Articles

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Below are recently published stories as well as some of Linda’s favorite projects. Please contact Linda if you’d like to see more writing samples.  Some older narrative projects cannot be posted because of copyright issues.

EDUCATION

(Note: Articles related to my book, Faith Ed, are below in a separate category)

A Look at Supreme Court’s Ruling on Football Coach’s Mid-Field Prayer: I give my take on the June Supreme Court Ruling about the football coach’s mid-field prayer in a Boston Globe Magazine Perspective commentary. What will this ruling mean for schools? What will it mean for religious minorities and atheists? July 7, 2022.

A Family’s Journey from a School Prayer Dispute to the Supreme Court:  I did a 30th-year anniversary article for The Washington Post about the Lee v. Weisman Supreme Court ruling, which prohibited clergy-led prayer at public school graduations. It’s a narrative about the Weisman family’s battle against Providence schools, a fight that began softly with a hallway conversation and letter.  June 20, 2022

The Ethnic Studies Effect: A special project on ethnic studies programs in San Francisco and Holyoke, Mass., and the difference they made for students. This Globe Magazine cover story project was supported by an Education Writers Association Reporting Fellowship and also stemmed from research I did as a Spencer Fellow at Columbia. It takes readers into cities where teachers are teaching about race and ethnicity and asking students to look deeply at their own identities, too. Feb. 20, 2022

The Learning Curve of Gender Pronouns: My Boston Globe Magazine cover story on some K-12 schools’ efforts to give LGBTQ+ students a safe place to express their identities. Students themselves are leading the charge, asking teachers, schools to at the minimum, give them a form where they can list the name, pronouns they use. Oct. 3, 2021

An Invisible Tax on Teachers of Color: In this Boston Globe Magazine cover story, I profile veteran Brookline High School teacher Malcolm Cawthorne, also the head of the school’s METCO program when this piece was published. Malcolm tells a much bigger story — what it’s like to be among the few Black teachers in a predominantly white, yet increasingly diverse school, as schools are suddenly more eager than ever to teach and talk about race and racism. April 4, 2021

METCO schools are the intersection of the pandemic and racism: In the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing at the hands of police, the nation started a new reckoning on race, and it affected schools as well. At the same time, America was in the middle of a pandemic. How did it affect the start of the school year for the predominantly Black and Latino students in Boston’s METCO program, a voluntary program which sends Boston students to predominantly white suburban schools. Read more in my Boston Globe Magazine cover story. Oct. 4, 2020

If We Want Democracy to Endure, Shouldn’t We Do Something About It?: Summary: My Boston Globe Magazine cover story on civics education looks at the new civics law in Massachusetts and teachers’ efforts to put it into action. Oct. 1, 2019

Colin Rose is Taking on Equity in Boston Schools: Summary: How could teachers possibly improve the chances of success for black and Latino kids, who make up more than three-quarters of Boston Public Schools’ 54,300 students, the study asked, if they didn’t recognize or understand the diversity in their own classrooms? I wrote about the efforts of Colin Rose , an assistant superintendent, and others in BPS’s Office of Opportunity Gaps to address color-blindness among educators and principals for Boston Magazine. March 19, 2019

Teaching about the ‘Alt-Right’: Summary: In the 2016-17 school year, I was shadowing a pair of Brookline High School teachers for a longer project on their class about race. Over a few classes, they taught about the ‘alt-right movement’ and how it has become better known due to the 2016 election of Donald Trump. But how common is it to teach such a controversial topic? My April 4, 2017, story in the Atlantic looks at how it is taught and who is willing to teach it.

Students and the Middle East Conflict: Summary: A look at how Tufts University is trying to respond to tension over the Middle East on its campus. This story ran in Education Life, a New York Times education section. Aug. 3, 2016

Why Black Lives Matter Belongs On Lesson Plans  Summary: How can teachers teach about race in today’s tumultuous times? This Boston Globe Magazine article examines what some teachers are doing to engage students in dialogue about race and educate them about racial turmoil of past and present.

