Author
Missouri homeschool families seek access to public school activities, teams
Homeschooled students came to Missouri’s Capitol last week in hopes they could convince lawmakers to allow them to participate in their local school district’s extracurricular activities. A pair of bills were debated by the Senate education and workforce development committee aimed at expanding access to activities like sports and clubs to students who are homeschooled. […]
Impact of declining scores unclear as Missouri lawmakers continue education debate
As the Missouri House debated legislation last week to allow students to transfer out of their home district, rumors about the state’s declining school performance data lingered. When the numbers became public later in the day, lawmakers were quick to voice their opinions. Missouri students scored worse across the board from pre-pandemic levels, and 112 […]
Missouri Senate leaves town early as GOP disagrees on transgender-care bill
The Missouri Senate’s spring break came a day early this year after Majority Leader Cindy O’Laughlin adjourned the chamber following two days of a Democrat-led filibuster of a bill banning gender-affirming care for minors. As some departed for a now-extended break, strategizing continued in senators’ offices into the evening over the bill. Sponsored by Sen. […]
Open enrollment legislation wins first-round approval in Missouri House
Missouri lawmakers gave initial approval Tuesday to a bill aimed at allowing students to transfer out of their home school district, adding a pair of amendments limiting its scope. The bill was approved Tuesday with 82 legislators voting in support — the exact number needed to reach a majority. Only one Democrat supported the measure, […]
Latest testing data show K-12 student performance dropped dramatically across Missouri
Missouri students did worse across the board on the latest round of standardized testing released Tuesday, with 112 districts and charter schools scoring low enough to be classified as provisionally accredited. But the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, or DESE, said it would not downgrade any districts this year because it is the first […]
Families dispute whistleblower’s allegations against St. Louis transgender center
The picture painted by whistleblower Jamie Reed of how patients were treated at the Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital doesn’t match Jess Jones’ experience. Jones worked alongside Reed for two years as the center’s educational coordinator before resigning in 2020. The allegations of misconduct laid out by Reed — both on […]
Dispute over transgender care bill brings factional fights to the surface in Missouri Senate
An episode of GOP infighting in the Missouri Senate this week may be a squall that melts in the spring sunshine or the first flurry of a storm that once again immobilizes the chamber. On Tuesday, Sen. Mike Moon used a parliamentary maneuver to take control of the floor to vent frustration over the short […]
Missouri state senator proposes expanding charter schools statewide
A state Senate committee debated Tuesday whether an expansion of charter schools would benefit Missouri’s students. Sponsored by Sen. Bill Eigel, R-Weldon Spring, the legislation seeks to allow charter schools to open in municipalities with a population greater than 30,000 people or in a county with a charter form a government. His bill does not […]
Missouri lawmaker seeks to bar municipalities from imposing limits on pet stores
A Missouri House committee will hear testimony Wednesday on a bill barring local governments from regulating pet stores, a move critics say could enable commercial dog breeders with substandard practices. The legislation seeks to prohibit municipalities from creating laws that restrict pet shops. Rep. Ben Baker, a Neosho Republican sponsoring the bill, said companies like […]
Debate over allowing Missouri campus groups to limit membership focuses on discrimination
A bill that would allow religious and other belief-based organizations to refuse membership to certain students raised concerns Wednesday evening that it could open the door to discrimination on college campuses. The legislation, sponsored by Republican Rep. Brad Hudson of Cape Fair, would prohibit public colleges from denying funding to “belief-based” groups based on their […]
Black lawmakers ask Missouri House committee to ban discrimination based on natural hair
A Missouri House committee heard testimony Tuesday on three bills that would ban discrimination based on hair texture in some settings. Three Black state lawmakers — Democratic Reps. Raychel Proudie of Ferguson, LakeySha Bosley of St. Louis and Ashley Bland Manlove of Kansas City — presented versions of a national bill called the CROWN Act […]
Proposed ban on gender-affirming care expanded to include incarcerated Missourians
A Missouri House committee on Thursday voted to expand a proposed ban on minors receiving gender-affirming care so that the bill would apply to adults who are incarcerated. An amendment proposed by Republican state Rep. Ben Baker of Neosho added adults into a bill originally designed to bar children from accessing puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones […]