Mapping the Triangle's Looming Affordable Housing Crisis

By Jeniece Jamison
Leaders in the Triangle's major cities (Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill) must take steps to ensure that there are enough affordable housing units to accommodate the region's growing population.
Right now, Raleigh, the region's largest city, has about 32,000 affordable housing units for a city of nearly 459,000. Raleigh's city council has stated that they are prioritizing creating more affordable housing in the city. But, two major affordable housing units in the downtown area, Wintershaven and Sir Walter, were sold to private companies who say they won't renew their federal voucher program.

The average price of a home in the city shot up by $38,000 over the course of a decade and 45 percent of Raleigh renters are cost-burdened. The demand for affordable housing is there; about 8,000 people are on the waiting list for public housing and Section 8 vouchers.

Wake County officials have recognized the issue. On the county website, it states that affordable housing is a priority, and commissioners have approved loans for developing affordable housing options designed for the most vulnerable populations.

Examining the impact and environment for social entrepreneurship in Memphis

By Brittney Gathen

A program that started in a Teach for America instructor’s classroom as a way to challenge his students to impact their community, has morphed into a program that includes over 2,000 students from 25 different schools in Memphis.

Hardy Farrow, the founder of LITE (Let’s Innovate through Education) Memphis, established his entrepreneurial-based nonprofit after witnessing the challenging lives his students led.

“I realized that the problems my students faced went beyond the confines of my classroom,” Farrow, a former Power City Academy High teacher, said. “There wasn’t one defining moment. It was more of a gradual process where I observed a lot of the different obstacles that my students faced.”

So, in 2013, he launched LITE as a way to challenge students to dream of innovative ways to change their community through entrepreneurial ideas. LITE aims to help African-American and Latino students close the racial wealth gap by becoming entrepreneurs and securing high-wage jobs. The program tackles the three fundamental challenges to starting a business: experience, networks and skills. LITE uses a multi-year model, where it will work with students from the time they’re 17 up until they turn 25.

Analysis: As Peachtree-Pine shelter closes, what this means for Atlanta’s homeless

By Camile Matthews

Task Force, led by Anita and Jim Beaty, was ordered to vacate the Peachtree-Pine building and turn it over to the defendants, Central Atlanta Progress (CAP) a downtown business association, by Aug. 28 but the shelter will not officially close until December. Task Force received a lump sum of $9.7 million but it is not known what will remain after they pay off liens, legal fees, utility bills and other debts. The settlement does restrict Task Force from opening another shelter within several blocks of the Peachtree-Pine building.

Georgia Humanities president retires after 30 years of public service

By Camile Matthews
Since 1997, Jamil S. Zainaldin has been the executive director and president of Georgia Humanities, the state nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Zainaldin is known for his speeches on the humanities, history and law around the country.

“He is an amazing speaker,” said Arden Williams, a colleague of Zainaldin for the past 10 years. “I have literally seen people brought to tears during his speeches. It is really remarkable how people connect with him. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Latonda Milner has worked with Zainaldin for 18 years at Georgia Humanities.

“Jamil is a rock star in the humanities world,” Milner said. “I remember going to a conference with him and everyone just started bombarding him to say hello. It was overwhelming even for me.”

After serving as the president of the Federation of State Humanities Councils for almost a decade and serving as their executive director three years prior, a frenzied Zainaldin decided to settle down in Georgia.

Manna House founder inspired by friend's struggle

By Shenay Nolan
Kathleen Kruczek-Gathje has always cheered for the underdog. As a third-grade schoolteacher in Knoxville, TN, Kruczek-Gathje’s favorite students were the ones who were often overlooked. She enjoyed every moment of teaching but after moving to Memphis, she retired one-year later.

Yet, she is still doing her part to help others by volunteering 30 hours a week at Manna House. It is a cozy, brick house that sits on Madison Avenue near Sacred Heart Church in Midtown. Those who are less fortunate visit the house to receive coffee, clothing, haircuts, prayer, and many other things.

Kruczek-Gathje has dedicated her life to following the word of God by being selfless and doing all that she can to help those in need. She and her husband, Peter Gathje are the executive directors and founders of Manna House. The two have only been married for a little over a year but they’ve been friends for 17 years.

She opened Manna House in 2005. It was inspired by Kruczek-Gathje’s longtime friend, Sara Simmons, who struggled with health and addiction issues. The two met at Sacred Heart Church and became close friends. Kruczek-Gathje would drop her kids off at school and then pick up Simmons to have breakfast or lunch.

