The Montage Student Newspaper

27/08/2024

The Montage is at Campus Expo today and tomorrow from 10am-1pm! Check us out!

20/08/2024

It’s the first week of the fall semester for STLCC students, but there are plenty of events for students to participate in for the next two. Check out the list here.

21/07/2024

JOE BIDEN EXITS 2024 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

President Joe Biden announced his exit from the 2024 Presidential Race earlier this afternoon, after weeks of calls to step aside from those within his own party, donors and some prospective voters following his performance at CNN’s June 27 Presidential Debate and subsequent poorly received interviews.

Biden announced his decision in a statement first released via his social media channels. A short time later, in a separate message on his social media channels, Biden endorsed his Vice President, Kamala Harris, as the Democratic Party’s nominee for the remainder of the race. It remains unknown who the Democratic Party’s nominee will be as of now. Harris herself released a statement a short time ago that read, in part, that she was “honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination.”

Former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary immediately endorsed Harris, but former President Barack Obama did not formally endorse her while releasing a statement praising Biden.

Biden’s decision to end his campaign and withdrawal from the race marks what may prove to be the beginning of the end of his political career, which began with his election to the New Castle County Council in Delaware in 1970. He is the third President since 1990 to only serve one full term, and will be the second consecutive President to do so after Donald Trump, who he’d planned to face in a political rematch this year.

Trump, meanwhile, remains in the race, and formally accepted the Republican nomination this week following an attempt on his life during one of his rallies held in Butler, Pennsylvania. Trump’s opponent will be formally determined by the end of this years Democratic National Convention. That event will take place from August 19-22 at the United Center in Chicago.

12/07/2024

In a new and online exclusive opinions piece, Montage Managing Editor Jacob Politte discusses President Joe Biden’s bad two weeks and the ongoing dissent in the Democratic Party. He also discusses the importance of settling the issue, and why it’s important to do it sooner rather than later… with Joe Biden as the nominee.

Read “JAKE’S TAKE: STOP THE MADNESS” here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/opinions/jakes-take-stop-the-madness/

19/06/2024

REMINDER: All STLCC campuses and facilities are closed to students, faculty and staff today in acknowledgment and remembrance of the “Juneteenth” federal holiday.

The day, which began being recognized as a federal holiday in 2021, commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.

18/06/2024

Interested in journalism? Design? Photography? The Montage is looking for new members to put their skills to good use this fall.

Starting this fall, meetings will be held on Tuesdays at 2pm at our newsroom located in the Student Center (Room 220A) or virtually through Zoom.

11/06/2024

The 2024-2025 Back To School Guide will hit newsstands around campus in a few weeks, but is available to view NOW here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/backtoschool/2024-back-to-school-guide/

14/05/2024

STLCC’s response to a protester on the Meramec campus in mid-April left many underwhelmed and furious with both the college and campus police.

Read this month’s top story now: https://www.meramecmontage.com/news/meramecs-fork-in-the-road/

02/05/2024

Following the controversial events in the Meramec Student Center Quad this past month involving a religious protester, a Free Expression Panel will take place today from 2-3:30 p.m. in Lecture Hall Room 103. The discussion titled “Say What? Free Speech in the United States” will feature professors Aaron Champene (philosophy), Steve Collins (history) and John Messmer (political science). The discussion is open to all.

In addition, students have been sent a link to a survey in their student email account. That survey purpose is “to better understand how our Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) team can better serve our Archer community.”

Participation in that survey is entirely voluntary, and all responses will be kept confidential.

30/04/2024

The Montage’s final issue of the semester hits stands on Thursday, but is available to view NOW here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/themontage/view-the-print-issue-136/

IN THIS ISSUE…

- An in-depth look at the controversial events in the Student Center Quad in mid-April that left students upset over a religious protester’s anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric, and why the college said its hands were tied when it came to removing him. In addition, an adjacent incident resulting from the protester’s conduct lands campus police in the eye of the storm and leaves students calling for the removal of two officers. Students and administrators speak on the record with The Montage and give their perspectives on what went down and how the college handled the incidents.
- A look at what’s to come at Meramec in the next few years as a part of “STLCC Transformed” and beyond.
Music @ Meramec hosts an Alumni concert.
- A look at Sports Stats for the 2023-2024 season so far.

