Locally sourced, collaborative reporting from and for rural America.
Featured Story
Kori Price for Charlottesville Tomorrow
Rural Virginia communities face real and lingering consequences from labor and delivery unit closures
Mothers and their children are at greater risk for negative health outcomes as their access to care shrinks in central Virginia and across the country.
LATEST NEWS FROM THE NETWORK
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Why Vermont’s housing shortage can’t be explained by population size alone
A majority of Vermont households – roughly 70% – contain just one or two people. In fact, the average number of people living in each year-round home in Vermont has been on a steady decline for decades.
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Old rift reopens as Trump administration amends Grand Teton pathway decision
Conservation groups decry the federal government’s do-over as both a dubious procedural maneuver and threat to wildlife. But longtime trail advocates are pleased.
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Gasoline hits $26 per gallon in the northwest Alaska village of Shungnak
Shungnak is about 280 river miles east of Kotzebue, up the Kobuk River, or 150 miles as the airplane flies. Air travel is the only reliable, year-round form of transportation.
RNN Highlights
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Rachel Livinal for The Merced FOCUS
Young Brains, Huge Stakes: How transitional kindergarten is shaping San Joaquin Valley’s youth
As California expands transitional kindergarten statewide, this four-part series examines whether San Joaquin Valley schools can meet the needs of young learners.
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Courtesy of U.S. Senate
Cardinal News 250: Virginia’s stories. A nation’s birth.
The project spotlights Virginia’s overlooked contributions to America’s march to independence ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary, or semiquincentennial.
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Gordon Hodges for Door County Knock
Locked Out: Door County’s affordable housing shortage
An in-depth series on Door County’s affordable housing shortage, examining its causes, shrinking availability and the roadblocks to building more.
MORE NEWS FROM THE NETWORK
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Local schools make cellphone policies stricter
August 25, 2026
Two principals say they believe their policies are helping students engage more fully with their schoolwork.
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Oklahoma State Auditor Flags $25 Million in Questionable Federal Spending Across Three Agencies
August 25, 2026
Although the questioned costs decreased dramatically from fiscal year 2023, which boasted $93 million, the federal government can still demand a refund from the state of every questioned dollar.
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Portage Co sergeant suspended after brawl outside neighbor’s house
August 25, 2026
Kevin Flick, a veteran at the Portage County Sheriff’s Office, got a one-day suspension after fighting with a man in April while off-duty.
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Rural Maui Residents Still Isolated After Lala Washed Away Bridge
August 25, 2026
Emergency crews are flying in supplies to Nāhiku but a decades-long debate over who owns the bridge is complicating a long-term solution for this small community along the Road to Hana.
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Researchers Work to Address Alzheimer’s and Dementia in Rural Communities
August 25, 2026
Aging with Alzheimer’s and dementia in rural communities can be especially hard.
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Colorado requests aid for Aspen Acres, Gold Mountain fires from Trump administration
August 24, 2026
Colorado tallied $18M in damage to public infrastructure alone from the two fires. Trump will make the final decision.
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School consolidation study to get underway, raising concern for former school board chair
August 24, 2026
Despite greatly reduced numbers of students in the schools, previous efforts for consolidation of the lower grades have been vehemently rejected by district residents, But, last spring all six towns agreed to participate in the study.
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Commercial Picking Ban Eases Huckleberry Harvest for Tribal Gatherers, But Enforcement Challenges Remain
August 24, 2026
In the second year that the U.S. Forest Service suspended commercial harvest in Gifford Pinchot National Forest, Ḱamíłpa Band members report feeling safer in fields, though sale of wild berries persists.
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Locals concerned as Trump admin fast-tracks public process for Wyoming rare earth mine
August 24, 2026
The 30-day deadline to submit comments on an open-pit mine in the Black Hills National Forest is Friday. Developers received millions in federal and state subsidies.