A Reign KC dancer performs at the at the JuneteenthKC Cultural Parade in the 18th and Vine District in 2022. (Bek Shackelford-Nwanganga | KCUR 89.3) Nick’s Picks | World Cup, Data Centers, Juneteenth and More …
By Nick Haines | June 15, 2026 | Civic Affairs, Nick's Picks
The World Cup finally comes to Kansas City, Jackson County considers data center moratorium, and more …
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Crime & Safety
A member of the Crime Scene Cleaners Team puts on PPE in preparation for a homicide cleanup. (Image/John McGrath)
Behind the Scenes of Crime Scene Cleanup
By John G. McGrath | September 26, 2024
[Transcript: Jeremy Cumberford, Owner and President, Crime Scene Cleaners] Jeremy Cumberford: “But there’s a lot of blood there.” “That’s going to keep everybody safe.” “The bullet hole went right through the windshield.” At Crime Scene Cleaners, we are the Midwest’s oldest crime and trauma remediation company, serving families and businesses after tragedies such as homicides,…
Economy
Nina Ward said she's seen personally and professionally the challenges of navigating the child care market in Kansas City. She struggled to find care for her now 1-year-old daughter, A'ja. (Photo courtesy of Nina Ward)
Child care ‘is like paying a mortgage.’
By Ceilidh Kern | July 9, 2025
Nina Ward began looking for child care when she was only a few months pregnant. Ward and her husband created a list of child care centers and set up tours, but the Kansas City couple repeatedly ran into the same problem: there were no infant spaces available. So they broadened their search and eventually found…
Education
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor answered a series of questions posed by The Coterie Theatre's Managing Director Jonathan Thomas. Sotomayor had just watched the world premiere of a play based on her children's book "Just Ask!" (Paul Andrews)
SCOTUS Justice Applauds KC Stage Adaption of Her Book
By Mary Sanchez | February 5, 2025
As the first Latina, and the third woman on the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Sonia Sotomayor is noted for reasoned questioning and, at times, searing dissents. But legal opinions, despite obvious historical weight, aren’t the writings that Sotomayor referred to as her life’s work during her recent visit to Kansas City. The messaging within her…
Food Chain
University of Kansas School of Medicine students prepare ingredients in a culinary medicine class where they learn about nutrition and food as medicine as well as how to cook a selection of dishes. They critique the meals as well as talk about how it can benefit patients. (Chase Castor | Flatland)
When Going Under the Knife Does Not Mean Surgery
By Jill Wendholt Silva | June 24, 2025
Chef Educator Rachel Ciordas deftly sliced collard greens into a ribbon-like chiffonade as students from the University of Kansas School of Medicine watched with a degree of awe typically reserved for an episode of the Food Network’s “Chopped.” After Ciordas demonstrated how to peel, chop, or grate the raw ingredients, the future physicians donned aprons…
Healthcare
Caregivers in KC: Planning for the Future
By John G. McGrath, Jamie Bosse, CFP | June 24, 2025
Becoming a caregiver is a responsibility that can sometimes arise unexpectedly. After the birth of a child with a disability, or the health decline of a parent or spouse, caregiving often comes with important financial considerations. Health care and supply costs for caregivers can add up quickly, and your income may be reduced as you…
History
This year Kansas City Parks and Recreation crews cleared overgrowth atop the ridge known as “Bloody Hill” during the Byram’s Ford battle. The newly unobscured view allows visitors looking east to consider what in 1864 was called “The Meadow,” on which much of the combat occurred. Preservationists hope to ultimately acquire and clear structures that were part of a 1950s industrial park. (Brian Burnes | Flatland).
A Better Big Blue Battlefield in Kansas City | Part III
By Brian Burnes | November 13, 2024
Editor’s note: This is the final installment of a three-part series on the restoration of the Big Blue Battlefield in Kansas City, Missouri. The engagement on the Big Blue Battlefield was pivotal in the larger Battle of Westport, an October 1864 clash that effectively ended organized Confederate military operations in Missouri. As the years receded,…
Housing
Dorms on the University of Kansas campus have been packed to capacity the last few years as large freshman classes overwhelm housing options. (Cuyler Dunn)
College Students Grapple with Housing Troubles as Costs Soar
By Cuyler Dunn | August 14, 2024
Sydney Johnson did everything right. Still, water poured from her ceiling. The now-graduated University of Missouri student spent winter break taking classes and staying at her off-campus apartment. A few weeks earlier, property management sent instructions for how to avoid pipe bursts during cold months, which Johnson followed. But her upstairs neighbors were not so…
Sustainability
Newly developing RNA-based pesticides, such as one developed at Kansas State University, are more targeted so useful insects, such as ladybugs, don't become collateral damage. (Wikimedia Commons)
The End of the Pesticide Arms Race?
By Abigail Landwehr | October 1, 2025
To spray or not to spray, that’s the question for farmers. Pests can be the make-or-break factor for a season’s harvest. Between 20% to 40% of global crop production is lost to pests annually, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Conventional chemical pesticides have traditionally addressed this challenge, but their…
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