Mt. Lookout / Columbia-Tusculum

Home of Cincinnati's 16-inch astronomic telescope and Ault and Alms parks, Mt. Lookout boasts locally-owned, one-of-a-kind specialty shops, as well as upscale restaurants and neighborhood watering holes. The neighborhood is inviting with a bright mix of traditional and modern elements scattered around the easily walkable Mt. Lookout Square.Featuring a well-maintained stock of stately older homes, a new wave of young families and singles have recently taken to moving up to the hill in search of housing deals conveniently located to a vibrant nightlife and strong community involvement.

Cincinnati Montessori Society celebrates 50 years

By Newsroom

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Diversity

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April 16, 2013

Fifty years ago, a group of parents who were passionate about Maria Montessori’s philosophy of education developed the first Montessori preschool in the area. And following the preschool’s inauguration, the group formed the Cincinnati Montessori Society, a nonprofit whose focus is to promote Montessori education while serving as a resource to countless schools, teachers, parents and students in the community. “One of my favorite quotes is, ‘Follow the child,’” says Heather Gerker, vice president of CMS. “We meet the child where they are developmentally.” Montessori classrooms, which are both child-centered and composed of mixed age groups, are set up so that children can learn through a multisensory approach that allows them to figure things out at their own speed—and the philosophy works, Gerker says. At CMS’s Annual Spring Conference and celebration of 50 years of success, neuroscientist Dee Coulter delivered the keynote address. “This work that Maria Montessori did over 100 years ago is now being proven through neurological work happening now,” Gerker says. “[Coulter’s address] was really affirming and validating to the teachers there.” Not only were teachers excited to go back to work on Monday after hearing Coulter’s presentation, Gerker says, but they also had the opportunity to participate in breakout sessions that were aimed at providing strategies and insight that lead to better education. Topics ranged from promoting mindfulness through music to strategizing ways of better assisting children with ADD and autism. Gerker says she’s particularly passionate about the resources that CMS provides because they’re based on a philosophy that’s now scientifically proven, and she’s seen it work in the lives of her own children. “It gives them a solid sense of self, that they’re so independent and happy, which I think is the ultimate goal,” Gerker says. “I just want to make sure it’s available to all children.” Do Good: • Become a member of CMS. • Check out the resources offered by CMS. • Connect with CMS on Facebook. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Everybody Rides Metro Foundation ensures available transportation to all

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Diversity

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April 9, 2013

The Everybody Rides Metro Foundation, which is the first program of its kind, provides affordable transportation to about 30,000 low-income individuals each year. Metro subsidizes rides at $1 and has partnered with about 70 different social service agencies to cover the remaining 75 cents of fares for riders in need of medical or work-related transportation. “Many of our riders feel like this is the only way they can try and succeed—it’s somebody giving them a lift when they need it the most,” says Joe Curry, executive director of ERM. “The greatest outcome of this is that you’re getting people toward self-sufficiency. It’s something that stays with them forever—it helps them out until they earn money and start budgeting once they have a job; and self esteem is a large part of that overall package.” According to Curry, many of ERM’s riders are paroled into the Talbert House and have anywhere from $0 to $20 to their name after coming out of prison. Once they’ve been rehabilitated and have participated in job counseling, they may need to interview at up to 20 different businesses before they find work. “Once they land a job, the worst thing that can happen is not to show up during the first week of employment, so we give them additional money, if needed, to subsidize their rides during the first few weeks,” Curry says. “It’s to help them out temporarily so they can establish a budget—it’s not a lifetime pass.” In addition to helping riders get to job interviews and places of employment, ERM provides rides to medical-related destinations so individuals can receive preventive care. “Society of St. Vincent De Paul runs a free pharmacy on Bank Street in the West End, and if you can’t afford your meds, they’ll give you a 30-day supply for free so long as it’s not a narcotic, but you have to get to the location,” Curry says. “If you’re diabetic or are undergoing cancer treatment, meds are absolutely essential, but if you can’t get to a place where you can get your meds, you may get sicker. You may be one of those people who take that $1,500 ambulance ride, and that’s one of the things we’re trying to prevent.” Beginning in January 2014, 40,000 more individuals in the Cincinnati area will be eligible for Medicaid, and according to Curry, anywhere from 50 to 70 percent of those people will need public transportation to get to a healthcare provider or pharmacy. “Those are the people we’re worried about," Curry says. "If public transit isn’t available to them because of the cost, how are they going to get treated? More than 30 percent of our population lives in federally defined poverty—that tells you we really need to do something and think outside the box about how to solve some of these public transit issues.” Do Good: • Donate to the Everybody Rides Metro Foundation. • Like Cincinnati Metro on Facebook. • Follow the Cincinnati Metro on Twitter. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Local fitness instructors start workout group for moms

