About Us
KSMU Radio
Since its modest beginnings in a "charming" little house on National Avenue, KSMU Radio has been dedicated to quality. KSMU, the region’s NPR member station, signed on the air in 1974 with the same mission we pursue today – to encourage audiences to explore ideas and to deepen our shared understanding of what it means to be an engaged citizen of our community.
With that purpose in mind, KSMU strives to bring the highest quality information and entertainment to listeners throughout the Ozarks. Through a variety of programs, KSMU offers storytelling and entertainment that respects the listener’s time and intelligence. With locally-produced music programs ranging from bluegrass to blues, KSMU provides something truly unique on the radio dial. And through local, regional, national, and international news, KSMU helps listeners stay informed on topics that affect their lives.
KSMU is proud of our award-winning news coverage. Our news team has been recognized with multiple National Edward R. Murrow Awards, more than a dozen Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards, and scores of honors from other institutions, including the Missouri Broadcasters Association, Public Radio News Directors Incorporated, the Missouri Bar Association, and the Missouri State Teachers Association.
KSMU Radio is jointly-licensed with Ozarks Public Television, the region’s PBS member station. Brought together in 2001, the stations formed Ozarks Public Broadcasting, licensed to and operated by Missouri State University. The work of Ozarks Public Broadcasting is deeply rooted in public service. Every effort we undertake is in service to – and made possible by – our community.
General Contact Information
Our studios and offices are located at the southwest corner of the Missouri State University campus, in Strong Hall, Room 115. Strong Hall is located at 900 S. Holland Avenue, near the intersection of Grand Street and Holland Avenue.
Mailing Address:
901 South National Ave.
Springfield, MO 65897
Telephone:
(417) 836-5878
(800) 767-5768
E-Mail: ksmu@missouristate.edu
Ozarks Public Broadcasting Community Representation Statement
Ozarks Public Broadcasting, comprised of KSMU Radio and Ozarks Public Television (OPT), aims to reach, reflect, and celebrate the whole of our community. Our work is guided by the following principles:
· Ozarks Public Broadcasting is for everyone. Our services will be available and accessible to our entire community, through free access to content on a variety of platforms. Internal and external station services and activities are made accessible for participation by all. When barriers to access are identified, they will be addressed and removed.
· Ozarks Public Broadcasting reflects our community. The content we produce and present will reflect the many different types of people and groups across our community, respecting and celebrating the way people differ. Those differences take many forms, including – though certainly not limited to – age, education, ethnicity, expression, family composition, gender, geographic location, language, marital status, mental ability, nationality, physical ability, physical appearance, political views, race, religious views, sex, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and veteran status.
· Ozarks Public Broadcasting is a team. Our content, services, and workplace are made better by the individual differences and varied perspectives among our team members. We will cultivate and protect an organizational culture that values and incorporates the perspectives of all team members. We will actively pursue input and engagement from team members in all areas and levels of the organization.
· Ozarks Public Broadcasting is always improving. We will consistently evaluate our performance and progress in our mission to reach, reflect, and celebrate our entire community; share information on performance and progress in a transparent manner; and ensure that sustained progress remains a long-term focus of the organization.
Service to the Community
Ozarks Public Broadcasting seeks to produce and present content and engagement activities that represent a wide range of experiences and perspectives, encouraging thoughtful discourse on a variety of topics. This mission includes efforts to seek and share the experiences and perspectives of historically underrepresented individuals and groups, and to provide critical information to unserved and underserved audiences. Recent examples include:
- KSMU Radio
- KSMU’s airing of Informed Voter Coalition candidate interviews ahead of the 2024 August primary election and the 2024 November general election gives paywall-free access to information about candidates on the ballots.
- The 2024 season of Making A Difference looks at the ways grant funding helps people of all backgrounds get outside and enjoy the outdoors.
- Making a New Life in the Ozarks takes a deep dive into the challenges refugee families and individuals face in the region.
- Entrepreneurship in the Rural Ozarks focuses on small business owners in rural areas and the importance of those businesses to the economic vitality of small towns.
- The Springfield-Greene County African American Heritage Trail highlights stories from the trail, featuring historic points of interest.
- Ozarks Public Television
- Ozarks Public Television’s recent documentary Kehila Kedosha focuses on the history of Jewish migration, assimilation, and heritage in the Missouri Ozarks.
- In Gratitude: Honor Flight of the Ozarks captures the stories of a group of veterans traveling to Washington, D.C. to visit the monuments dedicated to their service and sacrifice.
- Generations: African American Experiences in Springfield and the Ozarks explores the challenges and success of Black Americans in the region and has been nominated for a Mid-America Emmy.
- OPT’s Sense of Community program recently included a profile on Care to Learn, a local organization providing students with emergent health, hunger, and hygiene resources so kids can focus on learning.
- The long-running weekly OPT series OzarksWatch Video Magazine documents, presents, and preserves the unique heritage, richness and complexity of the Ozarks region.
- OPT and KSMU regularly broadcast special programming that celebrates varied experiences and perspectives. These national programs are made available by NPR, PRX, APM, PBS, NETA, APT, and other national distributors.
Ozarks Public Broadcasting FY24 Progress Report
In FY24, Ozarks Public Broadcasting’s Community Representation Work Group – a group of staff members charged with continually evaluating the organization’s efforts to reach, reflect, and celebrate the whole of our community and making recommendations for improvement – undertook several key tasks.
The group successfully conducted a comprehensive internal climate survey, gathering valuable feedback from full-time, part-time, and student staff. Based on this feedback, the group developed actionable recommendations to present to senior management.
The Community Representation Work Group also explored the possibility of securing grant funding for freelance rural and cultural reporting on KSMU. While grant solicitation did not materialize this fiscal year, they made valuable connections with the team members in OPB’s grants department, and the group has a better understanding of the challenges to secure funding.
Ozarks Public Broadcasting FY25 Priorities
1. Ozarks Public Broadcasting’s Community Representation Work Group will
· Perform ongoing evaluation of the organization’s demonstrated commitment to reaching, reflecting, and celebrating the whole of our community.
· Continue to solicit feedback on the organization’s efforts to fulfill this commitment from all levels of station staff.
· Provide recommendations to OPB’s leadership team for specific actions that should be taken to ensure OPB, in all areas of operation and service, operates in a manner that reflects its earnest effort to fulfill this commitment.
2. Having identified rural communities as underserved by, and underrepresented in, local news coverage, the station will solicit grant funding for freelance rural reporting on KSMU.
Online Comment Policy
As the public radio service for the Ozarks, KSMU values audience input. We ask that your comments to the local and regional news stories we share are written in a civil manner. View our discussion policy here.
Governing Body
The Missouri State University Board of Governors is the governing body of Ozarks Public Broadcasting.
For more information about the current members of the board, click here: Missouri State University Board of Governors Members.
For a schedule of upcoming board meetings, click here: Missouri State University Board of Governors Meeting Schedule.
To view meeting agenda items, including rational for closed sessions, click here: Missouri State University Board of Governors Meeting Agendas.