Kansas Reflector Podcast

Clinician and trauma therapist Tara Wallace talks about practices by Medicaid managed care organizations that harm mental health professionals, their clients and the already fragile Kansas network.

Former Gov. Jeff Colyer says experience in legislative and executive branch affairs and a lifetime as surgeon prepares him to return to the Capitol as governor in January 2027.

Charlotte O’Hara positions herself as the antidote to "career politicians" who are seeking the GOP nomination for governor. She talks about her career and upbringing, as well as views on abortion, computers and cellphones in schools, and "corporate welfare" given to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Justice K.J. Wall talks solutions to the declining numbers of attorneys in roughly half of the state of Kansas.

Kansas State Treasurer Steven Johnson talks about hiring a new program manager for Kansas 529 educational savings plans and updating investment options and tools parents can use to figure out the cost of post-secondary education.

Cynthia Lane, director of the state's Blueprint for Literacy program, says Kansas is improving literacy instruction from preschool to college levels. She says the next step is to blend Blueprint for Literacy with the Kansas State Board of Education's literacy program known as Every Child Can Read.

Kansas Reflector editor in chief Sherman Smith leads a discussion with reporters Tim Carpenter, Anna Kaminski and Morgan Chilson to recap the busy first week of the 2026 session of the Kansas Legislature, from the governor's State of the State speech and GOP response to hearings, debates, rallies, a high-profile court case and vaccines.

Kansas Reflector senior reporter Tim Carpenter and editor in chief Sherman Smith provide a rundown of state and political news from 2025 and insights into what to look for in 2026.

Rep. Allen Reavis, an Atchison Republican, Rep. Lon Pishny, a Garden City Republican, and Nathan Eberline, executive director of the League of Kansas Municipalities, talk about their plans for the newly formed Local Government Caucus.

Tina Thompson returned to the Catholic Church after decades away as a priest, becoming the first Kansas member of the Roman Catholic Women Priests.

The Alliance of Former Chief Justices is dedicated to preserving judicial independence and the rule of law. Former Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss talks about the new alliance, the threats he faced while serving on the court, and an upcoming vote on how justices are selected in Kansas.

Mark McCormick has written for Kansas Reflector since the summer of 2021, The distinguished journalist has a long career, with stents at the Wichita Eagle, the Kansas African American Museum and the ACLU of Kansas. He also co wrote a book with his lifelong friend, Barry Sanders. McCormick was inducted into the Kansas Press Association's Hall of Fame in November, and he came to the podcast to talk about his life and work.

Gary LaGrange, CEO of Valor Honey, and Brian McCornack, Kansas State University entomologist and head of the newly formed American Honey Institute, talk about challenges in the honey industry. Imported honey may contain cheap sweeteners, for instance, and the institute will focus on advocating for proper labeling and growing the industry.

Linda Heitzman-Powell, a researcher and professor in pediatrics, helped create a program that gives parents, organizations and service providers across the world the tools they need to help children with autism thrive.

Jennifer Ifft, Kansas State University extension specialist in agriculture policy, talks about what is included in the net farm income measurement, which shows Kansans will see an increase of 88% this year. She shares policy impacts on the industry and why it's important that the federal government support farmers.

For the Kansas Reflector podcast, former Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple speaks publicly for the first time about a Republican donor who tipped him off to a covert operation against his 2020 campaign. He later lost a bid for re-election.

The Kansas Museum of History has been closed for three years while getting a dramatic makeover, but it's about to reopen with a day of fun and activities planned for Nov. 22. Museum director Sarah Bell talks about the reimagined gallery space at the museum.

Kansas Reflector opinion editor Clay Wirestone leads senior reporters Tim Carpenter and Morgan Chilson through a discussion of the annual Kansas Speaks opinion survey from the Docking Institute of Public Affairs at Fort Hays State University. Plus, they all discuss Halloween costumes!

Negative effects of "big, beautiful bill" will be wide reaching for Kansans. A recent multi-city tour by several state nonprofit groups focused on informing residents about the threat. April Holman of the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas, Haley Kottler of Kansas Appleseed and Adrienne Olejnick of Kansas Appleseed joined the podcast to tell us more.

Katie Batza, associate professor of women, gender and sexuality studies at University of Kansas, recently published "AIDS in the Heartland: How Unlikely Coalitions Created a Blueprint for LGBTQ Politics." It explores the pandemic from perspectives of family, friends and others who grappled with AIDS far from population epicenters for the disease in San Francisco or New York City.