Maggie Rhoads
(She/Her)
- White House Correspondent, NBC News
- Incoming Reporting Intern, The Capitol Forum
- Nate Morris Fellow, Center for the Study of the Presidency & Congress (CSPC)
Washington, D.C.
Congress + Federal Government Reporting Intern at The @Capitol_Forum | Signal: maggierhoads.01 | @SMPAGWU |🇻🇦
Articles by Maggie Rhoads
Can nuclear power meet rising global energy demand?
As global electricity demand is projected by the International Energy Agency to rise by more than 20 percent by 2030, policymakers and industry leaders are searching for the next phase of the clean energy transition. While renewable sources like solar and wind have expanded rapidly, questions remain about whether they can meet growing demand on their own. Nuclear energy is increasingly being reconsidered as a reliable, carbon-free power source.
Food policy leaders discuss careers, systems, and impact at the George Washington University
The Global Food Institute at George Washington University hosted a Food Policy Pathways: Careers in Food & Agriculture Policy event for about 50 students and alumni on April 7. The event featured guest speakers including Carbonell Family Executive Director of the Global Food Institute Stacy Dean, Executive Director of Food Policy Pathways Rachel Atcheson, Business Development Manager for the Government of the District of Columbia Tariq Sheriff, Legislative Assistant for Sen.
Inside the fight to reframe climate messaging under Trump rollbacks with David Di Martino
In Washington, D.C., where policy battles are fought through language, words themselves have become the front line. President Donald Trump, since taking office in January 2025, has ordered the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency to scale back language that mentions or alludes to climate change. The majority, or 64%, of Americans say climate change is affecting their local communities, according to the Pew Research Center.
Sean Ruane joins Aspen Food Leadership Fellowship
Founder and director of operations and development of Just Roots Sean Ruane could have never imagined being accepted into Aspen Institute’s Food Leaders Fellowship in August. A colleague recommended he apply due to his work at Just Roots, a group partnering with grassroots organizations where they have turned two vacant plots of land into community farms within the Chicagoland area.
Ten years into the Paris Climate Agreement: Where do we stand? - Planet Forward
The George Washington University Alliance for a Sustainable Future in collaboration with the Embassy of France held an event called, “Paris Climate Agreement 10 Years On: What’s Changed, What’s Next?” on December 9 at the Embassy of France in the District. The discussion included panels and keynotes from a range of advocates, business leaders, and policymakers from around the world surrounding issues of climate change.
DOJ files suit to obtain 2020 election records in Fulton County, Georgia
The Justice Department sued Fulton County, Georgia, this week in an effort to obtain more than five-year-old ballots tied to the 2020 presidential election which President Donald Trump lost. The eight-page complaint filed in federal court in Atlanta on Thursday, names Fulton County Clerk of Courts Che Alexander as a defendant, alleging that the clerk violated the Civil Rights Act by failing to produce records tied to the 2020 presidential election as requested by state and federal officials.
Anacostia Watershed Society efforts improve river water quality
On Thursday mornings during the warm months in the District, Masaya Maeda and Maria Spottswood head out on the Anacostia River for the Anacostia Watershed Society (AWS). While out on the river, the workers perform river quality monitoring, measuring acidity and clarity. Maeda, water quality specialist at the AWS for the past 20 years, leads this effort and said the water quality of the river has improved, which can be attributed to mussel deployment and reduced sewage runoff.
American University professor provides insight on frozen green bank funds
Outside of being an assistant professor in finance and real estate at American University, Paul Yoo, Ph.D., is helping write an amicus brief on behalf of the Inflation Reduction Act. After President Donald Trump’s administration froze IRA funds intended for green banks through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, Climate United, a national investment fund supporting clean energy projects, challenged the freeze in court.
DC Council holds 11-hour hearing on bottle bill to reduce trash in the river
The DC Council held an 11-hour 15-minute hearing on the Recycling Refund and Litter Reduction Act of 2025, also called the âbottle bill,â on Oct. 1. Plastic bottles account for 60% of all trash retrieved from the Anacostia River by weight, according to the Anacostia Riverkeeper. Councilmember Brianne K.
As millions of Americans prepare to lose SNAP benefits, some states are moving to bridge the gap
WASHINGTON - With just days to go before millions of low-income Americans are expected to see a pause in federal food assistance, state governments are trying to find ways to fill the void. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - more commonly known as SNAP, or food stamps - is a key benefits program that serves more than 40 million people across the country.
