Missouri Residents Hope to Save Historic Bridge November 30, 2004 • With the price of scrap metal soaring on world markets, a railroad company is seeing dollar signs when it looks at an old bridge across the Missouri River. Residents now want to save the bridge, but don't know how they can come up with the $8 million its worth. Catherine Welch of member station KBIA reports.
Historian: Free Education Drew Immigrants to America November 30, 2004 • Diane Ravitch discusses the educational history of immigrant children in the United States. Ravitch is a professor of history at New York University and is assistant secretary of Education for the Bush administration. Hear Ravitch and NPR's Renee Montagne.
Education Study: Corporate Recruiters Back on Campus November 30, 2004 • The sluggish economy over the past few years has made it difficult for college grads to find jobs. But, a new study shows that corporate recruiters are making their way back to job fairs and student unions and in numbers. Jerome Vaughn of Detroit Public Radio reports.
News Bush Makes Visit to Canada November 30, 2004 • President Bush begins a two-day mission to Canada, downplaying disagreements between the U.S. and its neighbor over Iraq and trade issues. His trip is the first official visit by a U.S. president in nearly 10 years. NPR's Don Gonyea reports.
Race 'Arc of Justice': An American Tale of Racial Hatred November 30, 2004 • Kevin Boyle's Arc of Justice tells the true story of a black physician's fight to keep his family home in the face of violent threats from white neighbors in 1920s Detroit. Boyle won a National Book Award.
Ridge Resigns as Homeland Security Chief November 30, 2004 • Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge resigns, saying his only regret is that he could not make some security improvements sooner. Rumors of Ridge's resignation, the seventh in President Bush's Cabinet since the election, had circulated since the summer. NPR's Pam Fessler reports.
Education Campus Recruiting Ruling November 30, 2004 • A federal appeals court rules that colleges and universities have the right to ban military recruiters from campus without fear of losing federal funding. The schools argued that the armed services openly discriminate against homosexuals and that university rules prohibit such discrimination. Hear NPR's Jackie Northam.
Law Case Tests Title IX Protection November 30, 2004 • The Supreme Court hears arguments on sex discrimination in school sports. The case tests whether the law called Title IX provides a basis for a sports coach to sue for back pay. The coach says he was fired after complaining that girls' basketball teams at an Alabama high school got fewer resources than boys' teams. Hear NPR's Nina Totenberg.
News 9/11 Commissioners Step Up Pressure on Congress November 30, 2004 • Top officials of the 9/11 Commission, Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton, push Congress to pass an intelligence reform bill. NPR's David Welna reports.
Obituaries Remembering Lance Corporal Dimitri Gavriel November 30, 2004 • Dimitri Gavriel interrupted a career on Wall Street to join the Marines. He wanted to prove his integrity and improve his leadership skills. The 29-year-old lance corporal died earlier this month in a bomb blast near Fallujah. Rachel Gotbaum reports.
Pop Culture A Long 'Jeopardy!' Run, Jeopardized November 30, 2004 • After winning 74 consecutive Jeopardy! games since June and winning more than $2.5 million, contestant Ken Jennings may have finally met his match. NPR's Michele Norris talks with Andy Saunders, a Canadian college student and Jeopardy! enthusiast.
Race NAACP Chief Kweisi Mfume to Resign November 30, 2004 • NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates reports on the political legacy of NAACP president Kweisi Mfume, who is expected to announce his resignation as president of the nation's oldest civil rights organization later Tuesday.
Children of Immigrants Seek to Define their Identity November 30, 2004 • In the second of two stories, high school students who are children of immigrants in Fremont, Calif., talk about cultural identity and the pressures to succeed academically. Hear NPR's Claudio Sanchez.
News Ridge Resigns Security Post November 30, 2004 • Calling the move "a difficult decision," U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge announces his resignation from the Bush administration. Ridge made a formal announcement in a news conference Tuesday afternoon. Ridge has served in the position since the department's creation in 2003. Hear NPR's Korva Coleman.
Stay of Execution Recommended in Texas Murder Case November 30, 2004 • The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles recommends a 120-day stay of execution in the case of Frances Newton, who was scheduled to be executed Wednesday. Newton was convicted of killing her husband and two children in 1987, but a number of questions have been raised about how well she was defended and the evidence used to convict her. Now, it is up to Gov. Rick Perry to decide. Janet Heimlich reports.