Susan Stephens
Reporter, All Things Considered HostSusan is an award-winning reporter/writer at her favorite radio station. Her #1 goal is to tell the most compelling stories in the fewest words possible…all the better if a little humor can be thrown into the mix. She's also WNIJ's Perspectives editor, Under Rocks contributor, and local host of All Things Considered. Interests outside of the newsroom include spreading the word about pawpaws, employing her skills as a Master Naturalist, thinking about baseball, and pretending she’s going to get around to playing her theremin.
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So you've spotted a flock of huge white birds with comically-large beaks riding the Rock River surf. They couldn't possibly be pelicans, could they? They're far too exotic for the Midwest. Right?WNIJ's Under Rocks team heads out in search of the American White Pelican — and finds a festival devoted to these spring-time visitors along the way.Email us your story ideas at rocks@niu.edu!
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Sometimes, the best way to fix something is to burn it down -- especially when it comes to natural areas choked with invasive plants. Things heat up for the Under Rocks crew as they tag along with Jack Pizzo and Associates for a prescribed burn at his house.
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The iconic Rockford Register Star News Tower will become Iconic Energy's headquarters while continuing to be home base for the city's daily newspaper.
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DeKalb is known for a lot of things: corn, its university, Cindy Crawford… But one of the hidden gems of the city is the little golden pillow of fried dough known as The Beer Nugget. We explore its origins and try to answer the question, "why aren't these EVERYWHERE?"
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Farms across Illinois are serving up their own little slice of horror this time of year — corn mazes. Haunted corn mazes. The Under Rocks teams asks "Why is corn so scary? And how do I get outta here?!?"
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Demonstrations against police brutality began a year ago this week in Rockford – they started as protests against George Floyd’s death at the hands of…
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A machine built in Rockford more than a century ago is halfway to its new home in a national museum.The 1910 Greenlee Variety Woodworker is 2.5 tons of…
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It has been ten years since a six-year-old Aurora boy disappeared with his mother -- her body was found three days later in a Rockford motel with a…
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Rockford voters overwhelmingly decided to continue to fund their road improvements with a one-percent sales tax.79% of voters said yes to the city’s road…
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A new sculpture along the banks of the Rock River is a celebration of the centennial of women gaining the right to vote – and of the women who are…