DaytonDailyNews.com

Football nation: 50 states, 51 systems

A Dayton Daily News analysis of the 51 organizations in the National Federation of State High School Associations reveals myriad systems of classifying teams, determining playoff fields and running postseason tournaments. See a breakdown of every state and how they determine their high school football champions.

Dayton at a Crossroads

Over the next several months the Dayton Daily News will engage the community in a discussion of the issues and choices that will be critical to the success of the region.

Spheres of Influence

The Dayton area produces more than its share of exceptional women's basketball talent. Learn more about girls basketball in the Miami Valley.

The future of black history

Meet some of the Miami Valley's notable blacks through videos, audio clips and profiles during February.

Justice at War

Dozens of soldiers have been accused of crimes against Iraqi citizens, but despite strong evidence and convictions in some cases, only a small percentage result in serious punishment.

War's other deaths

Not all deaths in Iraq have occurred on the battlefield. For families of soldiers who die of illness, in accidents or at their own hands or those of fellow soldiers, the suffering can be made worse by the uncertainty of what occurred. Includes a state-by-state list of U.S. soldier deaths.

Casualties of Peace

A Dayton Daily News examination has found that young Americans — many just out of college and the majority of them women — are put in danger by fundamental practices of the Peace Corps that have remained unchanged for decades.

The Toll of War

To most Americans they are invisible, yet they may be suffering the most. New details on the toll the war is taking on Iraqi civilians.

Casualties of Combat

For some soldiers, the battle goes on long after the shooting stops.

Hearts for Haiti

Aid workers find themselves preparing children for a future that may never come, but they continue by concentrating on 'saving one child at a time.'

Flunking the Test: A look at 'No Child Left Behind'

The No Child Left Behind Act will soon allow the government to withhold money from schools based solely on test scores and could block many students from meeting their goals.

Xenia tornado 1974-2004

The storm that struck Xenia and other parts of Greene County on April 3, 1974, left 33 dead and communities devastated. After 30 years, its effects linger in the lives of the survivors.

Down on the factory

For cheaper grocery prices, are we risking our health, the environment and squeezing out small farmers?

Does welfare reform leave many trapped in poverty?

The welfare reform movement of the 1990s took many people off the welfare rolls while putting them in situations where they feel they're barely able to survive.

Are foreigners abusing American school sports?

A sophisticated and often secret network of agents and middlemen are flooding American high schools and colleges with thousands of foreign athletes who have often already finished school in their homelands or played for professional teams. This special report was a finalist for the 2001 Pulitzer Prize.

Growing Together: Cincinnati and Dayton become one

Rapid growth between the two cities has turned them into a single urban area, but many factors keep them from working smoothly together.

Deadly Consequences: Ohio's broken retardation system

An 18-month Dayton Daily News examination found Ohio's system set up to protect 63,000 people with mental retardation is riddled with gaps that have deadly consequences.

Dayton's Code Breakers

Our most popular report: The breaking of Germany's World War II 'Enigma' code is widely known today. But there's an untold story: How NCR engineers in Dayton, led by Oakwood resident Joe Desch, worked in secret to develop the machines that helped break the code.