Education

By NewsPress Now The long-serving leader of a nonprofit that promotes the interests of eight government and community organizations will now work directly for just one.  Tama Wagner was named earlier this month as chief assistant for strategic initiatives, a member of the president’s cabinet at Missouri Western State University. In this role, the university

By Marcus Clem With state oversight looming, classroom attendance rates are raising questions about the future of the St. Joseph School District. The worsening problem of local school attendance is a crisis of troubling timing because while the warmth of spring usually causes kids to show up at higher rates, the opposite is happening now.

By Marcus Clem With state oversight looming, classroom attendance rates are raising questions about the future of the St. Joseph School District. The worsening problem of local school attendance is a crisis of troubling timing because while the warmth of spring usually causes kids to show up at higher rates, the opposite is happening now.

By Marcus Clem St. Joseph’s hometown university will, like most of its peers, increase the cost of education as it responds to national and local pressures on its finances, officials decided Thursday. The Missouri Western Board of Governors met to, among other matters, approve the budget for Fiscal Year 2025, which begins July 1. As

By Marcus Clem A leading nonprofit on policy for Show Me State public education agencies has an ongoing role in the governance of local schools, and also helps elected board members govern themselves. Kim Miller is now serving as the official delegate for the Missouri School Boards Association. As one of several hundred delegates, each

By Charles Christian St. Joseph Christian School is undergoing an expansion project — one expected to cost more than $9 million — that will bring several building upgrades, including a new gymnasium. The project is called Nehemiah 2.0, and in addition to a new gym, it will add five classrooms, locker rooms, a commons, a

By Marcus Clem Local students Patrick Rivas-Giorgi, Michael Tang and Claire Phillips are well accustomed to high academic achievements by now, but to be a part of a group of only 100 graduating seniors recognized as elite in Missouri is a new honor. Rivas-Giorgi and Tang, who go to Central High School, and Phillips, who

By Marcus Clem Kim and Steven Dragoo have been sentenced to serve 14 days each in jail for a misdemeanor offense on Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol. According to court filings, Judge Beryl A. Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia passed a sentence that will require the Dragoos

By Marcus Clem People who have lost their freedom are often forced to leave young children behind, and nonprofit leaders visited St. Joseph to explain the scale of this problem. Nationwide, more than 5 million children have one or more parents who are currently incarcerated, and more than 10 million children have a parent who

By Marcus Clem An employee of the St. Joseph School District is serving a paid suspension pending an investigation of unknown cause, News-Press NOW learned Thursday. In response to questions given to him on a phone call, Superintendent Gabe Edgar said he can’t discuss any specifics about the case. Therefore, who this employee is, where

By Marcus Clem A divided St. Joseph Board of Education reelected LaTonya Williams as its president on Monday, backing newcomer Mike Moore as vice president. Williams, who won reelection as a board member on April 2, received support from Whitney Lanning, Rick Gehring and Mike Moore. She also voted for herself. Her nomination as president

By Marcus Clem Months of U.S. government bureaucratic problems have stressed out families and students across the country on the challenges of paying for higher education, including in St. Joseph. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid is the centerpiece of a would-be college student’s plan for figuring out how much tuition, fees, books, room

By Cameron Montemayor Nature isn’t the only thing blossoming in St. Joseph this April, as InterServ opened its new South Side after-school facility for its growing program. Located just down the street from its main King Hill Avenue building, the after-school space will help provide the long-standing organization with a centralized location for after-school activities

By Marcus Clem After more than a year of heated debate over whether and how community-input committees will continue in local public education, a final answer has arisen — they’re gone. The St. Joseph School District committed to the change and implemented it by canceling a meeting on facilities planning that had been set for

By Marcus Clem Noncompliance with policy and law has put off, for at least several weeks, usage of a $20 million public education debt plan that voters recently approved. The St. Joseph School District said that the main $1.3 million contract in the matter can’t stay in place. That’s because members of the elected Board

By Jazmine Knight Herzog Contracting hosted its annual senior day on Wednesday, showing students opportunities in the industrial and manufacturing industries. The event is designed for area seniors, however all grades are encouraged to attend. Kristi Bailey, director of communication and marketing with the Chamber of Commerce, said St. Joseph has a need for a

By Marcus Clem Four medical students affirmed on Monday the regional growth of programs that prepare the next generation of physicians, and offered advice to Missouri Western State University students about their options. Abby Yoss, Abbey Jin, Hailee Warren and Jacob Lewis joined Taylor Danbury of Mosaic Life Care at Agenstein Hall on campus for

By Marcus Clem A new executive of programs such as nursing and information technology will be in place this summer at Missouri Western State University, in the wake of the departure of the campus’ No. 2 official. Joan Brewer is named as the next dean of the College of Science and Health. She has most

By Marcus Clem Administrators are wasting no time after a big vote on Tuesday gave them the go-ahead to borrow $20 million and spend it on local school buildings and services. An initial step taken Wednesday is the hiring of S.M. Wilson & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, in the role of manager-at-risk for all

By Marcus Clem Several St. Joseph Board of Education members agreed on Wednesday to censure Whitney Lanning for her actions on Feb. 26 following a previous board meeting. Board member Kim Miller, following a closed-door consultation with district legal counsel, proposed to censure Lanning for alleged inappropriate conduct that has prompted a charge of second-degree

By Charles Christian When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, students nationwide suddenly found themselves learning from home. It’s an arrangement many decided to stick with even after classrooms reopened the next academic year. Before public school buildings existed, formal education happened primarily in churches and homes. The homeschool movement has diversified and become a growing source

By Marcus Clem An attorney for St. Joseph Board of Education member Whitney Lanning responded to criticism of her client on Wednesday during an initial court appearance on a pending charge of second-degree harassment. Terri Lowden, who represents Lanning on behalf of Mark H. Wissehr P.C. of St. Joseph, stood with Lanning before Associate Circuit

By Marcus Clem East Buchanan Middle School has for decades required many of its local students to be bused 10 miles away from home and back, but the project to end that is now underway. The $16 million construction of a new campus situated next to the existing elementary and high school got started on

By Marcus Clem Tens of millions of dollars are available in reserve for the St. Joseph School District to tap as deficit spending accelerates in the name of giving teachers and staff higher pay. The district’s cash reserves currently exceed $30 million, a resource that looks to be needed in the months to come. The

By Jazmine Knight An area kindergarten readiness program is expanding, aiming to provide more young students with the tools to be successful on the first day of school. United Way’s KinderClub will now be offered at Riverside Elementary, St. Paul Lutheran School and Avenue City Elementary beginning April 8. For St. Paul and Riverside, this

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