About the Excelsior Citizen
Excelsior Citizen is a hyper-local source of information, dedicated solely to the events happening in and around Excelsior Springs. Our Mission is to consistently and accurately report the daily news that impacts the lives of all Excelsior Springs citizens. To give our readers the tools and knowledge to become informed, engaged citizens, to advocate for the things they care about most. Over the past nine years, we have grown and transitioned to become Excelsior Springs’ #1 source of news and information. We have a Facebook group with more than 23,000 curated members, a Facebook page with more than 8,500 followers, an e-newsletter with more than 2,000 subscribers, TikTok, Instagram, a YouTube Channel, and, of course, this website to host and archive all of our original content.
Our Memberships
Editorial Team
Courtney Cole, Founder
courtney@excelsiorcitizen.com
Courtney founded the Excelsior Citizen in 2015 while she was serving as Chamber Director. Using her skills as a social media manager she started a Facebook community group that quickly became known as the place to go if you wanted to be in the know. A 5th generation Excelsiorite, Courtney’s love for Excelsior Springs is contagious. Journalism is in Courtney’s blood, her grandpa, Joe Morgan owned and operated the local newspaper, The Excelsior Springs Standard, for more than thirty years. Her parents Kevin and Sonya Morgan also worked with the local paper and eventually began their own website design company. Over the years Courtney has built an impressive resume of public service. She holds an Associate’s Degree from Cottey College, a Bachelor’s of Art in Theatre Education, and a minor in Journalism from the University of Saint Mary, Leavenworth, KS. After teaching English and Drama for seven years, she spent five years in the world of state politics working her way up to Campaign Finance Director for the Missouri State Treasurer. Courtney knew she could make a greater impact on a local level and made it her mission to give her all to the community she loves, Excelsior Springs. Since moving back to Excelsior Springs she has served as Chamber Director, Director for the Excelsior Springs Educational Foundation, and Business Community Liaison for Excelsior Springs Job Corps. She now works with her family website and technology business, Morgansites.com, as their Business Development Manager. She is excited to be able to use her many talents as an educator, communicator, and organizer to help the citizens of Excelsior Springs become more informed and involved in the community.
S. Jason Cole, Publisher
jason@excelsiorcitizen.com
Jason has more than twenty years of experience in media production. He holds a Ph.D. in Film and Media Studies from the University of Kansas, a Master’s degree in Mass Communication from the University of Central Missouri, and a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication from Missouri Southern State University. At MSSU he served as the Student Station Manager of KGCS-LP and also as the Circulation Manager for the university newspaper, The Chart. At UCM he worked as the Business Manager for the Muleskinner and later served as the Broadcast Laboratory Supervisor. While at KU he was a teaching assistant and focused his studies on documentary film, animation, and audience interaction. He returned to UCM and taught for several years before taking a job with Ogden Publications, where he was the Senior Video Producer in charge of in-house and partner videos. While there he helped produce Tough Grit: The Rural American Challenge and oversaw partner projects with sponsors such as Purina, Tractor Supply Co., and Kubota Tractors. At Ogden, Jason was responsible for every step of the video production process from concept development and client pitch sessions to scriptwriting, shooting, editing, and graphic design. Once content was complete, he coordinated with the editorial staff and marketing departments to promote videos across print, websites, and mobile apps. Jason is excited to be able to use his media production skills to create stories that engage citizens of Excelsior Springs with their community.
COURTNEY AND JASON COLE IN DOWNTOWN EXCELSIOR SPRINGS
Fact Checking and Accuracy Policies
Fact-Checking: The Excelsior Citizen takes every measure to get the information presented to you directly from primary sources, (eye-witnesses, city officials, administrators, and other leaders in the community). We do not report hearsay or rumor. Much of what we report is driven by citizen submissions to our publication. We strive to bring our audience accurate and timely delivery of information and will always do our best to verify information with first-hand sources before publishing content to our website.
We at the Excelsior Citizen strive for accuracy in our reporting and we welcome your help in finding errors or omissions that warrant correction or clarification. Any verified corrections that need to be made to stories after the initial publication will be noted at the end of the corrected article describing the changes that were made to the story and when they were made. If false or misleading information is shared on any of our social networks, or in our newsletter, we will address it on those platforms.
If you feel our reporting is in error or you find a mistake, please email the URL of the article in question with an explanation to info@excelsiorcitizen.com.
We define corrections as any major change to an article, photo caption, headline, graphic, video, or other material. If corrections are made we will mark the change with a footnote on the article explaining the change. A clarification is when our journalism is factually correct but the language used is not as clear or detailed as it should be. If clarification is needed the language will be modified and a clarification footnote added to the story. Clarifications may also be used to update stories in which new facts or reporting has become available since publication.
Ethics
At the Excelsior Citizen, the highest and primary obligation in our journalism is to serve the public. We abide by the same standards we expect of others in our community; honesty and fairness. We follow the ethics code outlined by the Society for Professional Journalists.
Ownership, Funding, and Transparency
Excelsior Citizen was founded in 2021 and is owned by Sticky Wicket Media, LLC which is locally owned and operated by S. Jason Cole and Courtney S. Cole. We sometimes partner with our family-owned businesses Morgansites.com and Joe’s Datacenter for web design and technical support for our company.
We feel that everyone in our community should have the ability to be involved in our work and we strive to include a healthy cross-section of sponsors. Any actual or potential conflict of interest that we believe could jeopardize your trust as it relates to a particular story, will be disclosed on that story. This includes business/financial relationships with sources or subjects. When making announcements on behalf of our sponsors, we will clearly label this content.
We include the date of each story’s publication and the name of the author so you know who is presenting you with the information. You can always visit this page to learn more about each of our team members and their professional background. We present only the facts and do not show favoritism towards any entity. Sponsorship by a business or organization does not mean that the Excelsior Citizen endorses or supports the views of those businesses or organizations.
If you are interested in sharing our content, please contact us at info@excelsiorcitizen.com.
