Halle Jackson
Up To Date producerIn an era defined by the unprecedented, one thing remains certain: Kansas Citians’ passion for their hometown. As an Up To Date producer, I construct daily conversations to keep our city connected. My work analyzes big challenges and celebrates achievements to help you see your town in a new way.
I graduated from the University of Missouri in May 2023 with dual degrees in journalism and sociology. Before coming to KCUR as an Up To Date intern, I was a reporter and producer at KBIA, mid-Missouri’s NPR station. I’m an avid rock climber and native of St. Louis.
Email me at hallejackson@kcur.org.
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Roxanne Jones is a nurse with Global Care Force, an organization based in Lenexa that provides medical aid around the world. She returned Saturday to the United States from Jordan, a country located in between Israel and Iran, and witnessed missiles fly between the two nations. -
Mayor Quinton Lucas convened a Commission on Reparations back in May 2023, with the goal of producing recommendations on how the city could repair harms from racism. Two years later, much of that work has yet to begin. -
Emily Brown founded Attane Health four years ago to ensure people with chronic health problems have access to the right foods to improve their health. Now, her work has won her the Spark Prize, an unrestricted award from the Missouri Foundation for Health to keep the innovation going. -
The drones head out before human first responders to scope out the scene. Lenexa Police say it's cut response times by two minutes in emergency situations, and the city just approved funding to buy more. -
Infants in the neonatal intensive care unit often go home sooner when they have access to music therapy. UMKC is one of only a few institutions nationwide that offers training to students in music therapy for premature babies. -
The Missouri General Assembly appears poised to approve incentives to help the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals build or renovate their stadiums. But questions still remain over whether the teams will take the offer, or move to Kansas instead. -
Some Kansas Citians on social media have criticized the way that the KCPD and Mayor Quinton Lucas responded to a march of masked white nationalists last weekend. In a wide-ranging conversation, Lucas defended his comments, as well as discussed the Royals' search for a new stadium, his recent trip to Qatar and fixing public transit. -
Missouri lawmakers have banned the sale or transport of six invasive plant species, including Callery pear trees. The ban will go into effect Jan. 1, 2029 — to give sellers time to replace their inventories. -
Missouri House Speaker Jon Patterson, who represents Lee's Summit, says next year's vote on whether to ban abortion again might not be the end of efforts around how the state regulates the procedure. -
The Missouri General Assembly's 2025 legislative session ended last week, but with some last-minute drama. While it was a more productive term than in recent years, some legislative priorities — including funding packages for the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals stadiums — didn't make it to the finish line.
