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Hundreds apply for Missouri’s new ‘Fast Track’ grant program

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About 400 Missourians have applied so far for the state’s new Fast Track financial aid program. Fast Track is designed to fill Missouri’s greatest workforce needs by covering the full cost of schooling for adults 25 or older pursuing a certificate, an industry-recognized credential or bachelors in a high demand field.

Zora Mulligan (Photo courtesy of Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development)

The grants are being distributed beginning this month to students attending Missouri’s public colleges and universities. Missouri Higher Education and Workforce Development Director Zora Mulligan tells Missourinet funds are still available for people to apply.

“We can serve many more than 400 students. So, we are looking forward to getting lots and lots more students signed up, either for sessions that start kind of in the mid Fall or for sessions that start in January and beyond,” says Mulligan. “One of the neat things about Fast Track is that it covers a lot of programs that are not on a traditional academic calendar.”

The program’s budget this year is $5 million. Some of the industries it centers around are teaching, skilled trades, agriculture, allied health and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) related jobs.

Some of the key requirements include a maximum household income of $80,000 per year if filing taxes jointly or $40,000 annually for a single income household. Those awarded a grant must work in Missouri for three calendar years or pay interest. Fast Track is primarily for adults 25 years or older, but some provisions allow Missourians younger than 25 to get grants if they have been out of school for at least two years.

“Many, many of these are likely to be people who were not seriously considering getting a degree or certificate without this incentive,” she says. “We have a huge population in the state of Missouri – lots of smart and very capable people – but for one reason or another, they either didn’t start college or didn’t finish college when they were younger. The ability to send a message to them that the state of Missouri is willing to invest in their talent and willing to see what they can do if they get one of these degrees or certificates, I think will be an important message that will help people think maybe this is the moment.”

The program was one of Gov. Mike Parson’s priorities outlined in his January State of the State address. He also talked about the importance of Fast Track during a ceremony Friday at the Missouri Department of Agriculture headquarters in Jefferson City.

Mulligan says the program has the power to change lives, help the state and its communities.

“An adult who goes back and gets a degree or certificate that allows them to make 10 or 15,000 dollars a year more, that really has the ability to change the trajectory to change that family’s outcomes,” she says. “It’s also important to take a step back and think about what it means for the state overall in terms of general revenue. Each of those people who’s earning a higher salary is paying more taxes, which goes back into the state general revenue. I think it’s a win from both perspectives.”

Mulligan says the program is also valuable from a community perspective.

“One of the things that you hear when you visit with people around the state is that either there aren’t options for their young people there locally or they’re afraid that if young people leave to go get an education, they won’t come back. Many, many of these programs are offered in rural communities around the state,” she says. “People will have an opportunity to stay in their community, to work in the community and help make sure that it remains vibrant.”

Mulligan’s department is asking for about $19 million next fiscal year to fund the program and include Missouri’s private colleges and universities.

“It’s a substantial investment but it reflects the power of a degree or certificate to the individual who earns it as well as the severity of the workforce needs that our employers around the state face,” she says.

For more information about Fast Track, click here.

Trooper receives Missouri medal for capturing suspect in violent foot chase

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A Missouri trooper has received the state’s highest public service award for taking courageous action during a 2018 chase on foot with an alleged thief.

Photo courtesy of Gov. Parson’s office

On March 19, 2018, a man and woman suspected in a residential theft in northern Missouri’s Ridgeway had just bolted from the crime scene. Trooper Matthew Neely spotted the suspected vehicle southbound on Interstate 35. Before he could attempt to pull over the vehicle, the driver got off the interstate and slammed into a utility pole.

As Neely arrived on scene, the driver and passenger exited the vehicle and the driver ran off. Neely informed the passenger she was under arrest and ordered her to stay in the vehicle. Then, as Neely went after the driver on foot across an open field, the man turned and fired multiple shots at Neely.

The trooper attempted to take cover as best he could. Once the gun fire stopped, Neely reported that shots had been fired and advanced on the gunman while commanding him to drop his weapon.

