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Welcome back to the Cape Fear Rundown. This week we’re going to start off talking to Ben about something that’s been frustrating parents to no end. Then, we talk to Grace about the plans to dredge the Wilmington harbor again, and finally we talk to Kelly about how affiliates get their stories on the air to a national audience.

Q: Why is my rent so [expletive] high?A: Capitalism — which is to say, it’s complicated. Part of the recent increase in rents has to do with the basic economic principles of supply and demand, and the phenomenon of filtering, where the lack of higher-end options pushes consumers into less expensive markets, increasing competition there. But it likely also involves the darker side of capitalism, including anticompetitive price-fixing practices and algorithm-based rent-setting software that is far more aggressive than a ‘human’ manager might be. For the latest installment of ‘Ask a Journalist,’ WHQR's Kelly Kenoyer and Ben Schachtman unpack how all this works.

This week, ‘Bloody May,’ when some CFCC employees find out their contracts haven’t been renewed, claimed three of the college’s deans, along with one other longtime employee.

A chaotic day at the downtown Wilmington high school involved multiple differing accounts and details from law enforcement, school administration, and parents and students.

Teacher Appreciation Week was earlier this month, but students from New Hanover High say their support will be valued well beyond just those five days of recognition.

Some new bollards have gone up at a couple intersections in Wilmington. One listener decided to reach out and ask: Why? WHQR News Director Ben Schachtman interviewed Reporter Kelly Kenoyer after she found out the answers.

While most government agencies face tumult from time to time, few have experienced the consistent level of scandal, controversy, and public outrage that the New Hanover County Schools district has faced. That’s made the chief communications officer position, as a public face of the district, a tough gig. The district just lost its fourth CCO — this time, to New Hanover County.

HB 551 is an omnibus bill for landlord interests. It includes several sections that housing advocates object to — including a new requirement that could increase business for the pet-vetting company owned by the bill's sponsor.

Welcome back to the Cape Fear Rundown. We talk to Ben first about Ted Davis, and the criticism he’s received lately, and then we do a switcheroo, and Ben asks Cami about a panel of experts pushing back against ramped-up police presence at New Hanover County Schools.

On today's show, we sit down with New Hanover County Schools district Superintendent Dr. Charles Foust about his reaction to an increase in guns and drugs on school campus. Then, WHQR's Kelly Kenoyer has an exit interview with Marie Parker, who helped right the ship at WAVE as executive director for the last two years.