Last week, a national tour came to Milwaukee. Bay Area artist James Shields is on his third nationwide tour to interview Black farmers about Black agriculture and history.

Previous legs of the tour brought Shields across the South and Northeast. Now he’s tracing the Midwest, stopping in Milwaukee to interview farmers at Alice’s Garden. He conducts his interviews on a hand-made watermelon couch he tows with him across the country.

Lake Effect’s Sam Woods joins Shields on the couch in Alice’s Garden to discuss the project, the commonalities he sees across regions, and what stands out about Milwaukee.

Last year, Lake Effect reported on MKE Roots - a program from Marquette University that helps Milwaukee-area teachers incorporate local history into their lesson plans. The goal is to make social studies feel more relevant to students by focusing on local history.

But earlier this summer, MKE Roots’ federal grant funding was abruptly cut, along with about 20 programs nationwide. In its place, the Trump administration is now funding civics education that commemorates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Lake Effect’s Sam Woods revisited members of the Milwaukee Roots program to discuss how the program has adapted, what the future holds, and how the Trump administration is redefining education.

Last week, President Trump approved 30 million dollars in federal assistance for people impacted by devastating floods in August. That means residents in Milwaukee, Waukesha, and Washington counties whose homes or property were damaged by the floods, may get some relief. One of the homeowners trying to rebuild is Wauwatosa resident Jessica Young.

WUWM Eric Von Fellow Maria Peralta-Arellano spoke with Young the day after her home was flooded. She joins us once again, to explain what the last month has been like for her family.

Songwriter Hillary Reynolds splits her time between her hometown of Appleton, Wisconsin and Los Angeles. Her songs have been recorded by Little Big Town and Dani Rose and can be heard on Yellowstone and Loudermilk.

However, over the past five years Reynolds has been working on her debut album, “Changing Seasons,” which is full of songs that felt too personal to write for other musicians. They’re meant to be a soothing companion to our morning routines to help ease us into a new day. Reynolds joins Audrey Nowakowski in the Lake Effect performance studio to discuss her album and give a brief performance.

Chimney Swifts are back in town and you could catch their spectacular show at a chimney near you! The small, fast-flying birds are known for the tornado-like dance they perform in the sky.

Brenna Marsicek is the Director of Outreach with the Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance. She says that at dusk, the birds will dive headfirst into a chimney to roost — sometimes by the thousands. Marsicek joins Lake Effect’s Xcaret Nuñez for this month’s Chirp Chat to learn more about swifts and what’s being done to protect them.

Every year, Milwaukee Magazine comes out with a feature highlighting the city’s most beloved people and places. The Best of Milwaukee issue features dozens of categories readers voted on — like the best pizza and best Indian restaurant.

Chris Drosner is the executive editor of Milwaukee Magazine. He says the magazine’s editors also got in on the fun and made their picks for the best custard in the city. Drosner joins Lake Effect’s Xcaret Nuñez to talk more about this year’s list.

Turns out, Wisconsin is a great state for biking! With an average City Ratings score of 48, we’re behind only New York and Alaska as the best statewide scores for biking.

The People For Bikes report also breaks it down city by city, and to share more about how Milwaukee and other cities are doing to make biking safe and accessible Grace Stonecipher of People for Bikes joins Lake Effect's Audrey Nowakowski.

In a new Capitol Notes, we’ll examine the waiting game around the presidential disaster declaration after flooding in Milwaukee.