COMPLIMENTARYCAC AuditedJAN. 30 – FEB. 5, 2014 stlamerican.com

Vol. 84 No. 43

Young Leaders to be honored Feb. 13Naretha Hopson and Steven Harris are among 20 outstanding professionals under age 40 who will be recognized at the 2014 Salute to Young Leaders.Page A8

See POLICE, A6

‘Urbanist’ educator appointed vice provostBy Chris KingOf The St. Louis American

William F. Tate sees his new appointment as dean of the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and vice provost for graduate education at Washington University as indicative of the university’s commitment to diversity – and not only because he himself is African-American.

“My selection suggests a serious commitment to these issues, since this is what my research has been about for the last 20 years – trying to open up the pipeline, to continue to push and be better than we are right now,” he said.

Tate, who holds a doctorate in mathematics education from the University of Maryland,

College Park and most recently chaired Washington University’s Department of See TATE, A7

William F. Tate now leads graduate education at WUSTL

By Rebecca RivasOf The St. Louis American

St. Louis saw one of its first tangible benefits of local control of the police department last

week when Police Chief Sam Dotson announced a redistricting of the police force – without having to go through approvals from a board of commissioners appointed by the governor.

As of 4 a.m. on Monday, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department was downsized from nine police districts to six –

changing district boundaries that have been in place for more than 50 years.

When the old boundaries were originally

City police downsize districtsChief defends upbeat spin on crime stats

See LEADERS, A6

By K. Michael JonesOf The St. Louis American

A diverse group of 20 outstanding African-American professionals under age 40 has been selected as the 2014 class of Young Leader award recipients.

Chosen by their peers, the awardees will be profiled in the February 13 edition of The St. Louis American and will be honored at the St. Louis American Foundation’s fourth annual Salute to Young Leaders Networking Awards Reception on Thursday, February 13 at the Four Seasons Hotel St. Louis. Emerson is again

Young Leader awardees chosenClass of 2014 to be celebrated Feb. 14 at Four Seasons

See OBS, A7

By Bridjes O’NeilOf The St. Louis American

The Organization for Black Struggle presented its 34th anniversary celebration on Saturday at the St. Louis Gateway Classic Foundation, 2012 Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. Montague Simmons, OBS chair, said the celebration is a time to

OBS stresses economic justiceRasheen Aldridge receives 2013 Jamala Rogers Young Visionary Award

Activists from the Congress of Racial Equality staged a protest at the Ballpark Village jobsite on Wednesday morning. According to a statement, the group is protesting the Slay administration for excluding some $60 million in Ballpark Village contracts from the city’s inclusion goals for minority- and women-owned businesses.

Foul play at Ballpark VillagePhoto by Wiley Price

Photo by Wiley Price

Education, said he considers himself “an urbanist.”

“In the most simple terms, I try to figure out what is wrong with urban education and try to fix it,” he said.

His research and teaching have addressed disparities in fields other than education. He holds academic appointments in American Culture Studies, Urban Studies, and African and African-American Studies, as well as in the Institute for Public Health.

“I look at social determinants of science and math attainment and what happens with people, and the social determinants of health outcomes,

William F. Tate is the new dean of the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and vice provost for graduate education at Washington University.

n “Partnerships between the university and the business community strengthen the safety net that keeps talented people in St. Louis.” – William F. Tate, vice provost for graduate education at Washington University

reflect on the past and plan for the future.

“If your 2013 was anything like my 2013, you were busy,” Simmons said. “And a lot of us were out there standing shoulder to shoulder.”

OBS was active in the Show Me 15 campaign to increase the

n “No one is going to come here if all we say is, ‘St. Louis has a crime problem.” – Police Chief Sam Dotson

Maureen Taylor, state chair of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization, gave the keynote speech at the Organization for Black Struggle’s 34th anniversary celebration held on Saturday at the St. Louis Gateway Classic Foundation.