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Development News

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April 9, 2013

After Amber Fowler, 32, gave birth to twins in August, she started teaching group fitness classes at Body Boutique in Oakley. But she and Body Boutique’s owner, Candice Peters, 34, felt they weren’t servicing an important group in the community: moms and their young children. Last week, Fowler and Peters started Fit Mommies, a fitness class for moms who need help getting back in shape after having a baby or who need help staying in shape, period. The class is unique in that it’s held in local parks, and is focused on moms working out with their children. “We wanted a place for moms to bring their kids while they were working out,” Fowler says. “It’s like a playgroup atmosphere at the same time—moms don’t have to find a sitter, and their kids get to play with others in the fresh air.” Besides a playgroup, Fit Mommies is also intent on building a community for moms. Fowler says it’s like a group therapy session and workout all in one. The women want their clients to be able to vent, get advice and get great ideas from others, all while working out. “Fit Mommies is a place where moms can go to talk about things that they’re going through,” Fowler says. “It’s stressful for new moms; and it’s helpful to see other people going through the same things you are.” Fowler and Peters also plan to offer Family Fit Days each month, where the whole family can come and work out for free. Fit Mommies will also host a Final Friday zoo workout—the workout is free, but you need a zoo pass. The pair will also be sending out monthly newsletters and provide a resource list for clients that includes ideas from moms, family-friendly meal ideas and contact information for dentists, doctors, hairstylists, etc. Fit Mommies offers power-walking and circuit training combination workouts for women who are at all different fitness levels. Classes run from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Mondays and Wednesdays in Hyde Park’s Ault and Alms parks, and Tuesdays and Thursdays in Loveland’s Nesbit and Paxton Ramsey parks. Classes are $59 per month for unlimited sessions; class passes are available. By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

