Month: August 2025

News-Press NOW

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — In an Instagram post on Tuesday, famous pop singer Taylor Swift announced her engagement to Chiefs Tight End Travis Kelce.

The couple has been together for just over two years and has been facing engagement allegations for a little over a year.

A photo shows Travis Kelce holding Taylor Swift’s hand with an engagement ring.

The post caption on Instagram reads, “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married,” and had over 1.8 million likes, minutes after she posted photos.

Swift has made frequent trips to Kansas City, Missouri, to spend time with the Chiefs player. She announced it on the Kelce Brothers’ recent New Heights Podcast episode.

Kelce, who just finished Chiefs Training Camp in St. Joseph, is preparing for another NFL Season.

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TaMya Bracy

ST. JOSPEH, Mo (News-Press Now) — According to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, heart disease is the leading cause of death in Missouri.

Dangerous temperatures can increase the risk for those with heart conditions. Some of those risks include heart attacks, strokes, dehydration and even reduced effectiveness of certain medications due to the heat.

The human body is able to control its body temperature, which is called thermoregulation, but people with heart disease have a hard time regulating their body temperature.

Chief Medical Officer of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Dr. Heidi Miller, said that people with heart disease have to work harder to fill up their blood vessels.

“Now, if somebody has a heart condition, that dilation or increase in the size of the blood vessels in the periphery around the skin can actually mean that the heart has to work really hard to fill up those blood vessels,” Miller said.

Although hot days can be tough on people with heart disease, Miller said she encourages her patients to go outside, preferably in the morning.

“Not only is it cooler first thing in the morning,  but we have a clock in our brain that we’ve had genetically for thousands of years. And it’s called a circadian rhythm.  And we do well when we are exposed to the sun, when the sun rises. There’s also more infrared rays. It’s good for the mood,” she said.

Heart medications can be affected in the heat. Miller said people with heart disease need to take special precautions if they are on heart medication.

“But certain medications like diuretics, which help with heart disease, heart failure, blood pressure, really good, helpful medication, can make someone more likely to become dehydrated,” she said.

Ways to stay safe during extreme heat if you have a type of heart disease are to stay in air-conditioned spaces, drink plenty of fluids, and wear loose, light colored clothing.

Not only does extreme heat have effects on the body, but extreme freezing temperatures can affect people with heart disease as well. 

During cold temperatures, especially for people with heart disease, their blood pressure can go up due to their heart pumping blood against smaller blood vessels.

Doing any extreme activity in the winter, like pushing a car stuck in snow or shoveling, could put a high demand on the heart.

“The supply of oxygen is lower and the heart is under incredible stress. And there is a statistical correlation of an increase in heart attacks, cardiac arrest, which is when the heart just stops working,” Miller said.

The best way to prevent and treat heart disease is by staying active. 

“Being active very often involves being outside. And so it’s really good during the spring to be outside getting used to the temperature, especially as the temperature is gradually warming up,” Miller said.

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Kyle Schmidt

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The ever-growing artificial intelligence industry has been gaining traction in schools.

According to Campus Technology, a study from Quizlet shows AI usage from high school and college students/teachers jumped from 66% in 2024 to 85% in 2025.

“We are kind of with AI where we were when we got the first computers… we’re teaching people how to adapt to the technology,” Professor of English Dr. Kaye Adkins said. “At some point, we are going to have a breakthrough that will be like the breakthrough with the screens and graphic interfaces we have now.”

University policy at MoWest allows professors to decide if they want to use AI or ban it in their class. All use of AI must follow the academic honesty policy.

Dr. Adkins said some professors said the college will not use it at all, but she is currently in her classes.

“I ask for transparency, I ask students if they use it to tell me what they’ve used, the tool, how they used it,” Dr. Adkins said. “I asked them to give me the prompts and some results and what they thought about it.”

She said the class is using AI during the revision stage.

Dr. Adkins set up a guidelines checklist for students to out into AI and check that they have met the requirements for the assignment.

