Noel Gasca
General Assignment Reporter
About
Noel is a general assignment reporter for KUOW, covering everything from city hall to pickleball. Prior to joining the newsroom, Noel worked as a producer for KUOW’s midday show Soundside. Noel has also worked as an online editor and producer with KUOW’s web team, and she’s also a proud graduate of KUOW’s RadioActive program.
Noel is an alumna of Emerson College and has interned at NPR member stations WBUR in Boston and WAMU in Washington D.C. Originally from Lake Stevens, Washington, Noel is elated to be back in the Pacific Northwest and covering the people and places that make up the state she calls home.
When she’s not working, Noel enjoys perusing Seattle’s used bookstores, practicing her kata, and discussing the lasting legacy of Selena Quintanilla’s music with anyone who will listen.
Location: Seattle
Languages: English
Pronouns: she/her
Professional Affiliations: National Association of Hispanic Journalists, AIR
Stories
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Major projects at a standstill as concrete workers strike across King County
Since November 2021, over 300 concrete mixer truck drivers have been on strike. They work for six of the largest cement suppliers in the region and if the cement doesn't flow - the rest of the work on the job site can't happen. Now, contractors and local leaders are starting to sound the alarm about project delays.
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Looking for diverse happily ever after stories? Turn to 'Radical Romance'
Romance fiction has not always done a great job of handing out those happy endings to everyone, especially to characters who don’t watch the image of the harlequin heroine you might have seen on romance fiction covers on your grandma’s bookshelf: blonde, willowy, white, straight and cis-gender. That inspired one local bookseller to launch the “Radical Romance” book group, which aims to highlight and celebrate romance fiction featuring characters of all races, orientations, beliefs, sizes, and abilities.
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Wave of book bans strikes U.S. How local librarians and book lovers are responding
Sara Strite says she would rather not stand in front of Kent School District headquarters in the rain at seven a.m. But she'll do it if it means keeping books in school libraries.
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In Olympia, magic mushrooms are a no-go, and 'missing middle' housing pushes forward
Lawmakers in Olympia are officially halfway through this year's legislative session. What's made it forward?
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Re-airing: Crying in H-Mart
Our connections to books can be deeply personal. We cling to the characters that feel like friends, or reflect pieces of ourselves. But how do you translate your reading experience and the connections you feel with a book into music?
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What can be done about the "missing middle" of housing in Washington?
Legislators are in the middle of tackling a massive hot-button issue: housing density.
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Tourism is booming in our small towns. But can locals afford to enjoy it?
This month we visited a few of our popular Washington tourist destinations. We wanted to know: how has the pandemic reshaped tourism? What changes has the pandemic, and tourism broadly, brought to some of our most beautiful places? Today, we break down what we learned and dive into one of the biggest themes we heard about: how booming tourism has made living in our small towns untenable.
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Could psychedelic mushrooms be used to treat depression in Washington?
Psilocybin, the active ingredient in “magic mushrooms” shows promise for treating depression and PTSD. A new bill in Olympia, if passed, would make this treatment available to Washingtonians under very specific circumstances.
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My child has a better understanding of pronouns than me. What should I do?
The pandemic has take an emotional and mental toll on all of us – especially children and adolescents.
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Our neighbors Sound-under
Soundside takes a deep dive into the waters around Washington to learn about some of our less appreciated neighbors. Because while they may be lesser-known, they have a lot to tell us about our ecosystems, and might even offer some innovative solutions to everyday problems.