90.7 WMFE's Intersection

Governor Ron DeSantis says he’s making addiction relief and mental health a top priority, calling for nearly $85 million  to tackle the opioid epidemic in Florida. At the same time, central Florida leaders are banding together in a local effort called project opioid.

On this episode of Intersection we explore how the approach of Orange, Seminole and Osceola Counties complement statewide efforts to tackle the opioid crisis, and what solutions are most likely to succeed? Joining the program are Nikaury Muñoz, System of Care Director with the Central Florida Cares Health System; Seminole County Sheriff Dennis Lemma, who chairs the Attorney General’s Transition Advisory Committee Working Group on Opioid Abuse, and Tony Jenkins, Market President for Central Florida for Florida Blue and co-chair of Project Opioid.

Then- the storycorps airstream recording studio rolls out of Orlando today. We check in with mobile site manager Jacqueline Van Meter on the themes that resonated over the hours of conversation recorded in the trailer in the past five weeks.

And it takes 21 years to get good at playing the Uilleann pipes. Kathleen Cavanaugh joins us to perform the Irish bagpipes along with fiddler Vicky Gish.

Governor Ron DeSantis promised a bold vision for Florida when he took office. And his first weeks on the job have been marked by some bold actions- reversing Florida’s course on smokable medical marijuana, pledging a big spending plan to help clean up the Everglades, and signaling an end to common core.

The Governor’s also outlined what he wants in the state budget to pay for this.

On this episode of Intersection we check in with political commentators Dick Batchelor and Frank Torres. Just how bold is Ron DeSantis’s vision for Florida, and how will he execute that vision?

Then- the competitive e-sports bug bites college students. Students are joining collegiate leagues and developing rivalries just like those of traditional college sports.

Intersection’s Brendan Byrne chats with a team from the University of Central Florida, prepping for its first matchup in a Rainbow Six: Siege tournament.

And Trinidadian- Grenadian writer Anna Levi joins us for a conversation about giving voice to some of the overlooked residents of the Caribbean- children living on the edge of poverty.

Governor Ron DeSantis is pledging $50 million for springs cleanup. Environmentalists have been sounding the alarm for years about the declining quality of Florida’s numerous springs and waterways. Nutrient pollution is clouding many of the state’s once clear springs. That’s a problem- not just for tourists and Floridians who flock to the springs in summertime- but the wildlife too.

So the big question is- how will that money be spent and is it going to be enough?

On this episode of Intersection, we dive into the health of the springs with 90.7’s environmental reporter Amy Green, Clay Henderson with the Stetson University Water Institute, and Russell Bryant, a former board member of the Friends of the Wekiva.

The partial government shutdown ended a week ago, but the impact is still being felt by federal workers and contractors who are waiting on back pay.

We hear from Kevin Dimico, the business representative with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers about legislation he wants to get passed to guarantee contract workers back pay after the shutdown. 

And singers from Central Florida Vocal arts are getting ready to perform A Tale of Two Cities. Theresa Smith-Levin, baritone David Bracamonte and soprano Sarah Isola explain what it takes to bring the classic Charles Dickens novel to life as a musical.

The University of Central Florida is dealing with the fallout over misspending of more than $38 million in state money. The money was used to pay for construction of Trevor Colbourn Hall, which replaced an aging academic building. Bill Merck, the University’s former chief financial officer who lost his job over the incident, says the rules around how that state money could be spent were not clear.

On this episode of Intersection, we speak to Merck about how and why the university went about paying for Colbourn Hall- and what comes next. We’re also joined by Merck’s attorney, Chuck Greene, and 90.7’s Abe Aboraya, who’s been following the story about the misspent money. 

Florida is suffering a teacher shortage. The Florida Education Association says part of the solution is funding the state’s public education system adequately. Fedrick Ingram, the president of Florida’s largest teachers’ union, joins us to explain what the state needs to do to hire and retain more teachers.

And Orlando consistently makes the list of the country’s most dangerous places to walk and ride a bike. We’ll hear from the city’s top transportation planner, Billy Hattaway, about what’s being done to change that.

The Florida Supreme Court is poised to become the most conservative bench it has been in decades. Governor Ron DeSantis has appointed three new justices to the court. With Barbara Lagoa, Robert Luck and Carlos Muniz, the court’s expected to take a sharp turn to the right. On the campaign trail, DeSantis promised an end to so-called judicial activism — and the new court could bring sweeping changes to the state’s abortion laws, redistricting process and compensation to victims due to negligent actions of state agencies.

On this episode of Intersection- what’s ahead for the state’s highest court, how soon could those changes come about and what does it mean for Floridians? We’re joined by Molly Nardella, attorney and Republican political analyst, Democratic political analyst and media consultant Jason Henry, and Law 360 reporter Carolina Bolado. 