Dr. Adkins found from a UC Davis study that writing teachers originally thought to use it for brainstorming and planning. The study, attributed to an ACS Publication, said one of the concerns for AI is that it will replace critical thinking.

“I kind of compare it to learning music, you have to know the basics in order to improvise,” Dr. Adkins said. “If you’re going to evaluate whether or not something is well-written, you have to know what good writing looks like and if students don’t have experience knowing what good writing looks like and don’t understand how to evaluate that, they can’t then evaluate the output from AI.”

Sophomore at MoWest, Ja’Marea Thompson stays away from AI.

“I feel like it could just track our phone usage,” Thompson said. “If you say something in front of TikTok, now all of a sudden it’s all over your for you page. I feel like that loops in with AI, it gives an invite, an open door to all your personal things.”

Senior Sebastian Gutierrez said he uses AI for fitness goals more than anything else.

“Workout plans, nutrition, what I should eat in a day,” Gutierrez said. “If I just input calories and stuff like that, I want to hear.”

Other notes Dr. Adkins made were that AI chatbots, like ChatGPT, are not good for research, and AI is generally not good at writing.

She said she has “a good ear” and can tell when AI wrote a prompt.

“My emphasis in teaching is teaching clear, accurate, readable prose,” She said. “That’s not what AI produces most of the time.”

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Abigail McCluskey

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — For more than 230 years, The Old Farmer’s Almanac has been a trusted source for planning weather-dependent activities such as farming, gardening and even travel.

But how accurate is it really?

Since its founding in 1792, The Old Farmer’s Almanac has aimed to help farmers prepare for soil conditions, planting and harvesting.

The publication claims a high level of accuracy on its website, but meteorological studies tell a different story.

John Walsh, a University of Illinois professor, tested the almanac’s long-range predictions over a five-year period by comparing forecasted monthly temperatures and precipitation with actual data. He found that The Old Farmer’s Almanac was only 50.7% accurate on monthly temperatures and 51.9% accurate on precipitation forecasts. Which is about the same success rate as flipping a coin.

When comparing the predicted forecast for this summer in St. Joseph, residents can get an idea of how accurate the Almanac is.

Both the National Weather Service (NWS) and the Farmer’s Almanac use meteorological seasons for consistency. Meteorological summer runs from June 1 to Aug. 31.

From June 1 through Aug 26, the St. Joseph region has received 13.82 inches of rain, which is greater than the typical average of 12.47 inches which is over a 10% increase in precipitation. During the summer, Missouri also saw relief from drought conditions.

Despite the Almanac’s prediction of a hot and dry summer with near-record-breaking temperatures, actual data tells a different story.

While the region did experience several days with high heat index values in the triple digits, average daily temperatures were below or near normal. No record-breaking heat days were observed.

Because of the unpredictability of global climate patterns, forecasting weather months or years in advance is extremely difficult.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac often publishes broad and non-specific forecasts, which leave little room for being proven wrong but also little value for practical planning.

Looking ahead, the Storm Tracker Weather Team has been monitoring below-average temperatures as we approach the start of meteorological fall on Sept. 1.

The Almanac predicts a warm and dry fall, followed by a mild and dry winter. However, given the almanac’s low accuracy and vague forecasts, it’s best to take those predictions with a grain of salt.

As we transition into a new season, your Storm Tracker Weather Team will continue to provide you with accurate and up-to-date forecasts, keeping you informed and weather-ready.

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Praji Ghosh

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The St. Joseph School District rolled out a new rule in 2025 — no cell phones in the classroom. 

The district has implemented the rule following the Missouri legislature’s passing of Senate Bill 68, which prohibits the use of cell phones during school hours, to increase learning.

The legislation also aims to cut down on distractions from technology and get students to interact with each other more. 

After the first day of school on Tuesday, Aug. 19, one staff member at Benton High School said she was glad to see how well students responded to the change.  

“We’ve had a really positive response from both students and staff,” said Molly Ring, a visual arts teacher at Benton. “And our students have been doing a wonderful job in respecting that policy.”

