As Catholic schools have closed throughout the region, it's worth noting some interesting data coming out of Harvard University. It suggests some Catholic schools have been engines of economic mobility like few other places in St. Louis. Learn more from Nicholas Phillips on that below.
And don't miss Ryan Krull's scoop about the crime ring the feds just busted in Missouri. Perhaps surprisingly, these drug dealers were pushing drugs that suppressed, not fed, appetites. Read all about it, and please try to stay cool. It's going to be steamy.
P.S. Congratulations to Randy H, Dan M, John E, Paulette K, and Kathryn W, who won tickets to our live podcast interview with Bill McClellan one week from today. Only a few tickets remain; get yours now!
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Chinese-made alternatives to Ozempic are a hot commodity online, a new federal court filing suggests. Photography by Alones Creative / iStock / Getty Images Plus
THIS JUST IN
Missouri men busted for black market Ozempic
Two Missouri men stand accused of making millions by selling Chinese-sourced weight-loss chemicals such as semaglutide and tirzepatide—better known under brand names like Ozempic and Zepbound. Federal filings say Casey Crider and Jason Huston generated roughly $15 million in sales over just two and a half years. Neither man is a licensed pharmacist.
They sold the drugs through their website, Blome Research. Federal authorities ultimately counted nearly 32,000 parcels sent over the course of almost two years. Agents found what court filings describe as "misbranded pharmaceuticals," as well as retatrutide, a weight-loss drug that has not been approved by the FDA.
Last week, the feds made their move, seizing four properties in the Joplin area. A local NBC affiliate’s cameras captured authorities towing away numerous vehicles, including an SUV, a Cybertruck, and a high-end autocycle. —Ryan Krull
Michele Bildner credits Rosati Kain High School for helping her become the first person in her family to go to college. She's since become a college professor. Photography by Nicholas Phillips
DEEP DIVE
How Catholic education spurs economic mobility in St. Louis
Michele Bildner did not know, as a senior at Rosati Kain High School in 1998, the meaning of the term “economic connectedness”—the social mixing of people of different income levels. Nor could she have known that such mixing appears to benefit lower income people over time. Or that certain Catholic high schools in St. Louis are exceptionally good at fostering it, according to research by Opportunity Insights, a Harvard University–affiliated nonprofit.
She just knew that her ticket away from a difficult home life was a strong GPA at Rosati—and that Rosati made her work for it. “Nothing was easy there,” she says. Eventually, Bildner would become the first in her family to earn a doctorate and become a tenure-track college professor.
Rosati nearly closed a few years ago and is fighting to prove its viability to donors and parents alike. Yet the Harvard data suggests that keeping schools like it strong is an important way to foster economic mobility in St. Louis—and that’s important to the region’s future.
Go Deeper: Opportunity Insights director Raj Chetty and his colleagues set out to learn where in the U.S. economic connectedness is particularly high. Teaming up with folks from Meta and drawing on massive datasets from the IRS and the Census, they wondered: If you were a below-median-income kid at a given high school in the United States, how much of your social circle would typically be filled by above-median-income kids? The high schools were then ranked. Rosati scored in the 95th percentile nationally on this metric, making it one of the highest-scoring schools in the St. Louis region. (Jump to the longer web story to see how other local Catholic schools rank.)
Rosati president Stephanie Boyd suggests that Catholic schools do well on this ranking due to an openness and generosity in the faith. “Individuals who are full-pay here don’t feel like they’re getting cheated because they’re full-pay and someone else is not,” she says. “I think they are more open to say, ‘Don’t give it to me. Give it to the person who needs it.’”
What’s Next: Rosati closed the last academic year with 82 students, but in the fall, Boyd expects that total to rise to about 100. She adds that Rosati still gives about 80 percent of students some form of financial aid. “When the alumnae came in to save the school, they really felt it was so important to be able to ensure that any student be able to attend here,” she says. Rosati’s long-term goal is to amass an endowment of $10 million. —Nicholas Phillips
Celebrate Juneteenth in the Delmar Loop! Enjoy music, food, vendors, art, community experiences, and the 5K Race for Reconciliation during this vibrant day of culture and connection.
Missouri Supreme Court declines to hear appeal over Amendment 5 ballot summary (Missouri Independent): The appeals court’s summary will now be the one on the ballot in August, an outcome Gov. Mike Kehoe called “unfortunate.”
6-7 event in Shrewsbury leads to multiple fights, arrests (FOX2): The Sky Zone-hosted event attracted a large number of unaccompanied minors, who are not allowed inside as a matter of policy. Outside, fights broke out and spilled into neighboring businesses.
St. Louis County cities crack down on e-bikes (stltoday): Some cities, like Wildwood and Kirkwood, have had an ordinance on the books regulating where and when e-bikes can be used for some time. Others are taking new action after complaints about kids speeding, crashing.
