Jaelen Reaves is well-prepared to study vocal music starting this fall at Oakland University.

And the reason why will be on display this week at Detroit’s Fox Theatre.

“An Evening of Fine Arts,” a free show taking place on Wednesday, May 6, is the Detroit Public Schools Community District’s 57th showcase of performing and visual arts. Some 760 students from 14 schools will take part in the presentation, which includes 27 stage performances and 26 works on display in the Fox’s Grand Lobby.

And for students such as Reaves, who attends the Detroit School of Arts, it’s a chance to take a step towards a career on a stage that’s hosted showbusiness legends they’ve looked up to.

“It’s like, wow, because I know people like Patti LaBelle and Chaka Khan and so many others have performed there,” says Reaves, 18, a vocal soprano who will perform with the DSA Lady Achievers and Concert Choir on Wednesday. “The fact that they sang on that stage and I’m about to sing on that stage is crazy. Just going to the Fox to see (a performance) is a privilege; for me to be performing on that stage is really an honor.

“The fact I have the opportunity to showcase my talent and what we represent here (at DSA). If I was in another school, I would never have had this opportunity. I definitely don’t take it for granted.”

Other performances during the night will come from the district’s harp and vocal ensemble, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary and is the oldest such program in the country, and a selection of choirs, jazz bands, orchestras and theater programs.

“(The evening) spotlights the voices of our students in the highest visual and performing arts programs, district-wide,” says Andrew McGuire, deputy executive director of fine and performing arts for DPSCD. “When our students are stepping on the stage, they’re not only stepping into a legacy, they’re also stepping into the future as performers — as actors, as singers and all of that.”

The evening also demonstrates DCSPD’s continuing commitment to arts education at a time when many districts nationwide have severely limited or completely curtailed similar curriculum.

“We have a whole-child commitment,” McGuire explains, “which has meant the rebuilding and revitalization of fine and performing arts (education) district-wide. And DSA is not the only space where artists exist. All 106 schools have fine and performing arts, with most schools having two or more (programs) in them. It’s really exciting that in an age when there’s so much talk about pulling back, restricting and cutting, that’s not in our narrative at DPSCD. We’re proud of that.”

Reaves is certainly emblematic of the district’s effectiveness. Raised in an artistic family, as well as singing in church, she became interested in classical singing, but plans to study a broad array of styles at Oakland. “I just want to be a solo performer who has every single (style) under my belt,” she says. “I don’t want to just sing one type of genre. I would love to go around the world singing all types of things

“I know that singing, for me, is not a hobby. It’s something that’s in my blood. I can’t do anything but sing every day. So I want to make the best of it.”

The Detroit Public Schools Community District’s “An Evening of Fine Arts” takes place at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 6, at the Fox Theatre, 2211 Woodward Ave., Detroit. Admission is free, but tickets are required. 313-471-7000 or 313Presents.com.

Policies strengthening housing code enforcement and integrating housing interventions into public health strategies are critical steps for improving the health outcomes of Milwaukee families.

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The deterioration of housing quality in Milwaukee is not just a policy or economic issue; it’s a vivid illustration of the importance of public health initiatives.

As a medical student, I have seen how unstable housing complicates chronic conditions and contributes to repeated healthcare encounters. The articles “Milwaukee city attorney slaps out-of-state landlord with lawsuits” (March 26) and “Low-income Milwaukee families face systemic failures we must fix” (April 12) are prime examples of the ways Milwaukee landlords are contributing to health inequities. Residents reported experiencing leaky roofs, pest infestations, chipping paint, lack of running water and lack of heat.

Letter: Wisconsin should reinstate child hunting age restrictions

These conditions disproportionately affect low-income renters, reflecting longstanding patterns of disinvestment and weak enforcement of housing standards. Leaking roofs promote mold growth in homes, which is associated with asthma exacerbation and other respiratory illnesses. Chipping paint increases risk of lead poisoning, which can cause irreversible neurological changes in children. Lack of heat can worsen chronic disease, including cardiovascular conditions, and lead to cold-related injuries, such as frostbite.

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – A high-speed crash involving a stolen car and a state trooper’s squad car sent the patrol car into a Minneapolis home, leaving several people in the hospital.

How the crash unfolded in south Minneapolis

What we know:

Investigators say the crash happened at the intersection of West 46th Street and Aldrich Avenue South in south Minneapolis, where a stolen vehicle slammed into a state trooper’s squad car at nearly 80 mph. The impact sent the squad car crashing into a home, leaving debris scattered across the yard and causing major damage to the house.

Tom Abresch was inside his home Friday night, just falling asleep, when the squad car came crashing in. “I was just laying right by that second window, and I just laid down, and all sudden, it went boom. My ears just popped. I mean, the compression from the car hitting us, and I thought we were being attacked,” said Abresch.

The crash left the front of the squad car stuck underneath part of the house. Abresch described the aftermath, saying, “It looks like over my whole porch, half the home, is gonna have to be taken down and be rebuilt.”

Police say the trooper had to be extricated from the vehicle and was taken to the hospital, along with passengers from the stolen car. All three people in the suspect’s car suffered serious injuries, as did the trooper.

The moments leading up to the crash

What we know:

Investigators say the incident started around 10:45 p.m. in St. Paul’s Highland Park neighborhood, when a Ramsey County sheriff’s deputy spotted a stolen Hyundai. The deputy tried to stop the driver but called off the pursuit after losing sight of the vehicle.

A state patrol helicopter then tracked the suspect’s car from above. “I looked out the back window, and the first thing that I did see is a helicopter was right above us,” said Abresch.

Police say the driver was going recklessly and didn’t have headlights on. The driver blew through a stop sign at 80 miles an hour, crashing into the trooper’s squad car and sending it into Abresch’s house.

The 19-year-old driver tried to run but was quickly taken into custody. “There’s three people, and one of them had taken off and ran around the back of our building, ran all the way down,” said Abresch.