Stories
"Cleveland has become the San Francisco of craft beer with small batch startups dominating the scene. Check out local offerings from Nano, Market Garden and Platform to make the most of your Cleveland stay."
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Read the full story here.
In 2010 when Victor Ruiz took over as director of Esperanza, an organization focused on promoting academic achievement among Hispanic high school students and college after high school, things were pretty dismal.
Graduation rates among Hispanic Cleveland high school students hovered around 30 percent. Graduation among white and African-American students in the same schools was double that rate. And many Hispanic students were struggling to pass the 10th grade proficiency test, which they must pass by their senior year to graduate. “There was a lot of failure,” recalls Ruiz. “Students were just not academically prepared. Our youth were not being given the resources they needed. After a few tries and not passing the test, our children were just giving up and dropping out.”
Ruiz set out to change those numbers. Now in his fifth year as Esperanza’s director, Ruiz took a community approach to helping students not only make it through high school, but excel. “We looked at it on a holistic level,” he says. “We partnered with other organizations to address the whole child, not the pieces and parts. We work with parents and teach them about the importance of education and how to participate in the educational system.”
The approach was successful. Graduation rates among Cleveland’s Hispanic high school students in 2014 was 61 percent, pretty close to the overall graduation rate of 65 percent in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.
With the proficiency tests, Ruiz implemented mentoring programs to offer support and guidance. “We were able to identify students who have tried several times and gave them rigorous academic tutoring,” he explains. “They may have to try several times, but they are able to pass and graduate.”
Esperanza, which awards college scholarships as a way to promote academic achievement, awarded 103 scholarships in 2014, compared to fewer than 40 in 2010. “Our goal is to see an increase in scholarships in the Cleveland schools,” says Ruiz.
While the numbers are still below the national average, Esperanza and Ruiz continue forward, with a mission to only improve further. “It has to be a priority,” he says. “Education is community. It has to be a priority. On a national level we still have a lot of work to do in graduation and college. But we feel the numbers are continuing to grow. We welcome anyone to join us in our effort.”
Graduation rates among Hispanic Cleveland high school students hovered around 30 percent. Graduation among white and African-American students in the same schools was double that rate. And many Hispanic students were struggling to pass the 10th grade proficiency test, which they must pass by their senior year to graduate. “There was a lot of failure,” recalls Ruiz. “Students were just not academically prepared. Our youth were not being given the resources they needed. After a few tries and not passing the test, our children were just giving up and dropping out.”
Ruiz set out to change those numbers. Now in his fifth year as Esperanza’s director, Ruiz took a community approach to helping students not only make it through high school, but excel. “We looked at it on a holistic level,” he says. “We partnered with other organizations to address the whole child, not the pieces and parts. We work with parents and teach them about the importance of education and how to participate in the educational system.”
The approach was successful. Graduation rates among Cleveland’s Hispanic high school students in 2014 was 61 percent, pretty close to the overall graduation rate of 65 percent in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.
With the proficiency tests, Ruiz implemented mentoring programs to offer support and guidance. “We were able to identify students who have tried several times and gave them rigorous academic tutoring,” he explains. “They may have to try several times, but they are able to pass and graduate.”
Esperanza, which awards college scholarships as a way to promote academic achievement, awarded 103 scholarships in 2014, compared to fewer than 40 in 2010. “Our goal is to see an increase in scholarships in the Cleveland schools,” says Ruiz.
While the numbers are still below the national average, Esperanza and Ruiz continue forward, with a mission to only improve further. “It has to be a priority,” he says. “Education is community. It has to be a priority. On a national level we still have a lot of work to do in graduation and college. But we feel the numbers are continuing to grow. We welcome anyone to join us in our effort.”
Beginning in September, two of Cleveland’s top institutions will come together to offer a program for those with a mind for both business and health care. CWRU Weatherhead School of Management and the Cleveland Clinic announced on Thursday that the two will partner to offer an executive MBA program with a focus on health care.
