The guests were Blair Underwood, Nicole Ari Parker and Daphne Rubin Vega – cast members from the rebooted production of "A Streetcar Named Desire" that includes minority actors playing roles traditionally played by white actors. "I think it is important for us as African-American people to understand that Broadway doesn’t belong to white folk only," Flake said. Broadway audiences historically have been overwhelmingly white. Last season, 83 percent of Broadway audiences were Caucasians – the highest percentage since the industry began keeping numbers in 1998, according to the Broadway League. The recent outreach effort in Queens was part of a push by "Streetcar" producers to tap into black Broadway audiences. Just 1.5 percent of the overall audience last season was African American – the lowest ... Continue reading →
PRINCETON, NJ -- Americans are more than twice as likely to identify themselves as conservative rather than liberal on economic issues, 46% to 20%. The gap is narrower on social issues, but conservatives still outnumber liberals, 38% to 28%. These results are based on Gallup's annual Values and Beliefs poll, conducted May 3-6. Since 2001, the poll has asked Americans to say whether they are liberal, moderate, or conservative on "economic" and, separately, "social" issues. The interpretation of what qualifies as social or economic issues is left to the respondent, given that the question does not define or provide examples of these types of issues. In the same poll, on Gallup's standard measure of ideology -- not asked in reference to any set of issues ... Continue reading →
Studies Illustrate Plight of Introverted Students Demitri Lynch, a kindergartner at City Neighbors Hamilton Charter School in Baltimore, plays by himself in his classroom. The school is designed to be "introvert friendly" so that students have spaces to work alone or in groups on the school's project-based curriculum. —Matt Roth for Education Week Educators often look for ways to bring quiet children out of their shells, but emerging research suggests schools can improve academic outcomes for introverted students by reducing the pressure to be outgoing and giving all students a little more time to reflect. "Whoever designed the context of the modern classroom was certainly not thinking of the shy or quiet kids," said Robert J. Coplan, a psychology professor and shyness expert at Carleton ... Continue reading →
Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesStudents on campus at the University of California, Los Angeles, which has one of the largest international student populations in the country.A California lawmaker is proposing to limit the number of out-of-state and international students who can enroll at University of California campuses.The 10 campuses that make up the U.C. system — including selective universities like Berkeley and the University of California, Los Angeles — would be prohibited from enrolling more than 10 percent of non-Californians as members of the freshman class. The proposed California Students First Act, which was introduced by Senator Michael J. Rubio, a Democrat from Shafter, Calif., would also cap undergraduate enrollment of nonresidents at 10 percent.The measure, which was introduced last week, would ensure that California students had ... Continue reading →
Los Angeles became the largest city in the nation Wednesday to adopt a ban on plastic bags at supermarket checkout lines, handing a major victory to clean-water advocates who sought to reduce the amount of trash clogging landfills, the region’s waterways and the ocean. Egged on by actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus and an array of environmental groups, the City Council voted 13 to 1 to phase out plastic bags over the next 12 months at an estimated 7,500 stores. Councilman Bernard Parks cast the lone no vote. "Let’s get the message to Sacramento that it’s time to go statewide," said Councilman Ed Reyes, who has focused on efforts to revitalize the Los Angeles River. Council members quietly backed away from a more controversial plan to also ... Continue reading →