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. […]
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. […]
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. […]
Two separate arguments on the Forest Park campus prompted police to handcuff and detain six people on the morning of Feb. 19. Dozens of students, faculty and staff witnessed the incidents in the cafeteria, C circle and courtyard between G Tower and the theater building. […]
The trend of declining enrollment continues at Forest Park, with spring figures down 15 percent from a year ago, from 6,888 to 5,888 students, according to the latest data published by the college. Forest Park Bookstore cashier Erica Coleman, 34, said she noticed “bigger crowds” last fall compared to this semester. In fall of 2013, enrollment was at 6,815. Coleman, a general transfer student, also sees the impact of the trend in her classes. […]
Sixteen-year-old DaVon Steward saved or improved the lives of nearly two dozen people — after his 2001 murder. His family donated his heart, lungs and other organs and tissues to strangers who needed transplants. “A lot of people’s lives got blessed because of this,” said Steward’s mother, Angela Johnson, 51, a Forest Park student majoring in hospitality management. “And I just thought this was the greatest thing in the world.” The experience led Johnson to become an advocate for organ donation. […]
Former Forest Park President Morris F. Johnson III died last month after suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. He was 64. Morris served as president from 2005 to 2009. “He was a very student-centered president,” said Claudia Perry, St. Louis Community College district coordinator for communications. “He loved nothing better than being out in the halls talking to students.” […]
Forest Park is mourning the loss of adjunct psychology instructor Rodney Robinson, who died of complications from a kidney transplant this semester. “He was very kind and had a big heart,” said Don Cusumano, chairman of the social sciences department. “He was a very caring person and always had a smile on his face.” Robinson joined the Forest Park staff 20 years ago. He taught classes such as general psychology, child psychology, human growth and development and abnormal psychology. […]
Rising debt from student loans may be keeping young people from buying homes or paying mortgages, and that’s bad for the economy. That was one of the conclusions at a symposium on the future of student loans, hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis last month. About 150 students and professionals from financial and educational institutions packed a meeting room. […]
It’s the holiday season again, and Forest Park is doing its part to help others enjoy it. Several clubs and organizations have been involved in charitable activities. The Human Services Club collected hundreds of canned goods and donated them to four students in need and to Kingdom House Food Pantry. […]
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