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Fire Safety and Prevention Through Education, Engineering, Enforcement Photo essay on the Bloomington Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Division

Winter in Indiana is prime season for house fires, but the Bloomington Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Division works year-round to reduce the risk of fires and promote fire safety. This photo essay by Nick Bauer shows the work being done to prevent fire tragedies in Bloomington. Click here for Bauer’s article and photo gallery.

School Matters: Indiana Earns ‘D for Effort’ in Funding Public Education Column by education reporter Steve Hinnefeld

A new report gives Indiana a grade of D for funding public schools, and the state ranks 32nd in percent of GDP allocated to K-12 schools. As education reporter Steve Hinnefeld writes, with Indiana’s 2025 legislative session underway, the priorities of the Republicans who control state government would be problematic for public schools. Read Hinnefeld’s column here.

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Political Polarization Hurts Communities — What Can Be Done? Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Political Polarization

As communities become more Democratic or Republican, their citizens have to cope with ever more left-wing or right-wing policies. As political science scholar Marjorie Hershey writes, polarization tends to make each party “less diverse internally and more different from the views and social characteristics of the other party.” What can be done about it? Click here for a Deep Dive into political polarization.

Many Paths Taken to the Emergency Medical Profession

The individual journeys people take to the emergency medical profession are varied and can differ by geography. Christine Brackenhoff profiles four EMS professionals in south-central Indiana to learn how they got where they are, and why. She also found a strong spirit of interconnectivity for first responders and EMS agencies across our region. Click here for the story.

What Is ‘A Sense of Place’? Bloomington Students Explain — and Share Theirs The 2024 “Sense of Place” project by students at the Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship is here!

Students in the American Studies class at Bloomington’s Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship were asked to identify their sense of place. Each student made a video to learn about their special place’s “larger connection to our shared home of southern Indiana.” And as ASE students have done since 2016, they’ve shared their videos with us. Watch their “sense of place” videos here.

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Mindfulness Widens Its Sphere from Personal Mantra to Business Practice

Though mindfulness originated in Buddhism, the practice has expanded to companies that offer some form of mindfulness for their workers. And, as Shannon Livengood writes, several local businesses have made it part of their everyday approach “in obvious and maybe not-so obvious ways,” taking into consideration “the well-being of the environment, the consumer, and the business owner alike.” Become more mindful here.

USA International Harp Competition Returns to B-town in 2025 Get an inside look from the director and past performers of this world-renowned event

The triennial USA International Harp Competition returns to the IU Jacobs School of Music for the 13th time in May 2025. Executive Director Francine Marseille, board member Elżbieta Monika Szmyt, and past performers Emmanuel Ceysson and Noël Wan talk about what makes this one of the most prestigious harp competitions in the world. Read Hiromi Yoshida’s article here.

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Goal of BPD and Social Support Team Is ‘To Help People’ Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Police Social Support Services Team

The Police Social Support Services Team at the Bloomington Police Department has helped thousands of people since 2019. Critics say police and social workers have differing views of justice — criminal versus social — but the team’s licensed mental health professionals say they offer support that uniformed police officers aren’t trained to provide. Click here to read a Deep Dive on social support services.

American Teens Feel Pressure in 6 Areas of Life How can they address burnout and ‘grind culture’?

What are the most common sources of distress among teens? A study conducted in part by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy surveyed teens about specific pressures they face. IU Storyteller Nikki Livingston explores key findings from the survey and how teens can combat distress, burnout, and “grind culture.” Find out how to address the distress.

How Orange T-shirts Helped Revive Gaming in French Lick

Beginning in the 1990s, a group of Orange County citizens traveled multiple times to the Indiana Statehouse to encourage lawmakers to grant a gaming license to the town of French Lick. Limestone Post and the Southern Indiana Business Report look back at those early days and how gaming today has affected the town and its citizens. Read the article by Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson.

The Harmful Consequences of Indiana’s Badly Written Abortion Ban

Indiana legislators have not clarified critical language in the state’s abortion ban, which has led to serious negative consequences for women’s healthcare, including endangering the lives of pregnant women. In part 2 of Rebecca Hill’s in-depth look at Indiana’s abortion ban, she writes about the problems that the majority of Hoosier lawmakers choose to ignore. Click here for the article.