Ask A Kansan

Ever wonder what the difference between a fiddle and a violin actually is — or why Kansas has such a rich but largely undocumented fiddling tradition?  We sit down with Derrick Doty, the Flint Hills Fiddler, a musician, historian, and music teacher based in Manhattan, Kansas. Derrick is the 2023 Kansas State Banjo Champion, a former barber in Council Grove who turned barbershop stories into histor...

What happens when a kid who learned to cook crack cocaine by age five ends up as a corporate executive in small-town Kansas?  Our friend Rafael Mendez sits down to share one of the most remarkable personal journeys we've ever heard on this podcast. From a childhood in Miami shaped by the drug trade, foster care, and a serious criminal charge as a teenager, Rafael found an unlikely lifeline through...

How do you convince authors, budget-strapped nonprofits, and thousands of book lovers to show up in one place on the same Saturday? We sat down with the woman who has to figure that out every single day. This week we're joined by Lara Avery, Executive Director of the Kansas Book Festival and published author of romance novels including The Year of Second Chances and Purple Hearts (adapted into a m...

Sometimes the best things hide in plain sight. If you didn’t know, Kansas was once an ocean, and a huge chunk of that history is still alive at Cheyenne Bottoms — the largest wetland in the interior United States. We sit down with Curtis Wolf, director of the Kansas Wetlands Education Center, who breaks down what actually makes something a "wetland," why this 41,000-acre basin is a lifeline for mi...

Everyone assumes car people grew up under the hood with grandpa. This guest didn't — and he might be the best in the business anyway. On this episode, we sit down with Matthew "Matt" Miller-Wells, Associate Director of Automotive Studies at McPherson College, to talk about how a '68 Beetle and a lot of video games turned into a career restoring some of the rarest vehicles on the planet. We get int...

Kansas State University touches all 105 counties in this state — training the veterinarians who protect our livestock, the biomanufacturers building tomorrow's jobs, and the students who choose to stay and build their lives right here in Kansas. On this episode of Ask a Kansan, Gus and Sydney sit down with Dr. Richard Linton, president of Kansas State University, to talk about what it really means...

What happens when an entire education system hits a moment of collision — new leadership, new laws, and old habits all colliding at once? On this episode, we sit down with Cathy Hopkins, chair of the Kansas State Board of Education, to find out. From accreditation reform to the fight over cell phones in classrooms, Cathy pulls back the curtain on what's really happening inside Kansas schools right...

What does a school counselor actually do all day — and why does it matter more now than ever? Hanna Mick is an elementary school counselor in Topeka and a part-time consultant with the Kansas State Department of Education, and she's proof that the role goes far beyond what you see on TV. From launching a peer conflict-resolution program at recess to using AI for career exploration with kids as you...

Do kids even want to learn a skill like playing the guitar? This week we sit down with Matt Gerry, the guitar and music teacher at South Middle School in Salina, whose 24-year journey has taken him everywhere from a Weezer-sponsored trip to Chicago to a Radio Disney commercial — and even a Grammy Music Educator Award nomination. Before we get to Matt, Sydney shares a heartwarming (and a little iro...

What if the Federal Reserve wasn't just a boring government agency setting monetary policy, but a mission-driven storyteller trying to make sense of your household budget? On this episode, Julie and Sydney sit down with Jeremy Hill, regional executive for the Kansas City Federal Reserve, to unpack what the Fed actually does, why manufacturing is quietly booming across Kansas, and how inflation is...

Why do the animals you fall in love with sometimes have to leave the zoo? This week we sit down with Ryan VanZant, executive director of Rolling Hills Zoo in Salina, and trace his winding path from a childhood obsessed with parakeets and parrots to falconry, movie animal training, and eventually leading one of the youngest zoos in the country. We get the real story behind the zoo's famous museum,...

What if the hottest summer ticket in Kansas sports has been hiding in plain sight for 92 years? We sat down with Katie Woods, director of the National Baseball Congress in Wichita, and walked away completely obsessed with bobbleheads, Bananaball, and a baseball tournament with more history than you'd ever guess. From a 3 AM game under the lights to a decade-before-Jackie-Robinson integrated champi...