UCAN celebrates 50,000 low-cost spay, neuter surgeries in April

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For Good

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April 2, 2013

Melanie Corwin has spent the past several years volunteering with local no-kill shelters, and while she recognizes the importance of finding homes for pets, she says the root problem that leads to their abandonment is what needs to be addressed. “You see the conditions of the animals when they came in, and it breaks your heart,” Corwin says. “I poured all my time and attention when I first started volunteering to try to get these animals adopted, but it gets very disheartening when they continue to leave but more fill the space right away. You’ve got to stop the unwanted ones from being born.” According to Corwin, 10,000 people are born on a daily basis, compared to 70,000 kittens and puppies. And more than half of those, she says, are unwanted litters. Corwin now serves as executive director at the United Coalition for Animals—an opportunity she says she jumped at when it was offered to her because she can now work toward eliminating that root problem: a lack of access to affordable spay and neuter services. UCAN’s clinic opened in April 2007, and as its sixth-year anniversary approaches, the organization expects to celebrate its 50,000th spay/neuter surgery. The clinic’s ultimate goal is to eliminate the killing of the more than four million healthy or treatable dogs and cats that are euthanized in the United States each year because of overcrowded and underfunded shelters. “It’s documented in so many research projects that the intake rates at shelters go down significantly when there’s a low-cost spay/neuter facility in the area, so that’s our goal,” Corwin says. The clinic not only provides affordable spay/neuter surgeries to the 24 counties it serves, but it also provides free transport to various areas in the Tri-State that have limited access to public transportation or veterinary care. “We just helped a person who had 49 cats, so we did a special Friday transport just for her and went out and got all her animals,” Corwin says. “Our transport driver has a really good heart, and if someone doesn’t have transport, we will find it for them.” Corwin says UCAN does everything in its power to prevent the problem of unwanted litters. Due to a generous grant from the Joanie Bernard Foundation, the clinic provides free surgery for anyone who brings in a trapped feral cat or who is taking care of a stray, Corwin says. Additionally, Corwin says the organization will never turn anyone away. If someone can’t afford the low-cost spay/neuter, UCAN will find a donor. “I just hope people make the connection,” Corwin says. “I know they see ads and things of fuzzy, cute animals to adopt at shelters, but I’d just love for them to make the connection that even though they pay to get that one out, another one’s just going to fill its spot unless we solve the problem.” Do Good: • Like and share UCAN's Facebook page, and let your friends know low-cost spay/neuter is available to them. • Donate so UCAN can continue to increase its efforts. UCAN also accepts items if you prefer to make a non-monetary donation. • Volunteer with UCAN. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Annie Ruth honors local women with Dada Rafiki

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Arts + Culture

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March 26, 2013

At the age of 3, Annie Ruth began her work as a visual artist, and during her freshman year of college, she read her first poem aloud in response to her nephew's death. Ever since then, she’s worked as a community-based visual and performing artist with the goal of bringing together diverse groups of people. Though Ruth’s first art exhibit was at the age of 3 (on the flaps of blank pages of her family’s encyclopedia set, she says), she never expected it to be a career path. “For the longest time, I was headed down the path of becoming a doctor because my mom was sick a lot when I was growing up,” Ruth says. Ruth, now 49, grew up in College Hill. She says her career transition from doctor to artist didn’t happen until her high school years when she and a friend were involved in a serious car accident while on the way to a football game. “I finally realized I had been blessed with this tremendous gift of art, and it was my art that helped build bridges and connect to people’s hearts,” Ruth says. “So I would be a doctor, but my art would be that healing mechanism.” Since the mid-'90s Ruth says she’s dedicated a lot of her work toward celebrating and empowering women, and in 2005, she created Dada Rafiki—a photo exhibit that honors women. It garnered recognition and a yearning for more stories. “When people came to view the exhibit, they said they needed to see more of it, so in 2006, I moved the exhibit to the Community Action Agency, which had just opened a new building in the Jordan Crossing area," she says. "So I pulled in other artists and poets as well, and we were able to actually donate a 22-piece permanent collection to honor 22 women, and it’s kind of grown since then.” Now Dada Rafiki: Sisters of Legacy, which celebrates the lives of 40 women who are 65 years and older, makes its debut at a nationally renowned establishment—the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. Ruth says the intention of this installment is to “begin to create intergenerational dialogue so we can really have a chance to sit at the feet of our elders and hear some of their stories and know why they did some of the things they did that impacted Cincinnati and the rest of the world.” In addition to the exhibit’s three-month display at the Freedom Center, replicas will travel to 59 different venues in the Cincinnati area where community members can view the art and participate in different programs, which range from concerts and lectures to intergenerational talks with young mothers. “When I think about my ultimate outcome, there is a mission,” Ruth says. “Because Cincinnati is known for being such a separated community, I want to highlight that the whole community is not that way and that many of us dream of a world where people can come together and appreciate each other for the uniqueness that everyone brings to our city." Ruth says her focus is on what she believes can bring people together—music, poetry and song—“a universal language.” “I hope that people, from viewing and experiencing things going on in Dada Rafiki, will celebrate the contribution of women, but also appreciate the uniqueness that true diversity has to offer,” she says. “True diversity is about building bridges and connecting. It doesn’t mean we’ll always agree, but creating mutual respect for all types of art forms.” Do Good: • View Dada Rafiki: Sisters of Legacy at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. • Support Annie Ruth in her educational efforts to connect underserved communities with the arts through the Eye of the Artists Foundation. • Like Eye of the Artists and Dada Rafiki on Facebook to keep up with the latest news and events. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Intern in Ohio program launches today, connects students with internships

