89.9 KRPS Four States Public Radio

07/24/2025

07/24/2025

The Trump administration withheld billions of dollars for schools, including funding that Kansas City area schools rely on to support students learning English as a second language. A local teacher says that will cause "an ache" for schools and some may have to cut roles or programs.
Elizabeth Ault teaches English as a second language to high schoolers in the Shawnee Mission School District. For her students, she said learning a new language is like going to a job interview every day — or even every hour.

“You don't know what's going to happen. You don't know the questions that are going to be asked,” Ault said. “You don't know how you should behave or how you should act in class.”

That stress-inducing experience is why she believes professional development and training for teachers is critical to helping students learning English feel more comfortable and be successful in the classroom.

That training is often funded by Title III federal grants, which school districts receive to support students who don’t speak English as their native language. Schools are federally required to ensure those students have equal access to education.

But Title III funding was part of the nearly $7 billion in federal grants withheld by the Trump administration earlier this month, just before school districts anticipated receiving that money.

Those funds were already congressionally approved for schools to use on a range of services to support English language learners including buying curriculum, implementing new programs and hiring and training staff.
via 89.3

07/23/2025

A friend of public media and former employee of NPR, Alex Curley has launched a website where visitors can Adopt A Station. So far, KRPS as received two donations thanks to Alex's work. One donation from Washington State and another from Massachusetts.

Help preserve independent journalism and community programming across America by adopting a public media station. Congress has voted to rescind public media's funding.

07/23/2025

Signed 35 years ago this month, the ADA was the world's first comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities — guaranteeing equal opportunity in public accommodations, employment, and more. But it likely wouldn't have passed without the relentless pressure of grassroots activists and Kansas Republican Bob Dole.
For more stories like this one, subscribe to A People's History of Kansas City on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast app.

On July 26, 1990, protesters, grassroots organizers, lawmakers and everyday Americans showed up in droves to the South Lawn of the White House to watch President George H.W. Bush sign the Americans with Disabilities Act into law.

"This is an immensely important day. A day that belongs to all of you," Bush told the crowd of 3,000. "And everywhere I look, I see people who have dedicated themselves to making sure that this day would come to pass."

The ADA guaranteed equal opportunity for people with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications.

Now, 35 years later, the ADA is ingrained in how America builds buildings and does business.

But most people don't realize how close the law came to not passing. It took years of debates between politicians and advocates — not to mention protests, lobbying and back-door negotiations.

People from every state played a part, but Kansas took on a larger role than some — because Kansas is the home of Bob Dole.
via 89.3

07/23/2025

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said Monday afternoon that it is investigating his death and looking into potential surveillance footage, but Hayes' mother, Anita Washington, said she wants to know one thing.

"There are video cameras all throughout this whole building," Washington said Monday afternoon during a press conference outside the city jail in downtown St. Louis. "Where is the evidence? Something is going on with my son up there. You guys need to figure out what's going on, and let's release these tapes."

Hayes' father, Samuel Hayes Sr., said Monday the family hasn't heard much from police or the jail since this weekend.

"It's been three days," Hayes said. "We just want some kind of footage or something about our son. We don't know nothing. They ain't telling us nothing."

Police said Hayes Jr. had an altercation with his cellmate that started around 8:20 p.m. Saturday. He was soon placed in a restraint chair after ignoring commands, police said.

Two hours later, police said Hayes was found unresponsive and was pronounced dead at 10:40 p.m. at a hospital.

Police say they're awaiting results from the autopsy report to determine the official cause of death.

Jack Waldron, an attorney at the Khazaeli Wyrsch law firm, said the jail is required to videotape restrained individuals.

"We know that within the jail there are lots of video cameras and videotapes, but specific to the use of a restraint chair, the city has policies that say that that person should be very closely monitored and should be videotaped," Waldron said. "That's why we're calling for a very quick response from the city to allow the family to see what happened to their son, and the city's own policies say the tape should exist."

Court records show Hayes had been in custody at the jail for a year on felony counts of first-degree murder and armed criminal action after police say he shot and killed a person in the Vandeventer neighborhood in April 2024.
via . Louis Public Radio

07/23/2025

The Missouri Hospital Association's annual workforce report found that hospital employee vacancies are down in the state, but turnover is steady. Many medical imaging jobs suffer the highest vacancy rates.
Hospital employee vacancies are down in the state, but turnover has stayed steady, according to an annual workforce report from the Missouri Hospital Association.

The vacancy rate last year was 9.7%, down 4% from 2023, but employee turnover stayed the same at 22.2%. Vacancy peaked at 17% in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic and has declined each year since.

Jill Williams, vice president of workforce development for the association, said the organization has been ramping up recruitment efforts to get employment back to pre-pandemic levels. In September, it is planning a career event at St. Louis high schools.

She said individual hospitals also have been able to do more recruiting.

"Since the pandemic, hospitals have been able to get back out of the organization and into the community and talk to schools and talk to students in the classroom about the different careers in health care," Williams said.

The report found that medical imaging fields are struggling with high vacancy rates. CT, MRI and radiology technologist positions are all on the list of 10 highest employee vacancies statewide. But turnover is low in these fields.

"That does kind of suggest potentially a lack of interest and available candidates," Williams said.

This could be because many people aren't aware of the imaging career path, said Jessica Chambers, regional service line director of imaging at SSM Health.