There was a time when what happened in Kansas was front page news on the east coast. This week, Sydney and Gus sit down with historian Dr. Kristen Epps, professor at Kansas State University and editor of Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Plains, to dig into Bleeding Kansas, the people slavery's expansion actually affected, and why the messy, complicated version of our state's story matters...

What if the best hiking in Kansas has been right under your nose the whole time? Jeri Brungardt co-founded Women Hiking Kansas and Beyond in 2019 with a simple idea: stop losing track of friends who wanted to tag along on hikes and just make a Facebook group. What happened next surprised even her. Twelve strangers showed up to that first hike — none of them personal friends — and the group has gro...

For centuries, history has been passed down through the stories of our lived experiences. And in this episode you’ll get a taste of the remarkable life of Jim Gray — The Cowboy — and this conversation might just be the most unexpected one we've had yet. Jim Gray is a rancher, historian, author, and director of the Jansen Museum in Geneseo, Kansas — a town of about 220 people in Rice County. He tak...

What does it take to preserve the stories that shaped Kansas — and to tell them honestly? Shane Carter, executive director of the Kansas African American Museum (TKAAM), joins us for a rich conversation about history, identity, and the work of building something that lasts. Shane's path to Wichita is anything but ordinary: a chance painting job in Newton, a curiosity-fueled afternoon touring Wichi...

What happens when a kid from Lindsborg, Kansas follows his heart to a cloud forest in Ecuador — and then returns after staying for nearly 20 years? Tanner Johnson's answer to that question is one of the most unexpected, quietly profound stories we've heard. He built a bamboo house, married into a local family, taught English to kids from kindergarten through 12th grade, and somewhere along the way...

How do you build a city's cultural identity — and why does it matter more than you might think? We sit down with Brad Anderson, Executive Director of Salina Arts and Humanities, the only city department of its kind in Kansas. Brad shares why Salina has been investing in arts and culture since 1966, what's at stake as the city embarks on a new cultural plan called The Big Picture, and why the Smoky...

What does it take to build a life — and a career — that touches nearly every corner of one state? This week we sit down with Lori Rogge, one of a handful of female auctioneers in Kansas, to talk about growing up across the state, learning the chant, and how a 22,000-acre Flint Hills ranch ends up on the internet. Highlights Sydney's grandfather was such a loyal auction customer that the auction ho...

What happens when a kidney stone saves your life and challenges you to chase your dreams? That's exactly what happened to James Bobetsky — known to most of Wichita as DJ Carbon. After 21 years in the corporate world, a cancer diagnosis, a surprise reconnection with his biological family, and a pandemic, Carbon made the leap to full-time DJ at 40. And he hasn't looked back since. Highlights Oak Gro...

What happens when a white guy from a small Kansas town becomes the bridge-builder between Spanish-speaking and English-speaking communities — and somehow also changes the global cycling industry along the way? LeLan Dains is one of the most fascinating people we've had on this show, and honestly, we almost undersold him. As the executive director of Kansas Spanish Speakers, LeLan has spent years b...

What does it really take to keep the arts alive in Kansas — and why does it matter more than you might think? Sarah VanLanduyt wears a lot of hats. As Executive Director of the Arts Council of Johnson County, a Kansas Arts Commissioner, and Board Chair of the Kansas Arts Network, she's one of the people quietly fighting to make sure the creative industries across the state have the funding, infras...

What do fire, bison, and star bonds have in common?   They're all part of this week's conversation about the Flint Hills — and honestly, it's one of those episodes that makes you want to book a trip to Manhattan, Kansas immediately. We sat down with Stephen Bridenstine, Director of the Flint Hills Discovery Center, to talk about what it really takes to understand one of the most unique — and misun...

What's actually in that "Made in Kansas" gift box — and why it matters more than you think. Kansas has been growing, raising, and producing world-class products for nearly 50 years under one of the most underrated state trademark programs in the country. Sammy Gleason from the From the Land of Kansas program joins us to unbox the special Kansas 250 gift box — and what comes out of it tells a surpr...

What if the prairie — that "flat, boring" stretch you drive through on I-70 — is actually one of the most critical and disappearing ecosystems on the planet? Matt Bain, Director of Conservation for The Nature Conservancy in Kansas, makes a compelling case that the Kansas prairie isn't just beautiful — it's the foundation of clean water, healthy soil, thriving wildlife, and the ranching culture tha...