It’s the first day of a new school year for Spelman College students and that includes a new president, Dr. Ayanna Howard. The self-described servant leader is the Atlanta based HBCU’s 12th president. She brings her NASA background and experience with tech and science to the role at a time when AI is changing our world and workforce. In an on-campus interview with “Closer Look” host Rose Scott, Dr. Howard says she finds it odd to still be the only woman of color in rooms where important decisions are being made. She calls it her mission and calling to lead Spelman College students to be in those rooms in a world where opportunities are disappearing around Black women. Dr. Howard shares more of her background, passion, and how she’ll lead Spelman College to prepare students for a world that will look different when they graduate.

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In 2025, more than 300,000 Black women reportedly left or were let go from their jobs within the first few months of President Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Many of those jobs were cut as the Trump Administration downsized the federal workforce. Now, a year after Closer Look’s special programming on this topic, we revisit the issue again with an update on Black unemployment numbers, which remain higher than all other racial groups. This, despite President Trump falsely claiming Black unemployment is at an “historic low.” We also discuss solutions and resources to help Black Americans who are trying to find their next employment opportunity.

Guests Include:

Dr. David McMillon, assistant professor and economist with Emory University

Nancy Flake Johnson, CEO & president of the Urban League of Greater Atlanta

John Moye, senior director of legislative policy, social justice and civic engagement with the Urban League of Greater Atlanta

Milton Jones, Jr., chairman of the board for 100 Black Men of America

Sherry Sims, career and leadership strategist and founder of Black Career Women’s Network

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On today’s “Closer Look with Rose Scott,” we catch up with NPR Congressional Reporter and WABE alum Sam Gringlas. He’s currently following Democratic Incumbent Jon Ossoff and his effort to reclaim his U.S. Senate seat this November. Polling data currently has Ossoff leading his Republican opponent, Mike Collins, but there are still several miles on the campaign trail until the midterm election. Gringlas shares his firsthand look at how voters are reacting during Senator Ossoff’s campaign stops.

Atlanta is widely known as the city in a forest, but that forest is depleting. Of the city’s more than 84,000 acres, almost 40,000 acres are covered by its tree canopy. However, that latest assessment by Georgia Tech shows Atlanta has lost a quarter of an acre of trees every day between 2008 and 2023. The city had a goal of reaching 50% canopy coverage, but Atlanta moved further away from that goal in the latest assessment, now dropping to 45.7% tree coverage. Officials from Trees Atlanta and Georgia Tech provide more details on the data, and what’s leading to the disappearing canopy.

With the concern of mainstream AI systems disseminating misinformation, a new artificial intelligence platform is promising to provide accurate information. AiSHA pulls its information from Black History, culture, and trusted journalism sources to avoid biases. We speak to the founder and CEO of Onyx Impact, Esosa Osa, about how her new AI assistant and chatbot will provide something different, including most sustainability friendly usage.

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