Parent Empowerment with Mandy Drogin

Texans are paying more in property taxes, but where is the promised tax relief? In this episode of Parent Empowerment with Mandy Drogin, Mandy sits down with Judge Shepard to expose how the Texas school bond process has been hijacked by an education cartel that profits from billions in taxpayer-funded debt. Based on Judge Shepard's groundbreaking research paper this conversation uncovers the netwo...

What happens when Texas families are empowered with educational freedom? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with City School Austin's Head of School Karon Law and board member Travis Reese to discuss how Education Freedom Accounts are creating new opportunities for Texas families and allowing schools to better serve students with diverse learning needs. From supporting s...

What can Texans learn from someone who watched their freedom disappear firsthand? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with entrepreneur, philanthropist, and former Iranian citizen Julie Ruehle to discuss her experience living through Iran’s Islamic Revolution and the lessons it holds for America today. Julie shares how the Iranian Revolution transformed life for women, si...

Why are Texas property taxes still rising despite record education spending? Why has Texas school district debt ballooned to hundreds of billions of dollars? And how are taxpayer-funded lobbyists, education foundations, and public-private partnerships impacting local taxpayers? In this eye-opening episode of Parent Empowerment with Mandy Drogin, Texas State Representative Terri Leo-Wilson (HD-23)...

Why are Texas parents of special needs students leaving public schools for specialized private options? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Taryn, a mom to Hadley and a paraprofessional at Oak Creek Academy in Killeen, Texas, along with Hadley herself. Taryn shares their powerful journey from frustrating public school experiences, including the loss of sign language...

What’s really happening with Texas A&M’s ties to the Qatar Foundation, and why should Texans be paying attention?   In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with TPPF's Kate Bierly to discuss Texas A&M’s Qatar campus and the national security threat it poses for Texas and America. The two dive into the role of soft power, foreign funding, national security concerns, an...

Why are fewer young Americans getting married and what does this mean for the future of families? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with TPPF's family policy expert, Hannah Bruck, to examine the cultural, economic, and societal forces shaping marriage and family formation in America today. From the rise of online dating culture and social media influence to shifting cul...

On this episode of Parent Empowerment with Mandy Drogin, filmed live at Texas Policy Summit 2026, Mandy sits down with Texas Senator Adam Hinojosa to discuss one of the biggest government reform battles in Texas: ending taxpayer-funded lobbying. Sen. Hinojosa explains how taxpayer-funded lobbyists use millions of taxpayer dollars to lobby against reforms like: Property tax relief School choice Pro...

On this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin is joined by James Quintero, Policy Director for the Taxpayer Protection Project, and Jose Melendez, Campaign Director for the Government Reform & Oversight Coalition, to break down how rising property taxes and massive school bond elections are impacting Texas families. The team discusses the growing influence of taxpayer-funded lobbyists, t...

In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Jordan Cope, StandWithUs Director of Policy Education and expert on Qatar’s radical Islamist networks, to expose how Qatar is infiltrating Texas through soft power tactics, funding of our higher education and institutions, and direct support of designated terrorist group Hamas.

How do we restore civic education in higher education? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Justin Dyer, Dean of the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas at Austin, to explore the growing movement to restore classical education and civic understanding in higher education. Dyer shares why many universities have drifted from their original mission and w...

On this explosive episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Judge Shepard and Ben Crockett from the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Government Reform & Oversight Coalition to expose the powerful role of taxpayer-funded lobbyists in the Texas Legislature. Discover how organizations like the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) use taxpayer dollars to influence lawmakers a...

What are students really learning in today’s classrooms? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Ken Pope of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation to examine the growing concerns around ideological influence in America’s education system. Drawing from firsthand experience and historical insight, this conversation unpacks how Marxist ideologies are reaching the nex...

Are standardized tests like the SAT really serving students or are they shaping education? In this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Jeremy Tate, founder of the Classical Learning Test (CLT), to unpack the growing conversation around college entrance exams, AP courses, and the future of education in America. From the history of the College Board to the influence of classro...

School safety is a top concern for Texas parents, yet only about half of our school campuses currently have an armed protector on site. On this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with returning guest Rob McClelland, Dripping Springs ISD Trustee and Board Member of the Texas State School Safety Center to discuss the safety of our schools. They dive deep into HB3’s requirement for...

Texas local government debt has exploded to $552 billion, and taxpayers are paying the price. On this episode of Parent Empowerment, Mandy Drogin sits down with Bell County GOP Vice Chair Jeff Howard and The Better Belton Project Founder Clinton Bailey to break down how massive local bond elections are driving government debt higher across Texas. They discuss how school districts and local governm...

TPPF's Mandy Drogin interviews Levi Fuller, the Texas Education Agency's newly appointed Inspector General of Educator Misconduct, who brings his military and prosecutorial experience to combat sexual offenses and other abuses in schools. Fuller details his background, from serving in the Army and fighting ISIS to prosecuting election integrity and child trafficking cases, emphasizing his drive to...

TPPF's Mandy Drogin sits down with Ken Pope, Senior Fellow at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, for an eye-opening discussion on the foundation's mission to educate about the over 100 million victims of communist regimes. They explore the infiltration of Marxist ideologies into American education, the long march through institutions inspired by thinkers like Paulo Freire and Herbert Ma...

Radical Islamic groups like the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR are wielding soft power to shape public opinion, redirect policy priorities, and weaken core American and Western values. Their ultimate goal: instilling the Caliphate and implementing Sharia Law. TPPF policy experts Kate Bierly and Cameron Abrams explain how hostile foreign nations like Qatar are infiltrating academia and directing fundi...

 Matt Krause, County Commissioner for Tarrant County and former State Representative, shares his experience fighting for taxpayers both at the county level and in the State Legislator. Commissioner Krause unpacks the interests working against taxpayers, especially the taxpayer-funded lobbying groups that directly advocate against what taxpayers want. 

Rep. Hillary Hickland of Belton shares her experiences with the taxpayer-funded lobbyist complex that's leeching off our education system, pushing ideology on kids, and ensuring that property tax bills just go up and up.

Mandy interviews Robbye Kirkpatrick, businesswoman and co-founder of Texas TransformED, about spending in Texas public schools - why is teacher pay so low, where is the over $100 billion we spend going, and why are results getting worse, not better, even as we add more money into the system?

Texas is spending hundreds of billions on school buildings and football stadiums, but when those break, someone still has to deal with the aftermath. In this second episode with Marc Gravely, Marc breaks down the legal background of construction defects in schools - what can break, who's to blame, and, of course, how much it costs taxpayers.

Our kids are failing to launch after they graduate high school. It's time we fix that by fully preparing them for college, career, or the military before they graduate rather than hoping they figure it out after graduation. Ashley B. Cash, co-founder of Texas TransformED, joins Mandy Drogin to chat about all things education, and especially how we can better prepare our children for adult life.

Foreign nations have poured billions into Texas colleges and universities. They have not done so out of the kindness of their hearts, but rather, because they're using their gifts and grants to gain access to intellectual property, research, and inventions. TPPF's Higher Education Policy Analyst, Kate Bierly, joins Mandy to break down the foreign influences in Texas higher education.