Michael Symonds
WMUK reporterReport for America national service program corps member Michael Symonds joined WMUK’s staff in 2023. He covers the “rural meets metro” beat, reporting stories that link seemingly disparate parts of Southwest Michigan. He started his journalistic career at Western Michigan University’s student newspaper, the Western Herald. He was also a news intern at WMUK and hosted the talk show “Stupid Questions” on WIDR-FM, where he interviewed guests from political experts to student leaders. Michael is a graduate of WMU with a B.A. in Journalism and Digital Media.
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Kalamazoo’s historic State Theatre has new owners nearly a year after the venue closed indefinitely, who hope to see it preserved, restored and reopened. -
Battle Creek community members gathered for a workshop tackling the city’s housing challenges Monday, but some said it overlooked data relevant to low-income communities. -
A Michigan Senate committee will hear from those affected by the cancellation of the federal solar energy grant program by the Trump Administration in August. -
According to data the city released Monday, Kalamazoo saw a decline in car crashes in the first seven months of the year, compared to the same period last year. -
A group that advocates for farmworkers in Michigan celebrated its five-year anniversary at the end of last month. But not a single farmworker came to the UFW Foundation’s event. -
An organization representing teachers at the Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency says KRESA is dragging its heels on a contract, which the agency denies. -
Students returning to Western Michigan University may have noticed that Waldo Library’s clock is missing its hands, but they may soon return after being removed in May. -
Renewable-energy advocates say utilities have too much influence over the officials that regulate them, and that a proposed ballot measure could help change that.
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The Western Michigan University Office for Sustainability hopes to keep items out of the landfill by giving them to students who need them. -
More than three years after it was decommissioned, the Palisades Nuclear Plant has returned to operational status, but there's still more to be done.
