Email Author Melanie Asmar

Awards

• 2012 - GLAAD Media Awards, published May 5, 2011

  "Coming Out in America"

• 2012 - National Association of Black Journalists Awards, published March 17, 2011

  "Say What?"

• 2012 - Clarion Awards/Association of Women in Communications, published May 26, 2011

  "Passing on Education"

• 2011 - Education Reporting Awards/National Education Writers Association, published June 10, 2010

  "Teacher's Fret"

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2010 Stories by Melanie Asmar

• En Vogue will be En Denver for PrideFest

  published Jun 16, 2010

  You know what's better than the 19th most successful act of the 1990s and a teensy bit worse than the 17th most successful actr The 18th most successful act of the 1990s, which just so happens to be ... More >>

• The Cove: Japanese protestors block Japanese-dolphin-killing documentary from theaters

  published Jun 15, 2010

  A documentary film about dolphin hunting in Japan directed by Boulder resident Louie Psihoyos has come under fire in -- where elser -- Japan. According to the website for The Cove, a right-wing natio... More >>

• DPS hopes to boost grad rate by expanding high school sports with help of $3 million donation

  published Jun 14, 2010

  In an effort to boost its lower-than-they'd-like graduation rate, Denver Public Schools plan to invest $4.8 million -- plus $3 million more from secret donors -- over the next three years to expand ac... More >>

• Darrent Williams murder: Anderson, Jackson-Keeling sentenced to year in prison

  published Jun 10, 2010

  Two associates of Willie Clark, who was convicted in March of Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams's 2007 murder, were sentenced today to a year in prison each for refusing to testify at his trial, de... More >>

• Microsoft store opens tomorrow at Park Meadows: Eat that, Apple!

  published Jun 09, 2010

  The wait is over, nerds. Microsoft has announced the location of its third-ever store: the Park Meadows shopping center in Lone Tree. Or, as the center's promo folks like to call it, "the Park Meadows... More >>

• "Educator effectiveness" grants: Nonprofits to invest $1 million

  published Jun 09, 2010

  Colorado sure is serious about "educator effectiveness," which is school-reform-speak for firing teachers whose students aren't learning -- a strategy endorsed by President Obama and central to his f... More >>

• 

  COVER STORY

  Is DPS holding more teachers accountable? You do the math!

  published June 10, 2010

  Miss P's first-graders stood on the stage at Bromwell Elementary School, before a packed house. With their teacher standing in the wings, out... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  PETA: Denver is for (chicken) lovers

  published Jun 08, 2010

  By now, you've no doubt heard that PETA wants to install a bloodied-and-bandaged 250-pound, five-and-a-half-foot chicken statue on the 16th Street Mall to protest the inhumane ways that McDonald's tu... More >>

• Bart Stupak threat: Letter sent from CO cites painting bridge with congressman's blood

  published Jun 07, 2010

  Update, 4:40 p.m.: David Hesch appeared in court this afternoon. Get the details of what happened below. A fifty-year-old Loveland man has been arrested for mailing a nutso letter written by his (app... More >>

• City pools open tomorrow: Kids seventeen and under can beat weekend heat wave for free

  published Jun 03, 2010

  Denver weathermen are predicting this weekend will be hot, hot, hot. But fear not, not, not! (Sorry, couldn't help myself...) The city's sixteen outdoor pools open tomorrow at noon, just in time to b... More >>

• 

  FEATURED STORY

  Carmelo Anthony's birthday cake is flaming

  published Jun 02, 2010

  What kind of birthday cake would you get if you were Nuggets superstar Carmelo Anthonyr A badass one. Obviously. Today, Melo's fiance, LaLa Vazquez, posted photos of his 26th birthday bash (his birt... More >>

• Race to the Top: Colorado tries again

  published Jun 01, 2010

  After not succeeding the first time, Colorado is try-trying again to win Race to the Top. The state submitted its application today for round two of the federal education-reform grant contest, in wh... More >>

