Central Texas top stories for November 11, 2024. The Austin Mayor race outcome will come down to provisional ballots. Republicans will soon make up nearly 75 percent of intermediate appellate court justices in Texas. Texas lawmakers are looking at ways to further dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives within higher education at the request of the Republican lieutenant governor. Here’s how Round Rock is protecting its residents from package theft. The University of Texas soccer team has won its first SEC Championship.
elections
KUT Morning Newscast for October 30, 2024
Central Texas top stories for October 30, 2024. Austin and Travis County have adopted a food plan to grow more food locally and send less to landfills. Here’s what you need to know about voting for a Railroad Commissioner. Voters in Lockhart will vote on whether to join the ACC taxing district. Hays County has significantly more registered voters than it did in the last presidential election.
KUT Morning Newscast for October 24, 2024
Central Texas top stories for October 18, 2024. Tomorrow is the last day to apply for a mail-in ballot. A non-profit has filed a lawsuit to block the Austin City Council from voting on a new labor contract with the city’s police union. The Austin City Council could approve spending $120 million dollars on new public safety headquarters. The City of Austin will consider requiring landlords to disclose rental fees.
KUT Morning Newscast for October 15, 2024
Central Texas top stories for October 15, 2024. Ted Cruz and Colin Allred face off tonight in their only debate ahead of the fall election. Voters will decide this fall whether to approve a new tax rate for AISD. The city of Austin could purchase a building to serve as its new public safety headquarters. Work is underway to tear down a historic building on the University of Texas campus despite activists pushing for preservation. Lisa Davis was officially sworn in as Austin’s Police Chief.
KUT Morning Newscast for April 29, 2024
Central Texas top stories for April 29, 2024. Early voting in the May 4th local election ends tomorrow. Previewing the primary runoff election on May 28th. Organizers in San Marcos are planning a pro-Palestinian demonstration this afternoon at Texas State University. The City of Austin is set to open some seasonal pools today. H-E-B grocery store chain is recalling some three-ounce cups of its Creamy Creations ice cream because of potential metal.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 21, 2023
Central Texas top stories for February 21, 2023. Austin City Council to hear from Austin Energy. Disaster declaration expansion. Austin Police street racing investigation. Austin ISD superintendent search options. Austin ISD sex ed curriculum opt in. College polling sites.
Texas Standard: August 22, 2022
Just eleven weeks till midterms and the numbers tell us what about how close the contest between Greg Abbott and Beto O’Rourke? That today on the Texas Standard.
Political analyst Mark Jones of Rice University with how the issues in the news cycle are affecting Texas polls in the run-up to November 8th.
A rise in violence in cities across the border with Mexico. Angela Kochera with the latest from Juarez, after a wave of killings there.
August, the hottest month in Texas? Maybe not this year. A change in the weather projected for the rest of August, though perhaps not wet enough to save some cattle ranchers. Those stories and a whole lot more.
Texas Standard : August 19, 2022
Three months from statewide midterm elections- but who’ll be running them if elections administrators keep leaving their jobs? That and more on the Texas Standard.
Concerns grow amid a high turnover of county election administrators and staff. We’ll hear from the Texas Secretary of State’s office.
How back to school in Texas has left many students caught in the crosshairs of the culture wars.
And with Tesla and SpaceX and a base of operations in Texas, Elon Musk is one of the nation’s most polarizing figures. Why some say it’s time to move on from his visions of the future.
Also, DACA ten years on- what’s next? The week in politics with the Texas Tribune and more.
Texas Standard: March 03, 2022
A state judge tells Texas it must stop its investigation of a family suspected of providing gender affirming medical care for their transgender teenager. President Biden’s weighing in on the matter too. Plus, legally mandated efforts to get Texas public school students back up to speed after pandemic disruptions; schools say they simply don’t have the tutors to do it. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 31, 2021
In a year that started out with redistricting as a top priority, Texans and the news from Texas in 2021 made national headlines as seldom, if ever, before. What happened? What didn’t? And why? Moreover, what do the events of the past year tell us about what may be to come in the Lone Star State in 2022? It’s a closeup look at the big stories and the forces behind major changes in Texas over the past 12 months on today’s year end edition of the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 9, 2020
“Deeply dysfunctional.” Part of the findings of an investigation of Fort Hood. We’ll look at actions taken — and what’s left undone. Today on the Texas Standard.
I’m Laura Rice in for David Brown. Learning during the pandemic. It’s been among the major challenges. So should it be business as usual when it comes to standardized tests?
Back to the ballot box. Some Texans are voting again. What the particularly contentious contest could tell us about the Texas Republican Party.
Plus, as the new Texas legislative session nears, we’ll examine a lawmaker’s claim on medical marijuana. And we’ll introduce you to the spider who saved Christmas.
Texas Standard: October 19, 2020
Millions of Texans turn out for week one of early voting in a state notorious for low turnout. A hint of a more fundamental change in Texas politics? That and more today on the Texas Standard.
In this most unconventional election season the state to watch is Texas: so declares veteran political journalist Dan Balz of the Washington Post. We’ll ask him what makes Texas the most intriguing place in politics in the nation right now.
Also, a rule change for social workers in Texas dialing back anti-discrimination protections based on sexual orientation, gender identity and disability. Many social workers call it a gut punch.
