The Gateway

This week the Missouri State Board of Education voted to lower St. Louis Public Schools' accreditation status to “provisional.” On the same day, Governor Mike Kehoe signed an executive order requiring state education leaders to create a new way to evaluate school districts. Education reporter Hiba Ahmad breaks down a big week of education news.

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe gave his second State of the State speech on Tuesday. He says he has wants to eliminate the state income tax, reduce government spending, and allocate more funds to St. Louis for tornado relief. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum and Sarah Kellogg sat down with Kehoe after his speech to discuss his priorities for 2026.

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe said in his State of the State Address that he wants Missourians to decide whether to eliminate the state income tax. Plus, allergic reactions from alpha-gal syndrome can be physically dangerous — even deadly. But it can also impact their mental health by making some of their favorite activities more dangerous. Rebecca Smith reports.

Midwestern scientists say the Trump administration has brought big changes to their fields in the last year - especially when it comes to climate change.

More than a year after Planned Parenthood sued to overturn Missouri's abortion ban, the issue heads to trial this week. St. Louis Public Radio's Jonathan Ahl spoke with health reporter Sarah Fentem about what to expect.

Maria Alexandra Machado moved to St. Louis several months ago, after fleeing political persecution in Venezuela under Nicolás Maduro's regime in 2017. Machado is the daughter of a former military intelligence director in Venezuela. She spoke with STLPR's Lacretia Wimbley about her experiences in her home country and perspective on what comes next.

Despite difficulty finding a place to perform, Canaan Wellspring will put on its biggest performance yet to display Palestinian culture — on its own terms. STLPR's Lara Hamdan reports.

Today marks the beginning of the 2026 Missouri Legislative Session. As St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Kellogg reports, tax cuts and a smaller state budget are major issues this year, though the specifics of both are yet to be known.

The University of Missouri has lost almost a third of its Black student population over the last decade, and students say a lack of Black faculty is part of the reason. Lilley Halloran reports faculty say hostility from university leadership makes it hard to stay.

Missouri and Illinois Republicans praised President Donald Trump's early Saturday morning decision to invade Venezuela and apprehend its president, while Democrats condemned the strike. Plus, we hear from a figure skater competing for a spot on Team USA in St. Louis this week.

Climate change is affecting many area species. SLU researchers have found for a small bug called the treehopper, it is finding a way to adapt.

For a special edition of The Gateway Podcast, Abby Llorico sits down with STLPR's Visuals Editor, Brian Munoz, for a closer look at the stories behind some of the most poignant and important images from our team this year. We'll be back in your feed with news storytelling January 2.

Economists estimate that it takes six months for college graduates to get a job offer, but with slowing job creation now, that search takes longer. The Midwest Newsroom's Daniel Wheaton checked in with twelve traditional 2025 graduates to understand what the job search looks like for first-timers.

A hub of arts activity grows on Grand Center's eastern edge, after the Kranzberg Arts Foundation spent $50 million dollars repurposing old buildings there. As St. Louis Public Radio's Jeremy Goodwin reports, the nonprofit says it has set the stage, and now it's time for more public and private dollars to take a leading role.

As St. Louis Public Schools continues to develop a plan to consolidate buildings, a student at Washington University has created an exhibit to remember one school that was closed in 2003. St. Louis Public Radio's education reporter Hiba Ahmad takes us to the exhibit in this report.

St. Louis musicians have historically made their mark on the holidays — now Kris Kringle and the Jolly Jingles are putting their ‘North Pole Rock' twist on Christmas classics. St. Louis Public Radio's Brian Munoz hoped to speak with band founder Joe Bubenick about their unique sound, new song, and pandemic-era beginnings. But he wasn't free. So here's Kris Kringle instead.

St. Louis band Foxing has grown from indie newcomers into one of the most lauded emo revival bands out of the Midwest. But after more than a decade, the band is saying goodbye, at least for now. St. Louis Public Radio's Chad Davis went to meet the devoted fans who traveled miles to see one last show, and the guitarist who is grateful for their support.

