‘Essence’ of STL St. Louis was well represented at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans this weekend.
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CAC Audited JULY 11 – 17, 2013
Vol. 84 No. 15 COMPLIMENTARY
stlamerican.com
General to address engineering students Scott Air Force Base Commander will speak at NSBE scholarship event American staff For the speaker at its 17th Annual Scholars Reception and Awards Program to be held 2-4:30 p.m. Sunday, July 14 at Washington University School of Engineering, the St. Louis Gateway Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) chose a take-charge guy: Lieutenant General Darren W. McDew, Commander of the 18th Air Force at Scott Air Force Base, Ill. With nearly 40,000 personnel and approximately 1,300 aircraft, the 18th Air Force manages the nation’s military air mobility system. Its Commander knows a thing or two
Lieutenant General Darren W. McDew is Commander of the 18th Air Force at Scott Air Force Base, Ill.
Brentwood H.S. hires first black principal Edward M. Johnson Jr. was assistant principal and athletic director By Bridjes O’Neil Of the St. Louis American
See GENERAL, A7
On July 1, Edward M. Johnson Jr. became the first African-American principal of Brentwood High School. He was named unanimously by the Brentwood School District Board of Education to replace retiring Principal Don Rugraff at a board meeting in April. Rugraff stepped down June 30 after serving the district for five years. “Dr. Johnson is the right choice as the new principal,” said David Faulkner, superintendent of the Brentwood School District. “He has worked in the district for eight years and understands and values our misEdward M. sion to serve every student.” Johnson In 2012, according to data from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Brentwood High School was two-thirds (66 percent) white and one-third minority, with 27 percent black students, 2 percent Hispanic and 1.2 percent Asian. The school had 244 students, and 32.9 percent were on free or reduced lunches, an indicator of
See JOHNSON, A6
Photo by Wiley Price
DeAndre Singletary, branch manager for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund Division, talked with Jim Kolve and other concerned citizens at a public hearing about the West Lake Landfill held recently at Pattonville High School. The next public hearing is tonight.
Residents grill EPA over Superfund site By Bridjes O’Neil Of The St. Louis American Frustrated residents in Bridgeton and neighboring Maryland Heights are still at odds with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials regarding the removal of radioactive waste at West Lake Landfill in Bridgeton. Karl Brooks, EPA Region 7 administrator, led a heated panel discussion recently at a West Lake Landfill public meeting held at
The lingering smell permeating the air for miles – best described as a mixture of rotten eggs and burning cardboard.
Pattonville High School. Gena Simone, of Maryland Heights, sat next to her motorized wheelchair inside the
Next meeting about West Lake Landfill is tonight
‘The next phase of desegregation’ New Normandy-Francis Howell transfers stir deseg memories and fears By Robert Joiner Of The Beacon
high school auditorium. Simone claimed she has an undiagnosed neuromuscular disease and wondered if her health problems could be attributed to living in close proximity to radioactive waste. She believed that radioactive material could be polluting drinking water by seeping into groundwater. “I got out of my sick bed to find out what’s happening,” Simone said. “I just want to connect the dots.”
David Glaser wasn’t in St. Louis three decades ago during the height of public opposition to the region’s first interdistrict school desegregation program. He’s learning about some of the old outcry as emotions rise in St. Charles County where the Francis Howell District is preparing to take students wishing to transfer there from Normandy. Francis Howell is acting in the context of a state law requiring districts to educate students wishing to transfer out of unaccredited school systems. Normandy, which is unaccredited, has chosen Francis Howell as the receiving district of choice, agreeing to pick up the transportation costs for
See LANDFILL, A7
See TRANSFERS, A6