MONTEVALLO, Ala. — The University of Montevallo, long known as Alabama’s only public liberal arts college and a haven for quirky, creative students, is cutting a slate of minors and degree concentrations as it works to close a multimillion-dollar budget gap, including African American Studies and Peace and Justice Studies. The Board of Trustees voted…

CALERA, Ala. — A 23-year-old woman was shot to death in a north Calera home Thursday night, the latest domestic violence killing to rattle a community on Birmingham’s southern fringe. Calera police said officers were called to a residence on The Heights Drive late Thursday, Feb. 12, where they found 23-year-old Jennifer Talley of Calera…

HANCEVILLE, Ala. — Nearly a year after a grand jury said the Hanceville Police Department had become a “criminal enterprise” and urged that it be “immediately abolished,” city leaders have now done exactly that, voting this week to dissolve the department and shut down the municipal court that depended on its cases. On Thursday night,…

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — An Alabama lawmaker’s bid to restrict so‑called “chemtrails” is drawing new attention to a long‑running conspiracy theory that scientists say has no basis in fact, even as the proposal advances alongside other efforts to limit state environmental rules. Rep. Mack Butler, R‑Rainbow City, is sponsoring House Bill 25, which would prohibit “the…

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama lawmakers are again pushing to require public schools to post the Ten Commandments, this time targeting fifth- through 12th-grade history classrooms in a move critics say is less about teaching history and more about elevating one religious code that many of its champions do not follow themselves. Senate Bill 99, filed…

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Two 16-year-old boys are facing murder charges in the fatal shooting of a 20-year-old man in Birmingham’s Ensley neighborhood earlier this month, authorities said. The Birmingham Police Department said officers were called about 1:30 p.m. Feb. 3 to the 1400 block of 29th Street Ensley, where they found an overturned vehicle with…