The St. Joseph Housing Initiative revitalizes vacant properties in underserved St. Louis neighborhoods and renovates them before selling to first-time homebuyers. As St. Louis Public Radio's Lacretia Wimbley reports, the program is making homebuying dreams come true, one renovation at a time.

It's a different kind of club going up on this Tuesday: Two Lindenwood University students are creating a new party culture in St. Louis that doesn't go late into the night, and doesn't involve any alcohol. St. Louis Public Radio's Lara Hamdan reports.

Over the past 40 years, the St. Louis Lambert International Airport chaplaincy has prayed with military families, helped stranded travelers with hotels and supported numerous unhoused people with social services. All through in-kind donations. But as St. Louis Public Radio's Andrea Henderson reports, chaplains say their finances are slowly drying up.

100 years ago in St. Louis, cold winter temperatures brought an annual blanket of thick smog. The air quality was so bad, St. Louis Public Radio's Kate Grumke reports it planted the seeds for a famous Missouri institution.

In the fall of 2023, 540 St. Louis families were selected to receive $500 a month for a year and a half. The guaranteed basic income program, or GBI, aimed to help low-income residents meet basic financial needs. But halfway through the program, a lawsuit temporarily paused the payments. Then other crises hit. The Midwest Newsroom's Naomi Delkamiller reports.

With the cold weather hitting the St. Louis region in the past two weeks, Illinoisans have been using more natural gas to heat their homes. In the last six years, Ameren has been working to renovate its natural gas storage fields to make them more efficient for the company — and, they say, save customers money. St. Louis Public Radio's Will Bauer recently toured one of the fields near Freeburg and has this report.

University of Missouri sociologist Chris Conner has studied and written about conspiracy theories for years. And he says the belief in them is spreading beyond the typical fringe groups — it's our friends and family, too. He shares why so many Americans are adopting even the most extreme-sounding ideas, and how to respond.

The nonprofit organization Feeding America was looking for a better way to distribute billions of pounds of food to food banks each year. It used to use an algorithm to answer that question. It generated a list of food banks based on need, and when a shipment came up, Feeding America called the food bank at the top of the list. But what if a food bank didn't need or want that donation? The answer to that problem is a market economy, of sorts.

Ameren Missouri's new rates for data centers are now in effect. But a consumer advocacy group is asking for a redo. St. Louis Public Radio's Kate Grumke explains the case and the latest updates. Plus, Midwest seniors have two options for Medicare coverage– traditional Medicare through the government, or a private Medicare Advantage plan. While Advantage plans cost less up front, experts say seniors could pay the price with their health.

People with alpha gal syndrome are suddenly unable to eat meat or dairy. It's becoming more and more common in Missouri. In fact – so many people are living with the condition now, some restaurants are adapting their menus to accommodate, as Rebecca Smith reports.

The niche card game was once banned at a downstate Illinois prison, but is back and helping with rehabilitation efforts.

A St. Charles County judge who agreed to resign after being accused of misconduct by the state of Missouri, including for dressing in an Elvis Presley costume while on the bench, appears to have changed his mind. St. Louis on the Air producer Danny Wicentowski has the latest in the case.

Starting today, Missourians can legally bet on sports. St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Kellogg reports, it marks the end of a years-long effort to legalize sports betting in the state, one that ultimately came down to a vote of the people.

St. Louis Public Radio's Chad Davis breaks down the end of this trial for the sheriff, and Andrea Henderson spoke with members who hope the ministries of Centennial Christian Church will continue even after it was destroyed in the May tornado. The Gateway will return to your podcast feed Monday, following the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Thousands of people across the U.S. recently found blue grocery bags tied to their front door — to be stuffed with food donation items that scouts could come back and collect this past weekend. It's an annual tradition known as Scouting for Food, which started 40 years ago in St. Louis. STLPR's Lacretia Wimbley has this report on the collection, and the impact in the St. Louis region.

