April Van Buren
Stateside ProducerApril Van Buren is a producer for Stateside. She produces interviews for air as well as web and social media content for the show.
Before landing at Michigan Public, April worked as a producer for Current State at WKAR and a reporting intern and producer at WBEZ in Chicago.
April graduated from Harvard University in 2012 with a degree in American History and Literature (aka the most liberal artsy of liberal arts degrees). She is a die-hard 30 Rock fan and once saw Tina Fey do the chicken dance at a party.
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In the wake of the U.S. military airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, an Iranian-American scholar working in Dearborn reflects on how public perception of Iranians has evolved. -
As the weather heats up in Michigan, so does the excitement of the Ann Arbor District Library's 15th annual Summer Game. AADL library director Eli Neiburger shared the origins of the beloved tradition and how it's changed through the years. -
The Stonewall Riots in New York City in 1969 brought attention to the harassment and violence that LGBTQ+ people faced in America. But it wasn't just America that was paying attention. We talked to an assistant professor at Michigan State University about how Pride celebrations have evolved in Mexico — which had its first Pride celebration in 1979. -
Detroit student Maykol Bogoya-Duarte was driving with three other students to join a field trip when he was pulled over by Rockwood police. Now Bogoya-Duarte, who was just 3.5 credits away from earning his high school diploma, is being held by ICE in a correctional facility in the Upper Peninsula. -
Detroit artist Akea Brionne uses a digital loom to create painterly tapestries rooted in the Black experience. Her fresh approach to an age old craft recently earned Brionne accolades, and a $50,000 prize from the Knight Foundation. -
A deep dive into the history of contamination by the Gelman plume in Ann Arbor. We hear about how it started, its impacts to water and human health, and what's being done about it today. -
A mistrial was declared in the murder trial of the former Grand Rapids police officer who shot and killed Patrick Lyoya at a traffic stop in 2022 after the jury was unable to reach a verdict. We talked to two reporters who were at the courthouse about the trial, the community reaction, and what happens next. -
Christopher Schurr killed Patrick Lyoya during a struggle that began as a traffic stop in April 2022. The jury deliberated for days. -
The historic Scarab Club's new gallery manager Donna Jackson spoke with us about her approach to community engagement—and the profound impact the Detroit arts scene has had on her own life. -
West Michigan author and preacher Jeff Chu took the long way to the seminary. And once he got there, faith led him farther than he expected back out into the world. It all started with a compost pile on the seminary farm. We talked to Chu about his new memoir—titled Good Soil: The Education of an Accidental Farmhand.
