Jacob McCleland
Jake is a 2000 graduate of Southeast Missouri State University. As Host Producer, McCleland coordinates all of KRCU's local programming; he works with hosts, producers, and audio engineers to enhance the quality of in-studio productions. Additionally, McCleland works with station staff and community volunteers to develop new ideas for programming on KRCU. He also records and produces feature stories that are heard locally during Morning Edition and All Thing Considered.
McCleland recently completed three years of service as a Peace Corps volunteer in Panama, where he worked with slash-and-burn farmers on methods to enhance crop production and prevent deforestation. He also hosted and produced a program on Panamanian radio called Allá en el campo which featured interviews and feature stories about sustainable agriculture techniques for rural farmers.
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Oklahoma continues to battle flooding from storms in the region, which brought the state out of a four-year drought. Rain is expected every day until Sunday.
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The University of Oklahoma has given members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon until midnight to move out of their fraternity house. A video surfaced of members singing and using a derogatory racist chant.
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Short, unlit towers are used to prospect for new wind farms. But the structures pose a threat to crop-duster pilots. Transportation officials are urging better markings and other safety improvements.
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State Rep. Mike Bost's rants on the Illinois House floor are the stuff viral dreams are made of. Bost says he has good reason to be upset, and wants voters to share his anger.
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A distinct version of French is disappearing from the isolated Old Mines region in the Missouri Ozarks. Thousands of people once spoke pawpaw French, but today only a handful of speakers remain.
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The Army Corps of Engineers is working hard to deepen the Mississippi River's shipping channel. With water levels forecast to remain high enough only through January to float loaded barges, some say the only way to keep the river open next month will be to release water from the Missouri River.
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Mississippi River water levels are reaching near-record lows. Sections of the middle Mississippi River may become obstructed in December by rock outcrops in southern Illinois. The Army Corps of Engineers plan to remove the rock pinnacles in February, but river navigation industry leaders say that's not soon enough.
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Illinois has joined a growing list of cash-strapped states starting to turn away from the Supermax prison concept. State legislators in Illinois have proposed closing the state's only supermaximum security prison or converting it into a lower-security facility.
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A breakthrough in oil cleanup technology allows crews to skim spilled oil off the water's surface at a much faster rate. The new device wasn't developed by Exxon, BP or any of the major oil companies — it's the work of Elastec/American Marine, based in Illinois.
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Jack Rickard and Brian Noto have developed something of a cult following on their webcast in which they talk in soul-crushing detail about the intricacies of how to gut a gas-guzzling road warrior and convert it into an all-electric vehicle. On Wednesday, they host the Electric Vehicle Conversion Convention at the Cape Girardeau airport.