Does Mary’s Place Work with Known Slum Landlords?
02-26-2019
When she was experiencing homelessness, a Coniston Arms tenant says Mary’s Place recommended an apartment with uninhabitable living conditions. The nonprofit blames a housing shortage on the lack of available landlords willing to take in homeless residents.
The Seedy Side of Seadrunar
02-13-2019
Thanks to a tip from Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, I investigated a Seattle drug rehab center that was accused of neglecting children and clients in its care. Public records revealed that the center recently paid a minor $1 million to settle allegations of sexual abuse.
Urban Indigenous Communities Push for Action to Address Violence Against Women
01-09-2019
A recent study showed that Seattle leads the nation in murders of urban indigenous women. This long-form report looks at a new state law that seeks to strengthen data collection on missing and murdered Native women and girls.
Puget Sound Prepares For The Big One
12-19-2018
This joint-report looks at how communities and agencies in Puget Sound are preparing for a magnitude-9.0 earthquake.
Danni Askini Seeks Asylum in Sweden
11-22-2018
This 3,000-word article details prominent transgender activist Danni Askini’s reasons for fleeing from Seattle and seeking asylum in Sweden. It’s the first full report of Askini’s story, and was referenced in follow-up articles by international publications.
LGBTQ Elders Dream of Aging Among Friends
10-31-2018
Although Seattle boasts one of the largest LGBTQ populations in the nation, the city lacks a specialized senior center and housing for the elder community. This story highlights the health disparities and barriers to housing that many LGBTQ seniors face.
Award Winning
Incarcerated and Infirmed: How Northwest Detention Center Is Failing Sick Inmates
10-10-2018
This long-form investigation reveals the state of medical care at Tacoma’s Northwest Detention Center. While ICE claims that people in their custody receive adequate care in a timely manner, some immigrants detainees fear that they could draw their last breaths there.
Immigrant Youth Vulnerable to Abuse in Centers
09-12-2018
This investigation draws on hundreds of public records to show that federally-funded facilities struggle to maintain the health and safety of minors awaiting immigration proceedings.
Straw Ban Leaves Disabled Community Feeling High and Dry
07-11-2018
Although the city says that people with disabilities are exempted from the ban, the impacted community says that businesses haven’t gotten the message loud and clear. While most news organizations touted the benefits of the city going strawless, this article features people with disabilities who point to holes in the policy.
The Deferred Dreams of Working Women on H-4 Visas
07-03-2018
The Trump administration has promised to rescind the work rights of thousands of Indian women throughout the country. This long-form article highlights the voices of a few women in the Puget Sound region who could once again be barred from employment.
Sowing the Seeds of Mental Health
06-18-2018
Suicide is an epidemic amongst agricultural workers, but young farmers and state legislators are working to find solutions. This long-form article shows the players behind the historic legislation.
Losing Faith: The Closure of Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church
06-06-2018
This long-form article looks at how a congregation shutting things down illustrates a clash between tradition and modernity.
The Last Stop Before Homelessness
05-23-2018
An investigation that examines how the odds are stacked against low-income tenants in the County’s eviction court system.
Award Winning
Phnom Penh Noodle House’s Closure and the Loss of Cultural Flavor
05-08-2018
This narrative long-form story looks at the impact of the restaurant’s closure, and what it reveals about representation in the local dining scene. Phnom Penh Noodle House’s end may be a loss for Seattle foodies, but it’s devastating for the local Cambodian community.
New Seasons Market’s Old Baggage
04-27-2018
As the Portland grocer expands to Seattle, labor organizers raise concerns about its treatment of workers.
Forfeiting Rights: Mutual Termination Agreements Gone Wrong
04-07-2018
An investigation into the use of contracts that tenants’ rights advocates say landlords are using to exploit and expel vulnerable residents.
An Official Third Option for the Gender Nonbinary
02-28-2018
This narrative story features people planning to exercise the new Washington Department of Health’s rule that offers a birth certificate gender beyond male or female.
Birds in a Cage: The Indian Green Card Backlog
02-21-2018
Over 300,000 high-skilled workers are stuck in immigration limbo across the country. This long-form article highlights the voices of a few of them in the Puget Sound region.
