Monica Obradovic

St. Louis

Suburban Schools Reporter at St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Suburban schools reporter for @stltoday. Fmr @riverfronttimes and @semissourian. Thoroughly Midwest. Tips and gripes to [email protected].

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Articles

Webster University president is out, will join business school faculty

5 days ago | stltoday.com | Steph Kukuljan |Monica Obradovic

WEBSTER GROVES — More leadership change is coming to Webster University after its board declined to renew the contract of the university’s president. The Webster Board of Trustees instead offered Julian Schuster a position on the faculty of the business school. His term expires May 31. Julie Palmer, president of Webster’s faculty senate, said Schuster will start teaching in the business school in August. University spokesperson Patrick Giblin said the university cannot comment on personnel matters.
Parkway becomes latest St. Louis-area school district to ban cellphones

1 week ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

CHESTERFIELD — Parkway School District will ban most cellphone usage by students next school year, becoming the latest local school district to heighten restrictions on the devices. Parkway’s new policy, passed by the district’s board with a unanimous vote Wednesday, will bar elementary and middle school students from using any personal devices from arrival to dismissal.
Students’ visas revoked for minor offenses, St. Louis attorneys say. ‘It’s unprecedented.’

1 week ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

ST. LOUIS — Local immigration attorneys say federal authorities are revoking international students’ visas and legal statuses for minor offenses such as traffic tickets — or seemingly for no reason at all. Foreign students at nearly every higher education institution in the St. Louis area have seen their legal statuses changed in the past few weeks as President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on illegal immigration.
Trump administration revokes dozens of St. Louis-area student visas

1 week ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

ST. LOUIS — Federal officials have targeted the immigration status of several international students studying in the St. Louis area as hundreds of student visas are being revoked across the country. Webster University said 18 international students at its campus in Webster Groves have had their visas revoked or their records terminated in the federal system used to track students’ immigration status.
Washington University is pausing construction projects as it braces for federal funding cuts

1 week ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

ST. LOUIS — Washington University is pausing capital projects on its Danforth campus as it braces for federal funding cuts. University officials said Monday they’re delaying construction of a new 110,000-square-foot Arts and Sciences building announced last fall. Improvements to Mudd Field located in the western side of WashU’s Danforth campus are also on hold.
Why conservatives fell short in key St. Charles County school board races

1 week ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

ST. CHARLES COUNTY — Amy Gryder didn’t pay much attention to her local school board until about four years ago. That’s when things started to “feel a little weird,” she said. In the summer of 2021, the Francis Howell Board of Education approved two elective courses for Black History and Black Literature.
Voters opt for change in St. Louis-area school board races

2 weeks ago | stltoday.com | Blythe Bernhard |Monica Obradovic

ST. LOUIS — Antionette “Toni” Cousins will lead one final meeting of the St. Louis Board of Education after losing her reelection bid to three newcomers. Brian Marston, Karen Collins-Adams and Allisa (AJ) Foster are expected to be sworn in April 22. Cousins, the board’s president, finished the race in fourth place after a tumultuous year overseeing St. Louis Public Schools.
Conservative candidates lose key school board races in St. Charles County

2 weeks ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

ST. CHARLES COUNTY — St. Charles County voters again voted against conservative candidates in key school board races — the second clean sweep in a row. In the hotly contested race for two board seats in the Francis Howell School District, Sarah Oekle and Amy Gryder defeated Republican-based incumbent Randy Cook and Cook’s running mate Ashley Sturm. "We have a chance now to make normal happen," Oekle said in an interview after the election.
Washington University art student booted off campus for pro-Palestine sculpture

2 weeks ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

ST. LOUIS — Washington University students say they were told to leave the university’s campus Monday after working on a collaborative art piece that included pro-Palestine messages. Max Schreiber, a junior studying studio art, said university officials approached him and about 40 others at WashU’s Tisch Park near Skinker Boulevard and told him to take his sculpture elsewhere because it violated a university policy about installing structures on campus.
Maryville University’s bond rating nears junk status

2 weeks ago | stltoday.com | Monica Obradovic

TOWN AND COUNTRY — Rising competition and a risky reliance on online offerings have weakened Maryville University’s financial position, a credit rating agency reports. Moody’s downgraded Maryville’s bond rating from Baa2 to Baa3 due to weak prospects for tuition growth, bringing Maryville one step away from junk status. Baa3 is the lowest-level investment-grade rating; anything below is considered speculative and risky. Moody’s announced the downgrade on March 27.