Vulnerable populations Archives - PublicSource | News for a better Pittsburgh

affordable housing

Terri Ward, treasurer of the Bernice Crawley Highrise Tenant Council, reached out to PublicSource about her building's bed bug problems. (Photo by Tom Lisi/PublicSource)

Bed bugs at Glen Hazel senior community stir new resident frustrations

By Tom Lisi | August 12, 2019

There were bed bugs at the Glen Hazel subsidized housing facility, but the two organizations responsible for ongoing renovations gave conflicting accounts on if the infestation halted construction. Some residents reached out to PublicSource about the issue, and they were on the same page. “The contractors aren’t allowed to work in the mess, but we’re allowed to live in the mess,” said Ralphina Coleman, a resident of the Bernice Crawley high-rise in Glen Hazel, a small neighborhood south of Hazelwood. The bed bugs are the latest in a list of frustrations this year that residents felt at the high-rise for seniors and people with disabilities. Michelle Sandidge, chief community affairs officer for the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh [HACP], said no construction stopped at the building.

EDUCATION

Michael, a freshman at Dartmouth College, poses for a portrait at the Hopkins Center for the Arts and Baker Library on the Hanover, N.H., campus. Michael is not using his last name to avoid being identified. (Photo by Robert C Strong II/PublicSource)

Homelessness in college is a problem. And we barely know the scope of it.

By Mary Niederberger | January 26, 2017

The most conclusive data available shows only 58,000 college students out of 19.9 million in 2013 identified as homeless in the United States. There are several reasons to believe that number is vastly underreported.

DATA

There are ways to end the school-to-prison pipeline. Child advocates offer solutions in Pittsburgh.

By Mary Niederberger | October 21, 2016

Child advocates at a Pittsburgh event said arrests of students of color, LGBTQ youth, homeless students and students with disabilities must stop.

DEVELOP PGH

Is it too late for equitable development in some parts of Pittsburgh?

By Eric Holmberg | October 19, 2016

diversity Equitable development is the central theme of this year’s p4 conference, sponsored by the Pittsburgh mayor’s office and The Heinz Endowments. It means as Pittsburgh grows and prospers, every kind of resident — rich/poor, black/white — should equally prosper from that success. The tide lifting all boats.

DATA

The Pittsburgh police force has gone through a ‘rewhitening.’ Find out what the city is doing to recruit minority officers.

By Larissa Dudkiewicz | October 19, 2016

Today, the bureau is predominantly white and male. The agency has struggled for years to become diverse again and mirror the breakdown of the city’s population.

On the beat

Relive the Gwen’s Girls Equity Summit through what was discussed on social media

By Eric Holmberg | October 14, 2016

diversity See what PublicSource and other organizations have been talking about on social media during the Gwen's Girls Equity Summit.

DATA

A story of two girls: Why being black means more scrutiny and punishment in Pittsburgh schools

By | October 13, 2016

Why does Kelis Campbell feel pressure to work twice as hard as so many others? She realized it in the seventh grade. Simple reasons: She is black. And she is a woman. Just basic identity.

DATA

How institutions and society fail Pittsburgh’s black girls

By Jeffrey Benzing | October 13, 2016

Troubling data is revealed in a new report funded by the FISA Foundation and The Heinz Endowments on the unequal struggle facing black girls in the Pittsburgh area.

DATA

The Westinghouse Academy football team cheers for the alumni being honored at the Wall of Fame induction at the high school on Oct. 5. (Photo by Sarah Collins/PublicSource)

Despite challenges, Westinghouse student says, “We will show them…”

By Mary Niederberger | October 12, 2016

The achievement gap between black and white students in Pittsburgh Public Schools remains. What are students and district leadership going to do about it?

FIRST PERSON

How Trump’s barrage against Muslims has affected my family’s life in the Pittsburgh suburbs

By Saima Sitwat | October 11, 2016

A Pittsburgh mother and local Muslim community leader reflects on how the election has affected her life.