American Public Media

American Public Media

Sequel to close New Mexico youth facility amid more abuse allegations

The once-ascendant youth treatment company has agreed to shutter its 14th center in the past three years following a state report that found abuse of kids with autism, including one resident who was allegedly whipped with a tree branch.

St. Louis cops are hiding key details about homicide cases from the public

Despite killings on the rise and the highest homicide rate among big cities, St. Louis police say they don’t have to tell the public which cases have been solved. APM Reports has filed a lawsuit for the information.

Influential authors Fountas and Pinnell stand behind disproven reading theory

The education professors double down on a flawed approach that encourages pictures and context to read words. Heinemann — their publisher — faces harsh criticism.

Curtis Flowers sues District Attorney Doug Evans

The Mississippi man tried six times for the same crime alleges in a lawsuit that Evans and three investigators committed misconduct that led to his wrongful imprisonment for more than two decades.

In Deep: One City's Year of Climate Chaos

Most scientists believe climate change is increasing the severity of the storms we experience, and how quickly they intensify. After suffering two hurricanes, a winter storm, and devastating flooding in less than a year, Lake Charles, Louisiana, offers a troubling view of the wrenching, disturbingly inequitable effects of climate change.

Inside the college mental health crisis

Colleges are struggling to meet the surging demand for mental health services on campus, and some schools are wrestling with how much care they owe students.

The U.S. may never regain its dominance as a destination for international students. Here's why that matters.

Colleges and universities in the United States attract more than a million international students a year. Higher education is one of America’s top service exports, generating $42 billion in revenue. But the money spigot is closing. The pandemic, visa restrictions, rising tuition and a perception of poor safety in America have driven new international student enrollment down by a jaw-dropping 72 percent.

Texas company fuels rise of for-profit teacher training programs

Texas Teachers of Tomorrow has become the largest teacher training program in the nation, offering a low-cost online program. While it’s lowered barriers and helped diversify the workforce, this approach to training hasn’t solved chronic teacher shortages.

We’ve spent decades trying to alleviate teacher shortages. Our attempts have dramatically changed the teacher workforce, but the shortages remain.

A four-part podcast series by APM Reports.

Lax oversight, no-bid contracts and mysterious pricing: Inside the black box of Covid testing

More than a year into the pandemic, many details about Covid testing remain unclear to the public, including how much the tests will cost taxpayers and how effective they really are. Nowhere is that more evident than in Minnesota.

21 states still don’t require de-escalation training for police

Studies have shown that teaching officers to de-escalate confrontations can reduce violent encounters, but many states don’t mandate it. 

The teen got a concussion. The school got a pass.

Up until 2019, the agency regulating Utah’s massive youth treatment industry rarely cited facilities for violating rules — even after cases of abuse. After a 2016 incident left a teenager with a concussion, state regulators listened to his mom’s complaint — and then did nothing about it.

At the height of pandemic, Kentucky’s Democratic governor eased Covid restrictions despite mounting deaths

An investigation finds that when Gov. Andy Beshear rolled back restrictions in December, health officials were already worried about a surge and were overwhelmed by a growing backlog of deaths.

Sequel confronts more abuse allegations amid concerns about its finances

The embattled youth treatment company will soon shutter its Northern Illinois Academy, the 13th closure since 2019, while creditors doubt it can repay its debts.

The Jail Tapes in the Dumpster

A murder conviction sent Myon Burrell to prison for life when he was a teenager. An investigative reporter dug into what seemed a hopeless case. What she found helped free him.