Higher Ed: Taking Skills Learned In The Classroom To The Voting Booth
One reason often cited by non-voters for their lack of participation goes something like this: “my vote doesn’t really count” or “how can my one vote make any difference?” Voter turnout among college-aged students is traditionally low in midterm election years. But this year is shaping up to be different. In this episode of KUT’s podcast “Higher Ed,” Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT’s Jennifer Stayton discuss how to sustain that interest even when national politics are not so charged.
Ed believes that getting voting-aged students to the polls is half the battle. The other half? Making sure they are informed voters.
“You just don’t want to have voters going in there and taking out a die and rolling it and then whatever it lands on that’s how you feel on the issue or who you decide to vote for,” says Ed. He hopes that voters will not make their voting decisions only influenced by “sound bites or 160 characters or generic Facebook posts where we don’t even know exactly where they’re actually emanating from.”
Ed believes that student can and should take the “best practices” of learning they have acquired in classrooms over the years and apply that to the act of voting.
“Articulate what are the issues that matter to you, that are important to you,” says Ed. “And then for each one of them, try to explain why. Is it an emotional response? Is it a logical response? Am I responding because I don’t like the other side, or because I like this side?”
Ed believes that student can making voting a practice – part of the way they live their lives – by getting interested and engaged early.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about using skills honed in the classroom to make decisions in the voting booth. The puzzler is taking a break for a little while to make way for some lighter riddles. These first two are pretty easy; see if you can get them right away.
This episode was recorded on Oct. 30, 2018.
Texas Standard: October 16, 2018
Round two getting underway tonight in San Antonio: what to expect in the last debate before early voting between Ted Cruz and Beto O’rourke. Also, the policy of family separations at the border was a bust, but now the Washington Post reports it may be making a comeback. We’ll hear the how and why. And Texas is a leader in wind energy, but is the push for wind turbines about to run out of air? We’ll hear why some are worried. Also, what some have called a declaration of a new cold war. Why you might have missed it and why the Chinese certainly did not. All those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 5, 2018
A Texas federal courtroom is once again the stage for a legal challenge that could have enormous, nationwide impact. We’ll explain. Also this week marks a full year since Amazon started the search for a second headquarters. Dallas and Austin are on the shortlist, but what’s next? We’ll check in. And a woman held in slavery makes a new life for herself by posing as a man and signing up to be a soldier. The true story behind a new novel. Plus it’s campaign season and politicians are making claims about their opponents. We’ll fact-check one about holding town hall meetings. And Texans have long been taught to remember the Alamo, but what do we know about the defenders in that battle? We’ll dig in to some demographics. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: August 27, 2018
Nearly a million Texans without representation in the Texas Legislature? Why is the governor refusing to call an election for a soon to open seat?
Amid concerns over sexual misconduct on campus, Texas A&M promises to overhaul how it handles complaints. We’ll take a closer look.
Also, exactly one year after the storm, Houston approves a bond referendum to help it deal with the next Hurricane Harvey- and why much, much more might be needed to fix its reservoirs.
Reversal of an EPA rule designed to push renewable energy. What does it mean for Texas?
And the seasonal superstition seizing many in the Rio Grande Valley. What is the canicula?
Texas Standard: August 10, 2018
Is it possible to prevent another Sutherland Springs? The military sure hopes so, that’s one reason it’s changing the way it reports domestic violence, we’ll have the story. Plus, there’s more political races to keep an eye on than the O’Rourke / Cruz one. But don’t fret, we’ll tell you which. And has the Rio Grande Valley perfected the formula that leads to academic success? Results from the last few years are hinting yes. And all the reasons why Texas is soon to be home to America’s largest cricket stadium, of course it’s a story about changing demographics. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: May 30, 2018
After the Santa Fe massacre, and a week of roundtables, the Governor comes up with a blueprint to improve safety in Texas public schools, we’ll have the latest. Also, how high is that oft-cited wall between church and state? A new report from the associated press claims we’re witnessing an important moment for religiously conservative attorneys landing positions of power and policy behind the scenes, we’ll hear more. And U.S. politics may get dirty at times, but never as deadly as in Mexico right now. Record number of assassinations of candidates as the nation prepares to pick a president July 1st. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: February 20, 2018
86 cents of every dollar donated to state-level campaigns in Texas went to Republicans. We’ll do the numbers. And it’s here: early voting is underway for the Texas primaries. We’ll explore the rules behind where you can cast a ballot and why. And a city on the Texas coast is making plans to become the first new cruise ship port-of-call in about half a century. We’ll talk with the mayor leading the effort. Plus, a big U-S company is changing the way they do healthcare and it’s turning some heads. It may surprise you which company it is. And we’ll also hear from the filmmakers behind a new movie about an event that thrust one Texas city into the national spotlight a few decades ago. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: February 19, 2018
The University of Texas and the Texas Tribune team up to tell us which politicians are ahead on the polls, we’ll have the latest. Also, is OPEC bringing in more members to better control oil prices? We’ll Explore the role of Historically Black Colleges and speak to the film-maker. Plus comfort food has a whole other meaning to families in poverty, we tell you why. And the art of Arturo Torres is putting Garland on the map, we’ll explain. Also, it’s president’s Day! And early voting starts tomorrow, be sure to Wear your red white and blue all week! Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard: