(bright techno music) - Coming up next on NewsDepth: parts of the Midwest faced life-threatening floods; thousands of federal employees have been laid off, including national parks' employees; we visit some historically black schools in Ohio and on TikTok; and we learn about Black-owned publications amplifying community storytelling.

NewsDepth is now.

(bright techno music) Severe weather across the country last week brought flooding, tornadoes, and snow.

Hello everybody, I'm Gabriel Kramer.

Thank you for joining us.

In Southern California, heavy rains caused dangerous mudslides, especially in areas impacted by the January wildfires, while parts of the Midwest faced life-threatening floods.

The mayor of a Kentucky city says his community faced the largest flood last week since 1984 after the North Fork Kentucky River crested at 30 and a half feet.

When a river crests, it means the river has reached its highest water level.

More than 100 water rescues were conducted with the help of fire and police departments.

Amelia Lee reports.

- [Amelia] Mayor Happy Mobelini says the North Fork Kentucky River crested at 30 and a half feet overnight Saturday into Sunday.

- Which is the largest flood we've had since 1984.

So, you know, we had warning that we were gonna be flooded.

We just didn't know it was gonna be this extensive.

- [Amelia] He says this flood is bigger than past floods since it covered parts all throughout Perry County.

- In 2022, it was awful, but it only covered part of the county and this town.

This one covers the entire county.

- [Amelia] With more than 100 water rescues taking place with the help of fire and police departments, Perry County Emergency Management director Jerry Stacy says if you are in a life-threatening emergency situation, to call 911.

- We're still focused on making sure that, you know, we're getting people out of harm's way.

That's our main focus at this moment.

- [Amelia] Mayor Mobelini says the water plant is up and running, but if folks do not have water, there is a solution.

- The areas that will, that does have issues we will be putting, hopefully by tomorrow, we'll be doing water drops in those areas.

- [Amelia] Stacy says he understands that folks are worried.

He says the priority of city and county officials is to always be there for the people who live here.

- We know how this is another catastrophic event for our county.

It just is, and there is no quick fixes to any situation that we're gonna have.

We will work tirelessly around the clock to meet every need that we possibly can for the citizens of this city and county.

- [Amelia] With a continued sense of resiliency throughout eastern Kentucky.

- We're strong and we're fighters, and we'll get through this just like we did in 2022.

- Thank you, Amelia.

On a brighter note, the gloomy days of winter also bring back winter sports.

What do you get when you combine horseback riding and skiing?

You get the extreme winter sport known as skijoring, where skiers are pulled by horses.

Steve Dent has more from an event in Idaho.

- [Announcer] This is Vanessa riding Black Sean out of Swan Valley.

- [Steve] In skijoring, a skier gets pulled through a course by a rider on horseback at speeds up to 35 miles per hour.

It's just fast skis and fast horses and having a great time.

I don't think I've been a part of a sport that have this much camaraderie.

- [Steve] McKinley Keener came from Boise to compete with his girlfriend, Caroline and her horse, Tarzan.

(rider yelling) - [Announcer] Oh, and we wiped out.

- [Steve] Despite wiping out at the end of their run in the novice division, this pair hope to take home the buckle in the couples division as they love skijoring.

- Oh, it's a blast, we love it.

We actually met here last year at this race, and she was just watching, I was competing.

We ended up meeting and getting together and said, "Let's race this year."

And that's what we're doing.

- [Steve] To win, skijoring teams have to be fast, but just as important is navigating between the gates and snagging as many rings as possible.

Even the horseback rider needs to grab one.

- Yeah, the ring for me is probably the scariest part.

- [Steve] Skijoring also provides a fun way for cowboys and cowgirls to get their horses out in winter and let them run.

- [Caroline] Yeah, he loves it.

Yeah, he does.

- [Announcer] That's a good fast time.

- [Steve] Extreme skijoring in the Wood River Valley had a record 135 teams in multiple divisions with $10,000 up for grabs, and it's a crowd favorite.

(crowd cheering) Skijoring combines two distinct parts of Western culture, but they couldn't be more different and it comes together in a magical way (crowd cheering) because the skier's speed depends on horsepower and the riders only do well if their skier can hold on.

- [Announcer] We got a wipe out.

- It's unmatched.

I mean, you see some of these amazing horses and they're having the times of their lives getting to run flat out as fast as they can go and they love it, and that makes us skiers love it even more.

