Mentorship Program Tries to Break School-to-Prison Pipeline for Juvenile Girls

Ann Georgescu

IU Professor Theresa Ochoa developed HOPE, a mentorship program at the Madison Juvenile Correctional Facility, Indiana’s only maximum-security detention center for girls. Each juvenile is paired with a college student to learn skills she’ll need to finish school or find a job after she leaves the facility. Click here to read the full story.

February 5, 2016

Adam (left) and Alicia Sweet, owners of King Dough pizza, stand next to their Italian brick oven in their brick-and-mortar location on the downtown Square. | Photo by Lynae Sowinski

B-town Becoming a ‘Bootstraps Community’ of Unconventional Collaborations

Jonna Mary Yost

Writer Jonna Mary Yost explores how a new brand of entrepreneurs in B-town are working outside the usual business model — and making it work. It isn’t about just baking the best pizza or brewing the best coffee. It’s about working with people you like and making your town a better place. Click here to read the full story.

February 2, 2016

The American Discovery Trail is a 6,800-mile, coast-to-coast phenomenon that is the first of its kind in the country. Much of it travels along existing trails, such as this one in the Harrison-Crawford State Forest in southern Indiana. | Photo by Ron Eid

From the B-Line Trail to the Pacific Ocean — Hiking the American Discovery Trail

Ron Eid

Imagine hiking from the B-Line Trail to the Pacific Ocean (or the Atlantic) without ever leaving an official hiking trail. For years, hiking enthusiasts have been working on the American Discovery Trail, a coast-to-coast trail that passes through southern Indiana. Connecting it to the B-Line, via the Knobstone Trail, isn’t far-fetched. Click here to read the full story.

January 26, 2016

Three Minutes in McDoel Gardens

Trent Deckard

In Trent Deckard’s second neighborhood tour for Limestone Post, he shows us the tight-knit community of McDoel Gardens. Since the 1800s, the historic Bloomington neighborhood has been diverse and vibrant. Today, it’s home to some of Bloomington’s most vigorous startups and nonprofits, classic bungalow and gable-el homes, parks, and artwork. Click here to watch the video.

January 21, 2016

Working out of Bloomington and Chicago, "Driftless" magazine’s three-member publishing team includes (l-r) Anna Powell Teeter, Leah Fithian, and Shelly Westerhausen. | Photo by Jason Lukas

With Local Base, ‘Driftless’ Magazine Is a Journey Through the Midwest

Ann Georgescu

Writer Ann Georgescu reviews Driftless magazine, calling it a “collaborative work of art in ink and paper.” Working out of Bloomington and Chicago, the magazine’s three-member publishing team curates the photography, feature stories, illustrations, guides, recipes, and other content that captures all that is poetic and beautiful about the Midwest. Click here to read the full story.

January 19, 2016

Stirring the Pot: Swamped!

Ruthie Cohen

A dish doesn’t have to look pretty, or even sound pretty, to be delicious. And Ruthie Cohen’s souplike, stewlike “Swamp” is more than either of those. It’s her own version of Proust’s madeleine, a tasty delight that brings back fond memories of the time a smart-aleck teenager gave the dish its name. Click here to read the full story.

January 14, 2016

Terry Hutchens stands at the west entrance of Assembly Hall before an Indiana University men's basketball game. After more than two decades as a sportswriter for "The Indianapolis Star," Hutchens transitioned into digital media, covering IU sports on online sites such as Scout.com and BtownBanners.com. | Photo by Lynae Sowinski

Terry Hutchens, the Hardest Working Sportswriter in Indiana, Owns His Beat Again

Brian Hartz

After 22 years at The Indianapolis Star, mostly covering IU sports, Terry Hutchens was told he “didn’t own” his beat. They parted ways, and he became an old-school sportswriter in the digital age. Now he has a regular gig at BtownBanners.com, freelances for other news sites, writes books, and teaches journalism at IU–Bloomington. Click here to read the full story.

January 11, 2016

After many years of use, writer Lindsay Welsch decided to give her bike a much-needed update. Scot Wright of Evren Kent Cycles fixed it up, salvaging many of the original components. In this photo, Welsch sees her rebuilt bike for the first time. | Photo by Samuel Sveen (Click through the gallery for more photos.)

Inspired by European Bike Culture, Evren Kent Cycles Finds a Home in B-town

Lindsay Welsch Sveen, Samuel Welsch Sveen

After living in American and European cities with robust bicycling cultures, Scot Wright brings his cycle-centric lifestyle to B-town. His bicycle-refurbishing business, Evren Kent Cycles, and showroom in the I Fell building, called Re:Cycle, helps bikers like Lindsay Welsch keep their beloved spokes spinning. Click here to read the full story.

January 7, 2016

A decade ago, John built a coop in Brown County and moved his city chickens to the country. Since then, local chicken keepers won their right to raise backyard chickens within Bloomington city limits. | Photo by Ann Georgescu

From Wild Fowl to Feathered Friends, Chickens Have a Rich History with Humans

Ann Georgescu

In what writer Ann Georgescu calls “an epic tale of success and survival,” the globetrotting chicken has crossed many cultural and political boundaries in its migration from the jungle to our backyards. Through one man’s experience in Bloomington (and then in Brown County), Georgescu reveals our tangled relationship with these captivating birds. Click here to read the full story.