Collier is selected to All-WNBA First Team
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St. Louis American See page B3
Serving, empowering and advocating for equity in St. Louis since 1928
CAC Audited OCTOBER 19 – 25, 2023
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Normandy, Riverview districts returning to local control State governance did not lift test scores
By Alvin A. Reid St. Louis American The Missouri Board of Education voted to return the local control of The Normandy Schools Collaborative and it will soon be led by a fully-elected Board of Education, ending Missouri State Board of Education governance which began in 2014. The Riverview Gardens School District remains, in part, under the control of the state board, but is on a path to have a fully-elected board seated by July 2024. Based on test scores, the state board has failed to help improve student performance in the respective districts. Most students at the two districts are not proficient in math or English, based on scores released on Monday. Students were given a new test this year to align with new
See SCHOOLS, A6
Vol. 95 No. 29 COMPLIMENTARY
Formula for freedom: Joy plus imagination
Colored Girls Liberation Lab creates healing spaces for Black women By Joseph Williams Word In Black
Photo courtesy of Olathe (KS) Public Schools
Michael Triplett, Normandy Schools Collaborative superintendent, is encouraged by the state’s decision to return full local control to the district.
Jenn Roberts had done everything right. But it all felt wrong. “I was one of the first in my family to go off to college,” she says. “I found a good guy in college, got married really early — did all the things I was supposed to do. And then I woke up one day: ‘This doesn’t feel good. I’m not happy, my (soon to be former) husband is not happy, now we have kids. Everything Jenn just started crumbling, Roberts everything that I had worked so hard for.” So, she started dancing — something she’d done throughout school but gave up when she became an adult. That reinvigorated a feeling, she says, “when I used to not care what people thought, when I used to just do the things that feel good. And then, my friends were watching, and they were like, ‘We want to do it, too! You look peaceful, you look happy, you look free.’” That feeling of freedom inspired Roberts to start holding gatherings for friends and friends of friends, creating a
See WOMEN, A6
Photo by Wiley Price / St. Louis American
Iconic praise
Acclaimed singer A’ngela Winbush-Polk, a niece of Austin Layne Jr., performed an inspired hymn with an accompanying gospel choir during Layne’s homegoing service at Greater Grace Church on Saturday Oct. 14, 2023. Layne passed away on Oct. 1 at the age of 87. His widow Eneazer Layne and relatives were joined by dozens of friends and community members at the moving service.
Wesley Bell files charges after terrifying incident STL County police officer arrested
By Alvin A. Reid St. Louis American St. Louis County Police Chief Kenneth Gregory has seen much during his 42-year career with the department, but probably nothing like what occurred on Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023, at North Middle School in Kirkwood. St. Louis County Police Officer
Matthew McCulloch was subdued by frightened parents and other citizens and then arrested by Kirkwood Police after he allegedly acted bizarrely, yelled terrifying threats, brandished a gun, and fired at least 12 shots skyward during a Halloween event at the school. McCulloch is the son of former St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch and brother of St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph
BUSINESS
Beyond Sweets Kitchen + Bar is sweet and savory Beyond Sweets Kitchen + Bar is new to the Delmar Maker District, but the 4,800-square-foot two-level eatery caters to the sweet tooth.
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McCulloch. McCulloch is facing 11 charges, which were filed by St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell. They include four counts of endangering the welfare of a child, five counts of armed criminal action, and one count each of terroristic threat and unlawful use of a weapon. In a court filing, McCulloch said
See BELL, A7
Scholarships: Critical part of annual Salute Gala Lindenwood, 13th university to provide scholarships St. Louis American Staff The St. Louis American is among very few newspapers in the country that have created its own 501(c)3 foundation, with a mission to provide scholarships for high-achieving local students with financial needs as well as providing community grants. The St. Louis American Foundation was founded in 1994, and provided about $80,000 per year in scholarships. The first Donald M. Suggs Scholarship (named after the American’s publisher and executive editor) was to the University of Missouri-Columbia. In subsequent years, Southeast Missouri State University and Missouri State University joined the group, and the scholarship dollars and their impact began to grow. Last year, Webster University alone provided a whopping “10” Suggs Scholarships.
See SALUTE, A7
HEALTH
Affinia Healthcare set to open North County location Affinia Healthcare will open a two-story, 15,000 square-foot center in Ferguson next month, and it will be led fully by Black female doctors.
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