• Bolder Boulder: Baby-wearing moms and dads to walk six miles with Junior strapped on

  published May 28, 2010

  Baby strollers can be great. They're great for pushing babies at the park, carrying shopping bags at the mall or filling with tin cans redeemable for five cents each. Know what they're not great fo... More >>

• The Denver Roller Dolls announce the name of their signature beer, Lead Jammer Lager

  published May 28, 2010

  One hundred and sixty nine votes later, the Denver Roller Dolls have a name for their signature Wynkoop Brewing Company beer: Denver Roller Dolls Lead Jammer Lager. The beer, brewed especially for th... More >>

• Denver Zoo's sheep baby daddys are working overtime: Five new lambs!

  published May 27, 2010

  You know what's the most effing adorable thing everr Baby sheep. And maybe baby monkeys and baby giraffes and horny polar bears named Cranbeary. But definitely not naked mole rats. And the best pl... More >>

• B-cycle launches an iPhone app to help you find and return its big red bikes

  published May 27, 2010

  B-cycle, Denver's cool, month-old bike-sharing program, has up and gone all technological. This week, B-cycle rolled out a free iPhone app that tells users how many shiny red B-cycles are available at... More >>

• The Denver Roller Dolls have ten possible names for their signature beer. Help them choose one.

  published May 24, 2010

  The Denver Roller Dolls have narrowed the number of possible names for their signature beer down to ten -- and now they want the public's help in choosing the winner. The beer, brewed especially fo... More >>

• Cranbeary, the Denver Zoo's returning lady polar bear, is looking for love(making)

  published May 21, 2010

  It's Adorable Animal Friday! (See previous installments here: baby giraffe is born; baby monkey is effing cute; naked mole rats are effing hideous.) Today, we bring you Cranbeary, an eight-year-old ... More >>

• Willie Clark associates' guilty pleas: What were they pleading tor

  published May 20, 2010

  Can any conclusions be drawn from the plea deals accepted by two associates of Willie Clark, who's been sentenced to more time than he could possibly serve for murdering Broncos cornerback Darrent Wil... More >>

• Willie Clark's associates sort of admit to maybe lying to the grand jury about the case

  published May 19, 2010

  Two alleged associates of Willie Clark, who's currently serving a life sentence plus 1,152 years for murdering Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams in 2007, admitted in court yesterday that they were i... More >>

• Operation Cock Block target Bill Sullivan shows up on DontDateHimGirl.com

  published May 18, 2010

  So, your ex-boyfriend was a jerk. Maybe he was even one of the fine specimens on our Top 10 Bad Boyfriends list. After putting up with his crap for far too long, you kick him to the curb. Two months... More >>

• The Denver Roller Dolls's new party bus -- and their new, unnamed Wynkoop beer

  published May 14, 2010

  The Denver Roller Dolls are rolling out a new way to prevent D.U.I.s: a party bus that brings fans from the downtown Wynkoop Brewing Company to the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, where the Dolls hold ... More >>

• The Denver Roller Dolls want you to name ... that ... beeeeeeer!

  published May 14, 2010

  The Denver Roller Dolls, one of Denver's two badass roller derby leagues, will soon have its own beer, courtesy of the Wynkoop Brewing Company. According to the Dolls, the beer will be a "pre-Prohi... More >>

• Angie Zapata remembered in Ozomatli's anti-Proposition 8 song

  published May 13, 2010

  Angie Zapata, the transgender Greeley teen who was murdered in July 2008, has been immortalized in song. She's an integral part of a verse of Los Angeles-based Latin band Ozomatli's anti-Proposition 8... More >>

• Naked mole rats: these ugly (but endearing!) critters are back by popular demand at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

  published May 13, 2010

  How's this for a ringing endorsementr "They're not pretty, but they're pretty fun!" And that's from a guy whose job it is to promote the animals at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs -- w... More >>