Berkeley Block: Stories from Down the Street
Our lives are full of routines. From the time we get up, to what we eat for breakfast, to the modes of transportation we take from place to place. Whether we’re walking, driving or cycling, we all have streets we’re intimately familiar with because they get us from point A to point B. But do we really know the stories behind the buildings we pass and the people who live or work in them? That’s the question reporter Noah Baustin considered as he rode the 72 bus line down San Pablo Avenue in Berkeley. One day, he decided to get off the bus, microphone in-hand, and create a sound collage of the small businesses and unique stories behind them.
A Bridge to A New Kind of Back-To-School Experience
When 10-year-old Hemer Santiago Godinez walks the eight blocks to her new middle school in East Oakland, she likes to sing church songs. The music relaxes her. This year, starting sixth grade at a new school brought up familiar fears for Hemer. When she first arrived in the U.S. from Guatemala with her dad, she was in first grade and terrified of school. But Hemer’s experience during those first years changed her and how she saw herself in the world. This year, students and parents across California are hoping for a more normal school year. But the pandemic brought increases in depression, suicide ideation and anxiety for young people, and many students are still struggling. Fortunately California is investing billions of new dollars in an effort to address those mental health needs. KQED’s Julia McEvoy followed the money to one school in Oakland and she brings us the story of how that money was used to help kids like Hemer.