The gunman then attempted to re-engage trooper Neely. The trooper fired several shots – striking the gunman twice and ending the gun battle.

Neely and another trooper gave the suspect first aid until medical help arrived. The gunman survived.

During a ceremony this week, Public Safety Director Sandy Karsten and Gov. Mike Parson awarded Neely with the state’s highest public safety award – the Medal of Valor.

Neely was one of 18 first responders and six civilians honored this week for their heroic efforts to protect the public in 2018.

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Hartzler: “Withdrawing from Syria is a mistake”

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President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. soldiers from northern Syria has sparked rare bipartisan backlash, including from West-central Missouri Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler. Trump’s move has led to Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria.

Missouri Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler speaks at Columbia’s Truman VA Hospital on October 18, 2017 (Brian Hauswirth photo)

Hartzler, a fellow Republican and member of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee, says the U.S. is abandoning the pro-democracy Kurds who have died fighting with America to defeat ISIS.

“If we just step away from them after they have partnered with us – they’re going to be slaughtered,” Hartzler tells Missourinet affiliate KSSZ in Columbia.

The Kurds have been guarding imprisoned ISIS members. Turkey’s attack is also likely to spark a humanitarian crisis through the killing and displacement of masses of Kurds.

Hartzler says Trump made a mistake by withdrawing the troops and says America has a history of keeping troops in parts of the world to promote democracy.

“Why not allow those 50 to 100 American troops to still be there and help provide that stability,” asks Hartzler. “We’ve got far more than that still Germany and Japan.”

Trump says it’s time to end America’s “stupid, endless wars,” but military officials argue that the U.S.’s presence would keep Iran and Russia, both influential inside Syria, in check.

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WNBA star in Missouri courtroom to help imprisoned friend score ‘Win With Justice’

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At a Cole County Court room on Wednesday, Jonathan Irons walked in wearing a bright orange jumpsuit and shackles. In the first row for citizens to sit in was WNBA star Maya Moore. For more than a decade, Irons and Moore have been friends and Moore’s Jefferson City family has been in Irons’ life for nearly 20 years.

Jonathan Irons (2019 photo courtesy of Missouri Department of Corrections)

Moore, who was born in Jefferson City, says no physical evidence links Irons to a 1997 burglary in which shots were fired, seriously injuring an O’Fallon homeowner in the head. Moore, who has played eight seasons for the Minnesota Lynx, has sidelined the game in part to try and free Irons.

The African-American man of eastern Missouri’s Wentzville was 16 years old when the crime was committed. Irons is serving 50 years in prison after being convicted by an all-white jury in 1998 for first-degree assault and armed criminal action.

During Wednesday’s hearing, Irons broke out in tears – something Moore says was hard to watch.

“There’s a lot of emotions,” she says. “I think number one of just being heartbroken that we can’t console him as part of our family. Number two, happy for him that the truth is finally being told officially on the record of the fingerprint evidence.”

Moore says the hearing was one step in the process.

“But it’s a big step to finally have the truth be told in this context was really rewarding to finally let Jonathan share his side of the story. It’s just hard to see why the wind can’t come more swiftly for justice in this situation,” Moore says.

Maya Moore (Photo courtesy of Minnesota Lynx Twitter page)

Several witnesses were called to the stand on behalf of Irons to testify about their knowledge of any potential police bias in the 1997 case. Reginald Williams, a friend of Irons, testified that he obtained from the O’Fallon Police Department’s evidence files a document detailing a second fingerprint pulled from the only door to the burglarized home. He said the paperwork was not included in files for the trial – something that Moore said was hidden under a rock for all these years.

Cole County Judge Daniel Green is expected to agree to a request in the works to have the mystery fingerprint checked for a potential match. Irons’ attorneys think the print could have changed the outcome of their client’s case. His lawyers are also asking the judge to reopen the case that’s receiving national attention.