2017 Georgia Governor's Awards

By Camile Matthews
The Governor’s Awards for the Arts and Humanities honor outstanding individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to Georgia’s civic and cultural vitality through excellence and service to the arts and humanities. Presented by the Office of the Governor in partnership with Georgia Council for the Arts and Georgia Humanities, the Governor’s Awards recognize the value of the arts and humanities in the creation of a thriving economy and their contributions to education, innovation, growth and quality of life. The Governor’s Awards pay tribute to the most distinguished citizens and organizations that have demonstrated a lifetime commitment to work in these fields.

2017 recipients of the Governor’s Awards for the Arts and Humanities pictured with Gov. and Mrs. Nathan Deal at the Georgia State Capitol after the awards ceremony.

Memphis faith groups form MICAH to work together towards common goals

By Barbara Kuhn
On the same day that a small crowd of white supremacists staged a widely promoted, but underwhelming, rally in Middle Tennessee, there was a gathering of a different sort in Memphis.

Following in the footsteps of former President Barack Obama, about 100 people from 31 groups were training to be community organizers for MICAH, the Memphis Interfaith Coalition for Action and Hope.

Mary Gonzales of the Gamaliel Foundation demonstrates how
to do a one-on-one interview at a training day held by MICAH. 

MICAH, named for the biblical prophet who decried corruption in the Hebrew Bible, is carefully organizing itself to become a force for good in Memphis. Working with the Gamaliel Foundation, MICAH began about 11 months ago when a small group of local clergy met with representatives of NOAH (Nashville Organized for Action and Hope). NOAH has also been working with Gamaliel, which is also helping groups in Chattanooga and Knoxville organize.

Greater Things Are Still To Be Done

By Kelsey Pierce
It was at Memphis State University that Carolyn Moore learned not everything is black and white and not every question has a right or wrong answer.

One event that is forever ingrained in her memory happened on April 4, 1968. She was a freshman at the time.

Freshmen were not allowed to have a car on campus, so Moore and her roommates took a bus down to Laurelwood Shopping Center. They were in Sears trying on clothes when an announcement came over the intercom that said Martin Luther King Jr. had been shot.

“We looked at each other in concern and thought about how horrible that is,” she said. “And like typical 18 year olds, we kept shopping.”

A short time after, another announcement came over the intercom and said the store would be closing. Moore and her roommates went to the bus stop on Poplar Avenue where all of the buses kept passing them by.

“Finally, a bus driver stopped and informed us that the city was under a curfew and that all transportation had been shut down in the city,” she said. “God worked compassion in the bus driver’s heart and he saw these poor girls scared and confused and so he decided to take us directly to our dorm.”

Art | Race | Violence at Crosstown Arts

By Jamara Haymore
Atop the red spiral staircase at Crosstown Concourse is the Crosstown Arts Gallery. Art in various forms is a social commentary. The Crosstown exhibition Art | Race | Violence: A Collaborative Response is a commentary on race relations today.

The project was conceived to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ell Persons, a  Black man in Memphis who was falsely convicted of assault and publicly murdered by a lynch mob. Visual culture historian Dr. Earnestine Jenkins and artist Richard Lou organized the exhibition in collaboration with Crosstown Arts. In it, "local artists explore the intersections of race and systemic violence through the lens of cultural expression."

The exhibition features the work of seventeen artists, ranging from participatory art to video installments. The opening reception also featured spoken word performances. There will be two "Artists + Community Conversations"  as well as a panel discussion. For more information click here.

Art | Race | Violence: A Collaborative Response is showing until January 14, 2018. Gallery Hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 am - 8 pm; Saturday, 10 am - 6 pm; and Sunday noon - 6 pm.

"Humble servant" striving to help others: Linda Hall speaks about role as U of M's dean of multicultural affairs

By Brittney Gathen

Photo credit: Brittney Gathen

After a long day of working as the University of Memphis’s associate dean of multicultural affairs, a tired Linda Hall arrived home and flipped through the fall 2017 edition of The University of Memphis Magazine. What she saw inside reenergized her.   Throughout the issue, there were students with whom she’d crossed paths.

“I had never felt so blessed in my life—to see that book just filled with people that I knew personally, not just people that I knew on the surface, but have had personal contact with (and) students that have participated in the office (The Office of Multicultural Affairs) in some manner,” Hall said.

What particularly touched her was a column written by Dr. Houston Davis, a U of M alumnus who is the president of the University of Central Arkansas. In his column, Davis specifically mentioned Hall as one of the people who’d impacted his life during his time at the U of M. Davis wrote, “I benefited from working in President Lane Rawlins’ office, which led to valuable time with other meaningful relationships with folks like Dean Authur Holmon, Dr. Bill Akey, Dr. Gene Smith, Linda Hall and many others. I hear all of their voices daily and owe them so much gratitude.”