Welcome to Mile Markers, a bimonthly newsletter about rural higher education.
We've got exciting news! Emily Lytle will be joining Open Campus next month as our new reporter covering the role of college in rural America.
She'll be taking over Mile Markers and expanding the ways we connect with rural parts of the country. As our rural engagement reporter, she’ll do more than just write stories. She will also produce other forms of independent information to help people understand and shape the policies and institutions that matter most to their careers and futures. That could include services and products like guides, videos, and events.
She joins us on April 15 but before then, we want to hear from you.
What's the most important thing to understand about rural America right now? What’s one suggestion you have for Open Campus to help better meet the information needs of rural regions?
Reply to this email with your thoughts, or answer here.
Get to know Emily
After working as a community reporter in Delaware, covering stories that ranged from farmland preservation efforts to beach tourism trends, Emily most recently collaborated with news organizations around the globe as part of The Reynolds Journalism Institute’s innovation team. In this role, Emily produced the monthly Innovation in Focus newsletter and tested new tools, technology, and strategies alongside community-centered newsrooms.This looked like news-led walking tours in Oregon and a revival of personal ads for a Pittsburgh newspaper, among other experiments.
Emily also co-leads the community journalism track for Radically Rural, which offers a platform and opportunities for rural leaders across the country to learn from one another.
She has received regional awards for her reporting on land use and health care access, and she earned a B.A. in Journalism at American University and a Nonprofit Management Graduate Certificate from the University of Missouri.
She is often happiest when she is outdoors, whether that's paddling on a lake in Missouri or walking around her family's farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania.
What excites you about this beat?
“Ever since I started journalism school in Washington, D.C., I wanted to tell stories about communities like the small town where I grew up. I loved reporting on people and places that challenged readers' first impressions and assumptions. I'm excited to meet people who represent the wide range of stories that exist in rural communities, and I can't wait to explore new ways to engage with folks about stories related to higher education and job training in places that often get overlooked.
I've had the privilege of living in a more rural area, reporting on small towns and farming communities, collaborating with rural newsrooms across the country, and working toward solutions as track leader for the Radically Rural Summit. And now I'm so grateful to have the opportunity to continue giving back to these communities in this new role.”
The Kewaunee Power Station stands decommissioned along Lake Michigan on Sept. 16, 2025, in Kewaunee, Wis. Cloverleaf Infrastructure approached property owners and town of Carlton officials to gauge their support for a data center near the former nuclear energy facility. The company is no longer pursuing the project, officials told Wisconsin Watch. Credit: Joe Timmerman / Wisconsin Watch
What we’re reading
Our work with the Open Campus Local Reporter Network provides opportunities for us to dig into rural issues in communities across the country. Our 18 partner newsrooms have dedicated beat reporters in place to provide in-depth higher education reporting for their respective audiences — here are a few recent stories we’ve produced:
In Virginia, Allie Pitchon at Charlottesville Tomorrow wrote about the possible repercussions of a Trump administration decision to cancel a UVA research project. Farmers and experts say a rare chance to evaluate farm labor reforms may be lost.
Miranda Dunlap at Wisconsin Watch explored a small farming community’s decision to fend off offers from a data center to purchase farmland.
“Once they take land away, you know, it’ll never come back,” Chris Kohnle, president of the local Tisch Mills Farm Center, told Wisconsin Watch.
Jason Gonzales at Chalkbeat Colorado wrote about a new initiative to help rural college students get an education that connects to the workforce, funded by more than $5 million in donations.
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