WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden announced almost a half-billion dollars of grants Monday to community colleges working with employers on job training.
Linking training to industry demand is key to the Obama administration’s strategy for improving wages and reducing unemployment.
Massasoit Community College in Massachusetts and Wisconsin’s Chippewa Valley Technical College received the largest grants of about $20 million each.
A Maryland program will receive $15 million to partner with companies like Raytheon and IBM to train workers with little education for jobs in cybersecurity or information technology. Schools in Kentucky will get $10 million to expand online learning for degrees in computer and medical fields.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is awarding nearly a half-billion dollars to community colleges that are partnering with employers on job training.
Massasoit Community College in Massachusetts and Wisconsin’s Chippewa Valley Technical College are the largest recipients and will each get about $20 million.
A Maryland program will receive $15 million to partner with companies like Raytheon and IBM to train workers with little education for jobs in cybersecurity or information technology. Community and technical colleges in Kentucky will get $10 million to expand online learning for degrees in computer and medical fields.
Vice President Joe Biden and the secretaries of Education and Labor will announce the grant winners Monday at the White House. Linking job training to industry demand is key to the administration’s strategy to improve wages and reduce unemployment.
COLUMBIA (AP) – Columbia police say they’ve arrested two 19-year-old men in connection to a shooting of a woman at a student apartment complex near the University of Missouri.
Police said Sunday the men were each arrested on suspicion of second-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon. They are being held at the Boone County Jail on $25,000 bond. It’s unclear if any of the people involved are students.
Officers were dispatched to the Aspen Heights apartments Saturday after reports of gunshots. They say a woman was shot but that her injuries weren’t life-threatening.
Witnesses tell police one man was firing a gun into the air and the second started shooting into a crowd after the first gunshots.
Wabaunsee County- A woman was injured in an accident just before 1:30 a.m. on Monday in Wabaunsee County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2011 Honda CRV driven by Brandy Nicole Conyers, 26, Lafayette, CA., was westbound on Interstate 70 just east of Wamego.
The driver fell asleep. The vehicle drifted into the grass median, the driver over corrected back onto highway, and then re-entered the median and the vehicle over turned.
Conyers was transported to Geary Community Hospital.
The KHP reported she was properly restrained at the time of the accident.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An arcane legal dispute over the lack of a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in Kansas could upend a key contest in the fight for control of the Senate.
The national spotlight is on three-term Republican Sen. Pat Roberts and independent challenger Greg Orman.
But a case being heard Monday by a three-judge panel in Shawnee County District Court centers on whether state law requires Democrats to pick a new candidate after Chad Taylor withdrew earlier this month.
Some Democrats pushed Taylor out. They viewed Orman as a stronger rival for Roberts and wanted to avoid a split in the anti-Roberts vote.
Republicans need to gain six seats for a Senate majority and have counted on Roberts winning.
JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – State scientists say Missouri’s wild turkey population appears to be on the rebound.
The Department of Conservation says it has observed a higher ratio of young turkeys to hens than compared to the average over the past five or 10 years. Some of the strongest numbers have been reported in northern Missouri, which had been most affected by a downturn in turkey production that began in the early 2000s.
The department says Missouri has now had strong turkey reproduction in three of the past four years. That means hunters should start seeing more turkeys in the woods.
JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – A group of business and energy leaders will start work next week to help improve Missouri’s energy policies.
Gov. Jay Nixon on Friday announced the names of more than 50 business, labor, education and energy leaders who will start work to hash out a plan for state energy use Oct. 1 at Washington University in St. Louis.
The committee created by Nixon in June is responsible for recommending ways the state can be energy efficient, promote economic development in the energy sector and ensure an abundant energy supply.
Appointees include a Sierra Club member, energy company representatives, university employees and representatives from businesses such as Ford Motor Co.
Members of the public can attend any of the eight meetings in October and submit suggestions online at energy.mo.gov.
CHICAGO (AP) — Moments after Detroit secured the AL Central title, Kansas City manager Ned Yost started pulling some of his regulars from the lineup.
It was finally time to start preparing for the playoffs.
Kansas City’s chance for a division crown was erased by Detroit’s victory on Sunday, and the Royals went on to a 6-4 comeback win over Chicago in the final game for retiring White Sox captain Paul Konerko.