- Probably the best sport.

I think they've come up with skiers and I guess ski bums and cowboys get together and make a sport.

- Thanks, Steve.

I think that's a little bit too extreme for me.

I bet News Hound couldn't even pull me through the snow anyway.

But what about you?

Would you ever try the extreme sport of skijoring?

Jump over to our poll page to vote.

You can choose between: no, it seems a little scary, or yes, I love trying out new sports.

Last week, we learned about some change that might come to our pockets.

The US Mint might stop making new pennies and we wanted to know what do you think?

Should the United States get rid of pennies?

81% of you said that you would rather keep the pennies.

Another 19% of you think we should phase them out.

Thank you all for voting.

Let's get back to the news.

The Trump administration laid off more than 10,000 federal workers across various agencies as part of a large-scale reduction in government employment.

To be laid off means to be terminated from a job.

The federal agencies affected include the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Internal Revenue Service, also known as the IRS, and the National Park Service, among others.

The mandated job cuts at a popular national park in Utah caused a crisis during the latest holiday weekend.

After 100 people saw their jobs eliminated, that left a very small staff to man the booths at the park's entrance.

Chris Reed reports.

- In my mind, it's a crisis.

- That crisis less staffing for the busy season of Zion.

100 people were offered seasonal jobs, but now all those offers have been rescinded.

Cut in the last few days by the Trump administration has reduced the park's manpower.

Even though it's President's Day, this is normally the off-season for Zion National Park.

Maybe one or two cars backed up to get in, but that's obviously not the case here today.

The reason why there is a backup is because there's only one or two people manning the booths to enter the park.

- It really affects Springdale a lot because even on a not so busy day, we get backups through town that makes it impossible for people who live along the route to the park to get home.

- [Chris] Barbara Bruno's the mayor of Springdale, a town of about 600 people just outside the south entrance to the Zion National Park.

Seasonable employees and other hires normally double the park's work force for the busy season.

This year, the park will get by with a smaller staff than they had in the winter.

- And if it's the employees that are gone, I'm not sure how the park could stay open.

It would be chaos in there.

- [Chris] Last year, Zion had 90% more visitors than 10 years ago with 11% less staff.

- I don't believe that this park was overstaffed.

In fact, it's been understaffed.

- [Chris] The mayor and Zion's superintendent say main priority's been visitor and employee safety as well as parking.

The park shuttle won't be affected as they're with an outside contractor.

Victor Caraso visiting from Los Angeles with his kids, was going car to car in the queue leading into the park trying to sell his day pass.

He and his kids had less use for it after many services were closed up.

- Oh, we literally had an experience for like 10 options.

We only did like four.

I mean you can still have a good time, especially that bridge, but other than that, you're cutting it short.

- [Chris] Mayor Bruno said visitors will still come, but she wonders if the experience will be the same.

- I mean the park needed more funding anyway.

There's a lot of deferred maintenance that hasn't been done.

It's the second most visited park in the country, and if that's not worth preserving and throwing some money out, I'm not sure what is.

- Thanks for the report, Chris.

You know what that means.

Class is about to start, but this time attendance is taken on TikTok.

One professor at an HBCU in Greensboro, North Carolina is now a viral sensation.

HBCUs are the Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

The institutions that carry this honorable title are those that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and were created to particularly help historically disenfranchised Black students.

But the TikTok community took a single video meant for college students, and created a nationwide movement, HillmanTok University.

Kara Peters sat down with the professor about her new digital classroom.

- Hello everyone and welcome to Introduction to African-American Studies for the spring semester.

My name is Dr. Leah Barlow.

- [Kara] Class is in session with just one swipe.

It started with this video Assistant Professor Dr. Leah Barlow posted on January 20th.

It was intended for her in-person African-American Studies class of 33 North Carolina A&T students.

That same video, now reaching nearly 800,000 likes, 4.4 million views, and counting.

- I look and I see, like, oh, something big is going on.

Still wasn't registering what exactly was happening.

- [Kara] Soon, users across TikTok wanted to learn more about the class, asking how to enroll and when is homework due.

- Hopefully, you got the list of what the readings will look like, and then we'll go from there.

All right, let's see what happens.

- [Kara] This eventually piquing the interest of other professors and teachers across the country to hop on the trend, which is now known as HillmanTok, a movement crafted from Hillman University, the fictional HBCU from hit 1980s TV series, "A Different World."

