Jody DiPerna When we started talking about forming the Pittsburgh Institute for Nonprofit Journalism in March of 2020, we did not know how the readers would respond or how sustainable it would be, but we…
Rushdie and Free Speech, from Tehran to Pittsburgh
by Jody DiPerna, Belt Magazine Literature isn’t just under attack in Iran, China, or El Salvador Since the attempted assassination of the Anglo-Indian author Salman Rushdie as he prepared to speak at the Chautauqua Institution…
Report: U.S. government failed to properly count deaths…
The Dept of Justice failed to enforce the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2013, which requires states that receive federal funding to report prison and jail deaths to the agency by Ariana Figueroa, Pennsylvania Capital-Star…
In debt and underfunded, Pa.’s student debt crisis…
by John L. Micek, Pennsylvania Capital-Star President Joe Biden’s announcement last month that the administration will forgive some of the student loan debt carried by millions of current and former federal borrowers provoked fresh debate over the spiraling…
City of Asylum’s second annual international LitFest is…
by Jody DiPerna By showcasing international writing and literature in translation, LitFest 2022 creates bridges in our turbulent times. Featuring writers from Europe, Africa, and Central America, as well as international illustrators, translators and a…
Doralee Brooks Opens Up About Poetry, Education and…
by Jody DiPerna Life-long educator and poet Doralee Brooks named new Poet Laureate for Allegheny County. Doralee Brooks, the new poet Laureate for Allegheny County, wants to highlight and spotlight poetry's intersections with other art…
Mastriano’s education funding plan would devastate Pa.’s public…
by Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-Star Friday night lights going dark across Pennsylvania would be but one of the more visible impacts of Doug Mastriano’s public school funding plan, education advocates say. A projection of school…
Allegheny County announces contract for ‘historical review of…
By Brittany Hailer Ronald James Andrus, 78, died in the Allegheny County Jail Sunday. Andrus was being held on a probation violation at the facility since mid-July, according to an email Warden Orlando Harper sent…
Kindergarten camps aim to fill in social and…
Important learning time has been lost in kindergarten as teachers had to work with students who were not used to the routines of school By Mary Niederberger The start of the new school year was…