The North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees heard reports on housing and other matters on August 24. Resident Life Director Donnie Hillerman reported one new residence hall is open, and he hopes the other new residence hall will open September 1st. There are some displaced students currently staying in Selby Hall in the wing […]
Tag: few
USDA accepts 2.8 million acres for the Conservation Reserve Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has accepted 2.8 million acres in offers from agricultural producers and private landowners for enrollment into the Conservation Reserve Program in 2021. This year, almost 1.9 million acres in offers have been accepted through the General CRP Signup, and USDA’s Farm Service Agency has accepted over 897,000 acres for enrollment […]
Meatpacking plants have long relied on immigrant labor. Some now turn to foreign visa workers
(Missouri Independent) – Colored hard hats distinguish different roles and jobs at Seaboard Foods, a major meatpacking plant in Guymon, Oklahoma. Senior management have green. Supervisors wear dark blue. Foreign workers on visas don yellow-green. But Seaboard is part of a small but growing trend in the meatpacking industry, which already largely relied on an […]
Missouri unemployment rate drops to 4.2 percent in July
Missouri non-farm payroll employment increased from June 2021 to July 2021, and the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased by a tenth of a percentage point. Employment, seasonally adjusted, increased by 15,000 jobs over the month, with job gains in both goods-producing and service-providing industries. The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.2 percent in July […]
Audio: Roots and Blues Festival in Columbia to require vaccinations or negative COVID-19 test
After more than a year without live music, the driving beat of a snare drum, the pulsing rhythm of a bass guitar, and sweet vocal melodies floating through the air around Stephens Lake Park will be welcome sounds as the Roots N Blues Festival makes its highly anticipated return to Columbia September 24-26, 2021. This year, however, […]
Sullivan County Health Department reports new cases of COVID-19, seven breakthrough cases
The Sullivan County Health Department August 17th reported two additional COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 1,086. Thirty-eight of the cases were active. Health Department Administrator Deborah Taylor reports about .6% of the total cases have been breakthrough cases. She says cases are milder for vaccinated residents than those who were not vaccinated. The health […]
Audio: Online pet product retailer Chewy to hire 1,600 employees in western Missouri’s Belton area
The governor traveled to rural western Missouri’s Belton this week to help cut the ribbon on an 800-thousand square foot new e-Commerce fulfillment center that’s located near I-49. State Department of Economic Development Director Rob Dixon says Chewy has seen enormous growth. Dixon says Chewy plans to hire 1,600 employees in the Belton […]
Missouri State Highway Patrol reports the arrest of five on Saturday
The highway patrol reports an Independence man was arrested Saturday evening in Daviess County. Forty-two-year-old Kevin Horn was accused of felony counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of methamphetamine, burglary, possession of burglary tools, resisting arrest, and unlawful use of a weapon. Horn also was accused of misdemeanor counts of stealing and possession […]
Kansas City, Kansas man pleads guilty in Missouri to heroin trafficking
A man pleaded guilty in federal court to his role in a conspiracy to distribute more than three kilograms of heroin intercepted by law enforcement officers when it was shipped from California to Kansas City, Missouri. Solomon B. Hawthorne, 31, of Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to participating […]
Trenton Board of Education discusses COVID-19 protocols during lengthy meeting
The Trenton R-9 Board of Education on August 10th discussed COVID-19-related matters for the upcoming school year. Superintendent Mike Stegman began by going over a list of protocols. They included staff and students attending school in person and using social distancing. Masks will be optional for staff and students inside district facilities. It is “highly […]
Commentary: COVID brings front and center the tug between individual rights and the public good
This article is a commentary. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of KTTN/KGOZ Radio, the staff, management or webmaster. (Missouri Independent) – It seems that getting control of the coronavirus has brought front and center the question: When should an individual’s right […]
Missouri seeks to boost prizes in local vaccine incentive program
(Missouri Independent) – Prizes awarded through a vaccine incentive program offered by local public health departments in Missouri may get boosted to $100-per-person under a new federal allowance. After previously rejecting Missouri’s proposal to exceed a $25 limit on prizes paid for with federal funding to incentivize immunizations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently […]
Less than half of Missouri nursing home staff vaccinated, reviving fear of lockdowns
(Missouri Independent) – Many of the staff and residents in Shunda Whitfield’s St. Louis County nursing home were sick before they even realized what was going on. It was April 2020, and masks weren’t yet standard practice. Little was known about COVID before it swept through nursing homes, and as a certified nursing assistant, Whitfield […]
Audio: Hatfield expects decision in Missouri Medicaid expansion lawsuit case in a few business days
Missouri’s Solicitor General says the state Department of Social Services needs two months to implement voter-approved Medicaid expansion. D. John Sauer made his comments Friday to Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem, saying DSS needs more employees and computer upgrades for implementation. Attorney Chuck Hatfield, who represents the three low-income women suing Missouri, disagrees. […]
Chillicothe City Council to meet on August 9
The Chillicothe City Council will hold a public hearing to consider an ordinance setting the property tax rates for the city. The hearing will be during the council’s meeting at the Chillicothe Municipal Utilities meeting room on August 9, 2021, at 5:30 pm. The proposed tax levy for all property real, personal, and mixed is […]
Holts Summit man indicted for armed robbery
A Missouri man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for the armed robbery of a Dollar General store in Jefferson City, Mo. Tyler Steven Mitchell Williams, 24, of Holts Summit, was charged in a two-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Jefferson City on Tuesday, Aug. 3. The federal indictment alleges […]
Advocates say Missouri’s eviction crisis could be a ‘humanitarian tragedy’
(Missouri Independent) – Melissa Pashia is hoping for any kind of good news today. The federal eviction moratorium ended Saturday, and she’s got her fingers crossed one of her clients will finally get approved for the rental assistance that they applied for in April through the State Assistance for Housing Relief Program (SAFHR). The aid approval […]
New Missouri law mandates private space and break times for breastfeeding teachers
(Missouri Independent) – Eight months after her son was born, Webster Groves High School teacher Jaime Adamski broke down in tears at her doctor’s office. Her breast milk had declined significantly since she had gone back to work. “I was depressed, angry, frustrated,” she said. “I felt like I was not a good enough mother […]
Motorists are reminded to watch for students as school starts in just a few weeks
Students across Missouri are preparing to begin their 2021-2022 school year. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reminds drivers to be vigilant always, but especially near school zones, playgrounds, bicycle paths, and crosswalks when schools are in session. Expect pedestrian and bicycle traffic to increase near schools on days where the weather is good. When schools […]
Excessive heat continues for Thursday, but a cold front approaches northern Missouri by Friday bringing relief
Dangerous heat will continue for at least Thursday in Northern Missouri with temperatures rising into the upper 90s and the heat index predicted as high as 110. The high temperature for Wednesday on KTTN’s weather instruments was 96 degrees with a heat index reading of 112 degrees. The entire state of Missouri continues under a […]