"The Dads" screens at QFest St. Louis on, appropriately, Father's Day. Courtesy of Cinema St. Louis
Around Town
🎓HIGHER EDUCATION WATCH
A report on the state of the humanities and social sciences co-comissioned by WashU chancellor Andrew Martin and Vanderbilt University chancellor Daniel Diermeier drew plenty of commentary yesterday. Both Diermeier and Martin have been vocal in their belief that academia has become too political, which has reportedly created a contentious divide amongst prominent university leaders. (Martin later told WashU’s student newspaper the division’s contentiousness has been exaggerated.) The report’s authors believe the humanities and social sciences have become politically slanted towards goals like “anti-racism, feminism, and decolonization,” which they say stray from the disciplines’ core missions to pursue knowledge. Anthropology is one subject area the report calls out, which drew fierce pushback from WashU anthropology lecturer Scott Ross. He wrote on X that the chancellors commissioning it “hate their own faculty,” adding, “you’re going to want a lobotomy before, during and after” reading it. Similarly, senior lecturer in English and writing Michael O’Bryan reposted some of Ross’ tweets and critiqued the chancellors’ choice of committee chair, as he is a well-known critic of how humanities and social science research is conducted. O’Bryan further seized on Martin saying he “wasn’t surprised” by the report’s findings. “Sure, I also would not be surprised if I paid someone to say something he’s already been saying for years and then he said it,” O’Bryan wrote. Martin told the Chronicle of Higher Education that “he’d received a mix of praise and criticism in the first hours after the report went live. ‘I think at this moment of self-reflection, I’m hopeful that this document will be a catalyst to get those important conversations to take place.’” —Elizabeth Stump
🍿 THE FILM SCENE
QFest St. Louis is back, bringing the best of contemporary LGBTQ+ cinema to the Hi-Pointe Theatre beginning this Friday, June 12. This year’s program consists of eight feature films, as well as four shorts blocks, three focused on narrative shorts and one on documentary shorts. Says Emmett Williams, director of festival curation and education for Cinema St. Louis, “The films we get for every festival are often a mirror into what’s going on in society at a time. It just shows you what’s going on in the minds of folks, so it’s great that we have a place where people can see themselves and one another and imagine the possibility of a somewhat better future.” Highlights include a documentary about the poet Mary Oliver, a feature film about dads supporting their transgender children, and a 10th anniversary screening of Moonlight, which took home the 2017 Oscar for Best Picture. More festival picks from film writer Max Havey in his online story. —S.F.
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Heard on the Street
Spending more time with the fam, for real: Rasmus Jorgensen, who announced yesterday he is leaving as Mayor Cara Spencer’s press secretary next month so that he can spend more time with his wife and kids. Unlike virtually everyone else offering familial excuses to leave a public-facing job, in Jorgensen’s case it doesn’t strain credulity. “Since the arrival of my youngest, nearly a year ago, it has become increasingly clear to me that I cannot both do this job as well as I would like and be the husband and father that I want to be,” he said yesterday. Hired by former Mayor Tishaura Jones, Jorgensen made clear his respect for Spencer, writing, "Having seen her lead, and having gotten to know her as a human being, there is no one I would rather have in her office." He plans to spend the summer with his family before plotting his next move.
Coming to town: Marilynne Robinson. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author, whose 2020 novel Jack is partially set in St. Louis, will receive the St. Louis Literary Award sponsored by Saint Louis University in April 2027.
Giving up the ghost: Merah, the Sumatran orangutan. The Saint Louis Zoosays the 57-year-old was the second oldest of her species in North America and that she loved washing items with bubble bath and taking “long, comfortable naps under a sheet.” RIP.
On this date, in 2025: U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kathy Surratt-States approved the sale of community radio station KDHX to Christian broadcaster Gateway Creative Media over the objections of longtime volunteers. Nonprofit Double Helix pocketed the proceeds of the $8.75 million sale after creditors were paid. Its website continues to promise we’ll soon have news about the “exciting new chapter” it’s now embarking upon. Former Earthworms host Jean Ponzi shares her reflections on Substack.
Play on: Free summer concerts for every night of the week
Coming soon: Wash Ave Food Hall targets October opening
Last Call 🥃
Nostalgic nightmares: $20,000. Terrorizing your HOA? Priceless.
SOUNDBITE
“It takes bravery, but also time and energy. For this trial, people needed to travel to our site and other sites once a month. That’s even while people with ALS have weakness that makes travel hard.”
—Dr. Tim Miller, crediting on The 314 Podcast the people who participate in medical trials for helping his team notch a major breakthrough in the treatment of ALS.
💬
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