In the Loop

Billy McKinney knows all about the joy and frustration that goes with Wildcat basketball. McKinney graduated in 1978 as the all-time leading scorer. But he never got to play post-season ball. McKinney is now Director of Scouting with the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, and he joined Morning Shift along with WBEZ’s Cheryl Raye Stout to talk about the old days and the current crop of players at his alma mater.

Camelot’s schools so far are performing better than those run by the other new operators when it comes to attendance and graduation rates and the rate at which students are earning credits, district data shows. However, Camelot fares slightly worse than those long-time alternative schools run by community organizations.

Camelot Education is a for-profit company that’s earned $50 million dollars from the Chicago Public Schools over the last four years operating so-called “alternative schools.” The six Camelot schools in Chicago cater to dropouts and other students who have fallen through the cracks. As an independent contractor, Camelot has less stringent reporting and oversight than CPS schools. In the past, in other cities, many students and their families have accused Camelot of various forms of abuse.

That was the question CNN recently posed in a powerful video series “The First Time I Realized I Was Black.” Interviewees were asked to think back to the first moment they remember being treated differently because of the way they looked.

WNYC reporter Shumita Basu joins the 'Morning Shift' to break down all the new changes being discussed for the U.S. Census and the motivation behind the changes.

For families and property owners in Englewood the neighborhood is starting to look a lot differently due to an expansion project by a railroad company. Norfolk Southern is using its eminent domain power to take over dozens of homes in a 20-block area in the predominantly African-American neighborhood. The area now looks like a construction zone except for three property owners that are still fighting to keep their land. Morning Shift talks to LaRisa Lynch, reporter for the Chicago Reporter about the remaining property owners and neighborhoods eminent domain typically affects.

Morning Shift talks about the life and career of local author Amy Krouse Rosenthal with Justin Kaufmann, host of The Download on WGN Radio. He started The Writers’ Block Party on WBEZ with Krouse Rosenthal. We also hear from John Green, author of the youth adult novel The Fault In Our Stars. Krouse Rosenthal was his mentor and friend.

An exhibit in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood traces the effect the AIDS epidemic has had on the arts—from subversive representations to loud, explicit works to draw attention to the needs of the community. Many Chicago activists from the gay and lesbian community say artists were crucial in raising awareness and getting much-needed resources. We talk to curator Jonathan David Katz about Art AIDS America’s featured works and why he thinks it’s important to bring this to the public now. 

Author and journalist John Wasik joins Morning Shift to talk about his new book, Lightning Strikes: Timeless Lessons in Creativity from the Life & Work of Nikola Tesla.

Morning Shift wraps up a series on getting your financial house in order with a conversation about home buying.