Missouri

Missouri superintendents react to upcoming changes in state education

Published

11 months ago

January 29, 2025

Missouri superintendents react to upcoming changes in state education

MISSOURI (WGEM) – Superintendents in Missouri reacted to education legislation that went into effect earlier this month.

Senate Bill 727 introduced 21 different provisions to The Show-Me State’s education landscape. One of them is a raise in the minimum salary for teachers.

Currently, the minimum pay is $25,000 a year. Starting this fall, that will increase to $40,000 for educators. The number is higher for those with a master’s degree and at least ten years of teaching experience. Their base salary will become $46,000.

It is part of an effort to increase teacher satisfaction and retention. Ralls County R-II Superintendent David Koogler explained his district already pays teachers a base of $41,000, but higher salaries alone may not be enough to keep some educators around.

“That in itself is not enough to draw teachers in. They want to make sure that the administration has their back, they want to make sure that the community supports them, that they are respected, that they’re not going to get challenged at every little thing,” Koogler said. “But definitely, increasing pay is a good first step.”

Superintendent Susan Johnson of Hannibal Public Schools (HPS) shared a similar sentiment.

“Is it enough? I mean, I certainly hope it is. It’s certainly moving in the right direction. So, I think that’s a great thing,” Johnson said. HPS’ current base pay for teachers is $40,400.

SB 727 requires all school districts in Missouri to achieve the raise in minimum teacher salary. If unable, they could face cuts to funding.

Koogler said that is a point of worry.

“I am very concerned about that,” Koogler said. “Basically, it sends the message that if you’re too poor to afford these salary increases, you’re really going to be poor.”

School districts can utilize the newly created Teacher Baseline Salary Grant Fund to help pay those salaries. It is essentially a pool of funds appropriated by the General Assembly that districts can dip into if needed. The language of SB 727 reads the General Assembly, “may” appropriate money to the fund. That word spelled some concern for Johnson.

Base teacher salaries starting in the 2028-29 school year and all subsequent school years are required to be adjusted annually by the percentage increase in inflation. Koogler noted it may be difficult for some districts to cut expenditures to pay higher salaries down the line.

Also created in SB 727 is the Elementary Literacy Fund. It provides matching grants to schools in order to send books to K-5 students. Six to nine books can be sent to any individual student. Grants cannot exceed $60 per student, per semester.

Johnson praised this aspect of the bill.

“I think that’s a great thing. Anytime we can get books and literature in a student’s hand, that’s wonderful,” Johnson said.

There is also more incentive for a five-day school week wrapped into the legislation.

Districts with a five-day school week will receive additional funds. They will get a kickback of 1% of their state aid to go toward teacher salaries in 2026-27, and 2% of that in the following years.

As another part of SB 727, the non-emergency phone number for the local police department will be added to the ID cards of students in grades 7-12. That starts July. The ID cards may also include a suicide hotline number.

Koogler referred to poor student mental health as, “a pandemic that needs to come to an end.”

He said he has noticed a decline in students’ well-being since a couple years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

More information on SB 727 can be found here.

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Missouri

Missouri Lottery Pick 3, Pick 4 winning numbers for Dec. 28, 2025

Published

7 hours ago

December 29, 2025

Press Room

The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 28, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Pick 3 numbers from Dec. 28 drawing

Midday: 6-4-6

Midday Wild: 5

Evening: 3-6-7

Evening Wild: 1

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Dec. 28 drawing

Midday: 8-0-0-0

Midday Wild: 2

Evening: 4-6-0-3

Evening Wild: 5

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash4Life numbers from Dec. 28 drawing

09-15-24-34-53, Cash Ball: 04

Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from Dec. 28 drawing

Early Bird: 15

Morning: 01

Matinee: 02

Prime Time: 08

Night Owl: 04

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from Dec. 28 drawing

02-19-21-29-37

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

More transfers to follow, but Missouri football has inked some key returners

Published

19 hours ago

December 28, 2025

Press Room

More transfers to follow, but Missouri football has inked some key returners

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Eli Drinkwitz just had to make sure.

He knew Nicholas Rodriguez, one of Missouri football’s few real standouts with 15 total tackles in the Tigers’ disappointing 13-7 loss to Virginia in the Gator Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 27, had put pen to paper to return next season. But, in college football in 2025, it doesn’t hurt to double-check.

“We’ve got a really strong foundation. Nick’s going to be back,” Drinkwitz said, then paused and turned to his sophomore linebacker over his right shoulder. “You’re going to be back, right?”

“Yeah,” Rodriguez said, smiling.

Rodriguez was among a list of four players the Mizzou coach, of his own accord, confirmed are signed to return in 2026. The others are star running back Ahmad Hardy, freshman quarterback Matt Zollers and defensive tackle Jalen Marshall.

