Regan Mertz
Arts & Culture ReporterRegan is a journalist for Aspen Public Radio’s Arts & Culture Desk. Regan moved to the Roaring Fork Valley in July 2024 for a job as a reporter at The Aspen Times. While she had never been to Colorado before moving for the job, Regan has now lived in ten different states due to growing up an Army brat. She considers Missouri home, and before moving West, she lived there and worked at a TV station.
Regan graduated from the Jonathan B. Murray Center for Documentary Journalism, earning a Master of Arts in Documentary and Photojournalism in December 2022. She received her Bachelor of Journalism in Radio and Convergence Journalism from the University of Missouri School of Journalism in May 2021. Throughout college, Regan worked at every Missouri School of Journalism publication, including the local NPR station.
She spent her summers working as a fellow for the Reynolds Journalism Institute, where she worked on a podcast with The Oregonian and audio stories for South Dakota Public Radio. She has also worked in Washington, D.C., at the Double Exposure Investigative Film Festival and Symposium and at the Library of Congress as a research assistant.
Regan is a White House Correspondents’ Association scholarship recipient and has won awards from the Missouri Broadcasters Association and a Missouri Press Association, along with receiving an Edward R. Murrow in 2021.
When not reporting, she enjoys trying out new hikes with her dog and reading with her cat. Regan is also learning to ski for the first time this winter.
-
Aspen Santa Fe Ballet’s Folklórico program ended in December, following the retirement of its longtime Executive Director Francisco Nevarez-Burgueño. It brought students a strong sense of community, discipline and a connection to Mexican culture. -
Funding cuts from Garfield County are contributing to decreases in the summer and fall bus services. The Roaring Fork Transportation Authority is continuing to seek funding to keep the Hogback service fully operational. -
ACES’ annual Christmas Bird Count is wrapping up this month. ACES Naturalist Rebecca Weiss spoke about Aspen’s citizen science initiative and how the bird count helps conservation efforts. This story is part of our “On the Ground” radio series. -
Greg Lewis won the 2025 prize last night for a poem he wrote for the Aspen Daily News. It is awarded to local writers who submit letters to the editors of local newspapers. -
La escuela Glenwood Springs High School cerró el 30 de enero después de que muchos maestros faltaran al trabajo para unirse a una jornada nacional de protesta contra las actividades del ICE en Minneapolis. Los estudiantes de Carbondale también salieron de la escuela para protestar en Main Street. -
Snowmobile competitions were phased out during the COVID-19 pandemic. The new X Games CEO brought them back during the 2026 competitions, but two athletes crashed during the first event. -
Glenwood Springs High School closed on Friday after too many teachers called out to join a national day of action protesting ICE activity in Minneapolis. Students from Carbondale also walked out of school to protest on Main Street. -
Aspen skier Alex Ferreira and Canadian snowmobiler Brett Turcotte secured podium spots over the weekend, and snowboarders made history with never-before-seen tricks and at the games. -
Snowmobile competitions are returning for the first time in five years to the X Games in Aspen. This is just one recent change to the quickly evolving games under CEO Jeremy Bloom. Other changes include ticketed events, AI judging, sports betting and an X Games League. -
Ride Glenwood on Demand will add a fourth van this year to lower wait times. But some city councilors are worried about the impact on local taxi businesses, and the environmental impacts of a gas-powered van.