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Education + Learning

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March 19, 2013

Today, Detroit-based Digerati launches its Intern in Ohio program to the public, which is sponsored by the University of Toledo. Like eHarmony, the program uses an advanced matching algorithm to match students with internship opportunities. Intern in Ohio is free to both students who are looking for internships and businesses who want to post internships. To register, students and employers visit Intern in Ohio’s website to sign up and create a profile or post internship opportunities. Students fill out a short questionnaire about their preferences, and employers share information about the position. The system then identifies the top seven matches for each student, as well as for each position. When the match is made, both the student and employer are notified, and they must show interest before any contact information is shared. “We encourage diverse companies—large and small, for-profit and nonprofit, government and corporate,” says Wendy Pittman, director of Digerati’s Classroom to Career. “It’s a great chance for employers to broadcast their company and internship program across the state and reach a larger pool of applicants.” Only companies in Ohio can post opportunities to the Intern in Ohio website, but all types of internships are welcome. There are posts for marketing, engineering and social media, among others, says Pittman. The program is open to all students who live in Ohio, whether they’re in-state or out-of-state students. Research shows that not only do internships often lead employment offers after graduation, but that students are more likely to remain in an area where they held and internship. “This is the first replication of the Classroom to Career technology from Michigan to Ohio,” says Pittman. “Experiential learning is a game-changer; and we’re looking forward to working with smaller communities to make a difference.” In 2011, Digerati launched its Intern in Michigan program, which has resulted in more than 127,000 matches and introductions between students and employers. Over 1,000 Michigan businesses have posted 4,824 internship opportunities, and 1,049 colleges and universities in the state use the site. Full disclosure: Soapbox’s parent company, IMG, supplies content to Intern in Ohio on a contractual basis. By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

Connections takes stand, provides community support

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For Good

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March 12, 2013

At Connections: A Safe Place, women form a community of support for one another as they work toward restoration. “Our belief is that if you clean off the lies, the misbeliefs, the things that you have told yourself as a result of experiencing sex abuse—you can clean all that off and shift them, and you can really reconnect to who you’re capable of being,” says Connections’ co-founder Rebecca Born. One in four women and one in six boys, according to Born, “will be touched by sex abuse before the age of 18,”—a statistic that she says most people think is impossible because they don’t know anyone who has been victimized in the past. “The reason you don’t know anybody is because our culture’s in a place where we don’t want to know, we don’t want to speak about it,” she says. “So victims of sex abuse remain silent—they remain isolated.” So Born works to give victims a voice and an outlet for the shame, anger or pain they might be feeling by providing things like therapy and weekly art sessions where women can paint or make pottery in the studio. “So often victims live in their heads and don’t really have a full sense of their bodies, and when you’re learning how to do art and make a pot, it requires your full attention—it requires body use and it really helps them to focus,” Born says. “And then the painting and drawing are a wonderful outlet for expressing some of the pain and some of the things you don’t often know how to say, but you can through art.” Connections isn’t about just meeting once or twice a week for therapy, though—it’s about forming a genuine community for women, with the understanding that the ability to overcome abuse is a long-term effort that requires support. “So we provide sleepovers, family cookouts; we go bowling, we just do all kinds of things,” Born says. The mission at Connections isn’t just to support victims, however. It’s also to challenge community members to take a stand against sex abuse and move beyond prevention to a zero-tolerance policy; and on April 14, as part of The Innocence Revolution: A Global Day to End Sex Abuse, the nonprofit will partner with A Voice for the Innocent to host Stand Up Ohio!. “It’s a family fun festival," Born says. "There’s going to be nothing threatening about it. Nobody’s going to have to worry that they’re going to be taught about sex abuse. Our goal is this: we’re going to celebrate children, and with our presence, make a statement.” Born says that if people don’t take a stand, the issue is going to continue; and nothing is accomplished as a result of denial. “Until we begin to speak about it and begin to create an atmosphere so children and adults can say this happened to me, it’s going to be a silent predator in our communities.” Do Good: • Donate to support the work of Connections. • Attend Stand Up Ohio! at Sharon Woods April 14 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. • Like and share Connections' Facebook page, and contact the organization if you are a woman seeking support. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