… and much more. Stay tuned for our Back To School Guide, set to release this July.

18/04/2024

UPDATE ON RELIGIOUS PROTESTOR COVERAGE

Over the past week, The Montage has covered 2 separate incidents involving a religious protester who visited campus and was verbally combative with students. The protestor, who livestreams his visits on a YouTube channel called “Kingdom Reconcilers” attracted a large crowd and elicited reactions from the student body with anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ remarks for over two hours on Thursday, April 11 and for at least 90 minutes on Monday, April 15.

The man, as shown by his YouTube channel, travels around the country to various colleges. On Tuesday, he was on the campus of Kent State University, and on Wednesday, he traveled to the University of Cincinnati. Also on his stream from Wednesday, there were some commenters expressing support for a return to the Meramec campus.

In response to these events, the college scheduled forums on the Meramec campus to address the situation, but also said that they were unable to remove the protester from campus as his speech was protected by a 2015 Missouri law called the Campus Free Expression Act.

Adjacent to these events, at least one campus police officer is under investigation. This was confirmed by the college in a statement after the officer, confirmed by witnesses (but not by the college) to be Officer Faulstich, was alleged to have told a student concerned about the protestor “If you don’t like it, go somewhere else” and “If you don’t like it, go back to your own country.” In addition, a second officer, alleged to be Officer Ed Ucinski, is alleged to have told the same student, “He can say whatever the f**k he wants.”

The Montage is hard at work on a series of pieces that cover the entire scope of this evolving situation, and is in the process of speaking with many of those involved and gathering more information. We will continue to post updates on our social media channels as the situation develops.

In the interim, those with any thoughts and/or witness accounts are encouraged to send them to [email protected] before Thursday, April 25. Please send your thoughts with your full name and an indication of your role on the campus; they may be featured in our May 2 issue.

18/04/2024

“Shamim Ansari, American Citizen”

Professor Shamim Ansari has traveled a long road to get where she is today. The longtime Meramec English Professor, who began teaching at the college shortly after earning her Ph.D from the University of Denver in March 2008, has traveled across the globe to achieve career success, and recently, to achieve American citizenship.

Read more here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/artlife/shamim-ansari-american-citizen/

16/04/2024

Following the controversial events of April 11 and April 15, STLCC hosted Campus Forums regarding Free Speech on the Meramec campus from 11:00am to 4:00pm today, which had a cumulative total of over 100 attendees.

The college will host forums again in Humanities East Room 123 tomorrow from 11:00am to 1:00pm.

16/04/2024

captured this footage yesterday of the religious protestor’s return to campus. It was his second time on the campus in less than a week.

Today, the college will host forums discussing “free expression.”

15/04/2024

Per , these forums are open to all students and faculty.

15/04/2024

BREAKING: The man who confronted Meramec students with antisemitic rhetoric this past Thursday has reportedly returned to the Meramec campus today and is currently live-streaming according to reports from students who have seen him, including Zainab Ahmad, who confronted him this past Thursday.

13/04/2024

WARNING: This footage, which captures hate speech and other triggering descriptions, may be upsetting to some viewers.

Zainab Ahmad captured part of Thursday’s incident on video and posted this video to her TikTok and Instagram accounts describing what happened in the Student Center Quad.

DISCLAIMER: Some information in this video has not yet been verified by The Montage.

13/04/2024

An incident between an extremist activist and Meramec students that took place in front of the Student Center on Thursday, April 11 was captured on video and has been circulating on Instagram and TikTok. In addition to these events, an incident involving at least one, and possibly two Meramec police officers reportedly also took place in the vicinity, and is being investigated by the college.

The Montage is currently also investigating what took place Thursday afternoon, and will update our readers as more information becomes available.

