Rural Voices Radio, Volume III

“Rural Voices Radio captures a spectrum of cadences and tones unique to rural America, documenting the voices and stories that would otherwise remain unrecognized. It is a project of incredible importance.”

—Heather Candon,
WERU-FM Production Manager and Youth Radio Coordinator

Rural Voices Radio III is the third in a series of half-hour productions that features students and their teachers reading original poems, stories, and essays about the places we call home. The programs offer an honest and refreshing portrayal of places off the beaten path through the words of emerging writers, some as young as first grade. For students, Rural Voices Radio helps connect writing, reading and speaking; for listeners, the programs are a bridge to new places, perspectives and cultures. Contributions come from teachers and students in western Kentucky, eastern Nevada, the Red River Valley of North Dakota, and the southern Texas border.

The spoken anthology shows the complex nature of rural life, from the lowering boom of a gold mining shaft to the resounding call of a tobacco auctioneer. The third release takes on new territory with the voices of students living along the Texas-Mexico border. Here, listeners will see the Rio Grande through the eyes of children in the languages that they speak in their homes.

With each edition of the Rural Voices Radio series, NWP has sought to celebrate excellence in America’s rural schools. Drawing on the tradition of storytelling and oral language, Rural Voices Radio awakens listeners to the richness of heritage and the universal importance of home.

Building on the Rural Voices, Country Schools theme of bringing student voices and student writing to the public, NWP released the CD set to public radio stations across the country. The response to the programs overwhelmingly positive. Now, they are available to stream and download on our Soundcloud channel.