Forest Park enrollment has dropped 15 percent from last fall — from 7,994 to 6,815 students — continuing a downward trend that started two years ago. President Cindy Hess believes there are multiple reasons. “We’d like to think the economy is improving and there are more people finding full- and part-time work,” she said. In addition, Hess cites a national drop in college enrollment and retention, and stricter guidelines for financial aid dispersal. […]
St. Louis Community College invited local funeral directors to Forest Park last month to discuss how to improve Funeral Service Education programs. The college lost accreditation for its associate’s degree program from the American Board of Funeral Service Education last spring. “A couple of things stood out (at the meeting),” said H.L. Kriegshauser, president of Kriegshauser Brothers Funeral Service Inc. […]
More than 30,000 music-lovers from all walks of life converged on Forest Park’s Central Field for LouFest this month. The annual two-day music festival features local, regional and national acts. “We’re a festival that has made a commitment to the local music scene,” said founder Brian Cohen. “We always include locals in the lineup. That’s a commitment not all festivals make.” […]
Two students on the Meramec campus of St. Louis Community College are in trouble due to threatening social-media posts. Last month, Kara N. Hohman, 20, of South St. Louis County, turned herself into Meramec police after allegedly making a threat to campus faculty. Her tweet stated that she would “kill someone if her financial aid didn’t figure itself out soon,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The threat was discovered by a public-affairs employee, who notified campus police. […]
Students returning to Forest Park this fall will find the Student Center has changed dramatically. Offices and student services on the first two levels are being rearranged. The objective is better accessibility, said Thomas Walker, vice president of student affairs. “That’s the goal behind the renovations,” he said. The bookstore, cashier’s office, financial aid and academic affairs are being grouped together to provide “one-stop shopping.” […]
Higher Education Magazine has ranked St. Louis Community College 36th among the Top 100 institutions across the country for percentage of associate’s degrees conferred on black students. The college conferred degrees on 2,113 students, including 474 black students (22.4 percent), during the 2011-12 school year. That’s a 19 percent increase over the previous year. “It’s a cause for celebration,” said Donna Dare, vice chancellor for academic and student affairs. […]
Hookah tobacco smoking has spread across the United States, including St. Louis. It’s a Middle Eastern cultural tradition with roots that go back more than 500 years. Now it’s all the rave among young people. […]
St. Louis Community College has received nearly $200,000 to train low-income and unemployed area residents in hazardous waste cleanup. For the fourth year, the Environmental Protection Agency granted the college funds to provide trainees with more than 200 hours of instruction. The college hopes to place 55 workers in environmental jobs, out of a potential 81 graduates. “This has been a very successful partnership over the years, with our local grant program achieving the highest placement rates nationally, and most importantly helping qualified residents earn credentials that are of value in the marketplace,” said Roderick Nunn, STLCC vice chancellor for economic development and workforce solutions, stated in a press release. […]
Forest Park has a new math chair. James Munden, 30, of Columbia, Ill., has replaced Seth Daugherty. “My philosophy is not to memorize rules, but to see and implement the actual mechanics behind the rules,” he said. Munden has been teaching pre-algebra, analytic geometry and calculus at Forest Park since 2010. He formerly served as a graduate assistant in math at St Louis University, where he is working on a doctorate. Daugherty served as Forest Park’s math chair for two years before stepping down this month for personal reasons. He still is teaching classes as an assistant professor. […]
An era ended at the St. Louis Science Center on June 24, when officials deflated the Exploradome. The 652,000-cubic-foot, gridded balloon structure had been inflated in 1997 to provide extra exhibit space. It cost $2 million. […]
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