Education

By Marcus Clem Advocates for disabled people encouraged on Thursday those not in need of a wheelchair to travel in one for a time and try to realize how difficult it can be. Missouri Western State University relies on its expansive campus, scenic rolling hills and complex architecture as a selling point, but the International

By Marcus Clem Local candidates for school board have spent thousands on the election set for April 2, but everything they’ve expended combined is still far exceeded by anonymous political action committees. Two committees of immediate relevance exist. The first, Friends of St. Joseph School District 2024, does not support any candidates and is focused

By Marcus Clem St. Joseph Board of Education members called off a previously planned Thursday meeting to consider potential punitive steps involving two board members. Board member Whitney Lanning faces a single charge of second-degree harassment. The Thursday gathering had been planned to consult with EdCounsel LLC, the law firm that advises the school district.

By Marcus Clem Teachers are among those who collectively may be relieved of $6 billion in federal higher education loan debt. Piloted by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, the expansion applies via the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, signed by then-President George W. Bush. Some 78,000 people enrolled in its Public

By Chris Fortune Community members came together Thursday to celebrate the official launch of a literacy program for people of all ages in St. Joseph. Visitors gathered at the East Hills Library for the kickoff of the program, which has a goal of bringing businesses, organizations and individuals together to change lives through literacy. “We

By NewsPress Now Three new leaders for the St. Joseph School District have been announced. Samantha Davis, Casey Housman and Cindy King will begin in their new roles on July 1. King will take over as principal at Coleman Elementary. She taught at Eugene Field Elementary School for 14 years and two years ago became

By Marcus Clem The lowest-paid teacher in the St. Joseph School District will soon make $40,000 per year, with a 3.359% pay hike offered in many facets of staff pay after a Board of Education vote on Monday. The board agreed to invest about $4.9 million into compensation for the 2024-25 year, with changes taking

By Marcus Clem A video shows parts of the confrontation that resulted in charges against a St. Joseph Board of Education member. Footage of the Feb. 26 incident involving Whitney Lanning and Isaura Garcia has been posted on local social media accounts and was obtained this week by News-Press NOW. Lanning is charged with second-degree

By Jenna Wilson District leaders, teachers and committee members gathered Thursday to consider proposals to increase teacher salaries in the hopes of improving overall staff recruitment and retention. The proposals discussed at Thursday’s recruit and retain committee meeting will be presented to the St. Joseph Board of Education on Monday, March 18. Along with levy

By Marcus Clem For two years now, Missouri has allowed the donation of money for private school education so as to earn dollar-for-dollar breaks on taxation, and a state official promoted this program on Thursday. State Treasurer Vivek Malek visited St. Joseph Christian School to that end. He assumed office in January 2023, and in

By Marcus Clem A Monday meeting saw St. Joseph’s chief of public schools seeking, as he put it, to calm tensions and explain why he believes a two-high-school plan is the best. Superintendent Gabe Edgar addressed the district’s committee on facilities that he emcees each month. He explained how he currently intends to ask for

By Kendra Simpson Missouri Western State University has launched a new virtual tour of its campus to increase enrollment and show off the campus. With just a few clicks of a mouse, potential students can view the entire Missouri Western campus. The virtual tour includes images of Spratt Stadium, the Law Enforcement Academy, Bushman Planetarium

By Marcus Clem A top manufacturer for the area is forming new ties with St. Joseph’s hometown higher education campus. Missouri Western State University, in partnership with North Central Missouri College, honored Altec Industries, Inc. on Friday by naming part of its new Convergent Technology Alliance Center after the firm. The Altec Manufacturing Technology Bay

By Jenna Wilson A Hosea Elementary School educator received a statewide honor for his leadership and talent in his role. The 2024 Missouri Outstanding Assistant Principal Award recognizes the critical leadership assistant principals provide to support teaching and learning in Missouri schools. Hosea Elementary School assistant principal Jacob Kretzer started his teaching career with the

