EAST LANSING, MI; Sep. 12, 2025 – WKAR Public Media announced today the upcoming premiere of the eleventh and final season of Curious Crew, the WKAR original show for kids.
Curious Crew features inquisitive kids taking a fun approach to investigating principles of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).
The new season premieres on WKAR TV in mid-Michigan and streaming on Saturday, Sept. 27, at 10:30am ET. The first of five new episodes explores Newton’s Second Law of Motion. Other topics covered in the new season include Inclined Planes, Brass Instruments, Compressed Air and Kite Science.
The new episodes make up the final season of the WKAR original series that debuted in November 2014.
“Curious Crew has helped WKAR develop an integrated approach to our children’s educational programming,” said Ashlee Smith, WKAR senior director of content and education. “The lessons and experiments introduced by Dr. Rob and our cast ignited a love for science in our viewers, connecting them with ideas for hands-on experiments at home and bringing experiments to life through hands-on learning at WKAR events.”
“Education is a cornerstone of the WKAR mission and will continue to serve as a guiding principle in our work serving mid-Michigan communities,” said Shawn Turner, WKAR general manager. “We look forward to advancing the spirit of exploration and learning in more ways that will meet our community wherever they are in location and life.”
The host of Curious Crew is award-winning science educator Dr. Rob Stephenson. Stephenson has been host and writer throughout the run of series.
"It's just felt so wonderful, spreading the joy of science learning and STEM education, not only with our cast members, but with our viewers," said Stephenson. "It's hard to bring Curious Crew to a close but knowing that the episodes will live online and continue to impact kids and, I hope, encourage everyone to stay curious! That is amazing."
Since Curious Crew debuted in 2014 through this final season, a total of 96 episodes will have been produced and broadcast. Distributed by the National Educational Telecommunications Association (NETA), Curious Crew has been seen on PBS stations across the country.
Susi Elkins, currently PBS senior vice president of station services, launched Curious Crew during her time as television station manager at WKAR.
“The opportunity to share the enthusiasm and interest that Dr. Rob brought to science for children beyond the walls of a classroom felt like catching lightning in a bottle, but it was only possible through WKAR,” said Elkins. “Curious Crew’s run for eleven seasons is a testament to public media’s commitment to education and impact in local communities.”
Carol Yancho, currently senior director of content at Arizona PBS, produced the series for seasons four through ten during her time at WKAR.
“There were so many aspects of working on Curious Crew that I enjoyed, but it was the interaction with the cast members that was especially fulfilling,” said Yancho. “It was amazing to watch the cast explore phenomena together through experimentation just like real scientists – inspiring kids watching the show and themselves to even pursue careers in science. That is a lasting legacy that everyone involved in Curious Crew can be very proud of.”
Curious Crew and show host Stephenson have been honored with multiple awards over the course of the show’s run, including fifteen regional EMMY® awards, six Broadcast Excellence Awards, and three national NETA awards.
Curious Crew airs on WKAR-TV 23.1 each Saturday at 10:30am. All episodes stream free in the PBS app and online at pbs.org and video.wkar.org.
Most episodes from the full series catalog will continue to be broadcast on WKAR TV and remain available streaming indefinitely.
Support for this season of Curious Crew is provided by Michigan State University Federal Credit Union and Consumers Energy Foundation.