Mindful Youth provides tools for at-risk youth to address life challenges

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Diversity

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March 5, 2013

John Orr, 35, started practicing mindfulness about 10 years ago to cope with and better understand the difficulties he was facing in life. “Those difficulties were rather significant, and looking around at my friends, I noticed that they were all facing similar difficulties, and I needed to find a solution for myself,” Orr says. “Otherwise it seemed like the difficulties of our lives were going to continue.” Those difficulties for Orr’s best friend of 23 years did continue, as he took his own life at the age of 26, leaving behind a daughter, family and friends, who Orr says “cared about him deeply.” “He was a great friend—a better friend than I’ve ever been to anybody—and I don’t consider myself a bad friend," Orr says. "He was just really caught up with a lot of drug use, and he couldn’t find a way out." It was his death, Orr says, that motivated him to consider thinking that things could have been different. “Things didn’t have to end up that way, and if he had the tools to better deal with the stresses of life early on, I think all of that could have been avoided,” Orr says. So Orr founded Mindful Youth, a nonprofit organization focused on helping at-risk young people improve the qualities of their lives by learning to pay attention to their thoughts and emotions while leaving judgments behind. “I felt that early intervention would be better—to intervene proactively rather than reactively," he says. "That’s a strategy that seemed worthwhile to me." Mindful Youth’s primary focus is to provide group therapy and mindfulness training to identified populations like those who are, for example, incarcerated in the Hamilton County Juvenile Youth Center. Orr, who is a licensed professional clinical counselor, also provides individual therapy and serves as a consultant, providing mindfulness training to organizations that work with at-risk populations. During therapy sessions, Orr says he incorporates an element of formal meditation. “Let’s say a difficult thought were to arise," he says. "We’d frame it like, ‘Well okay, is the thought really serving you?’ Taking it a step further, we look at it as, ‘Thoughts are just thoughts—they’re never facts. They can describe facts, but thoughts are always thoughts, and we don’t necessarily have to listen or identify with every thought that arises.'" “When it comes to looking at emotions from a mindfulness perspective, we try to help the person create space so that they can see that while they have these emotions, that’s not the entirety of who they are. And so if they can make the space for them and just kind of allow them to be there, they may not be succumbed by them and they may have the power to choose how they respond," Orr says. He says the effects of mindfulness on youth, particularly at the Juvenile Youth Center, are amazing because the population the organization serves there is composed of young men who have a lot of anger and who are “quite vocal” about it. “We don’t tell them to try to calm down or anything, but the results we get from that are—these guys just report that they’re feeling calmer, that they have a better understanding of how to manage their anger, that they have more insight into who they are and they can see this idea that, ‘Okay, if this is what’s going on with me, I’ve got a tool to deal with it,’ which is pretty cool,” Orr says. What began as a tool for Orr to use in his own life has evolved into one that he’s now able to share with others, with the hope of helping young people to deal with the abundance of mixed messages they are exposed to daily so they can figure out a coping mechanism that enables them to be happy and productive individuals. “I was looking for some answers in my own life, and meditation was just appealing to me—there was something that just drew me to it, and as I explored it, it became one of the greatest journeys I’ve ever been on and a journey that’s always with me,” Orr says. “I don’t have to go anywhere, and it’s always been very rewarding. At times it’s been challenging, but for the most part, I feel like it’s completely changed my life, and it continues to do so on an almost daily basis.” Do Good: • Donate to Mindful Youth. • Volunteer with the organization to share your mindfulness practices. • Contact John Orr for more information about mindfulness, or about an opportunity for Mindful Youth to teach young people, organizations or families about its practices. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.

