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State Sen. Kurtis Gregory’s bill, if passed, would provide immunity from prosecution to people who violate anti-hazing laws but take a series of life-saving measures to help victims.

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE - Team Scott is excited for its annual Open House and STEM EXPO From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 14, 2025. This event is free and open to the public, no base access required. There will be static aircraft displays, STEM Exhibits and a Career Field Village. Anticipated Static Aircraft Displays B-25 GA-8 PT-17 C-172 PT-19 C-182 PT-26 HE-1 P-51 C130J DH-115 TMB Avenger C-21 Please visit https://www.scott.af.mil/Open-House-STEM-Expo-2025/ for the latest updates on displays and exhibits. If you have any questions, please email 2nd Lieutenant Faith Powers 375amw.pa.org@us.af.mil.

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The art museum will host a four-part comedy series starting in February.

O’FALLON — HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital announces a year filled with significant achievements in quality care and a commitment to excellence. With numerous recognitions and accreditations earned over the past year, the hospital has exhibited its dedication to delivering exceptional care that consistently meets or exceeds national standards and more importantly ensures patients have access to quality care services. These accomplishments reflect the hard work, dedication and expertise of staff, providers and other partners, who each play a vital role in ensuring the well-being of every patient, underscoring St. Elizabeth’s colleagues’ dedication to quality, innovation and industry leadership. Some of the accreditations and recognitions received in the past year include: The radiation oncology team was awarded a three-year term of accreditation after a review by the American College of Radiology (ACR). The ACR is the nation’s oldest and most widel

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A taco franchise with two locations already in the St. Louis metropolitan area announced the opening of a new location inside a Midtown hotel.

Tishaura Jones finally apologizes for her administration’s poor response to recent snowstorm, while her streets director blames employees for lying to her about road conditions.

In support of Make-A-Wish Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas, FOX 2 is partnering with the Home Builders and Remodelers Charitable and Educational Foundation for the 2025 Wish Home Raffle.

ALTON - Alton Police Chief Jarrett Ford has announced that a suspect is in custody after the shooting in the 2100 block of State Street in Alton on Tuesday night, Jan. 28, 2025. The Alton Police were notified that a person had been shot at 8:11 p.m. on Tuesday night. Chief Ford said physical evidence was also recovered. "Charges are pending review by the State's Attorney's Office at some point this week," Ford said. Officers immediately responded to the 911 call and located a 16-year-old male who suffered a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. The male was treated on scene by members of the Alton Fire Department and transported to an area hospital where he was later transferred to a St. Louis area hospital for further treatment. Ford said preliminary investigation revealed the two involved individuals, both known to law enforcement, are familiar with each other and this was not a random act. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Alton Police

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Developer Green Street is seeking to sell a parcel it owns along the Mississippi River to be used by a nearby manufacturer to expand operations.

One thing that’s been proven in the case so far: The process by which police shootings are investigated in St. Louis is broken.

From Construction Briefing:  As we enter 2025, construction’s digital transformation is hitting its stride — with more demand for AI-powered data extraction, digital twins and automation, Matthew Desmond, vice president of Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) software, and President of AGTEK at Hexagon. Meanwhile, there’s a growing recognition in the industry that adopting technologies isn’t […]

by Lisa Song

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During his first presidential term, Donald Trump signed a congressional act naming a federally funded observatory after the late astronomer Vera Rubin. The act celebrated her landmark research on dark matter — the invisible, mysterious substance that makes up much of the universe — and noted that she was an outspoken advocate for the equal treatment and representation of women in science.

“Vera herself offers an excellent example of what can happen when more minds participate in science,” the observatory’s website said of Rubin — up until recently.

By Monday morning, a section of her online biography titled, “She advocated for women in science,” was gone. It reappeared in a stripped-down form later that day amid a chaotic federal government response to Trump’s campaign against diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

While there are far more seismic changes afoot in America than the revision of three paragraphs on a website, the page’s edit trail provides an opportunity to peer into how institutions and agencies are navigating the new administration’s intolerance of anything perceived as “woke” and illuminates a calculation officials must make in answering a wide-open question:

How far is too far when it comes to acknowledging inequality and advocating against it?

“Vera Rubin, whose career began in the 1960s, faced a lot of barriers simply because she was a woman,” the altered section of the bio began. “She persisted in studying science when her male advisors told her she shouldn't,” and she balanced her career with raising children, a rarity at the time. “Her strength in overcoming these challenges is admirable on its own, but Vera worked even harder to help other women navigate what was, during her career, a very male-dominated field.”

That first paragraph disappeared temporarily, then reappeared, untouched, midday Monday.