Coming into the final day of the regular season, Kansas City was hoping for a one-game playoff on Monday in Detroit for the division crown. But the Tigers clinched with a 3-0 victory over the Twins, sending the Royals to the wild-card game on Tuesday night against Oakland in their first postseason appearance since winning Game 7 of the 1985 World Series.
“There’s been teams that have won the World Series from the wild-card game, and they know that,” Yost said. “So they’re excited to start the process.
“When a lot of teams are going home, the elite few get to stay back and play in this tournament, and for the first time in a long time, we’ve earned the right to play in it.”
Kansas City (89-73) will send James Shields to the mound against Oakland left-hander Jon Lester when it hosts the first game of the 2014 playoffs. The Royals went 5-2 against the Athletics this year, but both of their losses came against Lester.
“I’m glad we can kind of put the regular season behind us, start this new journey right now,” first baseman Eric Hosmer said. “It’s going to be a fun experience.”
Konerko started at first base and played five innings on the final day of his 18-year big league career. The slugger, who paid tribute to his wife and three children by writing their names in the infield dirt behind the bag, went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts.
Konerko went out to first before Kansas City batted in the sixth inning, and then was replaced by Andy Wilkins. Konerko waved his hat toward the visiting dugout, where the Royals were standing and applauding along the top step, and then waved to the standing crowd of 32,266, once again hearing chants of “Paulie! Paulie!”
The 38-year-old disappeared into the dugout for a brief moment and then popped back out for a curtain call. He waved to the crowd again and acknowledged the sustained cheers with a bow before retreating back into the dugout, where he received more hugs and congratulations from his teammates.
“This whole thing blew me away,” said Konerko, who also was honored by the White Sox before Saturday night’s game. “I know I’ve been here a while and I knew there’d be something at the end that would be commemorating me being here for a while. But this whole thing, the fans and all that last night, I never thought that I was one of those guys that gets that.”
Konerko also lingered on the field after the loss to exchange high-fives with the fans along the railing of his longtime home. A six-time All-Star, Konerko finishes with a .279 average, 439 homers and 1,412 RBIs.
Chicago had a 4-2 lead when Konerko departed, but Kansas City responded with three runs in the sixth. Christian Colon, who was activated from the disabled list before the game, hit a tying two-run double off Daniel Webb (6-5) and Carlos Peguero added a tiebreaking RBI single.
Casey Coleman (1-0) pitched a scoreless inning for his first win since Sept. 9, 2011, for the Chicago Cubs against Milwaukee. Louis Coleman got three outs for his first save.
The White Sox (73-89) dropped five of their final six games. Adam Eaton went 3 for 3 before he was replaced in the field before the fifth inning, leaving him with a .300 batting average.
READY TO GO
Kansas City rookie Yordano Ventura allowed four runs and eight hits in four innings. He was lifted after 73 pitches and said he would be available for the game against the A’s.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Royals: Colon had been sidelined by a broken middle finger on his right hand.
White Sox: SS Alexei Ramirez (sore hamstring) and 1B Jose Abreu (sprained thumb) did not play.
MR. 162
Royals SS Alcides Escobar started every game this season. His previous career high was 158 games, set in 2011 and matched last year.
“It’s hard for most people, but it’s not hard for him,” Yost said. “He just has that body type that allows him to go out and play at a high level every single day.”
The Missouri Western women’s soccer team returned to Spratt Stadium on Sunday afternoon but failed to claim victory against Northeastern State as they lost 1-0.
The Griffons had multiple close opportunities in the first half. Early on Katie Kempf had a shot in the box but couldn’t capitalize with a save by the RiverHawks goalkeeper Jordan Woodruff. Also, Tara Russell had one bang off the post but couldn’t find the back of the net in the 17th minute. Missouri Western’s defense held strong by not allowing a shot on goal.
Northeastern scored the first and only goal of the game on a free kick by Chelsea Martin in the 74th minute. MWSU’s offense was held in check during the second half creating limited chances on goal.
Missouri Western will return to action this Thursday when they travel to Joplin to play Missouri Southern at 6:00 pm.
PHOENIX (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals never made it easy on themselves, laboring through injuries and inconsistency, unable to get into the NL Central race until around the All-Star break.
