Milwaukee Leads National Homocide Uptick, UW Ice Cube Project, Mental Health In Schools

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Some Wisconsin public schools will begin a new initiative this year aimed at responding better to students’ mental health issues. Our guest from the Department of Public Instruction explains why the plan is important. We also learn about a new discovery in Antarctic ice that could tell us more about space, and, with Milwaukee topping the list of big cities seeing an increase in murder rates, we talk to a public health expert about the cause.

Featured in this Show

  • Milwaukee Tops The List Of Big Cities With Growing Murder Rates

    At least 35 cities across the country have experienced an increase in murders so far this year, with big spikes in places like St. Louis, Baltimore and DC. But Milwaukee’s increase in homicides has outpaced all of those cities with 76 percent more murders in 2015 compared with this time last year.

    The uptick comes after years of decline in violence across American cities. Milwaukee’s Homicide Review Commission has even been seen as a model program for reducing murder rates. With the increase proving to be a national trend, numerous theories have surfaced as to the cause. Peter Scharf, Assistant professor at the Louisiana State University School of Public Health tries to make sense of the trend.

  • Wisconsin Project Finds Cosmic Evidence In Antarctic Ice

    New information from the Wisconsin-based Ice Cube project finds evidence of hard-to-detect neutrino particles–from our galaxy and beyond. The project director says this evidence found in Antarctic ice could kick off a new form of astronomy.

  • New Project Aimed At Mental Health In Schools Gets Underway

    A five-year-long project to address issues of mental health in schools is getting underway in a handful of districts across Wisconsin. A representative from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction describes the scope and goals of the project.

Episode Credits

  • Rob Ferrett Host
  • Veronica Rueckert Host
  • Galen Druke Producer
  • Rob Ferrett Producer
  • Chris Malina Producer
  • Peter Scharf Guest
  • Francis L. Halzen Guest
  • Steve Fernan Guest

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