Today: Indiana Youth Instiute president and CEO Tami Silverman talks about the pro's and con's on Hoosier youth being involved in sports in the school setting. An ESPN study shows 30% of girls and 37% of boys play on high school teams... and more girls are playing on sports teams these days. We also talk with Sherri Christopher with "Guardians of the Green Mile" Dog Rescue about the 6th annual "Woofstock," coming up Friday on Central Park Plaza in downtown Valparaiso. And we find out more about

Today: Katie Kerstensen with the Institute for Leadership and Service at Valparaiso University joins us to talk about the Institute and its latest "Pathways to Progress" series of speakers coming to campus becinning next month. The Institute for Leadership and Service is, simply speaking, a place at VU where it is okay for students to admit all the things they haven't yet figured out about their future. The "Pathways" series helps inspire and guide them. We have another edition of "Building

Today: Heather Ennis with the Northwest Indiana Forum is our in-studio guest to talk about the months of work that will become a complete report called "Ignite the Region -- Northwest Indiana's Strategy for Economic Transformation." The plan focuses on five areas including business development and marketing, talent and placemaking and infrastructure. A luncheon on Thursday at Avalon Manor will offer an update by the people who've spent the past year on this project. St. John Evangelical Lutheran

Today: State Representative Carolyn Jackson of Hammond tells us about Saturday's Indiana Black Legislative Caucus town hall meeting, held this year for the first time in Hammond. It will be held at the Ophelia Steen Family and Health Center. Topics of interest to northwest Indiana residents include education and the efforts to clean up contaminated soil in East Chicago. We also revisit our conversation with Jena Bellazza of the Indiana Parenting Institute about this weekend's Parent Expo on the

Today: We begin with the latest news on the impending closing of the Southlake Mall Sears store and the impact on the city of Hobart. Mayor Brian Snedecor talks with us about what mall owners have told him and his own thoughts on the future of the space (that, by the way, belongs to Sears and not the mall). He also talks about the expanding business and industrial sector in Hobart -- the need for more housing -- and what two developers are doing to meet the future need for new homes. Purdue

Today: State Senator Karen Tallian of the Portage area is in the studio to discuss the likelihood that state lawmakers may be able to add some items in the two-year state budget passed last session, since there is new revenue that wasn't available when the budget was approved. Could some areas like additional funds for teacher pay be addressed? Senator Tallian talks about that. Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter also joins us in the studio to talk about his decision to announce in 2019 that

Today: On this "Reporters' Roundtable," we talk with "Post-Tribune" reporter Meredith Colias-Pete about the stories she wrote for the print and online editions of the newspaper, including her examination into the costs of bringing so many high-profile speakers into the Region for the Purdue University Northwest's Sinai Forum series this fall. We also welcome "Post-Tribune" intern journalist Hannah Reed onto the program, to talk about her story on the decline of birth rates in northwest Indiana

Today: We talk with Purdue University Northwest physics professor Neeti Parashar, who is on the team of 400 scientists looking into the origin of the universe -- and is a recipient of the 2019 High Energy and Particle Physics prize from the European Physical Society. It involves what is called the "top quark." Ivy Tech Community College K-12 initiatives director Caleb Westberg talks about a new collaboration between IVTC, River Forest Schools in Lake County and Praxair that will lead to more

Today: We continue our conversations with Lake County's political party leaders with Republican Party chairman Dan Dernulc -- to find out more about the local party's plans and (perhaps) strategies for the Nov. 5 town and city general elections. We talked with Democratic Party chairman Jim Weiser on July 1st and he told us about the new names and faces who're running as candidates. The Construction Advancement Foundation presents its inaugural "Building Northwest Indiana" program. We have

Today: Northwest Indiana financial advisor Greg Hammer joins us to talk about the 84th anniversary of the creation of the Social Security system -- its place in Americans' financial stability over the years -- and how we all can better keep track of and use our benefits, at the right time, to get maximum use of the money we've accumulated over our working lives. We also find out about health food options at some Indiana fairs and festivals from Side Effects Public Media's Isaiah Seibert and