“This is just an idea I’ve been kicking around for a while,” says Simon Peck, associate dean for Weatherhead’s MBA programs and associate professor in the management school’s design and innovation department. “It’s taking an existing MBA program that’s always been highly rated and collaborating with the Cleveland Clinic. I think it’s crazy we’re not doing more in this area.”
The program will target students who have both an interest in business and the growing health care sector. With a top academic institution and a top hospital system both located so close together, and with the partnership in the medical education campus, the partnership only made sense, says Peck.
“This is the first time Weatherhead School of Management and the Cleveland Clinic have partnered so closely,” he says. “I saw a need for leadership in an MBA with a focus on healthcare. You can’t just be a fantastic doctor and pick up the skills to run a hospital.” But Peck also stresses the eMBA program is not just for physicians -- the need for executives in health care is growing in all areas.
The 20-month academic program consists of 16 sessions over five semesters. Classes meet three days a month. Classroom sessions meet at both the Weatherhead and Clinic campuses.
Applications are due by June 15. For more information, contact Stephen Scheidt, director of admissions at the Weatherhead School.
“This is just an idea I’ve been kicking around for a while,” says Simon Peck, associate dean for Weatherhead’s MBA programs and associate professor in the management school’s design and innovation department. “It’s taking an existing MBA program that’s always been highly rated and collaborating with the Cleveland Clinic. I think it’s crazy we’re not doing more in this area.”
The program will target students who have both an interest in business and the growing health care sector. With a top academic institution and a top hospital system both located so close together, and with the partnership in the medical education campus, the partnership only made sense, says Peck.
“This is the first time Weatherhead School of Management and the Cleveland Clinic have partnered so closely,” he says. “I saw a need for leadership in an MBA with a focus on healthcare. You can’t just be a fantastic doctor and pick up the skills to run a hospital.” But Peck also stresses the eMBA program is not just for physicians -- the need for executives in health care is growing in all areas.
The 20-month academic program consists of 16 sessions over five semesters. Classes meet three days a month. Classroom sessions meet at both the Weatherhead and Clinic campuses.
Applications are due by June 15. For more information, contact Stephen Scheidt, director of admissions at the Weatherhead School.
You may have read that the rise of the creative entrepreneur is leading to the death of the artist. That’s not our experience. We’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with people in communities all across the United States, and there are artists everywhere.
While it is not easy to move to a new country and a new city full of different cultures, languages and traditions, refugees not only make it work, they become some of Cleveland’s most successful entrepreneurs.
As the first city in the world to legalize the sale of recreational marijuana, Denver is facing a rush of entrepreneurialism, gentrification, and -- in some sectors -- controversy. An in-depth look into how the budding pot industry is affecting the city's economic and social landscape.
There are great food markets all over America these days, but few are as ingrained in the community (it’s 100+ years old) or as representative of it (some of the same vendors have been there 60 years or more). Cleveland native Phoebe Connell explains in this quote we had to excerpt the bejesus out of because she gave us two pages of loving notes:
“The West Side Market, THE JEWEL OF CLEVELAND. This isn't a farmers market -- it’s a place where everyone's grandmother used to come to get cabbage and a roast for Sunday dinner. Think of it as being in Williamsburg before Williamsburg was fancy: still in the city, but in an actual neighborhood with working class homes."
Read the full story here.
“The West Side Market, THE JEWEL OF CLEVELAND. This isn't a farmers market -- it’s a place where everyone's grandmother used to come to get cabbage and a roast for Sunday dinner. Think of it as being in Williamsburg before Williamsburg was fancy: still in the city, but in an actual neighborhood with working class homes."
Read the full story here.
Gear up for an action-packed weekend! Shop the Cleveland Flea’s April Market, enjoy Danceworks at Cleveland Public Theatre, run a 5K to benefit colon cancer, learn tips for maintaining a beautiful yard without chemicals and more.
