a familiar face at Carolina Hurricanes games-he's the heartbeat of the fan experience, a beloved preschool teacher, and a local hero whose impact spans classrooms, arenas, and countless hearts. Raised in Cary, North Carolina, Mike grew up as one of the few Black families in the area, where he developed a

State Audit Finds NC DMV In Crisis

By Jordan Meadows Staff Writer North Carolina's Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is facing a mounting service crisis, according to a performance audit released by State Auditor Dave Boliek on Monday evening. The report, based on visits to DMV offices, staff interviews, and data analysis, found that customer service has significantly worsened in recent years. Average wait times at DMV offices have increased by 15.5% since 2019, with customers now