News Talk 94.1 Local Matters

Local Matters

Education, Sports, Faith & Everything In Between

Originating from News Talk 94.1 the show deals with community issues and interests that affect listeners closer to home. With topics from major events across the nation and how they impact our area to interesting people and figures from across the Upper Cumberland. Local Matters is where local, matters.

Covering the issues that matter to you. Every weekday.
Daily English United States Society & Culture · Education
1,600 Episodes
820 – 840

Ben Rodgers & Putnam County Parks And Recreation In 2021

Ben Rodgers talks with John Ross Albertson, Director of the Putnam County Parks and Recreation Department. They discuss recent growth in the Putnam County Parks and Recreation Department, an update on Hope Park and other projects being worked on in Baxter, as well as their progress on setting up Christmas…
19 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Sam Brooks & Meet Dianne Murphy

Sam Brooks sits down with Cookeville native, and former Athletics Director at Columbia University in New York, Dianne Murphy. They discuss what life was like for her growing up in Cookeville and attending Tennessee Tech University, an overview of her coaching and administrative careers, and the various universities that she…
18 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Bob Bell & Upperman High School And The Tennessee Purple Star School Award

Bob Bell meets with Upperman High School Principal Billy Stepp, and teacher, and Beta Club and Student Government sponsor, Amy Rouchon. They discuss Upperman's recently awarded status as a Tennessee Purple Star School, what the award is and how it recognizes schools that assist military families in transitioning to the…
16 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Ben Rodgers & Overton County Redistricting, County Commissioners, And Infrastructure

Ben Rodgers meets with Overton County Executive Ben Danner. They discuss redistricting efforts in Overton County, the recently filled vacancies on the Overton County Commission, what the process is like for bringing new county commissioners on, as well as how they're looking to address road conditions in the county with…
12 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Sam Brooks & Algood Middle School Principal

Sam Brooks meets with Dr. Bubba Winningham, Principal of Algood Middle School. They discuss his early life growing up in Cookeville, the importance of middle school sports for young student athletes, and what they stand to learn at that age by being involved, as well as what the transition into…
11 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Bob Bell & The Month Of November, Veterans Day, And World War I Education

Bob Bell talks with Dr. Mike Birdwell, Professor of History at Tennessee Tech University. They discuss the importance of the month of November, the history of Veterans Day and with it represents, what the Tennessee Great War Commission is, and their mission to document Tennessee's role in World War I,…
9 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Sam Brooks & Cookeville High School Head Basketball Coach

Sam Brooks sits down with Josh Heard, Head Basketball Coach at Cookeville High School. They discuss his early life growing up in Georgia, his family and the importance of having support from family while coaching, his experience coaching his boys in middle school, and learning how to separate the role…
4 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Tiffany Anton & The Smoky Nights

Tiffany Anton talks with Lily and Anthony Nguyen, leading members of the Cookeville band The Smoky Nights. They discuss their backgrounds and what brought them to the Upper Cumberland area, the story behind how they formed their band, as well as the process of making their latest album, Waking Up…
3 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Bob Bell & Life After High School

Bob Bell sits down with Julie Smith, a School Counselor at Cookeville High School (CHS), and Michelle Bowman, Assistant Principal at CHS. They discuss what College Application Month is and how CHS celebrates the occasion, what dream schools and programs are and some of the common pitfalls that students may…
2 Nov 2021 10AM 34 min

Ben Rodgers & Redistricting In Putnam County

Ben Rodgers sits down with Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter, and Putnam County Election Commission Administrator Michele Honeycutt. They discuss their experiences with past redistricting efforts, how technology has changed the process over the years, how the primaries in Putnam County impact the redistricting process, as well as some of…
29 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Sam Brooks & Meet Jeff Comer

Sam Brooks meets with Jeff Comer, former Putnam County teacher, supervisor, and coach. They discuss his family, his time growing up in Cookeville, his time at Tennessee Tech University studying education, and how it prepared him for adult life, as well as the role that faith played in his coaching…
28 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Tiffany Anton & Meet Randi Strong Barksdale

Tiffany Anton sits down with local entrepreneur Randi Strong Barksdale. They discuss her background and education, how her event planning business, Jet Set Planning, got its start, how she became involved with the Clover Lake Cottage in Granville, as well as what her upcoming project, Upper Cumberland Women, is, and…
27 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Bob Bell & Elementary And Secondary School Relief Fund Board

Bob Bell meets with Lillian Hartgrove, Chairman of the Tennessee State Board Of Education. They discuss her appointment to the Elementary And Secondary School Relief Fund Board and the role that it serves in allocating American Rescue Plan Act funding, her involvement with the Putnam County Community Engagement Group and…
26 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Ben Rodgers & Upper Cumberland County Mayor Roundtable

Ben Rodgers continues speaking with with White County Executive Denny Wayne Robinson, Smith County Mayor Jeff Mason, Cumberland County Mayor Allen Foster, and Jackson County Mayor Randy Heady. They discuss American Rescue Plan funding, how they are looking to spend those funds in their respective counties, how their friendship with…
22 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Sam Brooks & New Monterey High School Head Basketball Coach

Sam Brooks talks with Lynus Martin, the new Head Basketball Coach at Monterey High School. They discuss what sports meant to him growing up in DeKalb County, his family, the sports that his children play, and how becoming a father impacted his style of coaching, as well as what brought…
21 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Bob Bell & Early Post-Secondary Opportunities In Putnam County

Bob Bell talks with Jackie Vester, Early Post-Secondary Opportunities (EPSOs) Specialist with Putnam County Schools. They discuss what EPSOs are and how they benefit high school students in Putnam County, the differences between Honors and EPSOs programs, as well as show parents are able to find out what opportunities are…
19 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Ben Rodgers & Redistricting Across The Upper Cumberland

Ben Rodgers sits down with White County Executive Denny Wayne Robinson, Smith County Mayor Jeff Mason, Cumberland County Mayor Allen Foster, and Jackson County Mayor Randy Heady. They discuss redistricting efforts in their respective counties, how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted and delayed those efforts, what a census block is…
15 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Sam Brooks & Meet Steve Medlin

Sam Brooks meets with former football coach, teacher, and Putnam County Commissioner, Steve Medlin. They discuss his time growing up in Cookeville and how the town has changed over the years, his time as a student teacher, how his time at Oak Ridge shaped his style of coaching early on,…
14 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Bob Bell & NIET And Learning Loss

Bob Bell sits down with Dr. Sharon Anderson, 9-12 Curriculum Supervisor for Putnam County Schools, and Keely Potter, Regional Director for the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET). They discuss what the NIET is and what their partnership with Putnam County Schools entails, what learning loss is and how…
12 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min

Ben Rodgers & Molly Brown And The Cookeville-Putnam County Visitors’ Bureau

Ben Rodgers meets with Molly Brown, Executive Director of the Cookeville-Putnam County Visitors’ Bureau. They discuss her decision to leave the Bureau for a new opportunity, a recap of her time at the Bureau, the importance of forming and maintaining strong relationships with the community and the Bureau's stakeholders, as…
8 Oct 2021 10AM 34 min
820 – 840