- For me, as someone who works at a real-life Hillman, so to speak, right, in North Carolina A&T, to sort of see HBCUs on the map in very important ways and really at the helm of digital humanities, right, and so it's exciting to see that happen.

- [Kara] From knitting to financial literacy, students from around the country and world can enroll in a class on TikTok, something Dr. Barlow says, redefines how we think and learn.

- What I really see is that it's even bigger than HillmanTok.

I see access to education.

I see the ability for people to get online and maybe take a class that they wouldn't or couldn't take for whatever reasons.

And so it's really exciting to see that go in that direction.

- [Kara] And as for the future of HillmanTok University, it's a good idea to join a class now while you still have time.

- I decided that I should write a book about this, and so I think I'm going to continue doing it at least for the semester, see how it goes.

- Thank you, Kara.

I've actually learned quite a bit myself through HillmanTok.

Well, since class is in session, how about a pop quiz?

How many HBCUs are there in Ohio?

The answer, two.

In this week's Know Ohio, Mary shares the importance of these institutions and why they are a point of pride for the African-American community.

(bright techno music) - Can you imagine someone telling you you can't go to a school just because of the way you look?

And I'm not talking about a dress code violation.

Before 1960, the United States was a very different place for African Americans.

In some parts of the country, they were segregated.

That means they were barred from many public spaces.

Movie theaters, restaurants, and buses all had separate areas for Black people and white people.

And they even had separate schools.

In many southern states, African Americans were forced into separate schools until high school.

And higher education was mostly off limits.

Some colleges and universities barred African Americans outright.

Others just made life very difficult for them.

Here in Ohio, some of our colleges were welcoming to all students.

In fact, Oberlin College was one of the first colleges in the country to educate Black students and women.

But getting a higher education, even in a desegregated state like Ohio, was often tricky for Black students.

For instance, although Ohio State graduated its first African American student all the way back in 1892, Black students were not allowed to live on campus until the 1940s.

And finding housing off campus was often impossible due to racism.

It's for these reasons that schools dedicated to educating African Americans were created.

The first Historically Black Colleges were established in Pennsylvania, but very soon afterward, in 1856, Ohio's first Black college was founded.

Wilberforce University was established in Xenia through a partnership of two churches, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and a mostly white church from Cincinnati.

Its first board of directors included several notable Black ministers, along with then Ohio Governor Salmon P. Chase.

The university is named after William Wilberforce, a British leader of the movement to abolish slavery.

Many of its first students were free slaves from the south seeking a better life in Ohio.

They took classes in teaching, law, and religious studies.

During the Civil War, the school was purchased by the African Methodist Episcopal Church, making it the first private Black college and the first to be owned and operated by African Americans.

In 1888, the state of Ohio recognized how important the school was and funded a sister school, Central State University to teach skills related to industry, like manufacturing.

Both Central State University and Wilberforce have educated generations of leaders, men and women who went on to become teachers, ministers, doctors, politicians, and entrepreneurs.

And the schools continue their mission of educating students regardless of race, because although they were created specifically to educate Black students, they admit students of all races.

Outside of Ohio, there are over 100 of these schools still in existence.

These Historically Black Colleges and Universities hold a special place in American history, and are a great source of pride for African Americans.

- Thank you, Mary.

The Whitney Library in Nevada is led by two Black men, Allen and Desmond, who are proud to serve as librarians in a field where Black male representation is rare, making up less than half a percent of US librarians.

Their mission goes beyond managing books.

It's about community leadership, providing role models.

Reporter Andryanna Sheppard talks to the librarians about how they encourage more Black men to pursue this career.

- [Andryanna] The Whitney Library has everything you'd expect to see in a library, like books and a bunch of tables and chairs.

But at the helm are two Black men proud to call themselves librarians, Billy Allen and Desmond London.

- I think a lot of times when we talk about representation, people talk about DEI and all this stuff.

This is really how you practice it where people in the community can be able to have access to a leader like me and Desmond.

- For me, when young Black men come in, I get to slap they hand and just talk to them in a way that they understand and can vibe with, that's everything to me 'cause that's something that I didn't see much coming up.

- [Andryanna] Allen says the duo help make up the less than half a percent of Black male librarians in the US.

- It's important to see someone of color, someone that looked like you holding a book.

