Dee Anderson was a pastor at West Granville Presbyterian Church for forty years. He retired in 2025, but for years he helped oversee the resettlement of international teachers coming to teach in Milwaukee Public Schools.

You heard from two of those teachers in a previous Status Pending episode - Chigozie Okonkwo and Chioma Mba, from Nigeria. They’re part of Dee’s congregation, and that’s how WUWM’s Audrey Nowakowski and Katherine Kokal met him.

Here’s Pastor Dee talking about why his church stepped up to meet the moment, and how it’s changed them for the better.

Milwaukee Public Schools recently approved Annie Kubes as the new senior director of Milwaukee Recreation. Milwaukee Rec runs hundreds of programs in the city – from afterschool care to youth sports and cooking classes.

Kubes has worked for the department since she was sixteen years old. Throughout her career, she’s overseen various Milwaukee Rec programs — from Special Olympics to driver education and aquatics. She was most recently working part-time as Milwaukee Rec’s special projects coordinator.

Lake Effect’s Xcaret Nuñez speaks with Kubes about her job experience and the goals she has for this role.

One of the country’s most fundamental environmental laws is under threat. President Trump is rolling back the National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA.

NEPA requires federal agencies to consider a project’s potential environmental impacts before deciding whether to approve it. The Trump administration says scaling back NEPA would bring infrastructure and energy projects to life without unnecessary delays.

Ron Eckstein is very familiar with NEPA. He's a retired state DNR wildlife biologist who spent his career in northern Wisconsin. He saw firsthand how NEPA helped with management of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Eckstein is also a founding member of Wisconsin's Green Fire, a group that promotes science-based management of our state’s natural resources. He joins WUWM environmental reporter Susan Bence.

For weeks, Minnesota has been targeted by an aggressive immigration enforcement campaign. Federal immigration agents have surged through the Twin Cities, going door-to-door, arresting immigrants, and U.S. citizens alike. One woman, Renee Nicole Good, was killed by an ICE agent. So, how do you report on something like this?

Katelyn Vue is an immigration reporter at the Sahan Journal, an outlet in the Twin Cities that covers immigrant communities. She spoke with WUWM’s Jimmy Gutierrez last week. During their interview, you’ll hear clips from news reports about what’s happening in Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

A bitter cold snap is gripping southeast Wisconsin. Many of us are under an extreme cold warning or watch with temperatures creeping into the negative teens. Weather-related emergencies can happen at any time. That’s why it’s especially important to be prepared.

Katie Rousonelos is the public information officer with Wisconsin Emergency Management. She joins Lake Effect’s Sam Woods to share how to prepare for winter emergencies and how to stay safe during this cold snap.

We now have a snapshot of the health and well-being of Milwaukee residents.

The Milwaukee Health Department has released its 2025 Community Health Assessment, the first since 2022 when the pandemic was still looming large as a public health concern. This new report finds that violence, drug abuse and housing all play a role in whether we can live healthy lives.

Ali Tahler-Reed and Dominique Hyatt-Oates of the health department join WUWM’s Katherine Kokal to look at what’s in the report and how it’ll be used.

Milwaukee Public School leaders learned last week that the state was releasing the final portion of money it withheld in 2024. The money has been held up after the district missed financial reporting deadlines. The financial woes led to the resignation of former Superintendent Keith Posely.

Now, Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction has released eight million dollars to the district after it submitted all its late financial reports. It marks another major turn for the state’s largest school district as it tries to earn back the trust of the public and state regulators. WUWM education reporter Katherine Kokal catches up with MPS’ Superintendent Dr. Brenda Cassellius.

This month, WUWM has been looking at ways that schools are addressing low literacy rates among Milwaukee children. But what about our city’s adults?

One in four adults in Milwaukee reads at or below a third grade level. Thousands of adults have sought help through free programs offered by Literacy Services of Wisconsin. WUWM education reporter Katherine Kokal met with Literacy Services executive director Holly McCoy-Perez at the organization’s new headquarters in the Brewer’s Hill neighborhood. They discuss how strengthening reading education for young children can have a snowball effect on future generations.