Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

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  • This revolutionary housing reform bill out of Portland would bring relief to tons of Philadelphians

    Jessica Blatt Press

    September 16, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Portland, Oregon

    Portland's new policy allowing for multi-family homes resulted from a long campaign of coalition building to address a need for middle-income housing that often gets overlooked in many cities. Although the Residential Infill Project will not take effect until August 2021, its enactment offers cities like Philadelphia lessons in strategic policymaking that overcomes entrenched views at opposite ends of the income and class spectrum, from property owners concerned about declining home values and advocates for low-income housing concerned about gentrification.

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  • Put the Students in Charge

    Jessica Blatt Press

    September 14, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Students at two Philadelphia schools are getting to know the ins-and-outs of the democratic system by actively participating in the operations of their schools. Students at Philly Free School meet weekly with faculty and staff where they help decide how to spend the school's money, if popcorn should be banned and who should be hired. At Revolution School, students helped decide what fall reopening plans would look like.

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  • Mental health training for cops is working in Tucson. Can we bring it to Philly?

    Jessica Blatt Press

    August 10, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Tucson, Arizona

    Tuscon police use a combination of training and expanded resources to resolve mental health crises by putting people in the hands of mental health professionals, an approach that in 2019 diverted nearly 4,400 cases away from arrests and jail. All police officers take a required 12-hour mental health first aid class, and most go through another 40-hour crisis intervention training. A specialized team gets more extensive training to handle court-ordered interventions, emphasizing patience and humane treatment. A 24/7 Crisis Response Center serves as an intake desk to decide what help people in crisis need.

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  • What Philly can learn about smarter policing from Volusia County, Florida Audio icon

    Jessica Blatt Press

    July 15, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    1500-3000 Words

    Response Location: United States, Daytona Beach, Florida

    Since he took over the Volusia County, Florida, Sheriff's Office in 2016, Philadelphia police veteran Mike Chitwood changed many of his department's personnel and put the entire 1,000-employee department through de-escalation training. By 2019, the reforms were credited with cutting deputies' use of force in half, all while crime dropped by 40% and arrests by 30%. A core piece of the training, inspired by Scottish police, is the Police Executive Research Forum's ICAT program, which emphasizes critical thinking and communication skills over the threat of deadly force.

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  • Mosaic Development Partners works to bring people of color into the real estate market

    Jessica Blatt Press

    July 08, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Mosaic Development Partners (MDP) seeks to create wealth for the black community in Philadelphia by providing affordable housing and creating opportunities in neighborhoods that are considered risky investments for typical real estate companies. The black-owned company has created housing as well as retail opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses who historically have a harder time accessing capital and loans. The company is mission-driven but operates on a for-profit model, finding economic solutions for systemic problems that have kept black communities from creating generational wealth.

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  • PowerCorpsPHL trains Philly youth for careers that have a future

    Jessica Blatt Press

    February 12, 2020 |

    The Philadelphia Citizen |

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    800-1500 Words

    Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    A workforce development initiative, PowerCorpsPHL, pays participants to learn skills and gain hands-on experience for jobs that offer long-term career opportunity in the field of environmental sustainability. Participants generally have criminal records or have been in the foster care system. In addition to job training and education, PowerCorpsPHL also provides services such as mental health counseling, securing childcare, navigating SNAP and AmeriCorps tuition benefits and helping with paperwork. The program helps 92 percent of participants secure either a job or post-secondary education.

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