Radio Chatskill

New York state’s school districts are in the final push to finalize their budgets ahead of the state budget vote deadline of May 19.  Last Tuesday, the Liberty Central School District Board of Education adopted a $72 million budget for the upcoming 2026-2027 school year with no tax levy increase. Now, it heads to voters to decide on May 19. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with the district’s...

New York really is the Big Apple. New York is the second-largest apple producing state in the country, averaging 29.5 million bushels of production annually, according to the USDA.  But last Tuesday early morning, apple farms were hit with a late Spring freeze with temperatures that left some orchards devastated with severe crop loss. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar has more.

The Hudson Valley awaits its first Black trans-owned bookstore coming this summer. Born and raised in the Hudson Valley, founder Awa-Moon Barnett is a community educator and organizer based in Newburgh who has been fundraising over the past year to open “home home” — a mobile bookshop and political education center grounded in her belief that education serves as a central site of liberation for Bl...

New York state’s health department data shows a major decline in the rate of newborns dependent on opioids in Sullivan County. From 2020 to 2024, the rate of babies born with neonatal withdrawal symptoms has declined by about 70 percent in the county. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with Sullivan County Commissioner John Liddle this morning about the progress.

With the 2026 midterm elections having already begun, the ongoing Supreme Court case Watson vs. Republican National Committee is debating a Mississippi law that allows mail-in ballots to be counted after Election Day as long as they are postmarked for Election Day. 14 states and the District of Columbia provide this grace period for voters, and 29 states in total allow additional time for at least...

While some federal data shows that national ICE arrests have slowed down, advocates say the fear of deportation has been devastating for immigrant communities. In New York, more than half of the state’s farmworkers are undocumented – leaving many navigating the growing risk of deportation, and workplace labor abuses such as wage theft and medical neglect. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with...

Families and community advocates gathered in Liberty on Friday for a special community baby shower with a purpose. Hosted by the nonprofit Maternal Infant Services Network, the event offered free community resources and support for expecting and new families with children under two. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar brings us this report from the celebration.

School budget season is underway in New York, with districts facing a May 19 deadline to put their budgets up for a vote. But rising costs and uncertain revenue streams are squeezing some school districts into a tight financial spot.  Radio Catskill spoke with David Albert, Chief Communications and Marketing Officer, at the New York State School Boards Association – which serves more than 600 loca...