The 17th Annual Super Science Saturday will offer hands-on experiences for students to learn about math and science.

St. Joseph Museums Public Relations Officer Kathy Reno said something new this year will be the opportunity to make an unusual non-Newtonian fluid called “oobleck.”

“There’s going to teach the students how to make it and they’re going to teach the children the chemistry behind it,” Reno said. “This came about in such a fun way. There are four Central High School senior students and they’re working on their International Baccalaureate Diploma. As part of that, they have to show community service in a creative way, so this is a project they pitched to us and we thought it was a terrific idea.”

Science instructor Rich Piper of Union Star High School will have a variety of interactive experiments and and make-it and take-it science projects. Other activities will include a room-size “Math Maze,” ongoing and interactive experiments presented by Missouri Western State University Chemistry professors, shows in Bushman Planetarium and Casey’s Creatures.

Reno said the activities are geared toward third, fourth and fifth grade students.

“When we started 17 years ago, we decided third, fourth and fifth was the audience we really wanted to get excited about math and science and get them thinking about it in terms of studying it throughout their lives and possibly even seeing it as a career option,” Reno said.

Super Science Saturday takes place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, January 27th at the Remington/Agenstein Hall on the Missouri Western State University campus. The cost is $3 for students and adults. Parking is free.

For more information, call (816) 232-8471 or click here.

According to St. Joseph Police Chief Chris Connally, there were some encouraging results regarding decreases in certain crime numbers over the past year.

Connally said in December, auto theft numbers for the month were the lowest in the last 12 months.

“It’s good news if we can keep that trend going down,” Connally said. “I know when it comes to auto thefts, we’re still seeing some of the similar patterns. The first two weeks there were, I believe, about 10 auto thefts and of those 10, about five of them, the keys were in the car with the car running, about four of them were taken from a family member or acquaintance. So we’re still seeing a lot falling into that category.”

Aggravated assaults were up with 47 percent being domestic related and two-thirds of the total assaults being domestic related. Connally said thefts from vehicles increased significantly and homicide numbers increased.

“That was one of our highest years. Some of those were domestic related, some of them are not,” Connally said. “Those are probably the most difficult thing from a prevention standpoint. That’s also concerning. But anytime you talk about numbers, there’s a corresponding victim with those numbers, so I don’t want anything we say to be taken lightly.”

Connally said for the third straight year, burglaries are down. Reported rapes were down and robberies and shoplifting were down slightly.

A full analysis of the year will be completed soon.

A St. Joseph School District principal has received an award for her commitment to social justice and multicultural education.

According to a press release, Missouri Western State University presented the 2018 Drum Major for Justice Award to Coleman Elementary School Principal Heather Gladhart during an event earlier this week.

As previously reported, Missouri Western accepts nominations and gives the award to citizens who live ordinary lives but do extraordinary acts of service. The award is presented to one student, one member of the St. Joseph community and a Missouri Western employee.

Gladhart was nominated by Ellen Kisker for the work she has done at Coleman to develop the multicultural program and event at the school, which includes students from 24 countries.

“All the students attending Coleman Elementary have some form of activity where they learn about the students from other countries,” Kisker said. “They are taught civility and respect toward others. They are taught that unity, or working together, makes our community better and stronger.”

Kisker noted that Gladhart goes above and beyond in her work to connect with students and their parents.

“This award really belongs to all the staff at Coleman for the work that they do each day to ensure that all students feel welcome in our school, no matter their race or nationality,” Gladhart said. “Our diverse population is one of the things that I love most about our school. Together, we can help our students and community see the good in each other, to embrace our differences and be the change.”

Several St. Joseph residents spoke at the city council meeting this week to urge council members to consider regulations on tethering pets.

During the public comment portion of the meeting, residents brought up their concerns about pets being left outside for long periods of time in extreme temperatures without proper shelter, the need for regulation of tethering and enforcement of regulation and the need for animal safety education.

With public input and ideas, City Manager Bruce Woody said there are multiple things under consideration for restrictions regarding tethering or chaining of animals.

“Not allowing an animal to be tethered unless there is an adult at home… not letting the animal be tethered between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., mainly overnight, not tethering a dog that’s less than six months of age,” Woody said. “The tether itself must be designed for animals… shouldn’t weigh more than about one-eighth of the dogs body weight… animals should be placed where the animal cannot be in danger of being strangled or hung, you don’t want to have a pet that’s on a chain where they can jump over a fence and then get hung by the fence because they can’t reach the ground. Tethered animals… shouldn’t be out in extreme weather conditions.”

There are several more proposals up for debate as the city council considers regulations. Woody said they are considering writing up a draft of an ordinance and putting it online for public comment sometime in the near future.

This week’s city council meeting can be viewed online.