Blue Springs

A new $1 million exhibit at Science City was inspired by students from Delta Woods Middle School. The group won the Burns & McDonnell Battle of the Brains last year and has been working with engineers since then to bring their ideas to life, including a laser maze.

A nesting pair of the protected birds have made their home in the Kansas City suburb. Blue Springs and the state conservation department have set up Missouri's only live feed for viewers to follow their journey to bird parenthood.

Republican state Sen. Mike Cierpiot of Lee’s Summit, said birth certificates reflect “facts on the day you were born." His bill is inspired by a case where a transgender student sued the Blue Springs School District after being barred from locker rooms and bathrooms.

The case may decide if the Missouri Human Rights Act covers legal sex, such as when a birth certificate is amended after gender transition, or is limited to sex as assigned at birth. The MHRA makes it illegal to deny public accommodations on the basis of sex, among other restrictions.

The culinary scene just east of Kansas City proper is full of hidden gems, neighborhood mom-and-pop shops and iconic old-school joints. Here’s where to eat like a local in Independence, Blue Springs, Lee’s Summit and elsewhere.

Summer break can cut off vulnerable kids’ access to food, counseling and other resources they usually get at school. Schools around the metro are working with the community to make sure kids are supported until they return to class.

In a unanimous decision, the court ruled that the Blue Springs School District discriminated against the student, identified by his initials R.M.A., on the basis of sex when it barred him from using the boys’ locker room.

The 20-year-old Grain Valley native, who trained in Blue Springs, said on social media last week that a toxic coaching environment at the University of Utah negatively affected her mental health. “The abuse often happened in individual coach-athlete meetings," she wrote.

Aleah Finnegan, Leanne Wong, and Lynnzee Brown all trained at Great American Gymnastics Express, known as GAGE, in Blue Springs. One of them has already qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Wienermobile driver Mary Clare "Chili Cheese MC" Kammer, just like the Oscar Mayer hot dogs themselves, hails from Missouri. She and her fellow driver Sam "Hammy Sammy" Dlott rolled through the Kansas City metro this week handing out whistles, stickers and postcards to frankfurter fans.

Cellist Carter Medina, a Blue Springs South High School student, speaks with Classical KC about his earliest musical inspirations and how playing the cello offers comfort from stressful high school days. Carter's mother Jennifer shares the ways she encouraged Carter's growth, and her heartfelt emotions about Carter's next steps.

Missouri's municipal election day is April 4, 2023, less than a month away. Thousands of residents will vote in general and primary elections to choose who represents them in their city governments. Here's a list of opportunities to meet some of the candidates running in these races.