© 2025 New England Public Media

FCC public inspection files:
WGBYWFCRWNNZWNNUWNNZ-FMWNNI

For assistance accessing our public files, please contact hello@nepm.org or call 413-781-2801.
PBS, NPR and local perspective for western Mass.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

April 1, 2025: Truthful empowerment

Literacy equals liberation, and each can take several forms.

To the letter of this equation, the western Massachusetts-based Literacy Project has been providing adult basic education programs and opportunities for 40 years. We talk with Executive Director Colleen Kucinski and Sagrario “Charro” Turner, a recent program graduate and commencement speaker, about filling this often overlooked gap in education, supporting participants to engage in meaningful and equitable learning to participate in the economic, social, cultural and civic community.

And the 4th annual Power of Truths Festival is happening this Friday and Saturday in Florence to harness the power of education and art for racial and social justice. We welcome back to the show festival co-founder Michael Lawrence Riddell, executive director of Self-Evident Education, and one of the festival performers, Washington DC-based emcee and author Sa-Roc.

The Literacy Project
4th annual Power of Truths Festival

Christopher “Monte'' Belmonte is host and executive producer of NEPM's The Fabulous 413. He was born and raised in Massachusetts and has been a radio host in western Massachusetts for the last 20 years — the last 17 of them as host of Mornings with Monte on The River 93.9/WRSI.
Kaliis Smith is a radio host and producer for NEPM's The Fabulous 413. She was most recently host and producer at The River 93.9/WRSI where she appeared on Mornings with Monte for the Nerdwatch segment and hosted weekday evenings.