Maya Lora

School spirit(s): Inside the ghost archives at UMBC UMBC has one of the world’s largest parapsychology collections, including ghostly items such as seance photos and notes supposedly scrawled by spirits.

Take a peek inside UMBC's Garrett collection, one of the world’s largest archives devoted to the study of hauntings, poltergeists, out-of-body experiences and seances. Happy spooooooky season, Maryland:
www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

Baltimore County’s police chief is on a list of cops with credibility concerns Robert McCullough, the Baltimore County Police Department chief, appears on a list of law enforcement officers whose potential credibility concerns require disclosure to defense attorneys if they’re c...

NEW: A few weeks ago, @muckrock.com
shared the Brady list for Baltimore County. Scanning it, I noticed the police chief was on there. I then spent weeks trying to figure out why. But no one — not the state's attorney, nor the police department — is explaining it. www.thebanner.com/community/cr...

The housing hustle igniting a foreclosure crisis in Baltimore The foreclosures could send neighborhoods spiraling and make Baltimore America’s next great housing crisis.

The players at the center of the crisis are out-of-towners — a group of investors from a small community in New York.

@halliemiller.bsky.social , Sahana Jayaraman and Giacomo Bologna on how Baltimore's problem could be the start of something larger.

www.thebanner.com/community/ho...

NEW INVESTIGATION:

Investors have spent years falling in love with the 'debt service coverage ratio' loan.

The loans have allowed access to vast sums with few conditions, and now make up 40% of mortgage dollars in Baltimore.

Now they're going bad.

(Story below ⬇️)

State extends the child care scholarship freeze indefinitely The state projected getting back down to 40,000 child care scholarships by September. But the program is still thousands of vouchers over budget.

The child care scholarship is the main way Maryland families get help with child care. Since many can't afford it otherwise, day cares and preschools rely on vouchers to fill spots. So what happens when the program gets frozen - and doesn't come back when predicted? www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

Hear ye, hear ye: The do’s and don’ts of Renn Fest With just a few weekends left in this year’s season, here are tips and suggestions to get the most out of Renn Fest.

Hear ye, hear ye: The do’s and don’ts of Renn Fest

Baltimore Co. school officials haven't said which positions were eliminated Baltimore County Public Schools cut more than 400 positions last school year, with most coming from inside the schools. But the system has offered few specifics.

Overall, 438.9 positions were eliminated to save millions, school officials reported. Just over 300 of those positions came from inside schools.
www.thebanner.com/education/k-...

Morgan State marshal, alumni and dean was the epitome of the university Clayton Creswell Stansbury Jr. was once Morgan State’s director of student affairs, head of the honors program and its longest-serving marshal.

I wrote my first ever obituary this week, about a Morgan State professor and former dean who truly transformed the lives of those he taught.

"Clayton Creswell Stansbury Jr. was the epitome of Morgan State University"

www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

Morgan State marshal, alumni and dean was the epitome of the university Clayton Creswell Stansbury Jr. was once Morgan State’s director of student affairs, head of the honors program and its longest-serving marshal.

Clayton Creswell Stansbury Jr. was the epitome of Morgan State University

Hi, thanks for reading! Early Head Start is for babies starting at 6 weeks old. While I definitely don't disagree parents deserve time at home with their newborns, not everyone's job offers such paid leave, and some parents are back at work within that 2-month window.

Early Head Start brings free child care to Howard County Early Head Start provides free early learning for low-income kids starting as young as 6 weeks old. It’s a lifeline for some families in Howard County.

You've probably heard of Head Start, the federally funded, free early childhood ed program a lot of people worry might be going away soon. But Howard County is forging ahead - and extending seats to babies as young as 6 weeks old www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

What is the University Boulevard Corridor Plan? The University Boulevard Corridor Plan’s supporters point out that the county is suffering from a severe housing shortage and argue that the plan will help put more homes on the market along transit l...

ICYMI: People with a variety of views have a LOT to say about the University Boulevard Corridor plan in Montgomery County, which aims to increase transit-oriented housing and safer transit pathways. Here, I lay out the facts and attempt to dispel some myths: www.thebanner.com/community/lo...

Second Chance’s fight with the IRS brought scrutiny to donors In a new court filing, an appraiser for Second Chance says the IRS is waging a “scorched earth assault” on the Baltimore-based nonprofit that sells secondhand furniture and building supplies.

NEW: The IRS has scrutinized Baltimore nonprofit Second Chance, its appraiser and donors for years. Donors have been writing off their entire homes, rather than just salvaged materials. Tax guys say, uh, no.
Read @lillianreed.bsky.social in @thebaltimorebanner.com
www.thebanner.com/economy/seco...

‘Crippling’ federal cuts could prompt layoffs at Maryland's public universities In the last two years, the state has cut the public university system‘s budget by $233 million. The sharp cuts have been exacerbated by the Trump administration’s reductions in federal grants, financi...