AP Classes: A Problem for Massachusetts High Schoolers?– Summary: I wrote a piece for the Oct. 7, 2012, Boston Globe magazine about the rise in enrollment in Advanced Placement classes and how that has led to a troubling trend in competitive high schools. The highest-achieving students compete to see just how many AP classes they can pack into their schedule, a move they […]

A Test of Faith: One School’s Determination to Stand by Its Religion Curriculum– Summary: During the latter half of the 2010-11 school year, I shadowed a sixth-grade Wellesley Middle School class as students learned about world religions. The class had been under scrutiny because of a past field trip to a mosque, where a handful of boys ended up praying. Click on the link below to read my […]

ARTICLES RELATED TO FAITH ED

This section includes articles stemming from my book, Faith Ed, Teaching About Religion In An Age of Intolerance.

Why It Matters When A Town Rallies Against Hate: Reports of anti-Semitic and Islamophobic acts are rampant across the country. But what it is like when it happens in your town and you faced an act of hate in the past? Perspective essay for the Boston Globe Magazine. July 23, 2017

Mother’s fight to stop Bible class resurrects troubled history with schools, religion: Commentary for Religion News Service on a West Virginia conflict over preachy Bible classes in public schools. A mother, with the help of the Freedom from Religion Foundation, sues a small West Virginia school system over its Bible classes, taught by lay people. It’s clear the classes, offered in elementary schools, are preachy, yet the community has heated debate. March 24, 2017

Volunteering as ‘Hanukkah’ parents lets schools off the hook:  Commentary on WBUR’s Cognoscenti about why there are better ways to teach about different religions than using parent volunteers. Dec. 21, 2016

Tips for Teachers on World Religions Instruction: A Time magazine commentary on ways teachers can teach about the world religions and avoid controversy. September 30, 2016

How to reduce religious bigotry: Teach about religions in school. Op-ed in The Dallas Morning News about examples of classes on religion helping students become more open, understanding of different faiths. April 15, 2016 (online; published in print 4/18)

Trending: #MyMuslimNeighborhood – Patrolling Bigotry, and a Dangerous Idea. Commentary on WBUR’s Cognoscenti about presidential candidate Ted Cruz’s idea of patrolling Muslim neighborhoods. March 24, 2016

Why kids must learn about religion much earlier. Time magazine op-ed weighing in on recent anti-Semitic incidents and the need to start educating about religion at an early age. March 18, 2016

Feel like Americans are ignorant about religion? Do your part to fix things. Commentary in The Washington Post‘s Acts of Faith section about how visiting houses of worship, other actions can educate adults more about different religions. March 9, 2016

Defeating Hate. Story in The Islamic Monthly magazine examining whether teaching about religion can reduce ignorance – and hate. March 4, 2016.

Why teachers should not ask students to try on the hijab. Religion News Service commentary on growing practice of wear-a-hijab day in public schools. Feb. 9, 2016

Indoctrination is Not the Real Issue in Public School Lessons on Islam. Religion News Service commentary written in the aftermath of a controversy in Virginia over a calligraphy exercise.  Jan. 14, 2016

How Schools Overlook Religious Harassment. Religion News Service commentary on bullying of religious minorities and what can be done to confront it. Jan. 8, 2016

Educate, don’t celebrate when it comes to holidays in public schools. USA Today op-ed on how Christmas doesn’t have to be controversial in schools – if teachers teach about religions rather than try to celebrate their holidays. Dec. 20, 2015

Teaching about religion in schools can be risky, but worth it. An op-ed in The Washington Post’s Acts of Faith section after a controversy over having students write a Muslim prayer in calligraphy. Dec. 18, 2015

The Hanukkah Ham and Other Morsels of Religious Ignorance. A gaffe at a local Whole Foods prompted me to write this piece about stores’ occasional ignorance about religions in displays. WBUR’s Cognoscenti.  Dec. 10, 2015

Venti Ado About Nothing? How far should businesses go to show diversity during the holidays? I say my piece in WBUR’s Cognoscenti. Nov. 13, 2015

Our Children Need to Learn about Islam. This op-ed ran online in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Oct. 2, 2015, and appeared in print editions on Oct. 12. Some parents in an Atlanta-area town complained about lessons on Islam, a common refrain around the country. This gives my take.

Ahmed Mohamed and the Problem of Religious Intolerance In Our Schools. Summary: This op-ed, published on WBUR’s Cognoscenti opinion section on Sept. 25, 2015, shows who the story of Ahmed Mohamed reminded me of the Muslim youths I met around the country while reporting on my book.

