Kate Selig

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Kate Selig |Simon Levien

Steps from Harvard's campus, an institute backed by conservative donors says it is trying to fill an intellectual void. One of the most debated issues in higher education today is whether there is room on campus for conservative voices and diverse viewpoints. Just steps from Harvard Yard, a group has been trying to create that space for years. It hosts reading groups focused on the Western canon.

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Kate Selig |Tim Gruber

50 States, 50 FixesRun by teenagers, for teenagers, the Green Crew helps students get their hands dirty with projects like tree planting, trail restoration and invasive species removal. Credit... Early on a Saturday morning in Minnesota, a group of teenagers gathered at the edge of six acres of wooded, hilly land. Most were quiet, some blinking against the sun. They were robotics enthusiasts, aspiring marine scientists, artists, athletes and Scouts.

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Jack Healy |Julie Bosman |Kate Selig

Across the country, Catholics and non-Catholics alike greeted Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV with reverence and satisfaction. The election of a Chicago-born cardinal as the first American pope on Thursday astonished Catholics and non-Catholics alike across the United States. Some felt a burst of patriotic pride that a 2,000-year-old institution had chosen its new leader, Leo XIV, from a country that is about to celebrate its 250th birthday.

2 months ago | bostonglobe.com | Kate Selig

Summer in New England means lobster rolls, fried seafood and, of course, freshly shucked oysters. But there’s a problem. Those empty shells usually end up in a dumpster instead of back in the water, where they play a key role in the oyster life cycle. Oyster larvae attach to shells, where they grow into adults and form reefs that improve water quality, prevent coastal erosion and create habitat for other marine life. Two men in Connecticut are working to fix that.

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Kate Selig

Standing-room-only Masses at one parish in Las Vegas draw about 1,200 people each, according to its pastor. Credit... Roger Kisby for The New York Times A lively Mass with mariachi music in San Antonio. A monthly potluck for Filipino Catholics in New York City. Parishes in Las Vegas so crowded that some attendees must stand. These are some of the faces of the Catholic Church in the United States this Easter weekend.