Even after they surged into the lead, the Cardinals had a hard time finishing it off, limping to the finish while allowing Pittsburgh to hang around for a chance at the division title.
It all came down to game No. 162 and it ended up being the easiest win of the season — even if they didn’t need it.
The Cardinals clinched their second straight NL Central title before the first pitch Sunday and finished off the regular season with a get-to-the-celebration 1-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Next up: The Dodgers in the NL division series Friday in Los Angeles.
“Fortunately, we weathered the storm and the guys just put their nose down,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “I’m real proud of the guys.”
The Cardinals were assured of a playoff spot entering the day. What that spot would be depended on whether they could beat the Diamondbacks or Cincinnati knocked off Pittsburgh.
The Reds took care of business for the Cardinals by beating the Pirates 4-1, a victory that was announced about 10 minutes before St. Louis’ game against Arizona.
The Cardinals celebrated in the dugout, then it did it again after the final out against the Diamondbacks, wildly spraying each other with champagne and beer after an oh-so-sweet finish to their second straight 90-win season.
“We know Pittsburgh had a good run, but we had a better one,” Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina said.
Once Sunday’s game started, both teams seemed to go through the motions, the only run coming on Kolten Wong’s groundout in the sixth inning off Josh Collmenter (11-9).
The Cardinals scratched scheduled starter Adam Wainwright just before the start, using five relievers instead. Justin Masterson (3-3) pitched two scoreless innings and Carlos Martinez got the final two outs for his first save.
Arizona went down meekly, managing two hits to finish 64-98, worst in the majors and second-worst record in team history.
“We had higher expectations coming out of the spring,” Arizona reliever Brad Ziegler said. “Whether you look at the injuries or the pure lack of execution on the field, this is not how we wanted to finish. We definitely don’t feel like we are the worse team in baseball, even though the record says we were this year.”
The Cardinals went to the World Series last season, yet have seemed to make it hard on themselves this season, taking the NL Central race down to the final game after limping to the finish.
St. Louis had a chance to wrap up the division title Saturday night, but couldn’t put away the Diamondbacks, losing 5-2 after Mark Trumbo hit a pair of homers.
Cincinnati eliminated the drama for St. Louis with a win that sent the Pirates to the wild-card game and St. Louis into the division series. The result was announced at Chase Field about 10 minutes before first pitch and the Cardinals celebrated with a round of high-fives and hugs in the dugout.
“I think I threw a pitch without looking because I was watching the scoreboard,” Wainwright said. “It was a great feeling.”
Matheny said Wainwright would start the season finale regardless of what happened with the Pirates, but he was replaced by Nick Greenwood just before the game.
With nothing to play for on either side, the Cardinals and Diamondbacks breezed through a brisk, free-swinging game that was more like spring training than a season finale.
COLLMENTER’S OUTING
Collmenter was Arizona’s best starter down the stretch of the season and turned in another solid outing the finale, even if he didn’t get much support. The right-hander allowed three hits in eight innings, dropping his ERA to 1.26 over his final seven starts.
“I just wanted to finish the season strong,” Collmenter said.
NUMBERS
The Cardinals notched their 23rd shutout of the season, third-most in team history. The 1968 team had 30 and the 1944 team 26. … Arizona’s Ender Inciarte went 0 for 4 to end a 15-game hitting streak. … Masterson earned his first win as a reliever since July 5, 2009, against Seattle.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Cardinals: LF Matt Holliday was out of the lineup after leaving in the sixth inning Saturday night due to flu-like symptoms.
UP NEXT:
Cardinals: Wainright will start against NL Cy Young Award favorite Clayton Kershaw in the division series opener against the Dodgers.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts is bringing in another Republican heavy-hitter to help bolster his troubled campaign for re-election.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will be in Wichita on Monday for a fundraising event for the Kansas senator.
His visit on the campaign trial comes just days after former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin campaigned with Roberts in southeast Kansas. Two former presidential nominees, U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona and former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas, joined Roberts on the campaign trail last week. Another potential 2016 White House candidate, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, is also expected to help him campaign.
Roberts once was considered a near lock for re-election but now faces a tough battle from independent businessman Greg Orman after the Democratic candidate withdrew.
