St. Louis County and Jackson County filed a motion to intervene in a Cole County case in which some residents and business owners sued the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, challenging its ability to issue mask orders. After a judge struck down those orders as unconstitutional, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt opted not to appeal.

Since then, Schmitt has used the decision to threaten school districts around the state with lawsuits — what St. Louis and Jackson Counties call "a campaign of litigation terror." St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Kellogg has this primer on where Missouri is now.

How should Kansas schools teach history and race? They’re getting plenty of advice, most of it conflicting and often angry. As Suzanne Perez of the Kansas News Service reports, what started as anger over critical race theory has evolved into attacks on public schools.

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This episode of Kansas City Today is hosted by Laura Ziegler. It is produced by Byron Love and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez

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