For years, the bold and the bearded poured into Portland, Ore., embracing craft spirits, farm-to-table fare and all things artisanal. Is Cleveland next? Local chefs like Michael Symon say yes, taking advantage of low rents and the Midwestern bounty like Iowa prosciutto at casually brilliant restaurants and urban breweries, including Great Lakes Brewing Company and Buckeye Brewing. At Lola Bistro, owner Michael Symon celebrates butcher cuts like calves hearts with preserved lemon. Jonathon Sawyer, whose Greenhouse Tavern is one of Symon’s favorite haunts, recently opened an opulent Italian spot called Trentina, where the bread course includes an edible beef candle (not a typo) made from aged beef tallow.
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
Attention foodies or anyone looking for a new dining experience: Dinner Lab announced last week that On July 24 Cleveland will become its 33rd location in its social dining experiment. Dinner Lab hosts regular pop-up dinners in unconventional, undisclosed locations in a setting that offers the chance to meet new people, try new great food and give feedback. It also allows chefs – about half from Cleveland and the other half from successful restaurants around the country – to try new concepts and new menu items.
Dinner Lab started in New Orleans three years ago. “Originally, there was nowhere to get really good late night food in New Orleans,” explains Dinner Lab HR director Hallie Dietsch. “What it evolved into is an opportunity to let chefs showcase their true passions.”
The chefs are not given boundaries to what they prepare. Diners are given a comment card to rate the food’s taste, creativity and other feedback. “As a member, you’re having a dinner that you most likely will never have again,” says Dietsch. “For the chef, it’s an opportunity to cook something he knows really well and enjoys cooking.”
There is a $125 annual membership fee to join Dinner Lab, and the five- to seven-course dinners cost between $50 and $65. Members can bring up to three guests with them. The chefs range from seasoned line cooks who are thinking about opening their own restaurants to Michelin Star chefs trying out new concepts.
Dinners are announced three weeks in advance of the event. Diners are told the date, the chef and the menu, but the location is not disclosed until 24 hours before the event.
Dietsch says Cleveland was chosen as the newest Dinner Lab location because of the population’s affinity for good food. “Cleveland is not known as being New York or Chicago, but Clevelanders are keyed in to good food and want to try new things,” she says. “We think people in Cleveland will be excited and ready for this. People are more interested in food and educated about food and they want to know what they’re eating and the chef’s inspiration.”
Cleveland’s first Dinner Lab chef will be Chicago-based Daniel Espinoza, who will cook a five-course modern Mexican meal titled “Anomar.”
Dinner Lab started in New Orleans three years ago. “Originally, there was nowhere to get really good late night food in New Orleans,” explains Dinner Lab HR director Hallie Dietsch. “What it evolved into is an opportunity to let chefs showcase their true passions.”
The chefs are not given boundaries to what they prepare. Diners are given a comment card to rate the food’s taste, creativity and other feedback. “As a member, you’re having a dinner that you most likely will never have again,” says Dietsch. “For the chef, it’s an opportunity to cook something he knows really well and enjoys cooking.”
There is a $125 annual membership fee to join Dinner Lab, and the five- to seven-course dinners cost between $50 and $65. Members can bring up to three guests with them. The chefs range from seasoned line cooks who are thinking about opening their own restaurants to Michelin Star chefs trying out new concepts.
Dinners are announced three weeks in advance of the event. Diners are told the date, the chef and the menu, but the location is not disclosed until 24 hours before the event.
Dietsch says Cleveland was chosen as the newest Dinner Lab location because of the population’s affinity for good food. “Cleveland is not known as being New York or Chicago, but Clevelanders are keyed in to good food and want to try new things,” she says. “We think people in Cleveland will be excited and ready for this. People are more interested in food and educated about food and they want to know what they’re eating and the chef’s inspiration.”
Cleveland’s first Dinner Lab chef will be Chicago-based Daniel Espinoza, who will cook a five-course modern Mexican meal titled “Anomar.”
"The rust belt city offers some old-fashioned, even old-world, charms. Readers ranked it at No. 5 for its rich food halls, like West Side Market—with spices, baked goods and delis—which dates back to 1912, when it catered primarily to the city’s immigrants."
Read the full story here.
Read the full story here.
"It's cheap, their museum is on point, and they have excellent taste in beer." So says Buzzfeed.
Check out what other cities made the list. Read the full story here.
Check out what other cities made the list. Read the full story here.