Kansas Reflector Podcast

Cindy Lane, the new director of the Kansas Blueprint for Literacy, and Blake Flanders, president and CEO of the Kansas Board of Regents, speak about the imperative that Kansas better equip current and future educators to teaching reading instruction to students.

Braided Haven board member Darin Stephens and executive director Kathleen Marker discuss the need for an LGBTQ+-specific shelter and the inspiration for the project. After years of work, the organization is planning to open both a drop-in center and a shelter.

Advocates of clemency for Sarah Gonzales-McLinn are taking the next step in their efforts. Gonzales-McLinn is serving at least 25 years in prison for murder, but her advocates want the public to understand that she was the victim of sex trafficking to learn more. Journalist Dave Ranney and advocate Michelle McCormick talk about the case.

Kansas businesses have more jobs than workers, and state universities are exporting 57% of graduates. A workforce pathway system could serve both students and businesses, says Torree Pederson, president and CEO of the Kansas City-based nonprofit Aligned.

National Park Service rangers Lawson Nwakudo and Jeff Tully discuss celebrations May 17 and May 18 of the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision that "separate but equal" public schools were a violation of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Kansas Reflector opinion editor Clay Wirestone talks with editor in chief Sherman Smith about an overstuffed veto session yielding drama aplenty — not that any of the drama was required — and the prospects of Gov. Laura Kelly calling lawmakers back for a special session to address tax cuts.

Jack Curtis, founding chairman of the United Kansas Party, says many right- and left-leaning independent voters in Kansas feel the Republican and Democratic parties don’t represent their interest. The United Kansas Party would seek to initiate a process of cross-party nominations.

The Community Voice editor and publisher Bonita Gooch and Wichita State University professor Michael Birzer discuss discrimination in traffic policing

LaTonya Boyd, along with Courtland Davis, director of operations at the YWCA Northeast Kansas, and LaRonna Lassiter Saunders, a civil rights advocate and attorney, discussed the nuances of Kansas gun violence. In an average year, 456 people die and 655 are wounded by guns in Kansas, according to Everytown statistics.  Approximately 135 people in the state die by gun homicides and 271 are wounded b...

YWCA Northeast Kansas CEO Kathleen Marker and Fatima Perez-Luthi, the founder and CEO of The Grind Coaching and Consulting and manager of a local financial literacy program, talk about financial empowerment for women, looking at workplace trends and gender-based discrimination.

Sharla Smith, the founder of the Kansas Birth Equity Network, Sapphire Garcia-Lies, the founder and executive director of Kansas Birth Justice Society, and Abriona Markham, executive director of Topeka Doula Project, discuss the need to improve health outcomes for mothers of color, along with their view on maternity bills under debate in the Legislature.

Phil Journey, a two-term national board member of the National Rifle Association, offers an insider perspective of financial misconduct threatening the future of the prominent gun-rights lobbying and educational organization.

A task force appointed by Gov. Laura Kelly last year recommended consolidating services for early childhood development into a single office, and there's a new piece of legislation that would do just that. Children's advocates Monica Murnan and David Jordan explain the proposal and how it could help.

The Kansas Legislature has renewed its attack on transgender rights with a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for those who are younger than 18. A committee led by Rep. Brenda Landwher, a Wichita Republican, has advanced the bill — after debate on the issue was compromised by preferential treatment of out-of-state interests, transparency concerns, and misinformation from a pair of Republica...

Sierra Club lobbyist Zack Pistora condemns legislation that would ban plastic bag bans, and gives an overview of other environmental measures up for debate under the dome.

Sean Miller, a Statehouse lobbyist working with the diverse Kansans for Conservation, says the coalition proposes the state — without raising taxes — dedicate about $50 million annually to voluntary conservation programs to protect and upgrade water and land resources.

Kansas Reflector opinion editor Clay Wirestone chats with Emily Bradbury, executive director of the Kansas Press Association, and Max Kautsch, a media lawyer based in Lawrence, about the landscape for journalism and free expression in the Sunflower State.

Davis Hammet, president of the voter advocacy group Loud Light and Micah Kubic, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas warn of creeping attempts to restrict Kansas voters during a Kansas Reflector podcast, referencing multiple election bills heard in recent weeks.

Kansas Sen. Cindy Holscher and Kansas Library Association president Sean Bird talk about challenges to books in public and school collections. Holscher has introduced a bill establishing statewide requirements for consideration of requests to prohibit, ban or restrict access to library books and other media.

Kansas Appleseed Welfare Advocate Adina Morse and John Wilson, president and CEO of Kansas Action for Children talked legislative priorities for the state’s child welfare system, including the ripple effect of the state’s scarce mental health resources combined with the lack of cohesive alternatives for children who are experiencing behavioral problems.

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kansas, agonizes over the demise of Roe v. Wade and attempts by politicians to interfere with health care decisions of women.

Republican Rep. Stephen Howe of Salina marked the third anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol with a forceful opinion column condemning political violence and supporting the peaceful transition of power. The column was thoughtful, thorough and unexpected in today's divided political climate. Howe talks about his thoughts on the topic, as well as the new session of the Kansas...

Alan Cobb, president and CEO of the Kansas Chamber, along with Eric Stafford, the organization’s vice president of government affairs, join the Kansas Reflector Podcast to discuss legislative policy priorities. The organization supports a single rate state income tax and proposals to invest state tax dollars in private K-12 education.

Aa tumultuous legislative session. A police raid on a small-town newspaper. Pitched political battles over Medicaid expansion, and so much more. The year of 2023 may not have seen a major election, but that was about the only news that didn't happen this past year in Kansas politics. This retrospective edition of the Kansas Reflector podcast looks back at the year's top stories with opinion editor...

Rural, urban housing advocates are hopeful the 2022 Kansas Legislature's $62 million investment will make a difference for people and communities.