A licensed investigator, Kevin McClain, also took the stand to discuss details of a blog headed by the lead police detective in the case. The blog included personal accounts of what McClain considered to be police misconduct. The detective in the case, Michael Hanlen, was ill during the trial and has since died.

Another witness, Dr. James Lampinen of the University of Arkansas, is an expert on memory and face perception in legal settings. His overall testimony was that photo bias was used in the lineup procedures and the human memory of facial qualities quickly declines, especially in traumatic situations. Lampinen said the police tactics “suggested” that the suspect was in the photo and physical lineups and resulted in the eyewitness guessing the identity of the suspect.

Irons, who is doing time at the Jefferson City Correctional Center, also took the witness stand during the hearing and maintained his innocence. It was the first time he was able to testify in his case. At 16 years old, his public defender did not want him to take the stand in fear that the prosecution would twist his words.

Irons said after he was arrested for the crime, he was questioned without a lawyer or guardian. None of his conversations with police were recorded. His case revolved around the claims made by Hanlen.

The prosecution argued during the trial that Irons was seen the day of the burglary with a gun in the neighborhood where the crime happened. Irons said he had several friends he often visited in the area.

The police investigation uncovered a .25-caliber handgun being used during the crime. Irons testified that he did not have such a gun, but instead a .380 pistol that he later threw into a river.

More than 70,000 petition signatures have been collected that call for a fair trial for Irons. Moore has launched a non-profit inspired by him. Win With Justice educates people about “the power that prosecutors have in maintaining and expanding mass incarceration.”

“I just want to be there for my family first and foremost and keeping us anchored in just our faith and also wanting to use my platform as best I can to continue to give Jonathan and Jonathans out there a voice and to just encourage us as a community to be as best we can in our criminal justice system with leadership positions like prosecutors.”

As far as returning to the game goes, Moore says she’s sticking to her previous statement of reassessing her thoughts next spring. Moore, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, two-time NCAA champion and four-time WNBA titlist, has been called the greatest winner in the history of women’s basketball by Sports Illustrated.

A crew from ESPN and a documentary team from Los Angeles were also in the court room to report on the case.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Missouri students recognized for saving neighbor from man with axe

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Three Truman State University students in northern Missouri’s Kirkville have been honored for stopping a man who was beating a woman. During a ceremony this week in Jefferson City, the governor recognized Tyler Preston, Gabriel Gowen and Jordan Lambay for saving the victim’s life.

Gov. Parson and Tyler Preston (Photo courtesy of Governor’s Office)

On the night of June 29, 2018, the students were in their apartment when they heard children screaming. Preston says they opened the door to find the man, with an axe, attacking the woman on their front steps.

“So our initial reaction is we close the door,” says Preston. “We’re like whoa. And then I grabbed my phone. I start dialing 911. Gabriel goes and wakes up Jordan, who went to bed early. They sneak around the back and then they tackle the man. Gabriel gets the axe away.”

Lambay then held the attacker on the ground until police arrived. When officers got there, they found the woman face down in the street surrounded by blood.

“It still kind of haunts me,” says Preston. “When children scream sometimes it flashes me back. It doesn’t affect near as much as it did but a good six months afterwards it was a lot of like ‘I should have done this.’”

The woman, who had life-threatening injuries, survived the attack. The Kirksville Police Department nominated the students for their selfless acts and believe they prevented the woman from dying of her injuries.

“I’m an English major with a theatre minor. I’m more about entertaining people than saving people,” says Preston. “But I’m always there to help when I can.”

Both Gowen and Lambay are currently serving overseas in the United States military.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Hawley slams NBA for Houston Rockets GM and Hong Kong protesters controversy

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Then-Attorney General Josh Hawley speaks in Winchester, Missouri on October 23, 2018 (file photo courtesy of Bill Greenblatt/UPI)

In a letter to the NBA, Missouri U.S. Senator Josh Hawley says he’s disgusted by the league for opposing Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey’s tweets in favor of Hong Kong protesters. Hawley says the Chinese Communist Party has used violence against protesters risking their lives for their freedom.