Today in Maryland higher ed news: The University System of Maryland Chancellor spoke about the "crippling" federal + state cuts the USM has faced, while the president of Johns Hopkins University announced their hiring freeze is continuing. Read:
www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

With the loss of Blue Ribbon program, Maryland school leaders are on their own To “return education to the states,” the U.S. Department of Education ended the national Blue Ribbon program. Maryland education leaders need to find a new way to honor their shining schools.

The national Blue Ribbon program has come to an end. @mayaklora.bsky.social wrote about what Maryland educators had to say about it.
www.thebanner.com/education/k-...

I drove three hours from Baltimore to Buc-ee's. It was so worth it. People from the Baltimore area are traveling hours just to visit the new Buc-ee's in Virginia. The Texas-born gas station has a cult following, and Baltimoreans can get in on the craze.

My pilgrimage from Baltimore to Buc-ee’s

Madeleine O’Neill Freelance criminal justice reporter in Baltimore

I'm so excited to share my new freelancing website, madeleineoneill.com! If you're looking for a Baltimore-based writer for courts/criminal justice/legal coverage, features, editing, or help locating public records, I'm your girl.

📸 by the incredible @jessicagallagher.bsky.social!

Johns Hopkins says it won't be returning to UnitedHealthcare’s network Johns Hopkins Medicine officials say they have ended negotiations with the insurance giant UnitedHealthcare, leaving its doctors and hospitals out of network for some 60,000 patients.

My dad, who had a heart transplant this summer, is on United Healthcare. I recently found my neighbor weeping in her car because she wasn't sure how she would pay for cancer treatments at Hopkins.

This is absolutely terrible, and it punishes patients most of all: www.thebanner.com/community/pu...

The pandemic babies are off to pre-K and kindergarten In a major pandemic milestone, the babies born during the early days of COVID-19 are finally old enough to start school.

It's been over five years since the onset of COVID-19, which means the babies born into the pandemic are off to pre-K 4 and kindergarten. How exactly can teachers support these kiddos, who spent their earliest years in isolation? I dug into it: www.thebanner.com/education/ea...

Maryland professors were targeted by Charlie Kirk. Now what? After Charlie Kirk was assassinated on Wednesday, some of his professor targets in Maryland worry for their own safety and feel anxious about the climate of distrust he sowed among young people.

More than two dozen Maryland professors were placed on Charlie Kirk’s professor watchlist. Some now worry about their own safety now that Kirk is dead. Others are grappling with how to mourn someone that caused trauma in their own lives. Read:
www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

Program for thousands of Maryland's students on the chopping block The Trump administration in its proposal called TRIO a “relic of the past,” adding “access to college is not the obstacle it was for students of limited means.”

NEW: The Trump administration is proposing cutting all funding for TRIO, a set of programs that helps low-income, first-generation students attend college. More than 12,000 Marylanders relied on the program last year. Here’s the potential impact:
www.thebanner.com/education/hi...

IT'S CENSUS DAY at @thebaltimorebanner.com!

The release of new 1-year ACS data told us a lot about the changing demographics and living experiences of counties across the country.

Here's what we learned about Maryland:

Facing headwinds, St. John’s College sticks with Great Books in age of AI St. John's College in Annapolis quaintly calls its professors “tutors” who guide small groups of undergraduates through vigorous examinations of the so-called Great Books of literature, science and...

As universities embrace AI, St. John’s College backs books. Is it enough?

Is Maryland’s Freedom to Read Act working? It didn’t stop a Harford book ban. A book ban in Harford County Public Schools was the Baltimore area’s first test of Maryland's Freedom to Read Act.

Is Maryland’s Freedom to Read Act working? It didn’t stop a Harford book ban.

Some say this nun created a ‘climate of fear.’ The archdiocese elevated her. The Archdiocese of Baltimore's newest superintendent has faced years of controversy and complaints over her leadership.

Really great, contextual reporting from @mayaklora.bsky.social here—

Some say this nun created a ‘climate of fear.’ The archdiocese elevated her. The Archdiocese of Baltimore's newest superintendent has faced years of controversy and complaints over her leadership.

By @mayaklora.bsky.social: Some say this nun created a ‘climate of fear.’ The archdiocese elevated her. (via @thebaltimorebanner.com)

Moore makes it official: Governor is running for reelection Maryland Gov. Wes Moore launched his re-election campaign on Tuesday with a video posted online highlighting his accomplishments and promising to do more.

Moore makes it official: Governor is running for reelection

Some say this nun created a ‘climate of fear.’ The archdiocese elevated her. The Archdiocese of Baltimore's newest superintendent has faced years of controversy and complaints over her leadership.

Some say this nun created a ‘climate of fear.’ The archdiocese elevated her.

Julius Warren Jr. ran a century-old Columbia barbershop before his death Julius Warren Jr., who owned what is believed to be the first Black-owned barbershop in Howard County, dies at 87

Julius Warren Jr., Black-owned barbershop owner, was an institution in Howard County

Dozens of abandoned rabbits get care at bunny rescue based at Columbia home Friends of Rabbits, a large animal rescue, recently took in 60 abandoned bunnies from a farm. Many of the bunnies gave birth.

a comfort read for your Thursday