For Homeless Seattleites, a Reprieve From the Debilitating Burden of Warrants
01-10-2018
People lacking permanent addresses often don’t know when they are supposed to appear in court, and they don’t have the money to pay the fines that follow.
After the City’s Oldest Grocery Store Closes, Customers Look Elsewhere for Food and Community
12-15-2017
Although Carleton Avenue Grocery will soon be reborn into a bakery carrying some groceries under a new renter next spring, Georgetown residents say that with its closure, the fabric of the community has unraveled some. This narrative article looks at the loss that leaves the 1200 residents south of downtown with one less option for fresh food.
Under Threat From Development, Residents of a Mobile Home Park Fight to Stay
10-31-2017
Around 200 Latinx residents face eviction and an unforgiving King County housing market.
They Rode Horseback to Deliver Babies. A Century Later, Midwives Are Still Crucial
09-07-2017
In Kentucky, these health care professionals still struggle for acceptance—even in areas that need them most.
This is Part 3 of a series on the people working to improve access to reproductive health care there. Read Part 1 and Part 2.
The Women Ministers of Kentucky Preaching Abortion Rights
09-07-2017
As the state’s last abortion clinic is at risk of being shut down, some religious leaders step up against Gov. Matt Bevin’s anti-abortion policies.
This is Part 2 of a series on the people working to improve access to reproductive health care there. Read Part 1 and Part 3.
The Volunteers Protecting Kentucky’s Last Abortion Clinic
09-07-2017
Access to reproductive health care in Kentucky has reached a critical moment. All but one abortion clinic has been shut down, and a lawsuit going to trial September 6 could make Kentucky the first state without a legal abortion provider. The walk from the parking lot, past protesters, to the embattled clinic’s front doors can be a difficult journey. Meet the escorts making sure women don’t have to face it alone.
This is Part 1 of a series on the people working to improve access to reproductive health care there. Read Part 2 and Part 3.
Seattle’s Filipino Community Grapples with ‘My Family’s Slave’
Crosscut
05-26-2017
The Atlantic cover story that went viral shed light on more than just the persistence of modern-day slavery. For many in Seattle’s Filipino community, it spearheaded a multi-generational conversation about class, the treatment of women, and the history of servitude within the Filipino community and the Filipino diaspora.
Seattle Judge Rules Justice Department Can’t Limit Legal Assistance to Immigrants
YES! Magazine
05-18-2017
In siding with the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, the ruling also prevents the department from issuing cease-and-desist letters to similar organizations around the country.
Portland, Ore., Becomes First Major U.S. City to End All New Investment in Corporations
YES! Magazine
05-05-2017
To avoid doing business with socially irresponsible corporations, Portland is willing to lose investment income—about $4.5 million a year.
Portland Public Schools First to Put Global Climate Justice in Classroom
YES! Magazine
04-06-2017
A long-form article and video about the first comprehensive climate justice resolution passed in public schools, and a resulting pilot class that empowers students to be active citizens.
Award Winning
Defunding Police—How Antiracist Organizers Got Seattle to Listen
YES! Magazine
03-19-2017
A long-form story about an unprecedented grassroots coalition that drew attention to the racially disproportionate effects of police spending and that persuaded city officials to change course. By halting a proposed $150 million police precinct, Seattle activists have made headway in redirecting funding toward services like affordable housing and education.
San Francisco Gives Immigrant Parents a Voice Through Noncitizen Voting
YES! Magazine
02-27-2017
The parent-led effort shows how cities can empower and protect noncitizens at a time of uncertainty for many immigrant families.
This Town Adopted Trauma-Informed Care—And Saw a Decrease in Crime and Suspension Rates
YES! Magazine
02-22-2017
A long-form story about the trauma-informed care movement that is sweeping the nation.
University of California Next In Line To Dump Wells Fargo Contracts
YES! Magazine
02-03-2017
The UC system is severing $475 million in contracts with Wells Fargo over, among other things, the bank’s ties to private prison corporations.