And this is where me and Desmond come into play where, you know, we got the books, we got the access, where you can see me reading.

You know, I feel like we also are in that safe space where if you're not getting it at home, you can get the inspiration when you come into the library.

- Would you consider this your mission?

- Absolutely.

Because it's about the people, serving the people, giving back, and it truly fills my cup.

- [Andryanna] Making them not just librarians, but community leaders.

- You're connecting to the grassroots of how people are (indistinct).

- It's serving people where they're at, meeting people where they're at.

And it like really blows our mind that we're the managers and it's like, you can do this, too.

I'm no different from you.

And I think that's the story that we want to inspire more Billy Allens, more Desmond Londons to become Black male librarians.

- Thank you, Andryanna.

Fewer people in Iowa are turning to newspapers and magazines for their information.

But Black-owned publications in the state are generating a lot of interest.

Jodi Long has more.

- [Jodi] Every month, Dwana Bradley spends hours tucked away in this makeshift office at her church, focusing on editing and proofreading a magazine she didn't even want to write.

- And he was like, "No, you really should do it."

He was like, "It's different."

- I was like, "I don't know."

- [Jodi] The idea wasn't hers to begin with.

It was her dad's, and he knows a thing or two about publishing print.

- So at one point, he had the largest kind of publication this side of the Mississippi, and I remember being eight and nine going with him in the middle of the night 'cause he had to meet the printing deadline.

It's really cool to see.

- [Jodi] Now, 10 years and 120 editions later, the pages keep turning.

The Des Moines Urban Experience Magazine embodies community.

- It was made out of just wanting us to have representation and we've held true to that for the last 10 years.

- [Jodi] You might not recognize the faces on the cover.

- We don't cover kind of those mainstream stories that you will see hits the news.

- [Jodi] That's exactly why they're there.

- Every year I ask myself, do I wanna keep doing this?

And I'm like, this is more important now than ever because we're living in a time where we're feeling like our voice is being taken away.

- [Jodi] Dwana's free magazine is amplifying that voice and it has company on the news stand.

- So for me, this isn't about competition.

(machine whirring) - So, the more that I go around the state, the more I meet people, the more great stories emerge.

- [Jodi] Black Iowa News now reaches statewide all because its founder is all gas, no breaks.

So you were literally getting in your car and driving around the state of Iowa.

- My husband and I, yeah, we've done it now, I don't know, five or six times.

Yeah, it's great.

- [Jodi] Dana James says the journey to owning her own newspaper came after working at the state's largest print publication, feeling like perspectives were missing.

- I've talked about this a lot.

Reporters having to be told to include a person of color in their stories because it didn't come naturally.

- [Jodi] Now controlling the narrative and delivering her newspaper by hand is more personal.

- People were affected.

Some people teared up.

Some people clutch the paper to them.

And so, that enthusiasm, I've never lost that.

It continues to be critically important, but also just a dream come true.

- [Dwana] We've done that many stories.

- [Jodi] Both women have dreams of adding more writers, more readers, and more subscribers, a dream not wrapped up in the stats, but in the stories they're choosing to tell, like a nudge from a loving parent.

- This is really kind of like me saying like, "Look, your idea worked and this is where we're at now."

- [Jodi] Honoring culture that cannot be erased.

- And that brings us to our writing assignment for the week.

We would like you to write an article for a magazine about your community.

As a professional journalist myself, here's a few writing tips.

Choose a clear topic that interests you.

Craft a strong lead that will grab the audience's attention.

Try to use simple and clear language and always remember to edit and proofread your work.

Consider asking a friend, a parent, or a teacher to review your writing.

After you've written that killer article, you can share it with us by using our inbox form online, or by sending us an email to newsdepth@ideastream.org.

And here's another tip: people like it when the article has pictures, so they can see what they're reading about.

So you can add a picture or two to support your work.

Last week, we learned about a stomach turning discovery: fossilized vomit from a Cretaceous-era creature living more than 66 million years ago, and we wanted to hear your theories about what made that dinosaur sick.

(object thuds) Isabelle from Westlake Elementary in Westlake has some good advice for our Dino friend.

"Dear NewsDepth, first gross, but also cool.

Well, back then, carnivores didn't have much other to eat than smaller Dinos, but I think Fred, that's what I named the dinosaur, ate a little too much and he might have had a little food poisoning or something like that.