It’s been a rough week for journalists- with news organizations from Buzzfeed to Gannett announcing layoffs. But as newsrooms shrink, there’s another trend as well- unionization. We’ll hear from reporter Tessa Duvall about how why the reporters at the Florida Times Union decided to form a union.

And as the 30th Zora! Festival gets underway- NY Nathiri from the association to Preserve Eatonville Community joins us to talk about the enduring legacy of writer Zora Neale Hurston.

Florida’s clemency board has pardoned the Groveland four. Is that the end of the story, or do the families of the four men have more work to do in their quest for justice?

On this episode of Intersection, we talk to Pulitzer prize winning author Gilbert King, whose book Devil in the Grove explores the miscarriage of justice in the 70 year old case, about what happens next for the families of the Groveland four.

Then we turn to a more recent case on Florida’s space coast where news columnist John A Torres believes a man may have been wrongfully convicted.

Torres podcast – Murder on the Space Coast- is now in its fourth season. Torres says he hopes his examination of the claw hammer killing, which happened at the height of the pill mill crisis, may prompt authorities to take another look at the case.

And- Sean Baker may have shot one of his movies on an iPhone- but he believes the cinema is still the best place to watch movies. The director of The Florida Project– the critically acclaimed feature exploring the lives of the hidden homeless- talks about the power of film to ignite change.

The partial federal shutdown is now in its 4th week, and over 95% of NASA’s workforce is furloughed. That’s having a big impact on Florida’s space coast where most of the 2,000 servants who work in the space industry are sitting idle.

On this episode of Intersection, we’re joined by 90.7’s space reporter Brendan Byrne and space policy analyst Laura Forczyk to explain what this shutdown means for the Kennedy Space Center and the private space industry as hundreds of workers go without paychecks and projects are delayed.

Then-  planetary scientists are delving into the data from the New Horizons flyby of Ultima Thule. We’ll hear more about just what this BB-8 shaped asteroid about the size of the city of Orlando four billion miles away has to teach us.

And we talk to filmmaker Charlie Minn about his documentary focused on the survivors of the shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High school last year. ‘Parkland: Inside Building 12″ opens at Fashion Square Mall in Orlando and runs for a week beginning this Friday.

President Trump spent the week making his case for a wall on the Southern US border.  The president wants $5.7 billion for the wall. Amid his call for wall funding and congressional Democrats opposition, the federal government remains partially shut down.

On this episode of Intersection, we take a closer look at the shutdown, and what effect the national debate around immigration is having on immigration cases in Florida.

Then- environmental advocates are looking to Governor Ron DeSantis to deliver on his campaign promise to clean up Florida’s waterways and tackle toxic algae. In his first week in office, DeSantis introduced sweeping measures to boost funding for water and Everglades restoration… and called for the entire governing board of the South Florida Water Management District to resign. 90.7’s Amy Green joins us to explain what this means for Florida’s environment.

And we hear new music from Lakeland singer songwriter Michael McArthur. McArthur’s first full length album, Ever Green, Ever Rain releases on January 25th. 

Ron DeSantis was sworn in as Florida’s 46th governor this week. Advocates for school choice and the environment have high hopes for the Republican former congressman: DeSantis campaigned on a platform of improving the state’s water quality, and he favors expanding the use of school vouchers.

On this episode of Intersecion, we talk to Florida Trend magazine associate editor Jason Garcia about what to expect from Governor DeSantis.

Then- former felons across Florida are registering to vote, as amendment four takes effect. But just how smooth is the implementation of the amendment restoring the right to vote for about one point five million residents of the Sunshine State? WLRN’s Danny Rivero explains what’s next for those newly registered voters. 

And the StoryCorps mobile recording booth is parked up at the Orlando Museum of Art for the next month. Mobile site manager Jacqueline Van Meter tells Intersection about mission of StoryCorps- conversation with a purpose.

After last year’s mass shooting in Parkland, parents, law enforcement, school leaders and lawmakers have been trying to figure out how to prevent the next school shooting.

The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School public safety commission sent its first report to Tallahassee this week- with recommendations including beefing up security and surveillance and arming school staff.

On this episode of Intersection we explore what the The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission report means for students and staff at schools statewide, with WLRN reporter Caitie Switalski, school security consultant and former police officer Zach Hudson, and Seminole County sheriff Dennis Lemma. 

At Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day,  the UCF knights winning run came to an end- thanks to the LSU tigers. As the team prepares for the offseason- UCF’s two year undefeated streak leaves a question about what goes into deciding who makes the college playoffs. We’ll explore that question with Jeff Sharon, managing editor of the Black and Gold Banneret. 

And fiddle player Cameron Ross is heading back home to compete in BBC Scotland’s young traditional musician of the year contest. Ross has been honing his craft in Orlando for the last couple years- he joins us to perform with the Raglan Roots coalition.