This Small Town Refused to Settle for Wal-Mart When Its Last Local Grocery Store Closed
YES! Magazine
01-02-2017
Throughout rural America, 2.3 million people live in food deserts—areas 10 miles or more from a supermarket. After 10 years without an independent grocery store, the residents of one small town in Kansas banded together to bring one back.
“Tough on Crime” Is Tough on Kids—Will CA Voters Roll It Back?
YES! Magazine
11-04-2016
If voters pass Proposition 57, it could ease some of the juvenile justice system’s worst get-tough-on-crime elements from past decades.
Another Victory for Workers in Seattle—This Time It’s Their Schedules
YES! Magazine
10-14-2016
Thanks to an ordinance passed last month, service and retail workers will finally get reasonable shift schedules, along with their $15-an-hour minimum wage.
8 Cities Have New Co-op-Style Black Worker Centers—And They’re Tackling Unemployment
YES! Magazine
10-04-2016
A member-led cooperative structure empowers Black workers as they navigate challenges like discriminatory hiring practices and high incarceration rates.
The Other Housing Crisis: Finding a Home in Rural America
YES! Magazine
09-22-2016
Thirty percent of rural Americans have substandard housing—and it’s expensive. But these communities are finding ways to give low-income residents homes of their own.
Meet the Ex-Inmate Whose Successful Prison Rehab Program Goes Beyond Drug Treatment
YES! Magazine
08-04-2016
As California reduces its prison population by tens of thousands, the TimeList Group’s unique approach to rehab keeps parolees from going back.
Kansas Also Will Challenge Obama Transgender Directive
Associated Press
06-01-2016
Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced that the state will challenge in court the Obama administration’s directive that public schools allow transgender students to use the bathrooms that match their gender identity, not their sex at birth.
Kansas Budget Plan Slashes University and Medicaid Funding
Associated Press
05-19-2016
Facing a shortfall of more than $290 million, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback signed a budget bill Wednesday that makes significant cuts to the state highway fund, Medicaid and higher education and trims most state agency budgets by 4 percent.
Mental Health Advocates Question Kansas ‘Step Therapy’ Bill
Associated Press
05-19-2016
Mental health advocates are raising concerns about a bill passed by Kansas lawmakers that would require doctors to try cheaper drugs before more expensive ones for Medicaid recipients, but lawmakers say that mental health advocates want an unfair exemption from a common practice that many insured patients face.
Kansas Governor Signs Juvenile Justice Reform Bill
Associated Press
04-13-2016
The new system will keep more juvenile offenders in their homes while they participate in community-based programs that focus on anger management and other behavioral changes. A system overhaul will divert money from the construction and maintenance of jails to detention alternatives.
2 Tribes, State of Kansas Enter Into Cigarette-Sale Compacts
04-07-2016
The compacts will prevent the state from losing $60 million in annual tobacco payments, much of which funds children’s programs such as early childhood development and reading comprehension.
Lawmakers to Consider Marijuana, Medical Hemp Bills
Associated Press
04-02-2016
Democratic Rep. John Wilson, of Lawrence, never thought he’d take up marijuana as a legislative cause, but the struggles of a family in his district to get medical hemp preparations to treat their son’s seizures changed his mind. Wilson is pushing for a House measure that would allow medical hemp to treat seizures.
Mormon scolded by Christian group is at center of Kansas law
Associated Press
3-16-2016
Daniel Arkell was leading a Bible study for a Christian group at Washburn University Law School in Kansas back in 2004 when the group’s president reprimanded him for saying that people’s eyes offer a glimpse into their souls.
Kansas Lawmakers Scrutinize Sexual Education
Associated Press
03-07-2016
Under a bill that the House Education Committee approved last month, Kansas public schools would be required to get parents’ consent before students could enroll in sex education courses.
Associated Press
2-8-2016
The firearm industry’s trade association launched a national effort in several Republican-led legislatures over the past year seeking to restrict discrimination by financial institutions. Gun retailers and manufacturers say they’ve experienced discrimination, but banks and insurance companies say that the initiative is a solution in search of a problem.
Kansas Among Several States Looking to Ban Sanctuary Cities
Associated Press
2-2-2016
As presidential candidates are considering the feasibility of walls that would span the borders, Kansas is one of about a dozen states around the country that are taking a stance on immigration reform.
