Kelsey Proud

Will be updated with more information.

Missouri schools appear likely to get a 2 percent funding increase next year. And state employees could get a small raise.

Those decisions appear to be locked into the budget as a result of decisions Tuesday by the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Baseball-mad St. Louis is welcoming the Cardinals for the first home game of the year.

After starting the season with six road games, the Cardinals host the Cincinnati Reds this afternoon.

The usually festive occasion in St. Louis is a little melancholy this season. Monday's game is the first Cardinals home game since the death of Stan Musial.

The Hall of Famer died in January at age 92. His absence was notable before the game as the team's other members of the Hall of Fame circled the Busch Stadium warning track in Mustangs.

Every week, St. Louis Public Radio’s Chris McDaniel joins the St. Louis Beacon’s Jo Mannies and Jason Rosenbaum to talk about the week’s politics. This week, however, Chris is out on vacation - so St. Louis Public Radio's Missouri Statehouse reporter joins us. 

The Sunlight Foundation has released a report on political donations made by all major league baseball organizations in the 2012 elections. So, which political players got money from Cardinals employees?

At a glance, here are a few takeaways (you can explore the full dataset yourself below):

Updated: 3:46 p.m., 5:54 p.m.

Republican Senator Mark Kirk of Illinois has released a statement today in support of same-sex marriage.

On his website, Kirk says "life comes down to who you love and who loves you back:"

When I climbed the Capitol steps in January, I promised myself that I would return to the Senate with an open mind and greater respect for others.