Stephanie Hughes

Senior Reporter

SHORT BIO

Stephanie Hughes is a senior reporter at Marketplace. She’s focused on education and the economy, and lives in Brooklyn.

She's reported on topics including the effectiveness of technology used by schools to prevent violence, startups that translate global climate data for homebuyers, and why theater majors are getting jobs writing for chatbots.

Previously, she worked as a producer for Bloomberg, where she covered finance, technology, and economics. Before that, she worked as the senior producer for “Maryland Morning,” broadcast on WYPR, the NPR affiliate in Baltimore. She’s also reported for other media outlets, including NPR’s “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered,” “The Takeaway,” and Salon.

At WYPR, she helped produce the year-long, multi-platform series “The Lines Between Us,” which won a 2014 duPont-Columbia Award. She’s also interested in using crowdsourcing to create online projects, such as this interactive map of flags around Maryland, made from listener contributions.

A native of southern Delaware, Stephanie graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in communications, studying at the Annenberg School. Before she found her way to radio, she worked in the children’s division of the publishing house Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

Latest Stories (507)

Global food prices reach all-time high

Apr 8, 2022
The United Nations’ index of global food prices rose 12.6% in March, increasing the risk of hunger in the developing world.
In Egypt, the government subsidized bread so much that it costs consumers less than the value of the grain it's made with, leading to waste.
Khaled Desouki/AFP via Getty Images

Should colleges help students pay for basic living costs?

Apr 8, 2022
The American Rescue Plan earmarked about $77 billion in higher education relief, with a significant chunk dedicated to helping students with costs outside tuition, including housing, food and clothes.
Above, transit passengers on the Metro C Line in Los Angeles, California.  Grants for schools made available through the American Rescue Plan are providing funds for college students' needs, like public transit or child care.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

What will it take for yellow buses to go green?

Apr 5, 2022
Electric school buses cost about three times as much as diesel ones. The White House is putting $5 billion toward the zero-emission models.
The Biden administration is putting $5 billion toward replacing existing school buses with zero-emission models.
Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

More high schools may start the day later ... because teens need more sleep

Mar 31, 2022
While pediatricians support a change, some districts say it would upend child care and work schedules for families.
Starting the school day at 8:30 or earlier isn't best for many students' ability to learn, but sending them home at a later time may disrupt family life.
Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images

A bill that aims to expand access to 401(k) accounts is on its way to the Senate

Mar 31, 2022
The House approved it by an overwhelming, bipartisan majority.
The Securing a Strong Retirement Act, now in the Senate, aims to make it easier for Americans to save for retirement.
designer491/Getty Images

Students face standardized test dilemma as colleges split on their use

Mar 30, 2022
Some colleges are bringing back SAT and ACT requirements. Others have dropped them permanently. What's a college applicant to do?
More than 1,800 colleges and universities in the U.S. don't require the SAT or ACT for admissions, the National Center for Fair and Open Testing says.
basar17/Getty Images

More businesses are asking us to "round up" for charity. How much change does it take to make change?

Mar 28, 2022
Research finds more people will agree to round a purchase up for charity than give a whole dollar. The reason: It hurts less.
Research shows that consumers are more inclined to "round up" purchases for charity at checkout than they are to donate a full dollar.
Al Bello/Getty Images

Student loan forbearance is set to end ... or is it?

Mar 24, 2022
The government's moratorium on student loan payments, extended more than once, ends in April. But borrowers may not be able to pay.
Millions of students who graduated college during the pandemic have never had to make a student loan payment.
Paul Morigi/Getty Images for We The 45 Million

Helping is one goal of humanitarian aid. Another is claiming credit.

Mar 23, 2022
Countries and international organizations want people to know about the foreign aid they provide.
President Biden signs the Consolidated Appropriations Act on March 15 to fund the U.S. government, which also sent $13.6 billion in aid to Ukraine.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Already short on bus drivers, school districts now face soaring diesel fuel costs

Mar 21, 2022
The price of diesel is up 50% over a year ago. Some districts are turning to COVID relief funds to cover the increased cost.
Some school districts are opting for a four-day school week to deal with rising diesel prices, one expert said.
Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty Images