More than a decade after he first interned with Mercy Health, Jordan Brown is on track to become a doctor.

Brown, a 2010 graduate of Admiral King High School in Lorain, is the first intern from an Urban League-Mercy Health partnership to receive a medical doctorate degree. He graduated this weekend from Ohio University’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, and is set to start his residency at a hospital in East Liverpool.

None of it would be possible without the Rising Star intern program, he said.

The program, an initiative between the Lorain County Urban League (Elyria, OH) and Mercy Health Lorain invites area high school students to work at the hospital, shadowing doctors and nurses, as well as administrative, food services, finance and marketing staff, said Catherine Woskobnick, director of community health at Mercy Health Lorain.

The Broome County Urban League (Binghamton, NY) has partnered with the NYS Department of Labor to provide a new workforce initiative. This platform will provide job training and apprenticeship opportunities that specifically identify job categories linked to the Southern Tier’s
strategies. 

They include healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, customer service, retail, technology, plumbing, heating, and carpentry. Our trainings allow individuals to achieve the necessary skills to gain
and retain employment.

This program is also working with local attorneys to assist individuals that have past infractions to be sealed or expunged so they can become gainfully employed, support themselves and their families and contribute our community.

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WANE 15 and the Fort Wayne Urban League (Ft. Wayne, IN) are proud to announce community advocate and multi-award winning news anchor Terra Brantley has been selected as the new President and CEO of the Fort Wayne Urban League.

The Indiana Associated Press Hall of Fame honoree will leave the broadcast industry with 35 years under her belt, 28 of those serving as an anchor at WANE 15, the top-rated news station in northeast Indiana and northwest Ohio. Beloved by viewers, she is currently the main weekday anchor for the market-leading newscasts at 5, 6 and 11PM. Terra is also one of the creative forces behind the weekly “Positively Fort Wayne” segment, in which she tells stories that inform and inspire viewers, much like she does with everyone she meets. Brantley previously hosted WANE 15’s morning and noon newscasts for more than 20 years.

By Kayla Drake, St. Louis Public Radio

Homeless shelters and service providers in the St. Louis region are leaning on the trust they've fostered for years in the homeless community to get COVID-19 vaccines in arms. So far, it's working.

Organizations including St. Patrick Center, Peter and Paul Community Services, St. Vincent de Paul and City Hope have helped vaccinate nearly 400 people since March. Leaders and caseworkers at the nonprofits say personal relationships have been key to that success.

“In working with the unhoused community, trust is a major issue,” City Hope CEO Michael Robinson said. “Our guests have grown to love and trust us because of the way that we treat them and assist them. That helps to bring some of the level of anxiety and scrutiny down because most of them don't believe that we would do anything that would harm them.”

Dear mama. As you celebrate the incredible moms in your life, catch the replay of our ReMARCs Live featuring Marc Morial’s mother, Sybil Morial. | To the Class of 2021. 9:29 ignited a new wave in activism when the knee of injustice was on the neck of George Floyd. Here’s how you can take action. | Let’s talk facts. There are a lot of myths circulating about the available COVID-19 vaccines. Here are some facts that you should know. | Congrats, grads! Watch a special message our President & CEO Marc Morial shared with graduates of Tennessee State University as commencement speaker. | New jobs report. Dr. Bernard Anderson, our Chief Economics Adviser, shares an in-depth look at the state of the economy. Here’s what the numbers tell us. | It’s time for deep & sweeping reform. Your Senators have the power to end qualified immunity. Here’s how you can urge the Senate to take action.

        With almost every state fully reopened or announced when it will be, business activity is up sharply throughout the U.S.  Manufacturing and non-manufacturing are exceeding the pace observed before the pandemic struck.  There is strong demand for commodities, big ticket items, computers, and other durable goods. Construction picked up in March, driven by residential building. The service sector is pulling out of the doldrums as millions of adults get vaccinated.

Marc H. Morial 
President and CEO
National Urban League

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Three years ago, Darian Paris decided to focus his residential and commercial construction business on building affordable new homes to help meet the growing need for such housing for many low- and moderate-income Chattanoogans.

"I've been funding my projects out of pocket because I felt the need to address this issue, but I was able to build the next home only as I sold the last home I built," he said.

Paris has managed to build new 1,200-square-foot homes priced under $200,000 and the houses typically sell in the current market within two or three days. But like most minority-owned small business owners, Paris didn't get bank loans for his business even though homebuilding is a capital-intensive business that usually doesn't pay off until the house is built and sold.

"The lack of access to capital definitely limited my ability to grow," said Paris, who built three houses amid the pandemic in 2020.