He goes on to say that the NBA wrongly apologized to the Chinese government because it is worried about profits and not about the brutal tactics the government uses on the country’s own people. The league has been working on its brand in China for several years.

In the letter, Hawley calls on the NBA to cancel all exhibition games in China “pending a peaceful resolution to the crisis in Hong Kong.”

Read Hawley’s entire letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver by clicking here.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Missouri officers honored for ending 2018 prison standoff

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Four correctional officers and two law enforcement officials have been honored for their brave work to end a May 2018 clash at the Crossroads Correctional Center in northwest Missouri’s Cameron. During a ceremony Monday, Missouri Public Safety Director Sandy Karsten says more than 200 prisoners refused to leave two dining halls and staged a protest. The Corrections team notified all housing units to go on lock down – preventing things to escalate to other areas of the prison.

Photo courtesy of Gov. Parson’s office

“Conditions quickly deteriorated when offenders breached the kitchen area – obtaining potentially dangerous cooking utensils and began vandalizing the kitchen. Offenders broke out windows, damaged doors and locks, which allowed them to access unsecured areas,” said Karsten.

Department of Corrections workers Cody Ross, Jason Huff, Cade Thompson and Andrew Fritzinger, Cameron Police Chief Richard Bashor and State Trooper Bradley Muck were recognized for quickly acting to de-escalate the situation.

“The corrections officers bravely put their own safety at risk as they inserted themselves into volatile areas to extricate personnel and remove them from the building,” says Karsten.

The Corrections team deployed pepper spray and tear gas and secured doors.

While en route to Crossroads, Bashor activated the Cameron Police Department’s tactical team and mobile command center. He requested and received back up from more than 100 law enforcement officers.

Muck, who had only weeks before completed hostage negotiator training, worked through the night to get the remaining 78 offenders to return to a dining hall and peacefully end the disturbance.

Karsten says no employees were injured and no prisoners were seriously injured. The Department of Corrections says offenders caused about $1.3 million in damage.

A DeKalb County grand jury has indicted more than two dozen inmates for their involvement in the riot. Department of Corrections employees worked several hundreds of man hours and analyzed thousands of hours of video to identify each individual defendant and the illegal acts committed by them.

Eighteen first responders and six civilians were honored for their extraordinary acts in 2018 during Monday’s ceremony in Jefferson City. Missourinet will feature their stories this week.

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Missouri men honored for heroic efforts during 2018 Branson duck boat sinking
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Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Missouri men awarded for heroic efforts during 2018 Branson duck boat sinking

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Two southwest Missouri men have been recognized today for going above and beyond to try and save tourists from last year’s duck boat sinking in Branson. Seventeen people died after a storm quickly swept in that July evening and caused the boat to plunge on Table Rock Lake. Marlin Matchett of Monett says he was on the nearby Branson Belle showboat serving as a first aid worker when the duck boat began to take on water and go under.

Storm that hit Branson during duck boat sinking known as a derecho

“The showboat wait staff and servers – they were trying to jump in the water,” says Matchett. “They were trying to don life jackets. I was hollering at them and told them to stay out of the water. It was too dangerous. We had about 10 foot waves.”

He says there were several heroes that day.

“There was not a person on the showboat that wasn’t trying to help,” he says. “Everybody was running to help. Part of my responsibly was to protect them and keep them safe. I was not only doing that, but I was also trying to rescue the people that I could rescue.”

Stone County Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Shawn Fields, who was working security on the Branson Belle, was given the state’s highest public safety award today. Missouri Public Safety Director Sandy Karsten awarded Fields with the Medal of Valor for jumping into the water and rescuing victims.

“In the midst of a dangerous, unrelenting storm, sergeant Fields took immediate and decisive action. Without specialized equipment, he bravely risked his own life by jumping into the roiling Table Rock Lake,” says Karsten.

Eighteen first responders and civilians were honored for their extraordinary acts in 2018 during today’s ceremony in Jefferson City. Missourinet will highlight their stories throughout the week.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet