St. Louis on the Air

Disney animations have been a part of the peoples’ childhoods for generations. Fairy tales, adventure and fictional princesses are brought to life by a team of artists and animators — and that also includes University City native Marlon West. West discusses his work on “Moana,” “Encanto,” and “The Princess and the Frog," and shares details on his latest project.

In Illinois, it’s considered neglect for parents to leave kids under the age of 14 alone. Its law is the strictest in the nation. A child psychology professor and a sociologist share how such laws are typically implemented, who they affect the most, and whether 14 years old is a fair age limit for being left alone.

Earlier this month, the failure of Silicon Valley Bank marked the second-largest bank failure in United States history. But amid worry over the risk of a larger banking crisis, smaller financial institutions, like the St. Louis Community Credit Union, are setting their sights on solving longstanding challenges in the industry. CEO Kirk Mills and VP Alex Fennoy explain.

More than $20 million in American Rescue Plan funds are being offered to St. Louis nonprofits through the city’s Community Development Administration. Executive Director Nahuel Fefer shares who is eligible for the money, the types of community-led projects they are looking to fund, and how they are aiming for a bottom-up approach to city development with the grants.

St. Louis County voters get a chance to decide on April 4 whether to impose a 3% sales tax on recreational marijuana purchases. Similar proposals are popping up across Missouri and not everyone agrees with the so-called “stacking” of taxes. STLPR politics correspondent Jason Rosenbaum explains.

Kristen Slaughter and Kiara Brown have an unconventional friendship. They’re 22 years apart in age and their relationship was only supposed to last one year. Matched through a Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri mentorship program, the two have now been friends for 20 years. Slaughter was recently named CEO of the nonprofit organization, and Brown now has her own career and is the mother of two children.

On June 30, 1914, St. Louis residents voted to adopt a city charter. It’s a sprawling document, a blueprint for the city's civic machinery. Now, 109 years later, city voters will decide on April 4 whether to approve Proposition C, which would create a new system for updating the charter every ten years. Discussing the issue are St. Louis Alderwoman Annie Rice and civic engagement advocate Wally Siewert.

Trans kids and their families are being targeted by dozens of proposed bills in the Missouri legislature. But deciding how, when, and why to transition is actually a conversation parents and kids have been having for years — without lawmakers. Three sets of parents, as well as their children, each trans boys between the ages of 9 and 11, discuss what it’s like to grow up trans in Missouri, from how they chose their own names, to their thoughts on why so many adults in the state legislature don’t accept them the way they are.

Healthy trees not only beautify neighborhoods, they promote better health outcomes for residents. Leaders from Forest ReLeaf and Scott Joplin House discuss a partnership to support new tree growth in the city — particularly in its underserved communities.

As Missouri and other state legislatures pursue bans on drag shows, a new group in St. Louis, It’s All Drag, is pushing back. Jordan Elizabeth Braxton and Prism co-owner Michael Klataske, both fixtures of St. Louis’ drag scene, discuss the meaning behind drag, its impact and why it’s now come under attack.

Seventy-seven years ago, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill visited Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, and delivered his famous “Iron Curtain” speech. In the 1960’s, college leaders sought to commemorate Churchill’s visit so they devised a plan to rebuild a church in Fulton that had been destroyed twice in London: once by a fire in the 1600s and then again during World War II. Dedicated in Fulton in 1969, St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury is now undergoing a $6 million renovation. Tim Riley, director and chief curator at America’s National Churchill Museum, talks about Churchill’s connection to Missouri, the restoration of the church and about the parallels to Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine.

Mary Oscko and her family were blindsided by her stage 4 cancer diagnosis in December 2013. She had just finished her nursing degree and was set to walk the stage that same month. Instead of taking up nursing, she began advocating for victims of radioactive waste exposure that resulted from the Manhattan Project. Mary passed away February 20, 2023.

Rolla, Missouri, boasts one of the biggest St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the Midwest. STLPR correspondent Jonathan Ahl and Missouri S&T historian Larry Gragg dig into Rolla St. Patrick’s Day history and the unique traditions that still continue today.

