EPPiC Broadcast

Dr. Peter Gray, a research professor emeritus of psychology at Boston College, joins us to share his expertise across developmental psychology, neuroendocrinology, anthropology, and education. He is the author of a widely acclaimed introductory psychology textbook, currently in its eighth edition. He also wrote the popular book, Free to Learn , emphasizing the importance of childhood freedom to le...

This week, we're rewinding to a conversation with Vivek Sankaran and Michael Farris from November 2024.  Vivek is a professor of law at the Michigan University School of Law and Director of their Child Advocacy Law Clinic.  Michael is a constitutional law scholar, founding president of the Parental Rights Foundation, and the former CEO and president of Alliance Defending Freedom. Although the...

Lenore Skenazy, President of Let Grow and founder of the Free-Range Kids movement, joins Michael Ramey to discuss a recent Virginia case involving a mother who was convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor after allowing her five-year-old son to walk alone in their gated community. She received a six-month jail sentence that was suspended, while the child welfare investigation also r...

Sarah Katz, Clinical Professor of Law at Temple University Beasley School of Law, and April Lee, founder of Philly Voice for Change, join us to discuss a Pennsylvania proposal that would allow parental rights to be reinstated in certain circumstances after they have been terminated. Sarah brings her experience in family law and child welfare, while April brings lived experience as a parent involve...

Jim Mason, President of the Home School Legal Defense Association and a longtime advocate for homeschooling and parental rights, joins Michael Ramey for a conversation about the current state of homeschooling freedom in America. Jim brings decades of experience defending homeschool families and litigating Fourth Amendment issues in child welfare investigations. The conversation focuses on Connecti...

In this episode, Albany Law School Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Family Violence Litigation Clinic Dale Margolin Cecka joins us to discuss anonymous reporting to Child Protective Services and the investigation involving former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his family. Dale also discusses her recent law review article, Don’t Just Ask the Kids: Toward a More Deliberate...

In this episode, Emilie Kao, senior counsel and vice president of advocacy strategy for Alliance Defending Freedom and member of the Parental Rights Foundation Board of Advisors, joins us to discuss her article “Preserving Childhood: Dependency, Consent, and Parental Rights in Healthcare,” featured in The State of Parental Rights in America . Emilie explores the legal foundations of parental right...

In this episode, Joyce McMillan, founder and executive director of Just Making a Change for Families and a member of the Parental Rights Foundation Board of Advisors, joins us to discuss her recent article “Common Sense Guardrails for CPS,” featured in The State of Parental Rights in America . Drawing from her work with families impacted by the child welfare system, Joyce argues that Child Protect...

In this episode, Allison Green, Chief Legal Officer at the National Association of Counsel for Children, and Natalece Washington, Policy Counsel at NACC, join us to discuss the Counsel for Kids Campaign and the effort to guarantee legal representation for children in foster care. They explain the current gap in access to counsel across states and make the case for why children, like parents, shoul...

In this episode, Layal Bou Harfouch, drug policy analyst at Reason Foundation and doctoral student at the University of Oxford, joins us to discuss her recent article examining the relationship between substance use and child welfare policy. Drawing on her background in addiction medicine and research, she explains how substance use is often treated as automatic evidence of risk, even though it is...

In this episode, Alex Cinney, Staff Attorney at the American Bar Association’s Center on Children and the Law, and Toia Potts, a family advocate and co-founder of Carolina Parent Defenders, join us to discuss the realities and consequences of Termination of Parental Rights (TPR). Drawing on both legal expertise and lived experience, they examine how TPR functions within the child welfare system an...

In this episode, David Kelly, Co-Director of the Family Justice Group and former Senior Policy Advisor at the U.S. Children’s Bureau, joins us to reflect on his time in federal service and discuss the future of child welfare policy. Drawing on years of experience working alongside families, advocates, and policymakers, David shares insights into the importance of prioritizing family preservation,...

