In the post-pandemic era, where people are learning to live with the different COVID-19 variants, and surges still persist in California this winter season, the aftermath of the coronavirus has proven to be more deadly economically for business, people of color, and especially California's struggling, public school system. ONME News tells this story in a five-part docuseries called, "Brewing Within."


The "Brewing Within" series is funded by the National Association of Black Journalist - NABJ Black Press Grant; ONME News was chosen as one of the grantees to reveal the K-12 experience in the state of California in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The series reveals the struggles that teachers, administrators and parents went through trying to navigate through the school system during and after the state of California shut down. It also reveals the damage done to students, especially students of color and/or impoverished students, although the state fully reopened June 15, 2021.

The almost nine-minute episode 1 of "Brewing Within" tells the dramatic story of the state of California as it enters the pandemic, as well as the aftermath. From fear, to lack of information to misinformation, approximately 39 million residents did not know they were about to impacted by a novel virus in one way or another.

Narrated by ONME News publisher, Julia Dudley Najieb, this initial episode brings the audience into the story of what was happening with California schools, K-12 as the pandemic ravaged the state of California.