Ring explained that while the school has always had some type of cell phone policy, SB 68 helped make the rules more consistent.  

She believes the change will ultimately help students stay more focused in class.  

“I would say it was a major distraction for students. We know how prolific cell phone use is in our current time period, especially for youth,” Ring said. 

Not every student was thrilled about the new rules at first. Senior Eliana Arambula admitted the adjustment hasn’t been easy.  

“I mean, yes, it is an adjustment, but I think it’s very good for us. There were times when it did get tough, but overall it wasn’t as bad as last year,” said Arambula.

Arambula admitted, the policy has encouraged students to connect more with their peers and has taken pressure off teachers. 

“The first week coming back from the summers, where you can use your phone anytime you want, was an adjustment, but we’ve been doing pretty good about it, so overall it’s been positive,” Arambula said.  

Despite the challenges, staff say they’re continuing to work with students to make the transition smoother and support them through the change. 

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Cameron Montemayor

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Much like the move from appetizer to main course, one local Italian restaurant is catering to popular demand by expanding from limited reservations to a walk-in restaurant in the former Frederick Avenue fire station.

Primed with a new-look menu and hours of operation, customers can now enjoy EMI Ristorante’s three-course Italian menu from 5 to 9-10 p.m. every Wednesday through Saturday, a new era for the restaurant that spent much of the previous year as a two-day reservation-only spot.

For owner and head chef Erik Borger, a founder of popular restaurants like Il Lazzarone and Pizza Tascio in St. Joseph, the reason for the move is simple.

“We want to better serve our community with this beautiful firehouse. So the best way for us to do that was to quadruple the hours and let the doors wide open,” he said.

The restaurant is as deeply connected with Italian cuisine and culture as any in St. Joseph, from its many ingredients shipped directly from Italy to a 9,500-pound brick oven from Naples firing up fresh and handcrafted dishes like wood-fired lasagna or pasta carbonara.

A plate of wood-fired lasagna is shown at Emi Ristorante in St. Joseph.

EMI Ristorante’s new and improved menu includes 10 variations of pizza — an early fan favorite — with either white or red sauce. The pizza is inspired by a new Neapolitan creation that emphasizes heavily-rising crusts.

“We make pasta fresh every day. We make pizza fresh every day. Both those flours are made in Italy. We import all the meats besides the sausage,” said Borger, who strives to follow some of the world’s top chefs. “I want to be connected to the best producers, the people that are most passionate about food and products. I’ve never had better flavors.”

It’s a focus and point of pride for Borger, who opened the restaurant in 2024 after years of work transforming the historic former St. Joseph Fire Station at 2217 Frederick Ave.

Despite the expansion to walk-in service, Borger highly recommends calling in a reservation due to significant foot traffic since the move was announced in recent weeks, including many nights at capacity. EMI Ristorante seats up to 54 people.

“I don’t think we could fit any more people in here on Friday, Saturday night,” he said with a smile. “The support from the community has meant everything.”

With its signature low-light interior, the restaurant offers an intimate and private atmosphere unique from other restaurants in St. Joseph, something he hears consistently from customers.

Customers dine in at Emi Ristorante on Saturday, Aug. 23, in St. Joseph, following the restaurant’s move from a reservation-only to a full-service walk-in restaurant.

“When you come in here, you can be transported to anywhere in the world. People say I feel like I’m in New York or I feel like I’m in Rome. That’s what we want to create.”

Borger said one of the biggest improvements with full-time service is the ability to offer a consistent menu with greater offerings that appeal to more customers.

With additional staff now on hand, including his family, he feels the restaurant is well-equipped to meet the increased demand that comes with a full-time schedule.

“I did a unique menu almost every week for 52 weeks and that is not an easy task. You can’t talk everybody into eggplant. You can’t talk everybody into mushrooms. Now, there’s something for everybody,” he said.

Wine connoisseurs will also find a menu that features more than 30 different types of wine to complement any meal.

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