City Hall launches app as a community-organizing tool

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Development News

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February 26, 2013

The City of Cincinnati has taken out the back-and-forth that can occur when residents try to reach them to report issues in their neighborhoods. At the Neighborhood Summit on Feb. 16, Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls announced that the Cincinnati City Hall mobile app is available to the public. With the app, residents can look up trash, recycling and street sweeping days, and set reminders; locate and report problems by address; bookmark locations for quick reporting; and track the status of reports. City Hall mobile also has GPS, so users can report issues, even without an address. There’s even a searchable map with property owner information, which enables residents to see if a property is occupied or vacant. A few years ago, residents had to use the Yellow Pages to look up the number for city departments to file complaints, says Kevin Wright, executive director of Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation. The city then implemented a hotline for all complaints, but residents never knew the status of their reports. “It’s amazing how comprehensive the app is,” Wright says. “If you see a broken window, pothole, graffiti, hanging gutter or anything else that is physically wrong with your neighborhood, street or community, you can report it in an instant. It’s a great tool for neighborhood redevelopment.” The app can also be used as a community-organizing tool, Wright says. For example, if there is a property owner who historically hasn’t taken care of his or her property, social media can help organize a community and target the property to enforce codes until the property is fixed, which is what neighborhood councils and organizations like WHRF do. “We’re really putting power in the hands of the citizens of the neighborhoods,” he says. As with most tech programs, the app has room to grow, too. In the future, it could be linked with Facebook or Twitter, so your friends and followers will know who reported problems and where they are. Cincinnati residents can download the app in the Apple App Store or download it through Google Play. By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

Library adds downloadable magazines to collection

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Arts + Culture

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February 26, 2013

Utilizing the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County’s resources just got easier. At the beginning of February, the library released its latest service: Zinio. It enables anyone with a library card to download free magazines as soon as they hit the newsstands. “It’s really wonderful to be able to download magazines from the comfort of home,” says Sandy Bolek, Internet site coordinator for PLCHC. “We’re trying to meet the changing interests and needs of our customers, and there’s a tremendous interest in downloading everything out there.” With more than 650 titles, users will now be able to download as many magazines at a time as they wish. Plus they never have to return them. “I think there will be people who download maybe 20 magazines at a time, because how often can you walk into a library and have every single issue available for the taking that you can hang on to?” Bolek says. “So I expect that our interest and usage in magazines will go up significantly.” In the past month alone, PLCHC users have downloaded 16,396 magazines through the new service. Magazines aren’t the only downloadable materials the library offers, however. Free e-books, audio books and even music are all available to patrons as well. “You’re able to sit at home in your jammies at 11 at night and download music, e-books, an audio book or a magazine,” Bolek says. “We talk about being able to use the library any time, anywhere now, and I think people are increasingly expecting that in just about every service area.” According to Bolek, the library is on track to reach one million downloaded items by October, which is a huge accomplishment in terms of achieving its mission of “connecting people with the world of ideas and information.” “The nature of information has of course changed over the years and the decades," Bolek says. "Our collection has significantly expanded, but it’s still information. We’re supporting people’s reading interests, connecting them with books, connecting them with information, and the variety of ways we’ve been able to do that has really expanded.” Do Good: • Learn about Zinio, download the app for your smartphone or tablet and show your friends and family how to start downloading free magazines. • Sign up for a free library card so you can take advantage of the many resources the library has to offer. • Promote literacy by joining a book club, reading to children or taking them to library events. By Brittany York Brittany York is a professor of English composition at the University of Cincinnati and a teacher at the Regional Institute of Torah and Secular Studies. She also edits the For Good section of SoapboxMedia.