The Kansas News Service was established in 2017, designed to address the shortage of reporting coming from and listening to those in the middle of the country.
It is a regional journalism service headquartered at KCUR in Kansas City that includes High Plains Public Radio (Garden City), KMUW (Wichita), Kansas Public Radio (Lawrence).
Last week, the Kansas Press Association recognized the KNS team for its excellence in coverage of diversity. This is one of many accolades the service and its reporters have received since its founding.
Through its collaborative reporting, the reporters of the Kansas News Service today deliver more than 1,000 pieces of original content that are carried in media outlets not only in Kansas, but discovered by audiences around the globe.
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Meet these talented journalists: Daniel Caudill
Daniel Caudill is the Statehouse Reporter for Kansas Public Radio and the Kansas News Service. Daniel formerly worked for KMUW and for The Derby Informer newspaper. He received his bachelors degree in political science in WSU in Wichita with a minor in journalism.
Daniel's features on activities in the Statehouse are carried frequently around the state and nationally. And because all things can be political, one of his most viewed and re-shared stories was about the Kansas City Chiefs and rumors that their future home may be in the Sunflower State.Rose Conlon
Rose Conlon reports on health for KMUW and the Kansas News Service. She covers the intersections of health care, politics and religion.
Rose has received national awards and, last week, was recognized by the Kansas Press Association for her reporting on how nuns in Atchison are using the stock market to push for change.
That story was picked up in 19 communities, from as large as Jacksonville, Florida, (pop. 1 million) and as small as Bethel, Alaska, (pop. 6,260). It was also carried on NPR's All Things Considered, with a potential reach of nearly 21 million people.
Before joining KMUW, Rose was a producer for Marketplace Morning Report in Los Angeles. She grew up in Washington state and is a graduate of Scripps College in Claremont, California.Zane Irwin
Zane Irwin is the political reporter for the Kansas News Service at KCUR and the newest member of the team.
Through his reporting, Zane illuminates how elections, policies and other political developments affect everyday people in the Sunflower State.
Earlier this month, he was selected to participate in a special training by the NPR States Team desk. This collective of member station reporters from across the country cover the role of state government in American politics and policy.
Prior to joining the Kansas News Service, Zane was a reporting fellow with the Associated Press in Senegal. There he covered global issues, from the experiences of migrants to climate change.
Celia Llopis-Jepsen reports on health and the environment for KCUR and the Kansas News Service, and is the host and creator of the award-winning podcast, Up From Dust.
Through her reporting, Celia writes about how the world is transforming around us, from topsoil loss and invasive species to climate change. She reports on the farmers, ranchers, scientists and other engaged people working to make Kansas more resilient.
Last week, the Kansas Press Association recognized Up From Dust as one of the best podcasts, with one judge stating, "This podcast should be required listening for everyone living on the Great Plains."
Celia also received 1st place in the Best Environmental Reporting category for her feature, Trees are spreading across the Great Plains. They're actually making climate change worse. That story was also featured on the national show, Science Friday, as part of their series, The State of Science.
Before joining the Kansas News Service, Celia covered education and the Statehouse for the Topeka Capital-Journal. She has a master's in journalism from Columbia University and a master’s in bilingualism studies from Stockholm University in Sweden.Dylan Lysen
Dylan Lysen is the Kansas social services and criminal justice reporter for KCUR and the Kansas News Service. He's also currently the interim news editor, helping coordinate daily news coverage from the KNS reporting team.
Dylan reports about how the state government wants to help its residents and keep their communities safe, making sure the voices of everyday Kansans are heard.
Dylan's award-winning work included a feature on the effects of harassment and conspiracy theories on Kansas election officials. Most recently, Yahoo News picked up his feature, Kansas lawmakers want to cut tax credit building thousands of affordable homes, reaching a potential audience of more than 50 million people.
Prior to joining the Kansas News Service, Dylan worked at the Lawrence Journal-World and the Manhattan Mercury newspapers.
Calen Moore is the Western Kansas reporter for High Plains Public Radio and the Kansas News Service, covering the people, places and issues of the region.
Calen joined the service in 2024. His report on a recent meeting where Sen. Roger Marshall abruptly ended a "testy" town hall in Oakley went viral earlier this year, with dozens of pick-ups and shares by outlets across the country.
And last week, the Kansas Press Association named Calen the 2025 New Journalist of the Year. The Press Association also recognized Calen's feature reporting, This southwest Kansas newspaper printing press is an oasis in an expanding news desert.Suzanne Perez
Suzanne Perez is the education reporter at KMUW and the Kansas News Service.
After more than 30 years at the Wichita Eagle, Suzanne joined KMUW in 2021 and her work has won numerous awards.
In addition to her news reporting, Suzanne reviews books for KMUW and co-hosts the award-winning monthly Books & Whatnot podcast. She created the ReadICT Reading Challenge, an annual partnership with the Wichita Public Library that encourages adults to read more broadly.
Suzanne received her bachelor's degree at North Carolina State University.
This month, Bek was selected for the Association of Health Care Journalists' Kansas-Missouri Health Journalism Fellowship, a six-month cohort experience. Through the fellowship, she will attend the annual development conference in Los Angeles later this year. Support for the fellowship comes from the Kansas City-based Health Forward Foundation.
Bek's in-depth reporting on the tuberculosis outbreak in Kansas this spring included breaking the story of behind-the-scenes conflict at the Wyandotte and Kansas health departments may have hindered the response. That story was picked up by NPR as well as Scientific American, with a potential reach of more than 3 million.
Kansas News Service leadership and support
The Kansas News Service is led by Managing Editor Stephen Koranda. The Kansas News Service was established with support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Kansas Grantmakers in Health.
Current support for the KNS comes from the Kansas Health Foundation, the Health Forward Foundation and the members of each partner station.
