Maxwell Howard
ReporterMaxwell Howard joined IPR as a full-time reporter in September 2025, but his voice is well known to listeners.
Howard has been a longtime freelance contributor to IPR on a range of topics, including an in-depth look at the challenges facing the Grand Traverse County Jail, the exploration of forgotten ghost towns in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and profiles of local artists like Harold Kranick — a Charlie Chaplin impersonator who met Chaplin’s daughter while in costume.
When he’s not working, Maxwell is probably making kombucha, playing with his kids, or thinking about what to make for dinner.
Story idea and tips can be be sent to maxwell.howard@interlochen.org.
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Advocates in northern Michigan want to see a delayed state report on Michigan’s mental health system, as the region faces provider shortages and lack of inpatient beds for children. -
State lawmakers and advocates want to know when they'll see a report they were expecting months ago on the state of Michigan's mental health infrastructure.
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Sara Maurer's story looks at what it means to live in the Upper Peninsula amid a changing climate. She shares an excerpt with us and talks about her Yooper identity. -
Last year, northern Michigan Congressman Jack Bergman received one of the largest individual donations given to a Michigan congressional candidate. That donation came from an out-of-state couple. -
The $289,100 donation from a California couple, including Elliott Broidy, highlights the growing influence of megadonors in Michigan politics.
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A Grand Traverse County jail diversion program kept 80% of referrals out of jail in its first year. Sheriff Michael Shea now hopes to expand it. -
About a year ago, Grand Traverse County created a job in its jail — aimed at keeping people out of it, or supporting them once they're released. Now they want to expand it. -
When someone buys an illegal drug, there can be a difference between what they’re told they’re buying and what the drugs actually contain. -
Mexican drug cartels are shipping purer forms of meth into rural Michigan, replacing the drugs that were once made in home labs and full of impurities, police and lab testing data shows. -
Each year, volunteers fan out in northern Michigan — and around the country — to try and take a data snapshot: How many people are living without shelter? The point-in-time, or PIT, count provides data that informs federal funding. But where the government sends that money might soon change.