A majority of school nurses in Missouri know students who have trouble affording period products — and who sometimes miss school because of their period. That’s according to a new survey published around the time Missouri school districts began offering free menstrual care through the new “Feminine Hygiene Products Grant.” Survey author Anne Sebert Kuhlmann and Jennings Senior High School Principal Cryslynn Billingsley discuss how they hope the grant will help students in St. Louis.

While St. Louis doesn’t have as many first-generation Irish immigrants as it used to, there are still strong cultural ties in the city. Eimear Arkins, a St. Louis transplant from County Clare, Ireland, is working to strengthen those ties. On this St. Patrick’s Day, she shares her thoughts on local holiday customs and how Americans can engage with Irish culture in meaningful ways.

Opera Theatre of St. Louis will present three short operas, all by artists of color who’ve worked largely outside the opera world. The works address the roots of Black, queer ballroom culture, three important inventors who were Black women, and the Supreme Court battle over a rock band’s attempt to reappropriate a racial slur. Mezzo soprano Olivia Johnson and tenor Matthew Pearce talk with us, as does the director of all three plays, Ramoon Rajendra Maharaj.

On Monday, Missouri lawmakers return from their Spring Break. For Missouri’s Republicans, the agenda they’re returning to is squarely focused on restricting the rights of transgender people. Among the bills being debated are those that would prohibit trans girls from playing girls sports and ban gender-affirming health care for minors. Jason Rosenbaum, St. Louis Public Radio political correspondent analyzes the GOP focus on trans issues, and previews what could happen when lawmakers convene next week.

Hospitals that serve predominantly rural areas have long struggled to find ways to have the resources of big-city health care systems without going as far as merging and losing local control. Phelps Health in Rolla is joining a collaborative run by St. Louis-based BJC HealthCare to thread that needle. STLPR’s Jonathan Ahl explains how the partnership will work.

When it comes to St. Louis-made beers, there’s a special place in Iain Shaw’s heart for Civil Life’s American Brown Ale. A staff writer for Sauce Magazine, his new essay “An Ode to Civil Life’s American Brown Ale” sings the praises of the popular local ale. Shaw discusses his long-standing fascination with the ale and its status as Civil Life’s flagship drink, and Dylan Mosely, head brewer at Civil Life, reflects on the ale’s creation and his reputation as a “malt whisperer.”

Students Bryanna Love and April Shepard reflect on healing in the wake of a deadly shooting at their high school. They now advocate for gun control measures that they believe will prevent future tragedies.

March 14 is popularly known as ‘Pi Day.’ But in true St. Louis fashion, we do things a little differently. Here we call it 314 Day. It’s a day of civic pride that is shared throughout multiple communities in the region. Ohun Ashe, who founded For the Culture STL to celebrate Black-owned businesses in St. Louis, and Staci Static, a radio veteran, community engagement consultant and host of ‘The Static Podcast,’ sit down with Elaine Cha to talk all things 314.

St. Louis has an array of award-winning restaurants and a niche foodie scene, but lacks a selection of late-night dining. Nathan Wright and Jason Bockman of Up Late are here to fill that void — and the stomachs of St. Louisans.

St. Louis saw its sixth warmest February on record this year and dangerous weather patterns happening more frequently. The region is no stranger to strange weather, but doesn’t it feel particularly stranger than usual? Meteorologist Matt Beitscher with the National Weather Service - St. Louis breaks down the data and shares how we can all become weather-aware.

In May 2022 the City of St. Louis halted its plan to clear a homeless encampment near Lacledge's Landing. But, last week, eviction notices appeared once again at the encampment. On Friday, March 10, city workers and bulldozers cleared the site. St. Louis Public Radio’s Britny Cordera reports from the scene of the encampment, and discusses what comes next for its former residents.

Highly politicized issues have dominated local school board races the last few years. Education advocates encourage parents and community members to engage with school boards in an effort to keep the focus on what’s best for students, rather than on the priorities of a select few.

St. Louis based cartoonist Steenz Stewart took over drawing Mark Tatulli’s “Heart of the City” in 2020. Now, the comic has replaced “Dilbert” in the Washington Post after its creator Scott Adams made racist remarks on his YouTube channel.

Many urban farms are started to address food insecurity or provide organic options to communities with few options for obtaining fresh produce. For St. Louisan Leah Lee, urban gardening and farming is an act of service. She founded Growing Food Growing People with a goal to teach people, Black women specifically, how to tend to crops to feed themselves and their family.

