[3] In 1983 Schewel founded the newspaper North Carolina Independent, later renamed Indy Week.

[3] Schewel is a visiting assistant professor at Duke University's Sanford School of Public Policy.

[6][7] He is also a former Durham Public Schools board of education member and former English instructor at North Carolina Central University.

He and his wife hosted a fundraiser at their home, raising over $200,000 to assist organizations fighting against the amendment.

[13] In April 2019 Schewel joined local business leaders and the city's fire chief to address the state of industry in Durham after the 2019 Durham gas explosion, which affected multiple local businesses in the Bright Leaf Historic District.

[17] In January 2020 Schewel stated that the city intends to help fund the mitigation of carbon monoxide issues at McDougald Terrace, a public housing complex in Durham that had to evacuate its residents due to a carbon monoxide leak.

[22] The ban was first in the United States to prevent a city's police department from engaging in international training.

The declaration was in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, and prohibited groups of 100 people or more to meet.

[25] The order banned individuals in Durham from traveling, going out in public, and prevents gatherings of more than 10 people, with some exceptions.

[26] In April 2020 Schewel, alongside Durham County Board of Commissioners chairwoman Wendy Jacobs, Durham County Commissioner Heidi Carter, Durham City Council members Javiera Caballero, Jillian Johnson, Mark-Anthony Middleton, and Charlie Reece, and Raleigh City Council members Nicole Stewart and Saige Martin, pledged to take part in the #ShareYourCheck Challenge.

[27] The fund helped undocumented residents who were shut out of financial assistance due to their immigration status.