Conversation in My Parlor About Climate Change and the Call to Thoughtful Service by Lawyers with Disabilities

Pope John Paul II penned, So much of our world seems to be in fragments, in disjointed pieces. Experts admonish that an irreparable threshold of 1.5°C for global temperatures is not a theoretical remonstrance but an imminent imperative. Is this true? This article will explore if climate change exists. I will thoughtfully respond to this question in the affirmative, exploring center-based solutions. Specifically, this article will urge that these great United States require a new generation of leaders who can embody the energy of a Brother President Theodore Roosevelt, who possesses the eloquence of President John Kennedy, and who, like President Reagan, can maintain and show a bullish love of the country. The law is one of many tools and this new generation of leaders, who will use those tools, must better reflect the diversity of modern America. Specifically, I urge inclusion by lawyers with disabilities in leading center-based solutions to climate change

Myra Simmons Interview, 28 February 2025

In this 2025 interview, Myra Simmons discusses growing up off Kinsman Road in the Mt. Pleasant neighborhood in the 1960s. She describes the long-standing businesses of her childhood, her childhood home, and her hobbies within and outside of school. She also talks about working at the steel mill for 42 years, her opinions of labor unions, and her later purchase of multiple homes in the neighborhood. The interview concludes with her hopes for the future and her advice for future generations

Mark Smith Interview, 25 February 2025

In this 2025 interview, Mark Smith, pastor at Sanctuary Baptist Church, talks about his early life in Hartford, Connecticut, his move to Cleveland, and his life in and outside of the church. He discusses his career path, his involvement in the Mt. Pleasant and Union-Miles neighborhoods, and his hopes for the future of Sanctuary Baptist Church

Affordability: Practitioner Definitions and Perspectives from the Field

What does Affordability mean when it comes to housing? The Center for Economic Development utilized housing data and stakeholder interviews to assess the county\u27s housing needs. The study addresses challenges such as mismatched housing stock, an aging population, affordability issues, and programming difficulties

Book Discussion of Rust: A Memoir of Steel and Grit by Eliese Colette Goldbach

You\u27re Invited! Join the Friends of the Library for a compelling Book Discussion of Rust: A Memoir of Steel and Grit by Eliese Colette Goldbach and enjoy lunch on us! Discussion Leader: John P. Holcomb, Jr., Vice Provost for Academic Programs Wednesday, October 22, 2025 12:00 pm – 1:30 p.m. Location: Michael Schwartz Library, Rhodes Tower, Room 502 or virtually Registration is encouraged: forms.office.com/r/096wgWQEac. Discover the powerful story of resilience, identity, and transformation set against the backdrop of Cleveland’s steel industry. Whether you\u27ve read the book or are just curious, come share your thoughts, listen, and connect with fellow readers over lunch and lively conversation. Registrants will receive a Zoom link if they cannot attend in-person. Lunch will be served. This is a free event to the Friends of the Library, campus community, CSU Alumni and the general public

The Pursuit of Municipal Sovereignty: How the Ohio Legislature Is Attempting to Violate the Right to Local Self-Governance

This Note examines the Ohio Legislature’s recent efforts to undermine the constitutional right to local self-governance guaranteed by the Ohio’s home rule amendment within the Ohio Constitution. By focusing on Senate Bills 91, 137, and 158, it analyzes the legislative initiatives aimed at preempting municipal powers to implement participatory budgeting and ranked-choice voting systems. These bills exemplify a broader trend of the Legislature’s attempt at eroding municipal autonomy in Ohio, cutting against the principles of local sovereignty established by the 1912 Constitutional Convention. The Note argues that such preemption efforts violate the core right to self-governance as interpreted by the Ohio Supreme Court and sets a dangerous precedent. Through exploration of legislative history, judicial precedent, and the practical implications of participatory budgeting and ranked-choice voting, the Note contends that these bills are unconstitutionally written under the home-rule amendment. It calls for the judiciary to uphold municipal rights and to preserve local democracy against state overreach

Curated Storefront: Examination by the Center for Economic Development

In early 2025, Curated Storefront contracted the Center for Economic Development at Cleveland State University to examine the impact of the organization’s programs that support and underwrite the installation of artistic works in unoccupied or vacant storefront spaces concentrated along the main commercial corridor of downtown Akron. This report serves to contextualize the organization\u27s work within relevant and practitioner literatures on place-based economic development, storefront revitalization, and creative placemaking, examine the community’s understanding of the organization and its work, and provide guidance and strategic recommendations for moving forward

Shale Investment Dashboard in Ohio Q1 and Q2 2024

This report presents findings from an investigation into shale-related investment in Ohio, looking at up, mid, and downstream activities. The investment estimates are for January through June of 2024. The report also includes an estimate of cumulative investment into shale in Ohio from 2012 through June 2024. Prior biannual investments are included in previously posted reports that are available from Cleveland State University

Unmasking a New Dialect of Deception: Leveraging the Federal Trade Commission to Combat Deceptive and Exploitative Corporate Policies

Corporate social responsibility initiatives have transformed fair labor policies into powerful marketing tools, but the gap between the public promise to embrace ethical labor practices and actual corporate compliance with such practices has widened. This has the effect of not only impeding the average consumer’s purchasing decision, but perpetuating—if not catalyzing—labor exploitation across the world. The existence of this paradigm thus necessitates additional, heightened intervention by none other than Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC’s three-pronged test for deception—previously created to combat other forms of deceptive practices—provides an accountability framework for deceptive marketing claims that utilize unfollowed, self-adopted corporate fair labor policies. Backed by—and born out of—the Federal Trade Commission Act, further insulated by legal precedent, the FTC is well-equipped to address this mode of corporate deception. Stated differently, by creating a comprehensive regulatory framework, the FTC can rely on its historical doctrines to ensure corporations comply with their advertised labor policies. By drawing wisdom from legal scholars, United States jurisprudence and legislation, current events, and human rights organizations, this Note strongly recommends that—similar to combating other deceptive marketing strategies—the FTC must clear a path for regulatory oversight against a new dialect of deception: the hollow-but-publicly-embraced promise to utilize fair labor practices. If done correctly, the FTC would not only lend a strong hand in the fight against domestic and international labor exploitation, but continue to honor the mantra that brought about its inception: protecting consumer rights, promoting corporate transparency, and deterring corporate deception