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Missouri education leaders knew establishing social-emotional learning guidelines for public schools would draw controversy, with some celebrating the idea and others decrying it as government overreach. So when the Missouri State Board of Education decided earlier this month to change course and pursue social-emotional learning as an optional framework instead of a statewide standard, the […]

The post Missouri education leaders say social-emotional learning guidelines an ‘ongoing discussion’ appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The United Auto Workers on Monday reached a tentative contract agreement with General Motors on day 46 of the strike. The announcement follows previous UAW tentative pacts with the other Detroit Three automakers, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis, which were announced on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively. The union went on strike on Sept.15. “Once again, […]

The post UAW reaches tentative pact with General Motors, the last Detroit Three holdout appeared first on Missouri Independent.

CANEY, Kansas — It’s hardly a question of whether the water will run out for one town on the Kansas-Oklahoma border. It’s a matter of when. The stubborn drought that has hung over southeast Kansas for close to two years has brought Caney, a town of less than 2,000 people, within weeks of reaching the […]

The post Southeast Kansas town is almost out of water, and signs of crisis are everywhere appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Jaqueline Yalda, who has been a campus police officer at El Paso Community College in Texas for a decade, sought a promotion earlier this year. But first, the department required her to complete a college-level course in criminal justice. It had been many years since Yalda had taken any college classes. And at age 38, […]

The post No more attending classes: These community colleges let students learn at their own pace appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Since losing her first pregnancy four months ago, 32-year-old Lulu has struggled to return to her body’s old rhythms. Lulu, who asked to be identified by her first name to protect her privacy, bled for six full weeks after her miscarriage and hasn’t had a normal menstrual cycle since. Such disruptions aren’t uncommon after miscarriage, […]

The post State, federal abortion rules prevent many women from accessing crucial miscarriage drug appeared first on Missouri Independent.

KANSAS CITY – Abortion rights initiatives proposed for the 2024 Missouri ballot would make it impossible for the state to protect women from unsanitary conditions at clinics, attorneys representing Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft argued to  a panel of judges on Monday. The restrictions on government regulation of abortions contained in the petitions would make […]

The post Appeals court hears arguments over ballot title for Missouri abortion amendment appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A St. Louis lawmaker is demanding that Missouri regulators investigate what she called an “egregious exploitation” of social cannabis equity licenses, following a report by The Independent last week about a company that recruited out-of-state license applicants on Craigslist.  State Sen. Karla May, a St. Louis Democrat, sent a letter on Thursday to the state’s […]

The post Missouri lawmaker calls for investigation into ‘fraudulent activities’ in cannabis program appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Piper Molins, a junior Latina student at the University of Missouri, remembers bursting into tears at her summer internship upon learning that the university would no longer offer race-based scholarships. “There’s no way I would have been here or any college, to be honest, without race-based scholarships, and that’s a simple fact,” she said. Molins, […]

The post University of Missouri students reflect on end of race-based scholarships appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In today’s political environment, one could easily conclude that America is in the midst of a metamorphosis, where its character and identity are undergoing radical change. When you consider the major shifts and developments in the public square that have occurred during these first decades of the 21st century, some disturbing trends cannot be ignored. […]

The post With a new normal emerging in America, lessons from our past could serve us well appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Missouri House Ethics Committee met Friday for more than four hours on a personnel matter. Officially, the subject of the meeting is confidential. But sources confirmed that members discussed the issues surrounding embattled House Speaker Dean Plocher. When it was over, state Rep. Hannah Kelly, a Republican from Mountain Grove and chair of the […]

The post Missouri House Ethics Committee begins inquiry into personnel moves by Dean Plocher appeared first on Missouri Independent.

NOEL, Mo. — On a Sunday afternoon in rural southwest Missouri, dozens of friends and family gather at a modest one-story home to sing and celebrate in the language of their homeland, more than 8,000 miles away.  Some arrive from church, crowding into a living room to celebrate two brothers — one turning 7 and […]

The post Refugees came to Noel for opportunity. Tyson’s plant closure leaves their futures uncertain appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Newly elected U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson has three weeks to broker an agreement with Democrats to avoid a partial government shutdown when a short-term spending law expires on Nov. 17. The Louisiana Republican, who has leaped from relative obscurity to one of the four congressional leaders, has already spoken with his Senate […]

The post Next for a new U.S. House speaker: Three-week deadline to dodge a government shutdown appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A political newcomer joined the Democratic race for Missouri governor on Thursday, bringing a big checkbook and a message that he can stop “partisan food fights” that plague state government. Mike Hamra Springfield, CEO of Hamra Enterprises, said in an interview with The Independent that he’s jumping into the race that already includes another Springfield […]

The post Springfield businessman Mike Hamra joins Democratic race for Missouri governor appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher said he would “absolutely not” consider resigning over allegations of wrongdoing that have engulfed him in recent weeks, joining one of his most vocal supporters on Thursday in painting the saga as a conspiracy whipped up by “leftist” media, Democrats and disgruntled staff.   Plocher, a Republican from Des Peres who […]

The post Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher dismisses calls for his resignation appeared first on Missouri Independent.

James Harnden has been a longtime activist for cannabis legalization, ever since he got slapped with a low-level felony possession charge for having an ounce of weed. The 56-year old Rockford, Ill., resident says that charge has cost him job opportunities for 30 years. Earlier this year, he saw an advertisement in the Craigslist “gigs” […]

The post Applicants recruited on Craigslist competed for Missouri social equity cannabis licenses appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Before a relatively short time in elected office, new U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana was a constitutional lawyer deeply involved in religious causes. Prior to a short stint in the Louisiana Legislature, Johnson spent two decades as a public interest lawyer mainly representing clients in so-called religious liberty litigation, he said in an interview […]

The post Who is Mike Johnson? New U.S. House speaker belongs to GOP’s religious conservative wing appeared first on Missouri Independent.

House Speaker Dean Plocher took to social media on Tuesday to hit back at Republicans criticizing him over revelations he repeatedly charged the state for travel that was already paid for by his campaign. But as Plocher took aim his detractors, he continued to draw fire himself — including a possible new opponent in the […]

The post Embattled Missouri House speaker lashes out at GOP detractors as new critics emerge appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on Wednesday voted for Louisiana’s Mike Johnson as speaker in a chamber that has been frozen for more than three weeks after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted. In a 220-209 party-line vote, all Republicans present backed Johnson, 51, a strongly conservative lawyer who represents northwest Louisiana’s 4th District. All Democrats […]

The post Mike Johnson of Louisiana elected speaker of the U.S. House after three weeks of stalemate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Steve Allen and Eric Singsaas grew up hunting and fishing in August A. Busch Memorial Conservation Area and swimming in quarries along the Missouri River in St. Charles County, never knowing they were playing near nuclear waste.  “Everything we did,” Allen said in an interview, “we did together.” Allen said he and Singsaas even attended […]

The post Weldon Spring uranium plant contaminated Missouri lakes with radioactive waste appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Six lieutenant governors from across the country joined gun violence prevention advocates to share their stories and offer solutions at a policy discussion event Tuesday. The Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association hosted the gun violence prevention policy summit, which was the first event of its kind. The DLGA partnered with the gun violence prevention […]

The post Democratic lieutenant governors, advocates, discuss solutions to prevent gun violence appeared first on Missouri Independent.