Jennifer Stayton

The Hill Country and Austin area got between an inch and three inches of rain Monday night. A bill intended to revitalize the Texas film industry is a step closer to Governor Greg Abbott’s desk. A new report shows about seven in 10 Austin residents live within a ten-minute walk of a park.

Senate Bill 10 is all but certain to lead to a First Amendment court challenge. Texas is poised to ban consumable products that contain T-H-C which means dozens of cannabis shops in the Austin area will either have to shift their operations or shut down. It’s a busy travel day on Memorial Day.

Central Texas top stories for May 12, 2025: Record-high heat for May will hit the Austin area starting Tuesday. A bill that would outlaw DEI-based training and hiring in taxpayer-funded agencies heads to a Texas House committee. Texas school districts face budget uncertainty waiting for school finance bills in the Texas legislature. And the Texas Longhorns are prepping for the NCAA softball tournament.

Central Texas top stories for April 30, 2025: Fire departments across the Austin area are preparing for wildfire season – including making sure they have the necessary equipment to battle suburban wildfires. And Texas oil and gas regulators are a step closer to getting permission from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to regulate carbon capture and storage wells though some oppose giving Texas regulators that authority.

Some in the Austin area and around the country are being more cautious about their church attendance after a Trump administration directive issued earlier this year means spaces like schools and places of worship are no longer protected from agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Customs and Border Protection entering and making arrests.

Several Austin area churches are affiliated with organizations suing over that directive.

KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked recently with The Reverend Natalie Webb of University Baptist Church and The Reverend Katheryn Barlow-Williams of Central Presbyterian Church about how that directive is impacting their congregations. The Reverend Barlow-Williams speaks first.

.A group of Texas artists has created a performance piece they say is designed to transport people to the Texas-Mexico border and to share some border stories they say do not get much attention – despite recent heightened scrutiny of the region. Postcards from the Border was commissioned by Texas Performing Arts and developed in residence there. It evolved from a trip that author Oscar Casares and photographer Joel Salcido took from El Paso and Juarez to Brownsville and Matamoros, chronicling what they encountered along the way in words and photos. Austin singer-songwriter and violinist Carrie Rodriguez added music for the stage show.

KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked with the three of them recently about the origin of the piece and their hopes for the audience’s experience. We hear from writer Oscar Casares first.

There is more information about Postcards from the Border at texas performing arts dot org.

Most students in the United States read Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter sometime during school. It’s the fictional story of Hester Prynne, who has a child out of wedlock and suffers consequences for it. Hester Prynne is based on a real person. And that real case, and the non-fiction book it inspired at the time, are chronicled in the new non-fiction book All the Sinners Bow: Two Authors, One Murder, and the real Hester Prynne. Author Kate Winkler Dawson is a professor of practice in journalism and media at the University of Texas at Austin and a true crime historian and podcaster. She talked recently with KUT’s Jennifer Stayton about the controversial case of Sara Maria Cornell, who was found hanging from a haystack pole in New England in 1832.

You can hear more from Kate Winkler Dawson about All the Sinners Bow Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. at First Light Books on Speedway in Austin. You can also find out more about her latest book in a KUT post about January reading recommendations from some Austin-area librarians.

There has been a lot of talk about how the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump might impact local public education. Will they try to eliminate the Department of Education? What about a potential nationwide push for a school voucher program?

But what exactly is the existing relationship between the federal government and local public schools? To find out more, KUT’s Jennifer Stayton spoke with Morgan Craven. She is the National Director of Policy, Advocacy and Community Engagement for the Intercultural Development Research Association. It is an independent organization that works for equal educational opportunity for students via strong public schools. They talked over Zoom about how the federal government and local public schools interact.

The recent shooting at a K through 12th grade private school in Madison, Wisconsin has brought attention once again to school safety and how school violence can impact children’s mental health. This school year started out with a slew of threats against schools in Central Texas, which turned out to be hoaxes. But that raised questions about how even the threat of violence, or perhaps even the drills to prepare for it, might also impact mental health. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton spoke earlier this fall about all of that with Chelsea Romero. She is the Senior Director of Programs and a clinician at Austin Child Guidance Center.

This time of the year – in addition to being the holidays – is also known as “cuffing season.” It is a time of the year when single people look to connect in shorter-term relationships to get through the holidays and colder winter months. It unofficially runs from October through about Valentine’s Day. But it can feel more intense with the holidays coming soon. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked recently with Central Texas neuropsychotherapist Bella J. Rockman MA, LPC, LCDC-i  about that pressure to “couple up,” especially ahead of the holidays.

If you’re looking for love – or just to make some new friends – join us for “KUT and KUTX Connections” an evening of mixing, mingling, community building, conversation and music.  Tuesday night, December 10th at Austin Beerworks. Find out more and RSVP at KUT dot ORG. 