Our school’s Rosh Hashanah Gift: The Day Off.  Summary: This op-ed, published on WBUR’s Learning Lab website on Sept. 11, 2015, describes the positive effect of a school system giving religious holidays off for minorities, but also covers the complexity, given no schools could give all holidays off.

Public schools should not preach but they can teach about religion. Summary: This Sept. 8, 2015, op-ed in The Washington Post uses material and reporting from Faith Ed. to make the case why it’s so important for schools to do more to teach about religion.

New Clash over Religion in Schools: Communities Face Backlash for Lessons on Islam.  This piece, published Aug. 25, 2015, on religionandpolitics.org covers a reoccurring theme in Faith Ed., how lessons on Islam often led to controversy. It drew more than 6,000 likes on Facebook and heated debate in the comments section.

Not In Our Town: How A String Of Swastikas And Other Vile Graffiti Actually Made A Community Stronger Summary: This Aug. 9, 2015, Boston Globe Magazine cover story stems from a sliver of my prologue of Faith Ed, a look at how a string of anti-Semitic incidents roiled the tiny town of Bedford and brought it closer together.

MEMOIR

Calling Out Her Name: Lilith Magazine published my essay on healing, prayer and my mother’s struggle with Parkinson’s Disease in its Summer 2017 issue.

Considering the Meaning of Community.  The outpouring of sympathy from the Jewish and Muslim community after 18-year-old Ezra Schwartz was killed by a Palestinian attacker in Israel led to this personal essay about grief and community in Cognoscenti. Nov. 25, 2015

“Modim” – Summary: Tiferet, a spiritual literary journal, published an essay of mine, Modim, in its Fall 2014 issue. This essay stems partly from my yet-to-be-published memoir about losing my brother and finding faith and partly from my experiences with post-partum depression.

Son Teaches Mom How to Be a Jew at Christmas– Summary: The New York Times Motherlode blog posted an essay of mine on Dec. 7, 2012, about a common dilemma for Jewish parents or parents of any children who are not in the Christian majority. How do we teach our children to be proud of their religious identity and customs, yet still respect the traditions of […]

Naming a Son for a Brother Who Died Young– Summary: Choosing a name for our unborn son stirred up the past for my husband and me. I wrote an essay about that struggle for The New York Times Motherlode blog. The piece was published on July 29, 2012.

Yearning to Hear My Brother’s Voice– Summary: The Boston Globe Magazine on May 27, 2012, published my essay about how it was so hard to remember my brother’s voice.

Jew Girl– Veteran journalist Linda K. Wertheimer, who’s writing a memoir about the loss of her brother and her journey closer to faith, chronicles how being the only Jews in public school bonded her and her brother closer in this excerpt. It was published in March 2012 in Tiferet Journal’s Fifth Bridge edition, a collection of winning essays from the publication’s 2011 contest.

ARTICLES ABOUT WRITING

Perfecting the Art of Slowness (An Essay on the Writing Life)– Summary: Music has shaped so much of what I’ve become as a writer, and I write a riff on how music has influenced my writing in recent years for the Off the Cuff feature in the December 2011 issue of The Writer . Read the article.

Interview with Dani Shapiro for Writer magazine – Summary: Dani Shapiro, author of Devotion, a memoir about her journey toward faith, talks about what inspires her as a writer in an interview I conducted with her for the February 2011 issue of The Writer . Read the article.

Editing job improved my writing – Summary: Spending three years as an assistant city editor at The Boston Globe taught me valuable lessons as a writer. Read my Off the Cuff column in the July 2010 issue of The Writer about the lessons I put into practice. Read the article.

Novelist’s gift is priceless: retreat for writers– Summary: In search of space and time to work on my memoir, I spent two weeks at novelist Jacquelyn Mitchard’s writer’s retreat on Cape Cod. I wrote about the program in the January 2010 issue of The Writer magazine.

Author shows me Cape Cod through her eyes
Summary: In Brewster on the Cape for two weeks for a writing retreat, I fell in love with bucolic town and discovered books set there by novelist Sally Gunning. The author gave me a tour — and this travel piece was the result.

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