That was not the case for the paragraph that followed: “Science is still a male-dominated field, but Rubin Observatory is working to increase participation from women and other people who have historically been excluded from science. Rubin Observatory welcomes everyone who wants to contribute to science, and takes steps to lower or eliminate barriers that exclude those with less privilege.”

That paragraph was gone as of Thursday afternoon, as was the assertion that Rubin shows what can happen when “more minds” participate in science. The word “more” was replaced with “many,” shifting the meaning.

A portion of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s page about its namesake as of Jan. 29 (first image), compared to the original portions of the same page as of Jan. 15 (second image), as captured by the Internet Archive. (Screenshots highlighted by ProPublica)

“I’m sure Vera would be absolutely furious,” said Jacqueline Mitton, an astronomer and author who co-wrote a biography of Rubin’s life. Mitton said the phrase “more minds” implies that “you want minds from people from every different background,” an idea that follows naturally from the now-deleted text on systemic barriers.

She said Rubin, who died in 2016, would want the observatory named after her to continue her work advocating for women and other groups who have long been underrepresented in science.

It’s unclear who ordered the specific alterations of Rubin’s biography. The White House, the observatory and the federal agencies that fund it, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy, did not respond to questions from ProPublica.

The observatory’s page on diversity, equity and inclusion was also missing Thursday afternoon. An archived version from Dec. 19 shows that it described the institution’s efforts “to ensure fair and unbiased execution” of the hiring process, including training hiring committee members “on unconscious bias.” The DEI program also included educational and public outreach efforts, such as “meeting web accessibility standards” and plans to build partnerships with “organizations serving audiences traditionally under-represented” in science and technology.

Similar revisions are taking shape across the country as companies have reversed their DEI policies and the Trump administration has placed employees working on DEI initiatives on leave.

If the changes to Rubin’s biography are any indication of what remains acceptable under Trump’s vision for the federal government, then certain facts about historical disparities are safe for now. But any recognition that these biases persist appears to be in the crosshairs.

The U.S. Air Force even pulled training videos about Black airmen and civilian women pilots who served in World War II. (The Air Force later said it would continue to show the videos in training, but certain material related to diversity would be suspended for review.)

One of Rubin’s favorite sayings was, “Half of all brains are in women,” Mitton said. Her book recounts how Rubin challenged sexist language in science publications, advocated for women to take leadership roles in professional organizations and declined to speak at an event in 1972 held at a club where women were only allowed to enter through a back door.

Jacqueline Hewitt, who was a graduate student when she met Rubin at conferences, said she was inspired by Rubin’s research and how she never hid the fact that she had kids. “It was really important to see someone who could succeed,” said Hewitt, the Julius A. Stratton professor of physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “It felt like you could succeed also.”

Rubin was awarded the National Medal of Science by then-President Bill Clinton in 1993. The observatory, located in a part of Chile where conditions are ideal for observational astronomy, was named after her in 2019 and includes a powerful telescope; it will “soon witness the explosions of millions of dying stars” and “capture the cosmos in exquisite detail,” according to its website.

Mitton said the observatory is a memorial that continues Rubin’s mission to include not just many people in astronomy, but more of those who haven’t historically gotten a chance to make their mark.

“It’s very sad that’s being undermined,” she said, “because the job isn’t done.”

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From St. Louis Post-Dispatch:  Construction has started on a five-floor, 259-unit apartment complex on Delmar Boulevard in the place of the old Craft Alliance building. Local on Delmar, at Delmar Boulevard and Leland Avenue, will have a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units. It’s the Delmar Loop’s first new-built construction project since 2019. […]

British actress and singer Marianne Faithfull, known for her association with The Rolling Stones, passed away Thursday at the age of 78, her rep confirmed to ABC Audio.“It is with…

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From Mid Rivers Newsmagazine:  At its Jan. 23 meeting, the O’Fallon City Council approved two resolutions for city infrastructure and equipment. First, the council authorized a construction contract with ICS Construction Services LTD. for a new public works and city vehicle fleet facility. The vote on this resolution was 9-0, with council member Nathan Bibb […]

More than 2,000 datasets have disappeared from data.gov since Trump was inaugurated. But analyzing exactly what happened and where it went is going to take some time.

A 68-year-old inmate who was serving a life sentence in a St. Louis murder case died Sunday in prison, officials say.

Yesterday brought news that NAEP test scores had dropped yet again. If you disaggregate by race here's what they look like: First look at the green bars. They're for 2024 and they show only a minuscule one-point drop—except for Hispanics, who dropped a full six points. They account for almost the entire overall drop. Why? ...continue reading "2024 NAEP test scores weren’t too bad. But . . ."