By Marcus Clem Board of Education member Whitney Lanning has been charged with second-degree harassment following an interaction with another elected official. Prosecuting Attorney Michelle Davidson said the charge, which is a Class A misdemeanor, will not involve an arrest. Filings show Lanning received a summons by mail on Wednesday. She is set for an

By Harry Loomis Voters have the chance to hear where school board candidates stand on issues at a forum hosted Thursday by the League of Women Voters of Northwest Missouri. All 10 candidates for the three open seats have been invited to the forum, which is open to the public. It takes place at 6

By Marcus Clem Although a deeply divided St. Joseph Board of Education rejected a four-day-a-week school plan, room for agreement exists on raising taxes to help teachers through another approach. A number of strategies exist for attracting teacher applicants and building loyalty to the district, so there are fewer recruits leaving. Two main ideas exist:

By Marcus Clem One of St. Joseph’s largest labor unions intervened in education policy in a way not seen before when they urged the St. Joseph Board of Education to vote down a four-day schools plan. The board ultimately did so, 4-3, on Monday night. Labor attorney Monica Vargas-Huertas said organizers became aware of the

By NewsPress Now A series of promotions and transfers is in place for the 2024-25 school year following St. Joseph Board of Education approval on Monday night. Dlo DuVall will serve as coordinator of early childhood services. Kara Anderson will take over for DuVall in the position of director of special programs, according to a

By Marcus Clem The League of Women Voters of Northwest Missouri has invited the 10 candidates for St. Joseph Board of Education to a Thursday public forum. The event, set to begin at 6 p.m. on the upper floor of the Rolling Hills Library at 1906 N. Belt Highway, is the second big gathering of

By Marcus Clem The St. Joseph Board of Education shot down on Monday a school district plan to adopt the four-day class calendar, preserving the status quo at least for now. Whitney Lanning, Latonya Williams and Rick Gehring voted “yes,” while Kenneth Reeder, Kim Miller, David Foster and Isaura Garcia voted “no.” Superintendent Gabe Edgar

By NewsPress Now The Mosaic Life Care Foundation’s Children’s Discovery Center has its first hire. Katherine Patterson-Paronto will be the center’s director and begins her job on March 1. She has years of experience in children’s discovery centers and programs including at KidSight, Wonderscope and Science City. “We are pleased to have Katherine join our

By Jazmine Knight Normally the Free Application for Federal Student Aid opens Oct. 1. However, for the 2024-25 period, students had to wait almost three months for it to open on Dec. 30, causing issues for students and financial aid departments. According to the Department of Education, it computed about 3 million submitted applications by

By Marcus Clem Barbara Spencer and Miranda Ham are recognized as the very best at what they do across the St. Joseph School District for the 2023-24 school year. In being named as Support Person of the Year, Ham is said to represent the height of work done by hundreds of staffers, which includes all

By Kendra Simpson Many residents received a text message with a link to a survey on Wednesday afternoon containing questions about St. Joseph schools, though it did not come from the district. One question inquired about “sexually explicit” and “pornographic” books in St. Joseph elementary school libraries. The same question also said, “The school district

By Marcus Clem The Missouri Western State University Board of Governors unanimously voted to give Elizabeth Kennedy a three-year contract extension as chief executive of St. Joseph’s hometown higher education campus. Kennedy assumed office as university president in February 2021, having become interim president in summer 2020. Her current contract expires on June 30 of

By Marcus Clem Broad staff shortages will worsen if the St. Joseph Board of Education does not implement some kind of reform soon, several teachers warned on Thursday. The teachers spoke to the committee on recruitment and retention at the Noyes Administration Building, offering commentary that favored dropping Monday from the weekly class calendar. The

By Marcus Clem Contributors to a key St. Joseph School District panel often talked over each other and struggled for common ground Wednesday as a presentation on the district’s future arrived from Superintendent Gabe Edgar. The plan, which in part envisions St. Joseph becoming by the year 2030 a two-high-school town — with both schools

By Marcus Clem Where student proficiency can be simplified to color codes of green, yellow and red, the St. Joseph School District sees much more red than would be preferred. The district conducts i-Ready diagnostic testing several times per year. These tests do not have impacts on how the state regulates each school, like the