Teri Clemens won seven national championships as Washington University’s volleyball coach. She is now making a name for herself, as both a player and coach, on the pickleball court. Clemens discusses her heartbreaking decision to leave volleyball coaching in 1998, her years spent recovering from multiple serious health conditions, and how pickleball has become not just her competitive obsession, but a platform for her return to coaching.

Suzanne Galvin spends most of her time working as an attorney at Thompson Corbin LLP in St. Louis where she’s a partner along with her husband, John Galvin. The Galvins make a habit of traveling to sites of destruction caused by natural or manmade disasters to provide crisis counseling to victims of trauma. Most recently Suzanne and her husband traveled to Poland and Ukraine to serve as crisis counselors and trainers at the Ukrainian Baptist Theological Seminary.

Judy Heumann was a quadriplegic who, throughout her life, was instrumental in the progress of disability rights issues. She died at age 75 this past weekend. We honor her legacy by re-visiting her conversation with Sarah Fenske in 2020. They discuss the documentary film “Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution” in which Judy was featured. Colleen Starkloff, co-founder of the Starkloff Disability Institute, also joined the conversation.

Lately, it seems, sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll has been suffering an identity crisis. St Louis musicians Daemon Murray and John Covelli discuss their success in the music industry after their personal triumphs over substance abuse.

It was a dream-come-true weekend for St. Louis soccer fans. St. Louis City SC opened CityPark with a 3-1 victory over Charlotte FC on Saturday. This segment features an audio postcard that delivers the sounds and excitement of the weekend, and a conversation with STLPR’s Jeremy D. Goodwin and Wayne Pratt.

Celebrating Black businesses does not have to be reserved just for Black History Month. Ohun Ashe is behind the online directory For The Culture STL and her video series ‘28 Days of Black-owned St. Louis’ shows the diversity of location and industry of local Black-owned businesses.

Under threat of possible prosecution, Missouri school districts have pulled hundreds of books from their shelves since last summer. Now the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri is challenging a new state law that bans what some deem “explicit sexual material” in school libraries and classrooms. Clayton school librarian Tom Bober discusses the legal danger facing librarians and teachers and why his district removed books like “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Gillian Wilcox, deputy director for Litigation at the ACLU of Missouri, talks about the group’s lawsuit and why they argue this law is unconstitutional.

Traffic violence has grabbed headlines the last few weeks. The violence has claimed four young lives, taken a teen’s legs, and injured four people. Scott Ogilvie, the City of St. Louis’ Complete Streets program manager, discusses a new law that allocates millions of COVID relief dollars toward street and pedestrian safety improvements. And NextSTL Editor Richard Bose talks about what has led to such a high rate of pedestrian deaths and what needs to be done to make the region’s streets safer.

Local nonprofit We Stories focused on anti-bias education aimed toward young white children and families for the past seven years. They are closing their doors and shutting down their website, which includes all of their educational resources, in June 2023. We Stories executive director Maggie Klonsky and board member Pam Washington agree that while anti-racist work is still necessary, now is the time for We Stories to come to an end.

Isaiah Maxi has been hiking all over Missouri’s state parks — and he's not doing it alone. He documents his journeys on his Facebook group, “The Journey to 100 Hiking Friends,” charting his connections across the state. Maxi discusses his experience hiking across the state while forging connections along the way — and shares his picks for favorite hiking parks in the St. Louis region.

In the 1997 alternative history novel "The Misconceiver,” the year is 2026, and the United States has almost wholly prohibited abortion rights. Yet the book’s St. Louis-born author, Lucy Ferriss, never got to see the novel make its mark. Now, 25 years, Ferriss is watching “The Misconceiver” get new life in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning of abortion rights. Ferriss discusses the book’s chillingly accurate predictions and what might come next.

The Legal Roundtable discusses the latest controversy surrounding St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, who is facing calls to resign after a car crash left a 17-year-old seriously injured. The driver who caused the crash, Daniel Riley, was out on bond for a felony charge of stealing a gun, but had violated the terms release more than 50 times. Attorneys Javad Khazaeli, Brenda Talent, Connie McFarland-Butler discuss the case and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s aim to remove Gardner from office.