But overall, I think Fred needs to watch his diet up there."

Michael, from Applewood Elementary School in Brunswick, that's where my niece Rosella goes to school.

Michael thinks there was something in the atmosphere that made them sick.

"Dear NewsDepth, my theory for how that creature got sick is maybe an asteroid or meteorite hit the Earth and caused immense dust, making the creature sick.

PS, News Hound's story was awesome."

Now, Emmalynn from Botkins Elementary in Botkins wrote to say that this cold weather can make anyone sick.

"Dear NewsDepth, I think the dinosaur got sick because of how cold it is outside.

It is really cold and snowy, so he got sick from playing with his friends."

Joao from Copley Fairlawn Middle School in Copley has a theory that more than one dinosaur could have been sick.

"Dear NewsDepth, I think the dinosaur got sick because of a bacterial infection.

The dinosaur may have eaten another dinosaur that was already sick because if you eat a sick animal, you can get sick."

And Samantha from Olmsted Falls Intermediate School in Olmsted Falls thinks that Dino must have just eaten too much.

"Dear NewsDepth, I think that the dinosaur got sick from either eating too much food or eating something that the dinosaur was not supposed to eat.

So that is what I think."

Thank you all for writing, but here's my theory.

I think the Dino tried to eat a meteor because they thought it was a tasty meatball in the sky.

Sounds plausible?

No?

Okay, I'll just leave the scientific theories up to you.

I think you're better than I am anyway.

Okay.

You know, we really do have a lot of amazing students in the NewsDepth community, which is why we love to feature all of you for the A+ Awards.

When we think about the veterans in our community here at NewsDepth headquarters, there are a few character traits that really stand out to us.

Service and leadership.

The eighth grade students at St. Mark's School in Cleveland have similar beliefs and went above and beyond to honor the veterans in their community this past November.

The students began by writing essays, sharing their thoughts and appreciation to those who have served.

Dominic told us that he used his essay to honor his Uncle Johnny, who Dominic sees as a role model and a leader.

The students then invited nearly 50 local veterans and their families to a prayer service to celebrate the service, sacrifice, and dedication of the veterans.

Julie S. told us that the prayer service was an amazing experience and it really illustrated how proud we should be of our veterans.

McKenzie told us that it was a great opportunity to give thanks and share her appreciation with the veterans and their families, who Gigi said also made great sacrifices.

Sophia told us that she felt very proud to honor the veterans in such a personal way, and Julia N. told us that inviting the families really made the program special.

But don't take our word for it.

We had the privilege of catching up with Air Force Sergeant Gary Schult, who served in the Vietnam War and was one of the veterans honored by the students.

He told us that he was greatly humbled by how the students treated his veteran brothers and sisters with respect and love.

Sergeant Schult told us that he was so impressed with the students and that they are wonderful leaders, role models, and citizens.

He also shared that the students' work not only impacted the veterans, but that the veterans' families were very grateful for the work of the students.

This week's A+ Award goes to the students at St. Mark's for honoring the veterans in their community and giving their families the space they needed to celebrate their loved ones.

Keep up the great work.

You know, I hope News Hound is as inspired by this group of students as I am.

Let's see what he's found for this week's Petting Zoo.

(bright techno music) (dog howls) (dog barks) Nope, I was wrong.

He's just taking a nap.

Come on, News Hound.

We don't pay you in treats for nothing.

Let's get to work.

Okay, there he goes.

So what did you find for us this week?

Oh, wow, it's a story about twin pandas at a zoo in Hong Kong, making their public debut.

To see how they're adapting to all this attention, click the Petting Zoo thumbnail at the bottom of this episode page.

Thanks, News Hound.

I guess you can get back to your nap, for now, because we have another episode coming up next week.

Do not forget this time.

That's a wrap for this episode of NewsDepth, but you can keep the conversation going and there are plenty of ways for you to stay in touch with us.

You can send a letter.

We're at 1375 Euclid Avenue.

That's Cleveland, Ohio.

Zip code here, 4-4-1-1-5.

And you can email us at newsdepth@ideastream.org.

Plus, you can catch all of our special segments on YouTube.

Hit subscribe if you're old enough so you don't miss out on any of our new videos.

Thank you for joining us.

I'm Gabriel Kramer, and we'll see you right back here next week.

(bright techno music) - [Announcer] NewsDepth is made possible by a grant from the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation.

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