News – Page 32 – The Scene

Bus dispute impacts Forest Park

April 21, 2014

The Forest Park campus seemed a little deserted on April 7, leading some to assume students were watching the St. Louis Cardinals’ home opener. Others blamed a “sick-in” by MetroBus drivers, which left many riders waiting at bus stops and MetroLink stations. “I ended up walking home,” said James Cherry, 28, a general transfer student. Cherry knew something was wrong after waiting more than an hour at the MetroLink station at University of Missouri-St. Louis. He called Metro Transit using the emergency call box on the platform. “We’re short on drivers,” the attendant reportedly said. More than 70 bus drivers called in sick that day, 10 times the usual number, according to local TV and radio stations. […]

Scott Beck, from the Meramec math department, takes a turn during Bowling for Scholars on April 11. (Photo by Scott Allen)

Money for books rolls in from bowling event

April 21, 2014

More than $37,000 was raised this year by Bowling for Scholars to help STLCC students buy books and class materials. The fundraiser’s organizers celebrated a decade of supporting students — with more than $275,000 raised and 1,800 students assisted — on April 11 at Tropicana Lanes in Richmond Heights. […]

Users of e-cigarettes, such as LeAnna Dailey, 20, photography, may have to give up them up on campus if STLCC enacts a new policy. (Photo illustration by Brandon Reynolds and Scott Allen)

E-cigs may go up in smoke

April 7, 2014

As electronic cigarette use continues to grow, colleges are beginning to place the devices under tobacco-free campus rules enacted before the new form of smoking took off. At St. Louis Community College, students may soon see a ruling on e-cigarette use. The college-wide Institutional Affairs Council and the four Campus Academic Councils have proposed to the Board of Trustees that the district’s tobacco-free policy be amended to include electronic cigarettes, prohibiting their use on all campuses. […]

Student finds stolen phone

April 7, 2014

Campus police responded to a call about a missing cell phone in the Highlander Lounge on Wednesday, and a student then found the phone in the parking lot. Aaron Dlamini, 20, nursing, was with friends in the lounge between 1 and 2 p.m when his iPhone came up missing. “We weren’t there when it was taken, but we were there when it got back,” said Chief Richard Banahan of the Forest Park Campus Police department, who accompanied Officer Terri Buford to the Highlander Lounge. Buford pulled witnesses to the side one at a time for questioning. The suspect fled the lounge undetected but left the phone on top of a car in the parking lot. A fellow student found the phone and returned it to Dlamini within the hour. […]

Interim chancellor Dennis Michaelis speaks to a crowd of faculty during a Forest Park forum. ( Photo by Scott Allen)

Faculty questions Michaelis at forum

April 7, 2014

Dennis Michaelis was optimistic about the future of the college’s administration and student services as he spoke with Forest Park faculty at a March 19 forum. Michaelis is filling the job of STLCC chancellor during Myrtle Dorsey’s leave of absence through her original contract date of June 2014. Few students attended, but the faculty and staff who were there questioned the school’s future leadership and efforts to improve student life. […]

Construction work has just wrapped on the Cardinals Nation rooftop deck at Ballpark Village. (Photo by Dejuan Baskin)

Cards fans are back in force

April 7, 2014

Opening Day is not a holiday, but true Cardinals fans celebrate like it is. Thousands of baseball fans flood Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis every year to create what has been locally nicknamed the “Red Sea.” This year the Red Sea has broken the levees of Busch Stadium and spilled into the new Ballpark Village directly across the street. […]

Students study graphics at Forest Park. (Photo by Anna Mars Chekhovskaya)

Graphics program moves to other campuses

April 7, 2014

The associate’s degree in graphic design is no longer offered on the Forest Park campus, as of this semester. Students can still pursue it at Meramec or Florissant Valley. Forest Park continues to offer three classes in the program — computer art studio and graphic design I & II. […]

Hess leads a discussion with faculty on campus climate. (Photo by Brandon Reynolds)

Hess headed back to Oklahoma

March 31, 2014

President Cindy Hess is leaving Forest Park. She has accepted the position of associate dean of communications at Tulsa Community College’s Southeast Campus in Tulsa, Okla. Her last day is May 13. “I’m looking to be within an hour of most of my family and being in a role that’s more closely connected to faculty and students,” she said. […]

Rush is on to get health insurance

March 31, 2014

Today is the deadline for Americans to sign up for health insurance, so some students are opting out of coverage while others scramble to find options. Fire Protection Technologies student Andrew Wheeler, 24, hasn’t had health insurance for three years. But he’s adamant about not using the federal health-care exchange website because of its problematic launch in October. “It’s either health care through the military, or I just won’t have health care,” he said. Byron Keaton, 21, a theater major and member of the Campus Life Task Force, also has been uninsured for three years. […]

Forest Park students board the No. 59 MetroBus at the Oakland Ave. bus stop on a chilly afternoon. (Photo by DeJuan Baskin)

Metro to increase transit fares

March 31, 2014

Metro Transit plans to increase fares this summer, affecting many Forest Park students who commute by bus or light-rail train. Culinary arts major Myeisha Garrett, 19, isn’t happy about it. She uses the system to travel from Dellwood to the college every day and sometimes to her job at Walmart. Metro officials have developed three possible options to raise revenue, targeting people who use public transportation most. […]