How Black farmers are looking ahead
The Global Food Institute through George Washington University held a lecture focused on Black farmers titled “Rural & Urban Food Sovereignty: Black Communities Taking the Lead” on Sept. 25. Several experts on a panel from rural and urban communities discussed their progress and challenges of being a farmer. The panel was hosted by Mya O.
Democracy Summer Trains Next Generation of Democratic Organizers
Democracy Summer, founded by Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., in 2006, has grown into a national fellowship pipeline placing student organizers on congressional campaigns across the country. During Raskin’s first campaign for Maryland State Senate, where he ran against a 32-year incumbent who was president pro tem of the Maryland Senate and chair of the Montgomery County Senate delegation, he recruited his three kids, along with dozens of nieces and nephews, to help him campaign.
The Change Collective Trains Young Leaders To Rebuild Civic Engagement Across U.S. Cities
In cities from Chicago, IL, to Jackson, MS, The Change Collective is growing a new generation of local leaders to combat civic disengagement at the local level. The Change Collective, launched in 2023, is a nonpartisan organization connecting and training young leaders through a fellowship program in five cities across the country by countering rising political polarization and declining civic engagement.
Generation Citizen Brings Real-World Civic Engagement Into the Classroom
In many classrooms across the country, civic education often looks like giving lectures on the U.S. Constitution. But Generation Citizen is looking to change that. Founded in 2010 by Scott Warren, then a student at Brown University, he had two observations: civic education varies between higher and lower-income districts, and traditional civics courses often do not capture young people’s interest.
CIRCLE Pushes To Close Gaps in Youth Civic Engagement Through Research and Partnerships
The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), based within Tufts University’s Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life, has spent more than two decades researching barriers within youth civic engagement. Founded at the University of Maryland’s (UMD) School of Public Policy in 2001, before moving to Tufts in 2008, CIRCLE is a nonpartisan research organization working to understand how young people learn about and participate in civic life.
We the Action Mobilizes Volunteer Lawyers To Tackle Civil Legal Inequality
In an era marked by increasing legal challenges, We The Action is connecting tens of thousands of volunteer lawyers with nonprofits to deliver free legal services to immigrants, federal workers, voters, and others. The organization was founded in 2017 after President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning refugees and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim nations from entering the country for 120 days.
From Washington State to Florida: The Alliance for Youth Action Builds Long-Term Youth Civic Engagement
The Alliance for Youth Action, a national network of state-based youth organizations, is working to expand civic engagement among young people through local and state-level engagement efforts. State-based, youth civic engagement organizations New Era Colorado, Forward Montana, the Washington Bus, and Next Up Action Fund (formerly known as The Bus Project) founded the Alliance for Youth Action in the early 2010s to get more young residents to vote.
ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge Expands Civic Engagement to 10 Million Students
In a time when political polarization in the United States is on the rise, an organization is working to reframe the narrative — one campus at a time. The ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, a national nonpartisan initiative housed under Civic Nation, is on a mission to make voting and civic participation a permanent, visible part of college life.
Conservative Stays Rooted in Liberal Area After School Board Recall
For most of her life, Madison Miner has lived in Orange County, California, with her husband and their four children. But the community she once felt unified with has seen a shift in its political culture in recent years. Miner describes herself as “conservative by nature” since she is pro-life, a “Bible believing Christian woman,” and has voted for policies aligned with the Republican Party.
Nonprofit VOTE Engaging With Communities Historically Excluded From Voting
For nearly 20 years, Nonprofit VOTE has engaged 60,000 workers at 120 nonprofit organizations nationwide to register to vote, including young people. According to Nonprofit VOTE’s website and executive director, Brian Miller, the organization works to provide nonpartisan resources to nonprofits across the United States, helping them integrate voter engagement into their ongoing activities and services.
Local restaurants cut staff, implement fees after tipped minimum wage increase
Over a year after the passage of a bill that will continue to raise tipped workers’ minimum wages, Foggy Bottom and West End restaurants have implemented service fees and cut staff to account for new operating costs. At least six restaurants in the neighborhood have begun charging service fees of 5 percent or lower since the D.C. Council voted to implement Initiative 82 in May 2023, after voters approved the measure the previous November.
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