Publisher: Tri State Defender

Leaders say plan for $1 billion campus aims to reshape healthcare, strengthen the local economy and reconnect core sections of the city

For three decades, the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change has been at the forefront of advancing equity, education and opportunity in Memphis.

Researchers from the University of Memphis and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center analyzed data from more than 10,000 breast cancer patients in Memphis. Their findings show that Black women are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages and are more likely to die from the disease.

In the midst of pitching his $1.7 billion fiscal 2026 budget to Shelby County commissioners, Mayor Lee Harris proposed a $5.5 million “focused” crime lab to serve the county’s various law enforcement agencies.

Six graduating seniors’ portraits are being added to Rhodes College’s Hall of Fame on the second floor of Southwestern Hall.

With big plans in mind, a core Memphis institution – Regional One Health – will move to the former home of another Memphis institution with the purchase of the old Commercial Appeal building at 495 Union Ave.

A vote on $33.7 million in funding for violence intervention programs will have to wait another week, after members of the Memphis City Council Public Safety & Homeland Security Committee found the initial presentation lacking on Tuesday, Nov. 26.

Dr. Debo Odulana from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center discussed the significance of DEI in healthcare. “Representation in healthcare can improve patient trust and outcomes,” Odulana said, stressing the need for training healthcare professionals in DEI.