09/04/2024

ACADEMIC AFFAIRS RE-ORGANIZATION SET TO BE COMPLETED ON SCHEDULE

The college’s reorganization of its overall Academic Affairs structure is still set to be completed by its projected July 1 deadline. Read Vice Chancellor Andrew Langrehr’s latest comments on the matter and view all of the latest re-organization charts now: https://www.meramecmontage.com/news/academic-affairs-re-org-set-to-be-completed-on-schedule/

08/04/2024

Ahead of today’s Solar Eclipse, Reporter Emily Weber shares some final Do’s and Dont’s when it comes to viewing this rare event.

02/04/2024

The Montage returns this month with an EXTENDED 12-page issue. It hits stands on Thursday but can be viewed NOW here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/themontage/view-the-print-issue-135/

IN THIS ISSUE:

- Tenured English Professor Shamim Ansari discusses her life, her family and recently becoming a United States citizen
- Coverage of STLCC winning a Bellwether Award
- An update on the reorganization of Academic Affairs from Andrew Langrehr
- Getting to know some of your Meramec Professors, with an extended profile on Professor Scott Gevaert
- The Do’s and Don’ts of witnessing next week’s solar eclipse
- Photos of all kinds from around campus
- A look at STLCC’s new eSports program
- A look at Meramec’s Fitness Center

… and much more. View the full issue now online, and look out for the individual pieces being uploaded to our website in the coming days.

26/03/2024

Student Matthew Groves, and many others, have signed a support beam set to be placed as a part of the new Emerging Technology Center this Thursday at 2pm.

If students, faculty and staff would like to sign the beam, it will be placed in the Quad near Communications North through 3pm today and from 7:30am to 3pm tomorrow.

(Photo by Emily Weber)

21/03/2024

06/03/2024

WHO’S SUING STLCC?

This month’s lead story is a deep dive into the some of the litigation that STLCC finds itself in, specifically focusing on two cases involving long-time former STLCC employees Ann Marie Schreiber and Deborah Bush-Munson.

In addition, The Montage also spoke with STLCC’s new General Counsel, Amy Clendennen. An extended version of the piece is available to read NOW here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/news/whos-suing-stlcc-extended-online-version/

05/03/2024

The Montage is back with its March issue, hitting the stands tomorrow afternoon but available to view NOW here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/themontage/view-the-print-issue-134/.

IN THIS ISSUE:

- An in-depth look at two cases the college finds itself as the defendant in, brought against them by former long-time employees. Plus, an introduction to STLCC’s new General Counsel.
- A Quick Look at Archers Basketball winning a District Title.
- Suggestions for a Spring Break Stay-Cation.
- The return of the “Meramec Minute.”

… and much more! View the issue now, and stay tuned to our website for extended versions of some stories in the next few hours.

16/02/2024

BREAKING: All STLCC campuses are closing early today due to the current weather situation.

14/02/2024

Feel the Love with The Montage’s Valentines Day section. Test your knowledge of the holiday and get ideas of how to celebrate of the non-romantic kind here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/artlife/feel-the-love-with-the-montage/

06/02/2024

The Montage is BACK for the first issue of 2024! It hits newsstands in the next few days, but is available to view NOW here: https://www.meramecmontage.com/themontage/view-the-print-issue-133/.

IN THIS ISSUE:

- A look at STLCC’s cannabis program as it begins its second semester.
- Campus President Feleccia Moore-Davis gives more details about what exactly happened with the fire in Social Sciences on Monday morning.
- Feel the love with The Montage’s Valentines Day section.
- A look at the Black Student Union and what they have in store to commemorate Black History Month.
- A “Jake’s Take” in two parts, discussing politics and the allegations against billionaire Vince McMahon.

… and much more!

05/02/2024

UPDATE: Here is a closer look at the classroom changes resulting from today’s fire in Social Sciences. All classes after 1:00pm are still scheduled to happen at their normal times.

05/02/2024

UPDATE: STLCC has confirmed that a small fire broke out on the Second Floor of the Social Sciences building today, but did not release further details what caused it or its exact location on the floor.

The college thanked the Fire Department for their quick response, said the building would remain closed today and announced that all classes scheduled tomorrow in the building would take place as normal.

Stay tuned to The Montage for further updates, including updates to the classroom changes for the remainder of today.