The winning stories from the 2026 WVPB PBS KIDS Writers Contest are now available to read!
Learn more about Be My Neighbor Day! And check out our recap from last year.
On Demand
On Demand
Watch locally produced documentaries & more.
On Demand
On Demand
West Virginia Morning
Inside Appalachia
West Virginia Week
Mountain Stage
Us & Them
The Legislature Today
The Legislature This Week
Send us your comments and questions.
Stream our board meetings.
Check out the latest WVPB news.
Sign up for our newsletter and get weekly updates.
Meet the WVPB staff.
WV Educational Broadcasting Commission, the WVPB Foundation, and the Friends of WVPB.
Come work with us!
Read our annual report and learn how we educate, inform and inspire with your support.
Sponsor impactful and engaging media and entertainment.
Use your IRA to make a gift to WVPB.
Become a member with your gift of $1,000 or more.
Make WVPB part of your legacy.
Manage your membership account.
Learn how you can Protect and Sustain West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
Lalena Price
Many West Virginians have trouble with their teeth. In fact, there’s a big gap between folks who can reliably access an affordable dentist and those who can’t. That’s no surprise when half the state’s counties have fewer than six dentists. A recent national ranking shows West Virginia is second to last in overall oral health care. A state report shows that by third grade, 56 percent of children show signs of tooth decay, and 12 percent of adults have had all their teeth extracted.
People who don’t have good oral health habits and access to regular and quality dental care elevate their risk of other critical health care issues, such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes. About more than aesthetics or any toothless hillbilly stereotype, access to dental care is a dangerous culture divide that might look like a class gap but is deeper and far more serious.
This episode was recently honored with a regional award from the Associated Press of the Virginias. The first place honor was for best documentary.
This episode of Us & Them is presented with support from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation and the West Virginia Humanities Council.
Subscribe to Us & Them on Apple Podcasts, NPR One, RadioPublic, Spotify, Stitcher and beyond.
Add WVPB as a preferred source on Google to see more from our team
John E. Hancock is a professor of architecture and design at the University of Cincinnati, and he spent years studying Ohio's ancient earthworks. Recently, he published “Traveler's Guide to Ancient Ohio." Inside Appalachia Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Hancock about the book.
Continue Reading Take Me to More NewsCicero Fain is a historian at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, who has documented Appalachia's Black history. His latest undertaking is called the Appalachian Freedom Heritage Initiative. The project identified and documented more than two dozen previously unknown underground railroad sites throughout eastern Kentucky, southern Ohio and West Virginia. Inside Appalachia Host Mason Adams spoke with Fain about the project.
Continue Reading Take Me to More NewsThis week, before emancipation, Appalachia provided pathways to freedom for enslaved people trying to escape bondage. A new project identifies more than two dozen previously unknown underground railroad sites. Also, the Fly Around Music & Arts Festival in North Carolina was inspired by the hard work that followed Hurricane Helene. And, a ballad about floods recorded a generation ago still provides solace for people today.
Continue Reading Take Me to More NewsOn this West Virginia Morning, not much has been known about Appalachia’s contributions to the Underground Railroad, but a Marshall University historian is documenting that history.
Continue Reading Take Me to More News
