Missouri

Legislative interns help Missouri school districts claim over $1 million in federal funds • Missouri Independent

Published

2 years ago

May 21, 2024

Legislative interns help Missouri school districts claim over million in federal funds • Missouri Independent

In March, the phone in state Rep. Deb Lavender’s office in Jefferson City started ringing constantly, but the calls weren’t for her.

They were for her interns, Santino Bono and Alanna Nguyen.

The interns, along with Dylan Powers Cody, who was interning for state Rep. Peter Merideth, had spent months cross-checking spreadsheets to pinpoint school districts who had not yet claimed pandemic-era federal funds for homeless students.

Those federal dollars are part of the American Rescue Plan and must be budgeted by September. A large part of the interns’ project was calling districts to notify them that they had money that could expire if they didn’t act quickly.

State Rep. Deb Lavendar, D-St. Louis, speaks about her work on the state budget in a press conference May 10 (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent).

The office got so many calls back from schools about the interns’ project that Lavender’s legislative assistant needed to create a voicemail folder just for them.

So far, they helped districts claim $1.15 million in funds in four months that can be used for a range of services for homeless students — from buying washers and dryers to temporary hotel stays and transit cards.

“We had multiple school districts call back and say, ‘We have twenty grand in the bank that we can use to help homeless students? No one really told us,’” Bono said in an interview with The Independent.

Most of the districts the interns reached had no idea they had funding available, Nguyen said.

“Then, they wanted more information on it,” she said. “Once they got the information on it, they were able to kind of kickstart it up and get things moving along.”

Bono expected the internship might be more menial, including the “intern trope of having to get coffee for people,” he said.

“To know that I could have potentially a much bigger impact on actual students, as a student myself, I’m really proud of that,” Bono said.

Missouri received an infusion of $9.6 million in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for students experiencing homelessness, and schools were able to start using it in 2022.

But many of those schools had never received federal dollars to support homeless students before.

Tera Bock, director of homeless education for Missouri’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, said the agency alerted school districts to the funding but that several challenges emerged.

“It is not funding that most districts are used to having, so they usually are supporting their students experiencing homelessness without any funding specific to that,” she said. “The extra funding creates the need for a shift in mindset as far as what they provide for those students.”

School districts have until the end of September to budget the remaining $6.1 million or lose out on it.

Most schools received a few thousands dollars in federal aid for homeless students. The largest allocation, based on its homeless student population, went to St. Louis City which received $850,000.

The funding is best used for one-time costs, Bock said, like a vehicle to transport students with housing insecurity or to meet emergency needs.

“The district should really consider how they can use it in a way that is not going to create a financial burden in the future whenever they don’t have the funds anymore,” Bock said.

She said rural districts with a smaller population of students experiencing homelessness are the most likely to struggle to spend the money.

Bock has been in her role for a couple months, and the position was vacant briefly.

Part of her job is to contact each district’s homeless liaison, a position every district is federally required to have. But sometimes, the liaisons have multiple positions in schools, and Bock doesn’t hear back from them.

“Especially in the districts where they don’t typically see a large population of homeless students, they get multiple roles, and it just gets lost in the shuffle,” she said.

“We don’t have very many (districts) here in Missouri where that person is completely designated as their entire job for the most part,” she said. “They are wearing lots of different hats.”

Bock said she sends “lots of communication,” so “they should be aware” of the funds but wonders if liaisons are properly connected to district administration to get the money budgeted.

With more communication and activities planned, Bock is not concerned about being able to get more money claimed by districts.

“This is definitely a big piece of what I’m working on right now,” she said. “And our sights are set on Sept. 30.”

Bock said the interns were “super helpful” in the process.

“There has been good communication whenever they need some backup information to support questions that are coming up,” she said. “So they’ve been great to work with.”

The interns are hopeful schools will continue allocating the funds.

“There’s still a lot to be done by September and session’s ending,” Bono said. “I’m going off to law school. I can’t keep calling school districts. So we’re just hoping that more awareness can be given to school districts to kind of get them to keep working towards this.”

Lavender said the funds might look modest in terms of the state’s overall budget but the impact on students is large. In Webster Groves, she said, the schools “got another $8,000 that I don’t think they knew was sitting there.”

Lavender’s legislative assistant Dustin Bax chimed in: “And $8,000 of backpacks, non-perishable foods, fuel cards — that goes a long way.”

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Missouri

Missouri Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 winning numbers for March 3, 2026

Published

7 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 3, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers from March 3 drawing

07-21-53-54-62, Mega Ball: 16

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from March 3 drawing

Midday: 5-8-9

Midday Wild: 8

Evening: 8-8-2

Evening Wild: 7

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from March 3 drawing

Midday: 0-3-5-7

Midday Wild: 2

Evening: 0-9-9-5

Evening Wild: 6

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from March 3 drawing

Early Bird: 13

Morning: 15

Matinee: 09

Prime Time: 14

Night Owl: 14

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from March 3 drawing

04-07-09-17-21

Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All Missouri Lottery retailers can redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners have the option to submit their claim by mail or in person at one of Missouri Lottery’s regional offices, by appointment only.

To claim by mail, complete a Missouri Lottery winner claim form, sign your winning ticket, and include a copy of your government-issued photo ID along with a completed IRS Form W-9. Ensure your name, address, telephone number and signature are on the back of your ticket. Claims should be mailed to:

Ticket Redemption

Missouri Lottery

P.O. Box 7777

Jefferson City, MO 65102-7777

For in-person claims, visit the Missouri Lottery Headquarters in Jefferson City or one of the regional offices in Kansas City, Springfield or St. Louis. Be sure to call ahead to verify hours and check if an appointment is required.