Women’s Wear Distracts State Lawmakers
Associated Press
1-26-2016
Although women only fill 24.5 percent of the state legislature nationwide, lawmakers have proposed dress codes for female colleagues, interns and conferees.
Is San Francisco’s Pension Fund Connected to Private Prisons?
SF Weekly
12-30-2015
The San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System (SFERS), the city’s $21 billion pension fund, is no stranger to demands that it invest “responsibly.” Now some activists are alleging that San Francisco’s investment in Wells Fargo also funds private prisons.
Developmentally Disabled People Face Losing Access to Services as Closures Hit
KQED (republished by NPR on 12-04-2015)
11-27-2015
California was once known as a pioneer state for spearheading community-based alternatives to state run institutions for people with developmental disabilities. But in the wake of The Great Recession, more than $1 billion in state budget cuts and frozen provider rates has threatened the system. Now California spends less on services for the developmentally disabled than any other state in the nation.
Dark corner of China’s rise: A surge in trafficking of children
The Christian Science Monitor
07-28-2015
Some 250 million Chinese who work in distant industrial cities often entrust their children to relatives. Child traffickers have exploited their vulnerability, leading to calls for further reform of China’s rigid household residency system.
Second Chances: An Ex-convict’s Path to Higher Education
Oakland North
3-17-2015
Ralph Spinelli spent most of his life robbing until he served ten years in prison for an attempted restaurant robbery. Now at 74, he is pursuing a Ph.D. at UC Berkeley and recently published a book about his two prison terms. Having changed his own life, Spinelli is now trying to bring about an even more spectacular transformation: reforming the California prison system.
WHO Declares Ebola a Global Public Health Emergency
TIME
08-08-2014
The World Health Organization declared that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is a public health emergency of international concern, requiring global coordination in order to prevent further spread, but did not recommend any restrictions on general trade or travel.
King of the Underworld: See San Francisco’s Columbarium Through the Eyes of Its Caretaker
SF Weekly
07-16-2014
The Columbarium is the last remaining nondenominational place of interment within San Francisco’s city limits. The man who presides over it is 58-year-old Emmitt Watson, The Columbarium’s caretaker and historian.
Astronomers Are Closer to Understanding Dark Matter
TIME
06-26-2014
Observations of galaxy clusters are providing clues about the most elusive substance in the universe
Malaysia’s Highest Court Upholds Ban on Christians Using the Word Allah
TIME
06-23-2014
Disappointed Christians decried creeping Islamization as a threat to their religious freedom.
Racist Insurance Commercial Draws Outrage in Hong Kong
TIME
06-18-2014
An insurance commercial in Hong Kong has been deemed as racist by advocates of domestic workers and prompted outrage on social media.
Japan Finally Bans Child Pornography
TIME
06-18-2014
After years of international pressure to tighten loose laws, many say the new legislation is a step in the right direction, despite an exception for explicit anime and manga featuring children
Hong Kong’s Marking of Tiananmen Is a Rallying Cry for Chinese Democracy
TIME
06-05-2014
China’s freest city marked the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre with a solemn and dignified vigil that reflected the continued resonance of the student protesters’ original aims.
Tiny Sheep: UC Berkeley Researchers Use Electricity to Herd Cells and, Potentially, Speed Up Healing
SF WEEKLY
05-21-2014
A group of researchers used galvanotaxis, a process that uses electric currents to direct cells, to herd a group of epithelial cells in different directions. the discovery could help speed up the healing of a wound, reduce scarring, grow organs, and guide cancer research.
Oklahoma Halts Executions After Botched Lethal Injection
TIME
04-30-2014
The lethal injection of Oklahoma death row inmate Clayton Lockett went so awry Tuesday that officials halted another to investigate what went wrong
The Writing on the Wall: It’s Graffiti Versus Murals in San Francisco and Oakland. Either Way, Street Artists Win
SF WEEKLY
02-26-2014 (Cover story)
Oscar Davalos began tagging when he was 12 years old. He and his friends would sneak out at night armed with cans of spray paint, scrawling their names on walls throughout East Oakland.
