John McDonald: Creating companies in the midst of a pandemic
I hope one lasting effect of the pandemic is a renaissance in entrepreneurship, thanks to the dramatic acceleration of the gig economy.
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Steve Sanner: Public art offers vitality amid the pandemic and beyond
Throughout the pandemic, artists have found new ways to communicate and express themselves. Similarly, residents have become increasingly receptive to public art.
Dennis Sasso: Religious holidays help us see light—even in the darkness
Civilization, in its diversity, is the ability to allow the past not to define us, but to teach, sensitize, challenge and inspire us to shine a new light.
Tom Miller: Here is a better strategy for CARES Act funding
An extended grace period and broadened scope would help states and communities develop new, forward-looking strategies to thrive in the long term, not just the short-term emergency.
Joe Hogsett: Intervention center is key piece in crime-fighting puzzle
The Assessment and Intervention Center is the culmination of the city’s efforts over the last four years to build “off ramps” from the criminal justice system for individuals who do not represent a threat to the community and whose needs are better met through intervention than jail.
Paul Ashley: Benefits renewals could set tone for COVID recovery
For employers, health benefits can seem like a black box even in the best of times. The pandemic made things even more confusing.
Sheila Suess Kennedy: Using courts to promote homophobia is so last century
Outgoing Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill wants states to be able to deny married same-sex couples the right to be recognized as parents of their children.
Jim Litten: Fair housing is an issue that all of us must tackle
Homeownership is one of the most valuable opportunities to build wealth, but that opportunity is dependent on access and affordability. Everyone must have equal access to affordable housing and financing in order to participate in the American dream of homeownership.
RENN: Downtown Indy needs a Purdue research center
Other major research universities in college towns are already making this kind of push into the heart of nearby major cities.
OGDEN: Not-for-profits need your help to continue their vital work
Not-for-profits wouldn’t exist without the tremendous support we receive from local communities. We depend on your time, money and talent.
Mary Carney: Rural hospitals struggle to ward off staff shortages
We must find new ways to extend higher education outside of urban-centric areas and support health care access in all communities across the state.
Rupal Thanawala: Kamala Harris cracked the code. Can others?
After 244 years, the United States joins the list of countries with a woman in or near its top job. One can wonder why it took so long for America to crack the code, but Harris has done it, becoming the first woman and the first Black Asian American to be elected vice president.
Billie Dragoo-Garcia: The ‘new normal’ is not new—and it’s not going away
As the weather gets colder and COVID cases spike, employees returning to the office before January looks less and less likely. The challenge is how to optimize the opportunities that this transformation has opened and to create innovative changes in the workforce of the future.
Sheila Kennedy: America is being penny wise and pound foolish
Despite Donald Trump’s sneering disinclination to help “mismanaged blue cities,” the current state and local government financial crisis is a result of the pandemic, not incompetent governance. And this crisis isn’t limited to Democratic jurisdictions.
Mark Gramelspacher: Calling all manufacturing innovators, big and small
Problem-solving is the heart of innovation. Few people are better problem solvers than those working in manufacturing.
Claire Fiddian-Green: Investments in public health are key to addressing racial disparities
As we continue to work together to enable children and adults to return safely to school and work, we must prioritize addressing the underlying factors that have resulted in the racial disparities exposed by the pandemic.
Jim Merritt: State needs multiple power sources to avoid blackouts
An “all of the above” approach should include investments not only in innovative renewable technologies, such as wind and solar, but also in dependable low-cost natural gas, to ensure adequate energy is available when each and every customer goes to turn on the lights.
James Madison: Indiana’s Klan legacy deserving of an honest reckoning
We’ve often embraced a consensus history, one devoid of conflict. A bloody civil war becomes a noble cause. The white supremacy that began in 1619 to build the largest system of forced labor in world history becomes a sidebar with modest significance. Such myths are prerequisites for so-called patriotic history. They comfort us, at least until we understand them as simple propaganda ill-suited to democracy.
Deborah Daniels: This is the worst time to let down our pandemic guard
It’s starting to get cold, and I fear what will happen when coronavirus fatigue meets winter. Gov. Eric Holcomb’s first executive order declaring a public health emergency was issued March 6, with spring right around the corner. But winter presents a new challenge. By Sept. 30, the virus had reached all 92 Indiana counties, with […]
Dennis Sasso: What will the pandemic do to congregations?
Accustomed to coming together in assembly, we have learned to promote a sense of community from our separate living, dining and family rooms, from our patios and back yards. This outreach has been of immeasurable value, particularly to those who are unable to be together physically.