In this episode, William Wagner, constitutional legal scholar and newly appointed Chairman of the Board at the Parental Rights Foundation, joins us to reflect on this leadership transition and the future of the organization. Wagner shares his appreciation for outgoing Chairman Jim Mason and discusses the Foundation’s growth from its early connection with the Home School Legal Defense Association t...

In this episode, Sharon Balmer Cartagena, Directing Attorney of Public Counsel’s Child, Youth & Family Advocacy Project in California, joins us to discuss innovative efforts to support families earlier in the child welfare process. Drawing on her work with the Keeping Families Together Project in Los Angeles County, she explains how expanding access to support and legal counsel can help bridge...

In this episode, Will Estrada, Esq., Senior Counsel at the Home School Legal Defense Association, joins us to discuss recent legislative efforts impacting homeschool families across the country. Focusing on two contrasting bills in New England, Estrada explains how Connecticut’s HB5468 would significantly increase regulations on homeschool families, while New Hampshire’s HB1268 would move in the o...

In this episode, Vernadette R. Broyles, Esq., President and Chief Counsel of the Child and Parental Rights Campaign, joins us to discuss the recent Mirabelli decision and its implications for parental rights. Broyles explains the background of the case and why many advocates view the ruling as a significant development in the ongoing legal debate over whether schools can withhold information from...

In this episode, Kelley Fong, Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Irvine and author of the award-winning book Investigating Families: Motherhood in the Shadow of Child Protective Services , and Frank Edwards, Associate Professor at the Rutgers University School of Criminal Justice, join us to discuss their new study examining the relationship between foster care entry...

In this episode, James Uthmeier, Attorney General of Florida, joins us to discuss the creation of the state’s first-in-the-nation Office of Parental Rights within the Attorney General’s Office. Established earlier this year in response to a growing number of parental complaints, the office works to ensure Florida’s parental rights laws are upheld and that parents have a place to turn when those ri...

In this episode, Darren Jones, Senior Counsel and Director of Group Services at the Homeschool Legal Defense Association, joins us to explore the growing world of homeschooling, co-ops, and micro schools. Darren explains why parents are fully capable of educating their children, pointing to decades of strong academic outcomes and the wide range of resources available to families today. He also bre...

In this episode, Aubrey Edwards-Luce, Executive Director at the Center for Families, Children, and the Courts at the University of Baltimore School of Law, joins us to discuss the growing issue of hidden foster care. Hidden foster care is a way to keep children with family instead of entering the foster system, but with no oversight or due process, it doesn't always give parents, children, or...

In this episode, Attorney Aaron Rapier from the Rapier Law Firm joins us to discuss the troubling Krueger v. Petrak case in Illinois. In this case, investigators found the abuse allegations to be unfounded and the case was officially closed. However, only weeks later, the children were still removed from the home and separated from their parents for over a year. We explore what this case reveals a...

Welcome back to the EPPiC Broadcast ! In this episode, Matt Sharp, Senior Counsel and Director of the Center for Public Policy at Alliance Defending Freedom, discusses the renewed push for the Family Rights and Responsibilities Act. Matt explains how this legislation would strengthen parental rights at the federal level by applying the strict scrutiny standard to any government action that interfe...

Welcome back to the EPPiC Broadcast! We're re-featuring one of our well-received episodes featuring Grover Norquist, the founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform, a political advocacy group fighting for lower taxes. Today, he talks about limiting the government’s role in telling citizens how to live their lives - which naturally impacts its power over parents and families. The EPPiC...

Welcome back to the EPPiC Broadcast ! This week, we're rewinding to our episode featuring Brittany Patterson, a Georgia mother who made headlines when she was arrested after her 10-year-old walked to the store solo. David DeLugas, executive director of ParentsUSA and Brittany’s attorney, joined us as well.  Brittany tells her story and gives us a closer look at what happened on the day she wa...

During the times of American legalized slavery, the relationship between Black parents and their children was fraught with fear, and entirely controlled by the heavy hand of their owners. In her book Neglected Stories: The Constitution and Family Values, Prof. Peggy Cooper Davis draws the connection between this past reality, and the present reality of Black families finding themselves under the c...