St. Louis on the Air

STLPR reporter Chad Davis talks about his feature report on St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones' efforts to enact reparations on the local level.

When it comes to the shortage of teachers in America, one local school district is looking at an unusual talent pool: Its own student body. We delve into how the “Kahoks Teaching Kahoks" aims to encourage its own students to become educators.

R&R Marketplace is a $16 million investment coming to the Dellwood/Ferguson area. Pastors Ken and Beverly Jenkins discuss their vision for the area which has long been subject to disinvestment.

Pete Souza gives us a brief inside look at what it was like to be a presidential photographer during President Obama’s and President Reagan’s administrations. Millions of photos later, he’ll be inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame in St. Louis on Oct. 29.

Convention center backers planned on a $210 million expansion. But the funds are being blocked in St. Louis County over a two-year-old promise the council chair says wasn’t kept. Jacob Kirn of the St. Louis Business Journal explains the impasse.

Researchers at Lindenwood University and the St. Louis Zoo are developing virtual reality lessons that can teleport students to a desert across the world — or even just to the city’s zoo. T-Rex’s GeoSeed Grant Program is giving them $20,000 to start.

Acclaimed author Joy Williams discusses her new novel “Harrow,” guilt, typewriters, and the new exhibition at Washington University looking at her life and work.

In light of Gov. Mike Parson accusing the St. Louis Post-Dispatch of hacking a state website, we discuss HTML source code, encoding vs. encryption — and the ramifications for future security flaws.

Linda Dickerson-Bell was on the jury that sent Michael Politte to prison for life. She discusses her deep regrets about the verdict — and the guilt she’s lived with ever since.

Joy Grdnic Christensen went from radio fame to opening the Fountain on Locust. She explains why she’s moving on, what she’ll do next and how a long marriage is like St. Louis.

Missourians seeking to move from row crop production to small-scale farming see chestnuts as the path to get there. Jonathan Ahl explains why.

Metro Theater Company’s new play is aimed at young girls interested in math and science. It involves grief, dinosaurs and a groundbreaking paleontologist. Director Julia Flood delves into what it took to put on the company’s first in-person show since the pandemic began.

St. Louis lactation consultant and La Leche League leader Erin O’Reilly discusses the impediments to breastfeeding among American women — and calls for policy changes to support them.

Earlier this year, St. Louis musician Mikey Wehling took his dog, Scout, out into the woods of eastern Missouri, along with an instrument he was just beginning to learn how to play. They brought back a meditative compilation of songs, which now comprise Wehling’s seventh solo release.

Radiologist-turned-food journalist Dr. Harley Hammerman takes St. Louis down a food-filled memory lane with his blogs “Lost Tables” and “Lost Dishes.” He discusses the blog’s inspiration, sets some misinformation straight, and shares restaurant memories with listeners.

In the 1960s and '70s, “Wrestling at the Chase” regularly drew crowds to the Chase Park Plaza Hotel — and thousands more watched the matches on TV. Historian Ed Wheatley explores the highlights along with listeners.

Kendall Martinez-Wright’s mental health issues led to a suicide attempt and her decision to suspend her campaign. In this episode, the Democrat from Palmyra opens up about what happened — and how she’s finding a way forward.

The medical marijuana industry in Missouri is thriving. But accessing banking has proven a struggle for many dispensaries and even vendors doing business with them — even though their businesses are legal. St. Louis accountant David Smith explains why.

Ag-tech startup Benson Hill is now a publicly traded company worth $2 billion. Charlie Bolten of BioGenerator explains how BioSTL helped the St. Louis company get its start — and go public in less than a decade.

More money, more animals. Washington University scientist Solny Adalsteinsson explains how St. Louis topped the list in a recent study looking at the “luxury effect” across 20 cities — and why that’s not a good thing.

A two-year-old initiative from the Regional Business Council aims to recruit, train and mentor kids for skilled labor jobs as early as high school. Leader Art McCoy discusses its impetus -- and the big payday for people who participate.

Author Suzanne Corbett discusses her new book detailing the “foodways and iconic dishes” of the Show Me State — and shatters some myths about famous St. Louis food innovations.

Playwright Steph Del Rosso discusses her play about a startup that aims to rehabilitate men accused of sexual misconduct. “The Gradient” makes its world premiere at the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis.

The St. Louis Zoo is vaccinating mammals against COVID-19, including chimpanzees, orangutans, lemurs, foxes and most of the zoo’s big cats. Dr. Sathya Chinnadurai explains why these species are being prioritized.

Wait times for 911 calls in St. Louis far exceed national standards. Interim Public Safety Director Dan Isom explains the complicated process of merging three dispatch centers to one and how that could fit into expanding the Cops and Clinicians program.