Six months after the May 16 tornado, people in North St. Louis are struggling to pick up the pieces of their destroyed homes. And St. Louis Public Radio reporters found that even people who had homeowners' insurance aren't getting what they need to rebuild.

The Allman Brothers Band had a 44-year run that landed the group in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The guitar-playing sons of two of its founders are behind the Allman Betts Family Revival, a tribute group that plays the Factory in Chesterfield after Thanksgiving. As St. Louis Public Radio's Jeremy Goodwin reports, the roots of the tribute lie in a family relationship that needed repair.

St. Louis Boeing machinists returned to work this week after reaching a settlement with the company. They had been on strike since August 4. STLPR's Olivia Mizelle followed the strike for months, and has this report on its settlement and the after-effects.

Towns in the Metro East have seen increased sales tax revenue this year. That's after Illinois started collecting tax on online sales from out-of-state, as STLPR's Will Bauer reports. Plus: The Trump administration has cut National Science Research grants by more than a billion dollars. STLPR's Jonathan Ahl finds Missouri S&T is doing ok with theirs, for now.

St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery heads to trial this week: St. Louis Public Radio's Brian Munoz breaks down the removal effort. Plus: The City of Ferguson has been under a consent decree for almost ten years. The city's consent decree coordinator says her goal is to make sure reforms become deeply embedded in Ferguson's identity. Consent decree coordinator Patricia Washington sat down with St. Louis Public Radio's Chad Davis.

St. Louis Public Schools closed seven of its buildings and relocated nearly two-thousand students six months ago after the deadly May 16 tornado. As weeks turned into months, community members began to wonder whether the schools would ever reopen. St. Louis Public Radio's Hiba Ahmad toured some of the schools and has this report.

St. Louis-area food banks and pantries are being put to the test. The uncertainty surrounding SNAP benefits during the government shutdown along with rising food costs and the ongoing impact of the May 16th tornado are adding extensive pressure to the upcoming busy holiday season. St. Louis Public Radio's Olivia Mizelle reports.

A documentary making its St. Louis debut this weekend takes a familiar format — the rock concert movie — and adds a few unexpected elements. As St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Fentem reports, the film "Matter of Time" uses the genre to introduce audiences to a rare skin disease and the people searching for a cure.

More than nine years have passed since the mobile game Pokémon Go was released, allowing people to spend time outside while playing a video game. And some are still going outside. Finnegan Belleau caught up with a group organizing regular meetups to play the game.

As the government shutdown lingers and the future of benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program remains uncertain for two-and-a-half-million people in Missouri and Illinois, the UnGUN Institute in St. Louis is providing free groceries and other essential items to local residents. St. Louis Public Radio's Lacretia Wimbley reports on rising food prices and how the nonprofit's founder partnered with Operation Food Search to meet people's needs.

The new film “Mr. Wonderful” makes its St. Louis premiere on Tuesday at the St. Louis International Film Festival. It's the work of St. Louis-based writer Daniel Blake Smith, who adapted the screenplay from his 2018 novel of the same name. St. Louis Public Radio's Chad Davis spoke with Smith about the film. It features the late Michael Madsen, of Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill fame, in one of his final leading roles, playing a fictionalized version of Smith.

St. Louis-area Boeing machinists have been on strike since August 4th. The local union members recently rejected a contract from the company for the fourth time, but it was by the narrowest margin so far: 51% to 49%. St. Louis Public Radio's Olivia Mizelle has been following the strike, and she sat down with STLPR's Brian Moline to discuss where it stands entering month four.

The May 16 tornado left court buildings in the city of St. Louis and St. Louis County untouched. But hundreds of people associated with the criminal legal system – attorneys, defendants, judges and court personnel alike – suffered damage to their homes or offices. St. Louis Public Radio's Rachel Lippmann has more on what the aftermath has looked like.