There is no doubt Austin has changed a lot over the past few decades. Some of those changes were within Austin’s control. Others were not. But for author and journalist Alex Hannaford, many of those changes prompted his decision to leave after living in Austin for about 17 years. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked with Hannaford about his new book “Lost in Austin: the Evolution of an American City” ahead of his appearance at the 2024 Texas Book Festival in Austin. They started out discussing why he originally moved to Austin after his first visit in 1999 while on a trip to the United States from his native England.

Early voting continues through November 1 for the November 5 election. Some people have sworn off news coverage for the rest of this divisive election season, citing how anxious it makes them feel. Anxiety about the election – and about what might happen after the election – is very palpable for some people. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked recently with Central Texas neuropsychotherapist Bella J. Rockman MA, LPC, LCDC-i about what fuels that anxiety and some tips for navigating it.

Matthew Shepard was a 21-year-old college student in Wyoming in 1998. On October 7th of that year, in an anti-gay hate crime, he was attacked, tied to a fence, and left to die in a field outside Laramie. Shepard died five days later. Conspirare founding Artistic Director Craig Hella Johnson still remembers the grief, anger and fear he felt when hearing what had happened. Johnson went on to create the musical piece “Considering Matthew Shepard” which is being reworked and performed Thursday night, October 3, at Bass Concert Hall in Austin. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton spoke recently with Conspirare soprano Gitanjali Mathur and Johnson about bringing this work back to the Austin stage. But they start by discussing Johnson’s initial reaction to Shepard’s killing. Conspirare’s newly-staged performance of “Considering Matthew Shepard” is happening Thursday night at 7:30 at Bass Concert Hall. There will be a post-performance discussion with Matthew Shepard’s parents, Judy and Dennis, and Craig Hella Johnson.

Central Texas top stories for July 22, 2024: Austin Democrats praise President Joe Biden’s decision to drop his 2024 presidential re-election bid. It’s budget season in the city of Austin. And the Downtown Austin Alliance is working to address safety concerns as the Austin Police Department faces an ongoing staffing shortage

Another contentious and divisive political election season and another brutally hot summer may have people feeling down and even a little hopeless. But there are things we can do to counter that trajectory and even feel a little hopeful when times seem tough. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked recently with Central Texas neuropsychotherapist Bella J. Rockman MA, LPC, LCDC-i over Zoom about hope in the face of struggle. They started by discussing what the concept of hope even means.

A group of poets, musicians and artists is celebrating the anniversaries of the Summer of Love and Summer of Soul at an upcoming event in Austin called “A Dozen Texas Voices Swing in the Key of Summer Love.” KUT’s Jennifer Stayton asked local poet and minister Terry Dawson, poet Griselda Jane Castillo and local musician Laura Mordecai why the event is focused on the theme of love – and why now? She also got them to preview some of the poetry that will be shared at the event.

“A Dozen Texas Voices Swing in the Key of Summer Love” is June 22 at 6:00p.m. at St. James Episcopal Church in Austin. The event is free but reservations are requested here.

Austin author Sarah Bird was new to Texas in the 1970’s. She took photojournalism classes at UT- Austin back in the day when taking pictures meant a lot more equipment, film, and time in darkrooms than it does now. Bird got interested in photographing all kinds of Texas events and eventually made her way to all kinds of rodeos. But it was Black rodeos that captured her attention the most. Bird has now compiled those photos and her recollections – and an essay by sports historian Demetrius Pearson – into a book called “Juneteenth Rodeo.” KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked with Bird recently about her path to the “Soul Circuit” and what she experienced when she got there.

School is almost over for the summer, but not at KUT – where our “Civics 101” series continues. We are exploring the institutions and governments that shape our lives and how we can be involved.

“I’m too busy. I didn’t have time, I was sick. I didn’t know what was on the ballot.” Those are some of the reasons people give for not voting. Travis County Clerk Dyana Limon Mercado also believes people are a bit intimidated by the process and may be unsure about how to participate. She talked recently with KUT’s Jennifer Stayton at the Travis County Clerk’s office in Austin all about elections and voting. But they started by first discussing what the County Clerk’s office actually does:

The KUT newsroom is focusing some coverage this week on helping people better understand how government works. We are calling it “Civics 101,” and as part of our effort, we are hosting some special events to take an ever deeper dive into how things work and what our role is in a functioning democracy. One of these events is modeled on a popular game show. “The Price is Right: How the City of Austin Spends Your Money” is happening Tuesday night, May 21, at Austin PBS in conjunction with the local news and civics website The Austin Common, Austin PBS and Good Politics. The announced candidates for Mayor of Austin this year have also been invited to attend. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked recently with The Austin Common Editor-in-Chief Amy Stansbury about this game-show-meets-city-budget event:

Central Texas top stories for May 21, 2024. UT’s Frank Erwin Center site will next host a medical center but there’s still lots of work to do. Del Valle ISD Board of Trustees approved a three percent salary increase for teachers, staff and administrators. And animal shelters in the Austin area are offering free or discounted pet adoptions.