Missouri is one of just two states without a law banning distracted driving for all motorists. Although dozens of states have expanded their bans, Missouri’s law only applies to drivers under 21. Reporter Eric Berger, shares his insights into the different ways these laws have been implemented across the country. He’s joined by former Missouri Republican state representative Jeff Porter, who unsuccessfully sponsored legislation three times to limit hand-held cellphone use.

Amid the torrent of news this week, the biggest story was the ongoing controversy embroiling St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner that stems from a St. Louis man causing a crash that seriously injured a 17-year-old girl who was visiting from out of town. Missouri’s Attorney General is attempting to use a legal procedure to remove her from office and St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones says Gardner has lost the trust of the people. Gardner says she’s not fully to blame and that calls for her to step down are political stunts that undermine the will of the people. STLPR reporter Rachel Lippmann discusses this story.

The newly formed Chinese American Collecting Initiative highlights the long lost stories of Chinese American immigrants living in St. Louis from the mid 19th century onward. St. Louis architect and community leader Peter Tao, who serves as chair of the initiative, and Janet Leong, of the well-known Leong family that owned Asia Cafe, talk about why these stories are relevant.

Despite the fact that nearly 83% of the population does not have perfect hearing, most of our spaces are designed to cater, auditorily, to a select few. That’s a problem, according to researchers in the growing field of aural diversity. Producer Avery Rogers takes us through the various ways we perceive sound and how understanding these differences can help us better approach hearing accessibility. Correction: Professor Andrew Hugill works at the University of Leicester.

St. Louis K-12 students change schools midyear at an alarming rate — 38%. The cause of so-called “student mobility” is often unanticipated and, in many instances, it results in low attendance and poor test scores. Those are the findings of a new report from the St. Louis School Research-Practice Collaborative. A researcher and a fifth grade teacher discuss.

At 10 years old, Sidney Keys III founded Books N Bros, a book club and subscription service for young Black boys. Since then he has been honored and recognized by CNN and Marvel. Now 17 years old, Keys can add “published author” to his list of many accomplishments.

Hundreds of illegally transported Antilles pinktoe tarantulas were intercepted by the federal government before they could enter the pet trade, and now, 98 of them reside at the Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House in Chesterfield. Missouri Botanical Garden entomologists share what it’s like to care for these endangered spiders, how they are a vital part of the ecosystem in their home country and why it’s important to avoid support of the black market for exotic insects.

The City of Pagedale struggled with underdevelopment and underinvestment for decades which led to higher crime rates and poor health outcomes. In 2010 the North County municipality welcomed its first grocery store in over forty years, Save-A-Lot, after years of working with city and community leaders as well as Beyond Housing. In the 11 years after Save-A-Lot opened, Pagedale saw a dip in crime and an uptick in property values. So when the discount grocery chain closed, it was a cause of worry that the progress made would be lost. Soon locally owned Fields Foods will move in and Beyond Housing’s CEO Chris Krehmeyer hopes to make the transition smooth for business and the people of Pagedale.

Missouri Botanical Garden’s Conservation Scientist Matthew Albrecht and Herbarium Director Jordan Teisher are hoping to bring extinct plants back from the dead. The two scientists are part of a global “de-extinction” project with sixty other herbaria that will result in attempting to germinate seeds of extinct plant species, some of which have not been seen alive in the wild for over a century. Producer Miya Norfleet talked with Albrecht and Teisher about the project and what it means for conservation efforts in the future.

Washington University researcher Calvin Lai discusses his latest study showing that the daylong implicit bias-oriented training programs commonly used by most police departments are unlikely to reduce racial inequity in policing.

Adina Talve-Goodman lived a life on the edge of death. Born with a congenital heart condition, St. Louis-born author underwent a heart transplant at 19. Yet, tragically, more than a decade later, she was diagnosed with cancer. She died in 2018, at the age of 31. She left behind a trove of published and unpublished essays, drafts and other writings. That material now comprises the new collection, “Your Heart, Your Scars,” which was published last month by Bellevue Literary Press. Sarika Talve-Goodman and Hannah Tinti remember the life and work of Adina Talve-Goodman, and share how they compiled the new essay collection.