Sumner High School

The pioneering vocalist, who played a pivotal role in the history of rock and soul music, had suffered a litany of health issues in recent years.

The center is funded by federal COVID relief money.

Rep. Cori Bush held a listening session Monday for high school students. She vows it's only the first such forum. She’s calling the initiative Congress in Your Classroom.

The newest iteration of the historic Sumner High School choir had a successful performance in December and has big plans for next year.

For choral conductor Maria Ellis and her students, convening historic Sumner High’s first choir in decades has proved to be a challenging task — but also full of reward. “St. Louis on the Air” checks in with the choir as it prepares for a winter concert.

As Maria Ellis waited Monday afternoon to meet her students and help kick off a brand-new arts and activism focus at the recently saved school, Chuck Berry tunes played quietly through a speaker.

The school board approved a new effort to reinvigorate Sumner's declining enrollment, rather than close the historic school.

Sumner alumni are rooting to keep the historic high school open for the next generation after St. Louis Public Schools put Sumner on a closure list.

The school board voted 4-3 to close a smaller list of schools than it considered late last year.

On Tuesday, St. Louis Public Schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams agreed to delay for one month the vote to close 11 schools. Activists and alumni had pushed back on the school board’s closure plans. Adams discussed the delay on St. Louis on the Air.