A passion for storytelling

Will Davis has always been interested in storytelling.

That desire to make sense of people’s lives through their stories and how they connect to each other led him to Wright State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Selected Studies, with a focus in storytelling, in 2010 and a Master of Humanities in 2014.

“There’s a direct line between what I studied at Wright State and the work I do today at WYSO,” said Davis, who is director of the Eichelberger Center for Community Voices at the Yellow Springs public radio station.

Years before he joined WYSO, Davis was a student, staff member and faculty member at Wright State.

“I’ve seen the university from a lot of different angles,” he said. “It was really great. I had the time of my life.”

Davis started the Student Technology Assistance Center (STAC) at Wright State in 2001.

“At the time, that was a really unique place. Students were encouraged to experiment with new media tools, be creative with educational technology,” said Davis. “This was all new back then, and we were figuring it out. It was a very inventive and experimental place.”

The innovative work in the STAC led to the creation of The Pod in 2006, the first designated podcasting place on a college campus.

“Podcasting was very new back then,” said Davis. “We were trying to figure that out. How that might look in a university and how students might use podcasting in their courses or to help with their storytelling. I’m very proud of The Pod and the STAC.”

Davis received the President’s Award for Excellence for his work on the STAC. He was also instrumental in launching “Veterans’ Voices,” a collaboration between Wright State and WYSO that continues to this day.

“The idea was to create a radio series where veterans would tell their own stories in their own voices. We worked with students from the Veteran and Military Center,” said Davis. “That has expanded and become one of WYSO’s most popular offerings. Now we’re in our 12th year.”

Wright State alum Will Davis serves as the director of the Eichelberger Center for Community Voices at WYSO, a collaborative space for audio training, production and storytelling. (Video by Kris Sproles and photos by Erin Pence)

In 2017, Davis left Wright State and moved to Tennessee, where he began teaching at the University of Tennessee–Chattanooga. He also worked in public radio there.

During his time in Tennessee, Davis maintained a relationship with WYSO and continued to work with the station on projects like “Veterans’ Voices.”

“When a full-time opportunity opened here, they called me. I missed the area. I missed Yellow Springs. I missed my creative community. I missed WYSO. And so, I decided to come back,” Davis said. “No regrets. I love it here.”

As director of the Eichelberger Center for Community Voices, Davis oversees WYSO’s storytelling, produces series and trains community members on how to make radio programs and podcasts.

In March 2026, WYSO moved into its new headquarters in the restored Union Schoolhouse on Dayton Street in Yellow Springs. The $15 million, 19,000-square-foot facility was developed and funded by comedian Dave Chappelle’s real estate firm, Iron Table Holdings. WYSO invested an additional $3 million for equipment and operational infrastructure. It includes six state-of-the-art production studios, a community and event space, a newsroom, and offices and workspaces that perfectly merge the character and beauty of the historic schoolhouse with the convenience and functionality of the modern upgrades.

“This new space opens up a whole world of opportunities for WYSO that we didn’t have just a couple of months ago,” said Davis.

While most public radio stations are struggling due to cuts in federal funding, WYSO continues to thrive. One in six listeners are WYSO members.

“That’s a huge number for public radio,” said Davis. “We have a goal to move that to one in five listeners becoming a member. We’re so fortunate at WYSO to even have that goal. A lot of stations are suffering. But we are beloved. People have been behind us for over 60 years.”

Will Davis’ work with Wright State’s STAC led to “The Pod” in 2006, the first designated podcasting place on a college campus.

Davis and the rest of the WYSO team remain committed to serving the community that has steadfastly supported them.

“WYSO is not just a radio station,” he said. “It’s a community service, and it’s a hub for the community to come together to celebrate ourselves, to learn more about ourselves, to better understand ourselves and to tell our stories.”

From Wright State to WYSO, Davis has been able to build a career doing work that fulfills him.

“Wright State gave me space to try new things, because there wasn’t a blueprint for these things at that time. That’s where I learned to really lean in to not only telling stories but making stories,” he said. “And I brought that here to WYSO, and I get to do that every day. I love my job.”

Moving forward, Davis continues to be open to new collaborations — with Wright State and other institutions in the region — that bring people together.

“Storytelling is important, because it’s how we make sense of our lives. And it’s how we connect with one another,” he said. “It gives us an opportunity to walk in somebody else’s shoes for a couple of minutes. And that kind of understanding leads to empathy. And I think that’s where we should be going.”