As Oregon looks at banks questionable foreclosure practices, California is learning how the foreclosure crisis and the unemployment crisis feed off the education crisis and the consumer costs crisis. And they all lead to an increase in the crime rate, another crisis – especially for low-income people and minorities. 

Lawyers for Fisk University are asking a Tennessee appeals court to end the 5-year court battle over an art collection donated to the school by the late painter Georgia O'Keeffe and approve a plan they say would save the school.  

— It may not have showed up in a reality show and it certainly wasn't the pick of the week on "American Idol," but it was important enough to further rattle ravenous market speculators and red-eared lawmakers on Capitol Hill still playing chicken: On May 16, the national debt hit its ceiling — then kept on moving past $14.3 trillion.

Dr. Regina M. Benjamin, Surgeon General of the U.S., addressed more than 400 Drexel University College of Medicine graduates, during the commencement ceremony held last week at the Kimmel Center for Performing Arts.

Last month the Board of Education voted unanimously to rename the Burnett Child Development Center as the Leola M. Havard Early Education School after the city's first female African-American principal.

MALTA, Idaho (AP) -- America's kids will be learning about the U.S. Constitution this coming school year with help from a decidedly conservative Idaho publishing house, if a tea party group gets its way.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Federal prosecutors have completed a wide-ranging investigation into John Edwards' political dealings and could indict the two-time presidential candidate within days, a person familiar with the matter said Wednesday.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Barnes & Noble is launching a lighter, slimmer, cheaper version of its e-reader for $139 -- a sign that the book retailer is ready to compete on price with rivals Amazon and Borders.
Available on June 10, the All-New Nook device features a 6-inch touch screen and can hold up to 1,000 digital books.

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) -- A tornado that killed 117 people in Missouri was the single deadliest twister in the past 60 years, according to National Weather Service.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) -- Federal prosecutors issued a subpoena for a New York Times reporter to testify about classified documents he allegedly received from a former CIA operative who is charged with illegally leaking the information.