Suzanne Perez
Education Reporter | Assistant News DirectorSuzanne Perez is a longtime journalist covering education and general news for KMUW and the Kansas News Service. Before coming to KMUW in 2021, Suzanne worked more than 30 years at The Wichita Eagle, where she covered schools and a variety of other topics. In addition to her news reporting, Suzanne reviews books for KMUW, co-hosts the monthly Books & Whatnot podcast and helps lead the station’s monthly Literary Feast book club. She created the #ReadICT Reading Challenge, an annual partnership with the Wichita Public Library that encourages adults to read more broadly.
When not reporting or writing, Suzanne enjoys cooking and traveling with her husband, Andy, playing fetch with their Labrador retrievers, Zeke and Raina, and snuggling with her cat, the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
Suzanne has been honored with a National Edward R. Murrow Award for hard news for her story about social-emotional learning in schools: Research shows social-emotional learning in schools pays off, but conservatives see a liberal agenda. She won a national Society of Professional Journalists award for 3,000 Kansas kindergartners and untold preschoolers skipped last year. Now they’re behind, and a national Public Media Journalists Association award for Derby residents pack school board meeting to support principal’s lesson on ‘white privilege’. She has also won numerous Kansas Association of Broadcasters awards for her education coverage.
Suzanne can be reached by email at perez@kmuw.org.
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"Good Dirt" by Charmaine Wilkerson tells the story of a well-to-do Black family who settled on the coast of New England. -
The Wichita school district is hosting a series of open houses during which members of the community can tour school buildings and ask questions about a proposed $450 million bond issue. -
Kiah Duggins, 30, graduated from East High and Wichita State University before going on to earn her law degree from Harvard Law School. -
Mayor Lily Wu choked up as she responded to the news that a plane that departed from Wichita Wednesday night collided with a helicopter in Washington, D.C., and likely left no survivors. -
Layne Fargo's new novel, "The Favorites," explores the dazzling but brutal world of elite ice dancing. -
A growing body of research shows that climbing high, running fast and conquering fears can improve children's physical and mental health and help them get along with peers. -
Journalist Pagan Kennedy spent years tracking down the full story of Martha "Marty" Goddard, and her book reflects that troubling history along with the author’s personal experiences and motivation. -
Some Derby High School teachers urged school board members to reconsider their vote against a proposed social studies curriculum. The board's conservative majority rejected the curriculum over concerns it was biased against Republican President-elect Donald Trump. -
Yes for Wichita Kids launched its website in support of a proposed $450 million bond issue to rebuild and refurbish Wichita schools. An opposition group, Wichita United for Better Education, was formed by a local Republican strategist. -
Book reviewer Suzanne Perez says Grady Hendrix's new novel, "Witchcraft for Wayward Girls," is a creepy, quirky story of teenaged girls who discover their hidden power.