"When you're a kid, you know nurses and doctors," Chambers said. "A lot of times, young people don't even know this is a career." Louis Public Radio

07/23/2025

According to the Missouri Climate Center, there have been more than 100 reported tornados in Missouri this year, leaving many Missourians in need of help. But the state doesn't appear to be taking full advantage of a program that could provide food assistance after such natural disasters.
Angie Rodgers sits in a small, air-conditioned shed plopped down in the middle of Sloanville Drive outside Sikeston, Missouri. She works on her computer surrounded by piles of personal hygiene kits, lost items and boxes from the local foodbank.

"So, the command post is a makeshift area," Rodgers said. "We have put a shower trailer that has been donated for our use by DAEOC (Delta Area Economic Opportunity Corporation)… We have a washer and dryer for the residents. We have porta potties."

It's June 13 — just three weeks since an EF3 tornado swept through several areas of the state, including Scott County, and left the community of Sloanville in pieces.

Rodgers, the executive director of the Scott County 911 Emergency Service Board, said they've been out in the command post nearly every day since trying to help residents of this isolated, tight-knit community get "back to a self-sufficient state."
via KBIA 91.3 FM

07/23/2025

Springfield City Council could vote on the proposed measure Monday night.
Springfield voters in November could vote on a 3% hotel/motel guest license tax increase to help pay for a convention and event center in the city.

During a council lunch meeting Tuesday, council members heard from city staff and discussed the proposed tax increase. It would be paid by overnight visitors staying in the city's hotels, motels, tourist courts and short-term rentals.

The City said in a statement that a critical driver in the timing is the chance to secure $30 million in state funding for the project. That funding is currently on a state withhold list pending stability of state revenues and demonstration of a local $30 million match and project readiness.

The proposal follows the release earlier this month of the Hunden Report, which found that a new 125,000-square-foot convention center downtown could drive $1.3 billion in spending.

When the bill goes before council on July 28, a public hearing and a vote will be held that night.

Councilman Craig Hosmer asked why city officials wanted to address it all in one night to which Mayor Jeff Schrag responded "I can give you my opinion on that and that is to show the State of Missouri that we mean business and to move forward with dispatch to show the State that we want our match and that the City means business."

Hosmer expressed concern that council wouldn't have time to consider any comments that might be made during Monday night's public hearing. Councilman Brandon Jenson pointed out that they could always table the measure if they need to and that the public would be able to make their choice at the ballot box.
via - Ozarks Public Radio

07/23/2025

The Missouri Public Service Commission hosted public hearings for a rate increase for the Empire District Electric Company, also known as Liberty. Monday’s hearing in Joplin was the first of four in the Southwest Missouri region this week. The purpose of the public hearing was to give residents a chance to express their opinions, concerns, and requests on record.

Liberty is requesting a yearly increase of $152.8 million in revenues from its Missouri electric retail customers. The increase translates to a 30% increase in the customer’s monthly charges. The specific change in dollar amount depends on the customer.

If it’s a residential customer with a fixed rate, the increase is $13 to $16 per month. Whereas a residential house with an average of 1,500 kWh per month, the bill would increase to approximately $200 a month. This is according to the Missouri PSC release about the case.

The lively hearing was divided into two sections: a question-and-answer session with Liberty Utilities and sworn testimony from the Office of Public Counsel.

Many residents were frustrated with the utility company for this proposed rate increase. These public hearings come after last month’s town halls about Liberty’s billing and customer service issues.

The question-and-answer portion was not on record. Members of the Public Service Commission and Liberty Utilities were able to field customer questions.

07/23/2025

The Trump administration will withdraw the U.S. from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) — about two years after the U.S. rejoined the group under Biden.

The agency focuses on promoting international collaboration in education, science and culture. It's best known for its list of World Heritage sites, which acknowledge places with cultural or natural significance.

On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement that involvement in UNESCO is "not in the national interest of the United States," accusing the U.N. agency of advancing "divisive social and cultural causes."

Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO's director general, said the decision was disappointing but anticipated. According to Azoulay, the withdrawal will take effect at the end of 2026.

"This decision contradicts the fundamental principles of multilateralism, and may affect first and foremost our many partners in the United States of America — communities seeking site inscription on the World Heritage List, Creative City status, and University Chairs," Azoulay said in a press release.

UNESCO has 194 member states and oversees more than 1,200 World Heritage sites — 26 of which are located in the U.S., including the Statue of Liberty, Yosemite National Park and Grand Canyon National Park. Sites that are added to the World Heritage list gain access to international funding to help with protection and conservation.

Among the reasons Bruce gave for the decision to withdraw from UNESCO, were the organization's "outsized focus" on the U.N.'s sustainable development goals, which include fighting poverty and hunger, as well as promoting gender equality and clean energy.

She called the goals a "globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy."
via NPR

07/23/2025

Health care workers for Kansas and Missouri clinics run by Encompass Medical Group are demanding higher wages. They say new hires are making more than long-time employees.
Lisa Jones stood outside in the rain in front of Encompass Medical Clinic’s Wornall campus on Monday. Jones came out on her lunch break, along with other employees, to join members from their union and call for higher wages for longtime employees.

Jones said she’s worked with Encompass as a medical assistant for 20 years. But she makes less than $18 an hour. She said it’s not a living wage.

“We deserve more. I feel like I deserve more,” Jones said. “Give me what I deserve for being here long.”
via News Service