The Gateway

Opioid overdoses in Missouri a decade ago were fueled ago by prescription pills and largely affected rural, mostly-white communities. The crisis has entered a new phase in the last few years, dominated by fentanyl in urban areas.

A federal study shows only 6% of industrial hemp growers in the U.S. are Black. A couple in Missouri is hoping to help change that by creating the state’s first Black-owned hemp processing site.

At candidate forums and on social media, debates over highly politicized issues, such as masking and how race, history, and LGBTQ issues are taught in schools, are at the center of some local school board races.

Authorities in St. Louis have bragged about lower murder rates. An investigation by ProPublica and APM Reports finds the department has achieved lower numbers by redefining what it considers murder.

Parents of medically vulnerable students are worried their children are no longer as protected against coronavirus as school face-covering requirements disappear. A Metro East family wants to make sure its child is kept safe.

Dozens of young refugees from Afghanistan gather on Saturdays to play soccer. It gives them an opportunity to be kids as they resettle in a new land.

Collegiate mining teams from as far away as England and Australia came to Rolla over the weekend to compete in mining events like hand-mucking, Swede sawing, and gold panning. The event featured mining techniques used in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The St. Louis Blues have launched an after-school program to give more children a chance to learn the sport while increasing diversity in hockey. North City Blues is a partnership with KIPP Schools and Friendly Temple.

Members of the military move to a new base every few years. Some in the service are not re-enlisting because they don’t want to constantly uproot their families. The Department of Defense is considering whether the moving policy is still a good idea.

As part of Women’s History Month, we reflect on several influential women over the years in St. Louis. They include an educator who ran a riverboat school for formerly enslaved people and a union organizer who advocated for better working conditions.

The pandemic is leading some local districts to increase outreach efforts to families who speak languages other than English at home.

Missouri lawmakers return to the State Capitol today following a one-week break. Only one bill has become law so far this session as operations in the Senate have been at a near-standstill.

Band together has brought LGBTQ musicians and allies together in St. Louis since 1997. What started as an excuse to march in a pride parade has grown much larger.

Music fans will again gather in Grand Center this fall when the Music at the Intersection festival returns for a second year, with national headliners like Erykah Badu, Gary Clark Jr, and plenty of room for local acts. Organizers say the young festival is here to stay.

WBEZ's Dave McKinney investigates the financial holdings of Ken Griffin, Illinois' wealthiest person and the financier of a challenger to Gov. JB Pritzker.

Nonprofits and advocates in Missouri to enroll working to enroll people in Medicaid when they’re released from prison in order to keep them from coming back.

Sanctions against Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine has meant less fertilizer on the market for farmers, which means higher prices and concerned farmers.

A new Pulitzer Art Foundation exhibition focuses on audience participation. The show encourages people to pick up, fold or wrap some of the artwork around themselves.

The Missouri House is sending a measure to the Senate that could move millions of dollars from public schools in St. Louis and Kansas City to charter schools. A fiscal analysis indicates schools in the St. Louis district could lose more than $18-million.

Some Missouri residents say they are putting off health care needs because the state has been slow to approve Medicaid applications. The governor's office expected roughly 275-thousand people to gain coverage in the first year of Medicaid expansion. Only about 60-thousand have signed up so far.

Midwestern lakes are a hotbed of toxic algae blooms, largely caused by agricultural runoff. Without regular testing, visitors to lakes in many states have no idea what they're getting into.

Workers at a small business in Missouri are from Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus. All are working together while closely monitoring the war involving their home countries.

Legal advocates are going to court to seek benefits for Missourians who they say are being illegally shut out by a protracted application process.

Former Illinois House Speaker and ex-Democratic Party boss Michael Madigan has been indicted in federal court for racketeering. The indictment cites alleged bribery schemes.

The contract for deed or rent-to-own option is marketed as a way for people who can’t get a conventional mortgage to own a home. But more often than not, buyers do not end up as homeowners.