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Updated March 19, 2026 at 4:14 PM
The Crossroads Lab is an ambitious editorial initiative to explore under-covered issues critical to the future of Fort Worth and Tarrant County, including topics such as public education, public health, social services and racial equity.
As Fort Worth and Tarrant County continue to grow and become more diverse, we face not a singular fork in the road, but a series of crossroads — challenges to be met, solutions to be explored, opportunities to be leveraged and, ultimately, wins to be celebrated. This team of locally based journalists will help guide the way. It will provide accountability when necessary and shine the light on success stories.
Our goal is to raise awareness and engagement among all residents around issues important to the health and vitality of our community.
Five reporters and an editor make up the Crossroads Lab team. Two reporters cover education — one K-12 and the other focused specifically on early childhood education. Other reporters are targeted toward health, social services and racial equity.
The Crossroads Lab is funded by The Morris Foundation, the Sid W. Richardson Foundation and the Rainwater Charitable Foundation, all of which are based in Fort Worth.
The Star-Telegram is looking for more funding partners to expand the depth, reach and impact of the Crossroads Lab. If you believe strong local journalism makes our community better and/or if you support a cause that would be helped by increased civic awareness and engagement, contact us to begin a discussion. Many under-covered areas remain, including healthcare and health research, business, economic development, workforce development, higher education, arts and culture and more.
Reach out to Steve Coffman, the Star-Telegram’s president and editor, at scoffman@star-telegram.com or 817-390-7704, to talk about how you could provide tax-deductible support for this important project, or make a donation here.
Editorial independence has been a core value at the Star-Telegram for more than 115 years. We strive to deliver high-impact journalism in the public interest. While we value the support and partnership of our funding partners, outside funders will not have any editorial oversight, approval or influence over the content produced by the fellow or other members of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram newsroom.
Q: Do the foundations have any control over what is reported? Editorial independence has been a core value at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for more than 115 years. We strive to deliver high-impact journalism in the public interest. While we value our funding partners’ support, outside funders have no editorial oversight, approval, or influence over the content produced by lab reporters or other members of Star-Telegram newsroom.
Q: What other news organizations have received foundation funding? The Seattle Times launched an Education Lab years ago, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and City University of Seattle. The Miami Herald received support from the Rockefeller Foundation to cover Puerto Rico’s recovery from Maria. The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and public media such as NPR and PBS have all accepted foundation funding.
Q: Will this effort replace the Star-Telegram’s regular reporting on key issues in our community? No, these are new positions. We will continue to cover important issues and breaking news in many other areas.
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