For additional instructions or to download the claim form, visit the Missouri Lottery prize claim page.

When are the Missouri Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Pick 4: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Cash4Life: 8 p.m. daily.
Cash Pop: 8 a.m. (Early Bird), 11 a.m. (Late Morning), 3 p.m. (Matinee), 7 p.m. (Prime Time) and 11 p.m. (Night Owl) daily.
Show Me Cash: 8:59 p.m. daily.
Lotto: 8:59 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday.
Powerball Double Play: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Missouri editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Missouri

Missouri auditor to probe St. Louis arts funder after whistleblower complaint

Published

19 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Missouri auditor to probe St. Louis arts funder after whistleblower complaint

Missouri state Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick has launched a review of the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis’ finances.

The audit is in response to complaints from a whistleblower who alerted the office to possible misuse of funds, Fitzpatrick said Tuesday. The auditor’s office then reviewed documents provided by RAC during an initial investigation before launching a full audit.

“We have verified the veracity of the whistleblower complaint, and have seen with our own eyes at this point records that give us enough concern that we want to proceed with an audit,” Fitzpatrick said.

The auditor’s report could be released late this year or in early 2027, he added. It would then be up to state and local authorities to follow up on any potential misconduct.

In an unsigned statement, RAC said it receives an annual audit from a firm selected by the offices of the St. Louis mayor and St. Louis County executive and that it shares the results publicly. “[We] are confident the findings from the state will mirror the success we have come to expect at the local level,” the statement says.

“We welcome the opportunity to provide documentation and context regarding our financial practices and grantmaking processes. As always, RAC will continue to focus on serving the St. Louis region’s arts and cultural community and maintaining the public’s trust,” the statement adds.

Potential issues identified in the state auditor’s initial investigation include the possibilities that RAC’s administrative expenses exceed what is allowed by statute, that leaders issued bonuses disallowed by the state constitution and that large grants were issued with no follow-up to ensure the money was used properly.

Fitzpatrick said his actions are not related to the commission’s choice of grant recipients.

Changes to the grant process

RAC distributes annual grants to arts organizations in St. Louis and St. Louis County. It is funded by a tax on hotel and motel stays. The commission distributed $3.7 million last year.

The organization suspended grant applications for fiscal 2026 due to “continuing financial volatility” and a new five-year plan, according to a note on its website. It will use applications received in 2025 as a guide for its 2026 grants.

Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis

Vanessa Cooksey took leadership of the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis in 2021.

“This pause allows RAC to support eligible and high-scoring 2025 grantees and applicants while navigating financial challenges and planning for a stronger, more sustainable grant program in the future,” the note says.

RAC publishes a list of its annual grants online.

Vanessa Cooksey became president and CEO of the organization in 2020 after it spent a year without a permanent leader. Previous chief Felicia Shaw had stepped down in November 2019. Neither Shaw nor RAC provided a public explanation for Shaw’s departure.

Some smaller organizations had complained that during Shaw’s tenure they stopped receiving annual grants.

The Regional Arts Commission had a $13.4 million budget in 2024, according to tax documents. Cooksey received a $196,253 salary and $28,652 in additional compensation.

Continuing a process begun by Shaw, Cooksey oversaw changes to grant applications that she said were meant to simplify the process – including removing a longstanding split between its funding mechanisms for large and small organizations.

A key arts funder after the coronavirus pandemic

In November 2022, the St. Louis Board of Aldermen voted unanimously to direct $10.6 million from the American Rescue Plan Act to RAC. A measure that would have allocated another $1.6 million failed to pass the St. Louis County Council, so RAC was statutorily required to distribute ARPA funds only to groups based in St. Louis.

RAC has distributed $9.5 million of the ARPA money so far, funding 195 individual artists and 75 organizations.

Arts leaders said in 2022 that the sector supports more than 19,000 jobs and generates nearly $600 million a year – more than all local sports franchises combined.

The federal money was a boon to St. Louis artists and arts organizations following a steep decrease in funding at the height of the coronavirus pandemic due to decreased tourism in the region.

Tax revenues earmarked for RAC decreased from $9.5 million in fiscal 2019 to $2.8 million the next year. Tax revenue directed to RAC have increased but still lag behind the pre-pandemic total. The commission reported $7.5 million in tax revenue received in fiscal 2024.

RAC presented a new five-year plan with much fanfare in March 2020 but had little initial opportunity to implement it. Not long after, St. Louis officials put limits on public gatherings to tamp down spread of the virus that causes COVID-19.

Commission officials released a new five-year strategic roadmap in December 2025.

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Missouri Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 winning numbers for March 2, 2026

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 2, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing

02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from March 2 drawing

Midday: 3-3-4

Midday Wild: 2

Evening: 4-8-9

Evening Wild: 7

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from March 2 drawing

Midday: 6-4-2-2

Midday Wild: 5

Evening: 2-8-2-4

Evening Wild: 1

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from March 2 drawing

Early Bird: 08

Morning: 12

Matinee: 05

Prime Time: 04

Night Owl: 02

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from March 2 drawing

13-17-18-23-28

Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 2 drawing

21-28-58-65-67, Powerball: 25

Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

Ticket Redemption

Missouri Lottery

P.O. Box 7777

Jefferson City, MO 65102-7777

For additional instructions or to download the claim form, visit the Missouri Lottery prize claim page.

When are the Missouri Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Pick 4: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Cash4Life: 8 p.m. daily.
Cash Pop: 8 a.m. (Early Bird), 11 a.m. (Late Morning), 3 p.m. (Matinee), 7 p.m. (Prime Time) and 11 p.m. (Night Owl) daily.
Show Me Cash: 8:59 p.m. daily.
Lotto: 8:59 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday.
Powerball Double Play: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Missouri editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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