About

I’m Lilley — a lifelong storyteller and journalist-in-training.

Feature-length reporter with multiple stories aired nationally

Public Media Journalists Association award-winner

Society of Professional Journalists award-winner

Missouri Broadcasters Association award-winner

Missouri Press Association award-winner

When I was eight years old, I moved to a new St. Louis neighborhood with my dad, and ever the creative, curious child, decided to learn more about my new surroundings by starting a newspaper — the Wyoming Street News.

I received exciting recognition for my early journalism — including a feature in the local St. Louis Magazine and a radio appearance as “Kick Ass Chick of the Week” (which, to preteen me, was quite exciting and a bit profane). In high school, I started a podcast, Minor Issues, about Generation Z and social issues, that won a Spotify award for young podcasters. As a senior, I became the first high schooler to intern for my local NPR affiliate, St. Louis Public Radio. Exposed to a newsroom for the first time, I learned that journalism can be a way for me to make sense of the world, connect with others and serve my community.

Since then, I have continued to pursue new storytelling opportunities with the same fervor as my eight-year-old self. I have completed another internship with STLPR, crossed the Atlantic to intern with POLITICO Europe’s production desk in Brussels, Belgium, covered health and higher education for the Columbia Missourian, practiced science communication as a podcast & productions intern for the American Chemical Society, and freelanced for Harvest Public Media, a collective of Midwest public radio stations that report on food and agriculture issues. Some of my features have aired nationally on Here & Now, WBUR & NPR’s weekly syndicated news show, and I am grateful to have won awards from the Public Media Journalists Association, Society of Professional Journalists, Missouri Broadcasters Association and Missouri Press Association.

Now a senior at Mizzou, I am an advanced reporter and morning newscaster for KBIA — the NPR station in Columbia, Mo., that I have been reporting for since my sophomore year. Over time, I’ve only grown a stronger love for radio journalism, and as I refine my skills and formulate my goals for the future, I will continue to seek out new ways to do impactful, public service reporting. I always have — and always will — love journalism for its ability to teach me about the world and serve others as I do so.

I credit my huge crew of supporters, including family who always read my articles, friends who keep me sane and professors who impart valuable knowledge, for continuing to encourage me as I journey through college and grow my journalistic toolkit.