Singing the Climax: A New Musical Theater Company Launches with a Show About a Nymphomaniac’s Lawsuit
SF WEEKLY
02-26-2014
He read a short blurb about “The Cable Car Nymphomaniac,” a story about a 29-year-old woman who sued Muni for $500,000 in 1970 for a cable car accident that injured her six years earlier. She claimed that after she hit her head on a pole, she developed an insatiable sexual appetite that prompted her to have sex with more than 100 men.
Breaking the school-to-prison pipeline: examining arrests among black male students in OUSD
Oakland North
12-11-2013
An investigative piece about the school-to-prison pipeline in Oakland, California. It also features an infographic that breaks down the race of arrestees in 2013.
Nwe Oo provides a voice for Burmese refugees in Oakland
Oakland North
12-05-2013
Nwe Oo, a Rakhine Burmese refugee based in Oakland, is an advocate for human rights and adamantly speaks out against domestic abuse.
“The Griots of Oakland” exhibition and book features the voices of young black men
Oakland North
11-20-2013
AAMA and Story For All recruited five young men from the ages of 14 to 18 to serve as the conduit for the voices of over 100 black males throughout the city.
Town hall meeting discusses Common Core math standards
Oakland North
11-19-2013
With the goal of creating an understanding of the new Common Core State Standards (CCSS), a town hall meeting was held at Claremont Middle School on Monday evening. The meeting concentrated on the new math standards and aligning middle school classes with CCSS.
Oakland California Youth Outreach takes on gang violence
Oakland North
11-18-2013
Along with providing support to youth in need, OCYO also leads ‘Oakland Gang Awareness Trainings’ to give insight on the trends of gangs to professionals who work with at-risk teens in Oakland.
Education conference shines light on multicultural teaching
Oakland North
11-13-2013
Standing beneath a blue and red banner, Angela Davis, the political activist, scholar and author, gripped the sides of the podium as she spoke emphatically to the hundreds of audience members at the National Association of Multicultural Education (NAME) convention on Saturday evening in Downtown.
Reading Partners encourages students to love literacy
Oakland North
11-05-2013
A junior at Bentley High School in Lafayette, Bauman began tutoring over a year ago when he joined Reading Partners, a non-profit organization that provides literacy tutoring for at-need children in first through fifth grade. “I feel like I’ve always just been consuming, so I’m looking for ways to give back to the community,” Bauman says.
‘Think China’ flies Oakland students to Beijing to break cultural barriers
Oakland North
10-07-2013
Antoine was one of 13 African-American students from the Bay Area, including 11 from Oakland, who traveled to Beijing and Shanghai from July 13 to 27 as part of President Barack Obama’s 100,000 Strong Initiative. Developed in 2009 to increase the visibility of American students in China, particularly minority students, the “Think China” trip was the first Northern California delegation to participate in the China-U.S. Study Exchange program for high school students.
New School Lunch Waiver Seen as Hurdle for Hungry Kids
Oakland North
09-23-2013
For the first time in the Oakland Unified School District’s history, parents of all low-income children eligible to receive a free or reduced lunch must apply for the program by February 6 — or the system could lose government subsidies for the next school year.
Oakland Adult Education Programs Lose Funding
Oakland North
09-27-2013
Adult education programs in Oakland Unified School District have shrunk from a once-broad menu of courses to a program limited to general educational development (GED), tech education and family literacy classes.
Ceaseless Exploration: The Skateboarding Scene in Shanghai
WHOA Magazine
10-2013
Whether it be a new construction zone, the smell of meat barbecuing on the street corner or the bright neon lights that illuminate the marble plazas beneath them- the combination of sounds, sights and smells in Shanghai define its urban life. Skateboarders are granted a view of the city that is imperceptible to most.
The 2012 Eco Art Exhibit
Time Out Shanghai
08-16-2012
The ubiquity of garbage and its inherent connection with humans remains an unexplored topic amongst even the most forward thinking of consumers. Like a disparaged offspring, human waste is ignored and discarded by its creators.
Melissa Hellmann 
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