At a Show-Me Institute policy breakfast December 6th, St. Louis Public Schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams spoke of the difficulty of removing a bad teacher from a city classroom. Isn’t it time for reform?

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In these two video clips from our recent Show-Me Forum, State Sen. Kurt Schaefer and State Rep. Chris Kelly offer two different viewpoints on Missouri's state budget troubles.

In these two videos, Wendell Cox explains some of the ideas and implications of his recent policy study for the Show-Me Institute. Is Saint Louis poised to see a population resurgence? Is "smart growth" harming the areas that implement it?

Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Audrey Spalding returned to Saint Louis local roundtable discussion show Donnybrook on February 9, 2012. Among the topics covered this time were: Missouri's recent and expensive "beauty contest" presidential primary, the federal-level employer contraception mandate, potentially eliminating Missouri's income tax, and Kansas City's proposed new land bank.

Click here to watch the video of the event.

Early in the morning of February 8, 2012, Jonathan Williams of the American Legislative and Exchange Council (ALEC) and Joseph Haslag, University of Missouri Professor of Economics, presented their thoughts and findings relating to the current and potential future of Missouri's economy to an enthusiastic audience in the Show-Me Institute's office in the Central West End of Saint Louis. Among the topics discussed were the impact of tax rates and regulation on economic growth and investor uncertainty. An in-depth audience Q&A followed the presentations.

In this Show-Me Forum discussion, two Missouri state legislators discuss the precarious state of the Missouri budget and answer probing audience questions about Missouri's fiscal future.

Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Audrey Spalding reports on a Saint Louis-area charter school which will soon be shut down for under-performing. Charter Schools provide alternatives to traditional, district- or neighborhood-based public schools, and unlike many public schools, if they fail to serve their students, they can be shut down and the children sent to schools with a better performance record.

On December 6, 2011, the Show-Me Institute was honored to host Saint Louis Public Schools Superintendent Kelvin Adams along with University of Missouri economist and education expert Michael Podgursky in a discussion on the state of education in Missouri and what the future may hold in education policy. Seating was limited, but the capacity crowd brought their questions and participated in a lively and informative discussion.

The Missouri Department of Transportation, MODOT, is looking into ways of funding necessary maintenance on the main east-to-west highway across Missouri — Interstate 70. One funding option is to raise the gas tax state-wide. An alternative proposal from MODOT is to institute a toll on the highway. In this video, Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst David Stokes suggests the the latter option makes more sense economically, as the people using the highway will be the ones paying for it. This video is a companion to Stokes' recent op-ed, which can be found here.

In the final Show-Me Forum of 2011, Missouri Bankers Chair John Howe and Show-Me Institute President Rex Sinquefield discuss the "efficient markets hypothesis," the idea that it's impossible to "beat the market" because stock prices reflect all available information. Professor Howe takes a theoretical approach from the start, but buttresses his arguments with a number of studies and experiences.

Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Audrey Spalding returned to Saint Louis local roundtable discussion show Donnybrook on December 15, 2011. Among the topics covered this time were: a proposal to ban texting while driving in the state of Missouri, the new leadership announced by the RCGA, the controversy surrounding Lowe's and "All-American Muslim," and Pujols' departure from the Saint Louis Cardinals.

Click here to watch the video of the event.

Do people visiting Missouri take advantage of the Show-Me State's lower excise taxes? Right now, the state of Missouri earns tax revenue by having comparatively lower tax rates than neighboring states. Lower tax rates lead to lower prices on gasoline, tobacco, and alcohol — and Missouri's many regular visitors can and do take advantage of this.

In this video, the Show-Me Institute's David Stokes and Amy Lutz interviewed several Chicago Blackhawks fans visiting for a Saturday night hockey game against the Blues. Many, but not all of them, knew that Missouri's tax rates were lower. But after learning of the lower tax rates, all of them planned on purchasing items such as gasoline while in town.

Lower taxes can lead to higher revenues — and keeping taxes low will keep the money flowing into the state of Missouri.

Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst David Stokes recently appeared on Channel 2's Jaco Report in Saint Louis in support of the idea that the minimum wage is harmful for the Missouri economy.

View the video on Fox 2's website by clicking here.

On November 10, 2011, Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Audrey Spalding was a guest on the local KETC roundtable discussion show Donnybrook. Many topics were covered, including how and why the Occupy Saint Louis website recently cited Show-Me Institute research.

Click here to watch the video of the event.

As a state, Missouri has had some forms of digital learning for more than a decade. Rural schools, for example, share courses via interactive television as a way to offer courses (like foreign language and upper level math courses) they otherwise might not be able to offer students.

But there’s much more that can be improved. According to Digital Learning Now’s Report Card for Missouri, state law does not stipulate that student achievement data be used to evaluate the quality of individual online courses, nor does state law require that failing individual course providers be closed.

In this video, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education, explains how digital learning in the classroom helps students receive more personalized attention and high-quality content.

On Feb. 1, 2012, the Alliance for Excellent Education and its partners host the first-ever national Digital Learning Day. That day will celebrate innovative teaching practices that make learning more personalized and engaging. The learning day also will encourage exploration of how digital learning can provide more students with more opportunities to acquire the skills they need to succeed in college, a career, and life.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011, The Show-Me Institute partnered with the John Cook School of Business to present a lecture on the topic of job creation with featured speaker Andrew F Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants.

Puzder argued before an engaged crowd that the current regulatory burden and financial uncertainty brought about by recent federal healthcare legislation are precisely the things standing between entrepreneurs across the country and the creation of jobs. Puzder put it quite clearly: Reduce regulations, and watch unemployment fall.

Part of President Obama's job creation strategy includes a tax break for hiring new workers. In this video Andrew Puzder explains why he thinks that this will not result in new jobs.

The Senate has adjourned: What does this mean for Aerotropolis tax credits?

In this video, Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Patrick Ishmael discusses the victory for Missouri residents represented by the defeat of Aerotropolis, and also what is needed from Missouri legislators going forward.

Kansas City legislators are considering a plan that would bring back trolley cars to the downtown area. Amid a potpourri of video of these bygone tools of transit, Show-Me Institute Policy Analyst Patrick Ishmael explains how this anachronism may cost Kansas City taxpayers millions of dollars.