Now, that’s a short list to work with while trying to get a feel for what the Tigers might look like in 2026.

And, as we’ve seemingly seen from some of Mizzou’s recent expected portal entrants and a lawsuit (and countersuit) involving Georgia and current MU defensive end Damon Wilson II, signing paperwork isn’t nearly as guaranteed as most coaches and teams would like it to be.

But it’s a start. And an important start.

Drinkwitz indicated that there are more players who were on the roster for the Gator Bowl who will not be suiting up in Columbia next season.

“Starting tomorrow (Dec. 28) we’ll finish up re-signing the current roster,” Drinkwitz said. “There’s going to be guys (transferring), there’s guys that already told us that they were going to transfer but they wanted to play tonight. We really appreciate those guys finishing.”

This is shaping up to be a crucial transfer portal for the Tigers.

Zollers, a true freshman, looked raw and more of a project than a clear-cut QB1 for the 2026 season. Quarterback is going to be an area of need for Missouri when the transfer portal opens up, as starter Beau Pribula is among the nine MU players who have already been confirmed as soon-to-be former Tigers.

There is still no public word on whether a trio of draft-eligible third-year players — Wilson, linebacker Josiah Trotter and left tackle Cayden Green — will stay in college or enter the NFL Draft process this offseason.

And, without getting into the weeds, here’s a quick glance at where Mizzou is losing starters or key rotation members just to eligibility: Right tackle; center; slot receiver; field defensive end; two defensive tackles; two more linebackers; both starting corners; free safety.

Like Drinkwitz said, the day after the Gator Bowl is going to be spent figuring out who they can get back. That means announcements are likely to be rolling in soon.

Then, if all of that wasn’t enough, the madness really starts.

“Then once we have kind of a final feel of where that is, then we’ll go attack the portal and build a new team. That’s college football now. I mean, every team’s looking to rebuild their roster post bowl games, post coaching changes, whatever. That’s what we’ll do.”

That’s not new. Missouri has mostly navigated the choppy transfer portal waters quite successfully over the past few seasons.

Drinkwitz, even back on early signing day Dec. 3, took “whatever it’ll be, it’ll be” stance to the numbers the Tigers will take when the frantic fortnight — the portal is officially open for entries Jan. 2-16 — gets underway.

Where Missouri fails to re-sign potential returners, it will add players. Where there is glaring needs, be it because of draft-bound players or otherwise, the Tigers will replenish. It’s not a complex formula but could become quite busy.

Tack on that the SEC is moving back to 105 scholarships in 2026, up from 85, and you might see an even larger influx this season.

Pure mathematics suggests the number of newcomers between now and spring ball will comfortably top 20 players. That does not account for potential early NFL Draft declarations or potential portal-bound players. The Tribune counted 75 scholarship players who can return to Mizzou next season, sheerly based on eligibility.

If that sounds expensive in the NIL and revenue-sharing age, you’re right. Teams have $20.5 million in the revenue pot to share directly with student-athletes, and that’s for all sports, not just football. You can bet the likes of Hardy and Rodriguez aren’t getting shortchanged.

Before sourcing third-party deals — and you can now see why Drinkwitz was so vocal about finding that form of funding this season as he weighed a contract extension — that’s a limited pool for massive offseason need.

Exactly how that will impact Missouri’s portal strategy will be among the more fascinating offseason storylines. How many bona-fide stars do the Tigers chase, and at what positions? Who and where are the priorities?

“I think we’ve got a really good foundation in the trenches. We got a really good foundation in the skill positions. So, it’s about filling in the holes, sustaining the culture,” Drinkwitz said. “Guys like Nick and Ahmad and Matt and Jalen Marshall, all these guys that have committed to coming back and re-signing, they’ve got to carry the culture that’s been established, that (graduating center Connor Tollison) fought for.

“That will be what we do. Back to work. I mean, nothing good comes easy. It will be a fight to the finish here, or a fight to finish off re-signing our team, and then we’ll go to work. That’s what we’ll do.”

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Missouri

Missouri Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 winning numbers for Dec. 27, 2025

Published

1 day ago

December 28, 2025

Press Room

The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Dec. 27, 2025, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

05-20-34-39-62, Powerball: 01, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

Midday: 6-5-1

Midday Wild: 7

Evening: 3-4-5

Evening Wild: 7

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

Midday: 8-8-8-0

Midday Wild: 3

Evening: 9-7-5-2

Evening Wild: 6

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash4Life numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

10-12-21-22-35, Cash Ball: 04

Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash Pop numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

Early Bird: 04

Morning: 04

Matinee: 10

Prime Time: 08

Night Owl: 06

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Show Me Cash numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

02-03-05-28-31

Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from Dec. 27 drawing

13-22-33-61-62, Powerball: 20

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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