Erin Gibson lives with a disability called osteogenesis imperfecta that causes her bones to break easily as well as being immunocompromised. A history major at UMKC, Gibson said she has benefited greatly from the school’s shift to virtual learning since the start of the...

We are nearing Thanksgiving break and preparing to spend the holiday with family. Campus will be deserted for a spell, so this week is about spending time at Volker with fellow schoolmates before heading back home.  On a commuter campus, we might overlook college as...

Sitting on your living room couch, you slip on a set of virtual reality goggles. In an instant, you’re transported to an office filled with your coworkers. This fully immersive virtual world is being created by Meta (previously Facebook), and UMKC computer science &...

What scares you a little? Is it staring at the ground from the window of a 60-story building? Is it choking out a speech to the graduating class? What about a guest’s first taste of your home-cooked meal? We all have something that makes our knees turn to jello just thinking...

November is here, and the holiday season has been kicked off by Halloween. As we adjust to the cooling weather, we might begin to consider whether to bring the green bean casserole or the pumpkin pie to Thanksgiving or what credit card sign-on bonus will pay for this year’s...

When you live in the same city long enough, it begins to shift from vibrant to varying shades of gray. You might find yourself a patron of the same three restaurants or traversing the streets with no GPS necessary. I have moved five times in my life, so I haven’t had the opportunity...

You might observe some bobbing heads, tapping toes, or maybe a girl doing a jump-snap-spin move at any given concert. Whatever you’re used to seeing, however, is nothing like the exorcist style of bone movement that occurs amidst some grimy dubstep. In other electronic dance...

I remember my first death metal concert. My friend invited me out to the dim-lit streets of St. Louis with little explanation of our evening’s plans. I was so trusting. Dressed in a pink Victoria’s Secret shirt and suede Birkenstocks, I entered a clamoring brick building,...

Monday signaled the end of the UMKC Alumni Association's weeklong virtual 5K in support of the Kangaroo Pantry. The 5K raised money and awareness for the pantry, which works to ensure no student goes without food and basic necessities during the school year. Donations from...

You know it’s October when nearly every event for the week is outside. This week is all about connecting with new people and new cultures right at home. I moved to Kansas City only two years ago, and prior to that I could not have pointed to it on a map. Now I think it may...

This first week is one of heavy anticipation because it features two killer bands: Mt. Joy and The Avett Brothers. Mt. Joy was the opener for Rainbow Kitten Surprise when I first saw them perform three years ago. Now the mellow, psychedelic rock band is filling up venues of...

The University of Kansas Health System announced on Sept. 1 that all workers, students and volunteers must receive vaccinations by the start of December. According to their recent press release, the decision was based on studying vaccination data, Centers for Disease Control...

On Aug. 23, 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) fully approved the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. This is the first COVID-19 vaccine to receive the FDA’s approval.  In the FDA news release, acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock said she believes the approval...

UMKC Chancellor Mauli Agrawal recently announced the school is planning to return fully to in-person learning beginning in the fall semester.  “We won’t make a final decision for a few months, but based on current trends, we are cautiously optimistic and are looking...

Governor Parson announced recently that Phase 1B - Tier 3 of the COVID-19 Vaccine Plan will begin March 15.   According to the Missouri Covid Vaccination Plan, this tier includes critical infrastructure workers including, but not limited to, first responders, K-12...

I found myself cackling in my living room as I saw the character Spencer from “iCarly” gasping for air trapped in his broken elevator while a fog machine spewed out smoke. I’m 23 years old. This is a children’s show. This breed of shenanigans is what stole the...

Five different bodies converge on one screen sharing a head, two separate arms, a torso and a chest to form a digital Zoom beast. This is all par for the course for the play “Antigonick.” Using ingenious digital techniques from director Vanessa Severo and scenic designer...

As Missouri begins its Phase 1 distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, healthcare workers are at the top of the list.  Krupa Patel, a respiratory therapist at the KU Medical Center, received both doses required for the Pfizer vaccine said the worst part was the arm pain...

When music education major Mollie Lederer stepped out of bed on Jan. 29 in her Johnson Hall dorm, she landed with a splash of water.   Confused as to the source of the water, the Johnson Hall resident wondered if something had spilled in the nearby fridge. However,...

UMKC Theatre and The Coterie Theatre released a virtual theatrical collaboration online on Jan. 21 titled “Brainstorm: The Inside Life of the Teenage Mind.” The virtual production, written by Ned Glasier, Emily Lim and Company Three, is about the science behind the functioning...

The “Sound of Metal” follows Ruben (Riz Ahmed), a heavy metal drummer touring across the country in a motorhome with his girlfriend Lou (Olivia Cooke) until he suddenly loses his ability to hear. The dramatic film, directed and written by first-time director Darius Marder,...

As the semester nears to a close, some UMKC students have shared advice and words of encouragement to fellow students during a year that has shaken the established norms of college life.. Caitlyn Quirk, a UMKC English major, said students should reach out for help and not...