The Amplify team's goal is to connect people living in Michigan with the resources and information they need to thrive. Our reporting, how-to guides, and community events will help you become your own best advocate on basic needs like housing, public safety, health and more.
Recent Stories
Sylvia Jarrus
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Chalkbeat
Michigan parents of students with disabilities feel ‘hopeless’ as civil rights cases remain in limbo
Hundreds of federal civil rights cases were put on hold after President Donald Trump took office in January. Parents of students with disabilities and those who experience racial discrimination or sexual violence in schools are uncertain of the fate of their federal complaints. Many say they have not gotten updates on their cases since the regional offices closed.
Jodi Westrick
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Michigan Public
Helpful Guides
Get resources on a range of topics from housing needs, due process rights, and more.
Todos tenemos derechos. Cómo manejar un encuentro con ICE.
Una semana después de la toma de posesión del presidente Donald Trump, muchos de los peores temores sobre deportaciones masivas aún no se han materializado. Sin embargo, la propagación de rumores deja claro que muchas personas en Michigan se encuentran en máxima alerta.
Everyone has rights. How to handle encounters with immigration enforcement.
A week into Donald Trump's presidency, mass immigration raids have yet to materialize in Michigan, but fears are growing. Here's what to know if you encounter immigration enforcement agents.
Can you cuss at cops? Know your rights when interacting with police
It is legal to speak your mind, advocate for yourself or record police activity in most circumstances. Still, attorneys and a former law enforcement officer say there’s no guarantee your rights will be respected in the moment — or that it’s always safe to exercise them.
You can’t recycle that… right? Find places in Michigan that take pizza boxes, foil and more
Does recycling feel messy and confusing to you? You're not alone. We've made a map and searchable database of Michigan recycling programs to help you navigate the do's and don'ts of recycling in your area.
See someone in crisis? You don't have to call the police. Here are alternatives.
Following the police killing of a young man with schizophrenia several months ago, Michigan Radio collected resources to find support for people in mental health crisis.
What you should know about car insurance after no-fault overhaul
Michigan Radio has put together this guide to help you understand the biggest changes brought by the state's 2019 no-fault law.
Detroit's going to restart water shutoffs. Here's how you can avoid one.
About a quarter of Detroit's residential water customers were behind on their bills as of late last year. But Detroit Water and Sewerage Department officials say they won't shut off anyone who enrolls in an assistance program or gets on a payment plan.
How to escrow your rent in Michigan
This guide looks at escrow in Michigan, its risks, and what resources may be available in your area. Escrow is one of the tools tenants have to deal with housing problems when landlords are unresponsive.
Detroit renters with building problems do have options. Here's how to protect yourselves.
Michigan Radio consulted residents, lawyers, academics, and activists to round up what renters can do to protect themselves when building problems go unaddressed.
Thousands of Michigan children are eligible for free school meals. Here’s how you can make sure your kid gets theirs.
COVID-era universal school lunches — where all kids were given free meals regardless of income, feeding an additional 10 million students nationwide — has ended.
More from the Amplify Team
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Every county can have different groups of challengers. We got a list of challenger organizations for most counties in the state. -
Dozens of Michigan communities are voting on school funding questions this November. This guide can help you figure out the school bond, sinking fund or millage question on your ballot. -
Library funding questions are being posed to voters in many Michigan communities. Sometimes, those voters reject their requests. Here's what you need to know about the library millage on your ballot. -
The typically dull but important process of officially counting ballots became a circus show four years ago in Michigan. Since then, courts and voters have reiterated that the board of canvassers' job is simple – to count votes. Challenges go elsewhere. -
Are you ready to cast your ballot? Whether you’re curious about how candidates for president are speaking about your priorities, need to get up to speed on local and statewide races, or want to check whether you’re registered to vote, Outlier Media is here to help you get informed — before, during and after Election Day, Nov. 5. -
Nearly two dozen people are running for three seats on the Detroit school board during a pivotal time for the school district. Only one of the three incumbents, Sherry Gay-Dagnogo, is seeking re-election. That means there will be two new faces on the board, as members Misha Stallworth and Sonya Mays have opted not to seek re-election. -
Virtually 100% of babies in Flint are receiving up to $7,500 in cash aid, no strings attached. Now, that program is trying to expand to more Michigan communities, including the rural eastern Upper Peninsula. But first, they have to raise millions in private funding. -
Thousands of Michiganders can get cold or hot meals at restaurants in 26 counties through a food assistance program called the Restaurant Meal Program. -
We know little about the reasons for Detroit’s voter turnout. So one of our partners, Outlier Media, commissioned the Detroit Metro Area Communities Study to survey 1,100 residents about their priorities and reasons for voting or not voting. -
![Last week's ransomware attack disrupted Ascension's 140 hospitals across the country, including more than a dozen in Michigan. Nurses say the quality of patient care has been significantly impacted. “I probably said 25 times [during my shift this week,] ‘We should not be doing elective surgeries,’” one nurse told Michigan Public. "Patient safety is at risk.”](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ee1cacf/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3822x2129+0+234/resize/280x156!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fab%2F61%2F44eb8b37454db3713fd1202e7207%2Fimg-8986.jpg)
“Obviously if someone is having an absolute emergency, you want them to come somewhere close,” one ER nurse said. “But when I can’t find someone’s critical lab work or I don’t know if someone has a brain bleed ... what good are we doing? At what point are we turning into patient harm?”
![Last week's ransomware attack disrupted Ascension's 140 hospitals across the country, including more than a dozen in Michigan. Nurses say the quality of patient care has been significantly impacted. “I probably said 25 times [during my shift this week,] ‘We should not be doing elective surgeries,’” one nurse told Michigan Public. "Patient safety is at risk.”](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4f78928/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3822x2129+0+234/resize/560x312!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fab%2F61%2F44eb8b37454db3713fd1202e7207%2Fimg-8986.jpg)
Amplify Events
The Amplify Team often holds events related to the stories they report in the communities that are affected by those stories. See photos from some of these events below:
1 of
— Jail's True Cost 1
Community Engagement Reporter Jamie Simmons speaks at the Jail's True Cost event (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Jail's True Cost 2
Attendees look at art by prisoners at the Jail's True Cost event (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Jail's True Cost 3
Handouts and informative flyers at the Jail's True Cost event (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Jail's True Cost 4
Attendees had the opportunity to hear from prisoners in this interactive display at Jail's True Cost (2022).
Jodi Westrick / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 1
Data reporter Nisa Khan at the Housing Forum (2022).
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 2
Kids are welcome at most Enterprise events. Here, reporter Lindsey Smith teaches a young attendee to use a recorder.
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
7 of
— Housing Forum
Community Engagement Reporter Jamie Simmons speaks at the Housing Forum (2022).
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 3
A panel of local experts speaks about the housing crisis in Detroit and give resources for residents.
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
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— Housing Forum 5
Attendees at the Enterprise Housing Forum (2022).
Lindsey Smith / Michigan Radio
Meet Our Team
