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Front Page Sunday 5/13/12

Murray State’s spring 2012 crop of graduates face a rough economy still struggling back from recession.  And they, along with two and a half million other graduates nationwide, will compete for jobs not quite as plentiful as in the past.  We’ll take a look at job prospects for new grads in our region today on Page Sunday from WKMS News.

(1.) COLSTON – This week Kentucky Senator Julie Denton accused Medicaid managed care organization Coventry Cares of underpaying hospitals and that if the organization didn’t straighten up that she’d have the state end its contract with the company. That story took up much of Kentucky Public Radio Capitol Reporter Kenny Colston’s time this week. He speaks with Rick Howlett about the dust up. He begins by  describing an MCO’s role. 

(2.) JOB PROSPECTS FOR 2012 GRADS -- More than 1,300 students will leave Murray State University this weekend with degrees in hand, most of them searching for a job. Their competition; nearly two and a half million students graduating nationwide. Sheila Clark is the Director of the West Kentucky Workforce Investment Board. Gary Pitts spoke with her about regional job prospects as the nation slowly pulls itself out of an economic recession. 

(3.) JUDICIAL CUTS-Sweeping budget cuts have forced the state Judiciary to turn to furloughs, program cuts and possible layoffs mostly unseen in Kentucky courts. WKMS’ Drew Adams delves into the cost saving measures, some of which hurt working professionals more than it does judges. 

(4.) TRACK TECH EQUINE HEALTH- We’re in Triple Crown season with the Preakness next Saturday. Some of the finest equine health care in the world is centered in the Kentucky Bluegrass, and advances in veterinary medicine give those who can afford it an edge at the track. Kentucky Public Radio’s Leslie Guttman reports on how advances in veterinary medicine give those who can afford it an edge at the track. 

(5.) AMERICANS ELECT- Kentuckians might be among the majority of states to see a third party candidate for president on the ballot this fall. It’s also possible that candidate will be the product of the nation’s first ever online primary. The non-profit Americans Elect has spearheaded the program. National Campus Director Blake Wright joins me to talk about how the whole thing works.

(6.) CARLISLE/BALLARD LIBRARY 2-WAY -After several years of planning, Ballard and Carlisle County residents will have access to their own library. The Ballard-Carlisle Library has opened with funds supplied by the Ballard Fiscal Court. WKMS’s Shelly Baskin spoke with Librarian Sonya Mainord about the services the new library will provide for patrons. 

(7.) QUEBE SISTERS 2-WAY -- The Quebe Sisters Band is made up of Grace, Sophia, and Hulda Quebe as well as Joey McKenzie and Drew Phelps. The young Texans play triple fiddles in the country western style and have played with ensembles ranging from the Grand Ole Opry to the Reno Philharmonic Orchestra. They’ll be visiting Paris, TN at the Krider Performing Arts Center next week. Rose Krzton-Presson spoke with Sophia Quebe about life as a sister and musician.

(8.) LOWERTOWN ARTS AND MUSIC FEST --The 2012 Lower Town Arts and Music Festival gets underway in Paducah next Friday.  The three day event brings together artists, musicians, and restaurants from the 350 miles around the River City.  It also brings festival-goers from just as far.  For a preview of what’s new this year, Todd Hatton speaks with festival co-director, and Lower Town artist, Michael Terra. 

(9.) ART DEWEESE RETIRING FROM PTHS CHORAL PROGRAM -- This month marks the end of an era for the choral program at Paducah Tilghman High School.  Long-time choir director and teacher Art Deweese is retiring after 22 years in the classroom.  During his tenure, Deweese has shaped an award-winning choral program; his students have performed at New York’s Carnegie Hall and even sung masses at St. Mark’s in Venice as well as the Vatican.  The Grand Rivers native has also guided high school students to professional caliber vocal performances in three recent musicals at PTHS, Les Miserables, Jekyll and Hyde, and Fiddler on the Roof.  Todd Hatton went to Paducah Tilghman one sunny afternoon to speak to Art Deweese, a man who’s become something of a tradition himself, about his career, and his future. 

Chad Lampe, a Poplar Bluff, Missouri native, was raised on radio. He credits his father, a broadcast engineer, for his technical knowledge, and his mother for the gift of gab. At ten years old he broke all bonds of the FCC and built his own one watt pirate radio station. His childhood afternoons were spent playing music and interviewing classmates for all his friends to hear. At fourteen he began working for the local radio stations, until he graduated high school. He earned an undergraduate degree in Psychology at Murray State, and a Masters Degree in Mass Communication. In November, 2011, Chad was named Station Manager in 2016.
Todd Hatton hails from Paducah, Kentucky, where he got into radio under the auspices of the late, great John Stewart of WKYX while a student at Paducah Community College. He also worked at WKMS in the reel-to-reel tape days of the early 1990s before running off first to San Francisco, then Orlando in search of something to do when he grew up. He received his MFA in Creative Writing at Murray State University. He vigorously resists adulthood and watches his wife, Angela Hatton, save the world one plastic bottle at a time.
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