admin, Author at The Scene

MUSINGS: Indie film puts racism in today’s context

November 17, 2014

“Dear White People” is a satirical drama that will cause viewers to discuss and think more deeply about racism in 2014. Director Justin Simien’s debut film is set on an Ivy League campus, where racial tensions are running high. The administration decides to diversify housing, leading black students to take action to preserve their culturally centered residential hall. Conflict comes to a head when white students throw a thug-themed blackface party. […]

JUST SAYIN’: Let parents decide whether to spank

November 17, 2014

Corporal punishment made the news in September, when Minnesota Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson pleaded “no contest” to a reduced charge of misdemeanor reckless assault. This allowed the 29-year-old to avoid jail time and ended a saga that began Sept. 12, when he was indicted in Texas on a felony for injuring his 4-year-old son while hitting him with a “tree branch.” […]

Officer Tracy Buford and response team members Ravneet Chhokar and Tracy Hall instruct students during the armed-intruder drill. (Photo by Brian Ruth)

Campus practices lockdown

November 3, 2014

The armed-intruder drill that locked down the Forest Park campus on Oct. 22 was over in 20 minutes and was deemed a success by college officials. Students, faculty and staff were instructed to stay in their rooms, lock the doors, turn off the lights and get out of sight. Those caught outside were “rounded up” and told to stay put. […]

Police investigate alleged rape in campus elevator

November 3, 2014

Forest Park police and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department are investigating an alleged rape on campus Sept. 22. An 18-year-old female student filed a complaint on Oct. 27, accusing another student of raping her in an elevator, according to Dan Kimack, public information and marketing director for St. Louis Community College. “Within an hour of the hearing the complaint, campus police had the accused in for questioning,” he said. […]

Edward Alexander, president of the Forest Park Veterans Club, speaks to Interim President Roderick Nunn at the special SGA meeting. (Photo by Tina Alberico)

Nunn weighs in on Metro controversy

November 3, 2014

Interim Forest Park President Roderick Nunn heard an earful at a special Student Government Association meeting Oct. 22 about Metro’s decision to stop selling discounted semester bus passes to students 24 and older. […]

Ferguson protester Britney Ferrell uses a megaphone to speak to Meramec students at the teach-in on Oct. 13. (Photo provided by Suzan Dague)

Meramec students stage walkout

November 3, 2014

Students, faculty and staff on St. Louis Community College campuses have held several events to support the Ferguson protestors and promote peaceful activism, including listening circles, a clothing drive, a quilt and T-shirt exhibit and a day spent cleaning up after looters. […]

Columnist named “emerging scholar”

November 3, 2014

Don Dixon’s life has been a wild ride. He served in the Army, worked on the railroad, built houses in Florida, hung out with a biker gang and donated a kidney. “I bore easily, but I am content here in St. Louis,” said Dixon, 55, who stands out in a crowd with his white hair, bushy eyebrows and Fu Manchu mustache. […]

‘Tis the season to apply for scholarships

November 3, 2014

October to December is scholarship-application season, so students who need extra cash for fall semester may want to get going. Applications for some big scholarships – such as All-USA, Coca-Cola and Jack Kent Cooke scholarships – are due in early December. […]

EDITOR’S DESK: Expand your mind with a dose of podcast

November 3, 2014

In the past year, I have found myself getting more excited about new episodes of podcasts – shows consisting of audio only – than I get about new episodes of television shows. Originally, I listened to podcasts only when I had trouble sleeping. Now I listen to them while doing homework, commuting to school and working on chores. I think the reason I have become such a big fan of the handful of podcasts I enjoy is the intimacy they offer. […]

SPEAKING OUT: Yoga class can change your life

November 3, 2014

I was commuting to Forest Park and noticed that my bus passes several yoga studios. Like Starbucks coffee houses, they seem to have popped up all over the place. It’s believed that yoga has been commonly practiced for more than 2,500 years. That’s right, 25 centuries! I’ve come to think that if it has been around for that long, there may be something to it. […]