Texas Talks

Dr. Ben Carson is the former 17th Secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban and Development, founder and Chairman of the American Cornerstone Institute, and currently serves on the Texas Education Agency Open Education Resource advisory board.

Dr. Carson joins the show to discuss the recently approved Open Education Resource curriculum here in Texas, how to inspire kids to learn, modern cultural issues, and more.

Cameron Abrams is a reporter for The Texan, a statewide political news organization focusing on Texas news and politics. In addition to being a reporter, he is a doctoral candidate with a focus on postmodern philosophical influences in education.

We discuss the recent Texas Legislative elections and the potential ramifications for policy and legislation in the upcoming 89th Texas Legislature.

Writer, speaker, consultant, and lobbyist, Adam Jones joins the show to discuss education finance in Texas.

Adam served as the Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer for the Texas Education Agency from 2003 - 2012. Since then he founded CapitolJones to help organizations achieve their objectives, and presents regularly at education and government conferences.

Ken W. Good is a noted bail attorney and board member of the Professional Bondsmen of Texas, and who has worked closely with lawmakers, argued cases before the Supreme Court of Texas among others. He is the author of Good’s on Bail.

Ken joins the show to discuss the recent correction in crime statistics, crime trends in Texas, the bail system in Texas, and efforts in the next legislative session.

Ray Martinez is the President and CEO of the Texas Association of Community Colleges, providing leadership to advance state policy, institutional practices and research in support of Texas Community Colleges.

Ray discusses the role that community colleges play in Texas Higher Ed, workforce alignment in Texas' Building a Talent Strong Texas plan, changing the funding mechanism for community colleges, and more.

Aaron Silva is a former candidate for Eanes ISD School Board, lifelong entrepreneur, and founder of Paladin-fs, a professional technology contract negotiation company for community banks and credit unions. He is also the founder of Texas Education Project 103.

Aaron discusses the importance of fair elections at the local level, financial and educational issues facing school districts across the state, and more.

Senator Brandon Creighton represents Senate District 4, encompassing parts of Montgomery, Harris, Chambers, Jefferson and Galveston Counties. He is the chair of not only the Education Committee, but the Higher Education Subcommittee, as well. During his tenure he has taken the lead on key issues that matter to Texas job creators, fought excessive taxation, and passed legislation to improve Texas schools.

Senator Creighton discusses DEI, the Deathstar Bill, Election Integrity, and Education in Texas.

John Hryhorchuk is the Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at Texas 2036, a non-partisan, data driven public policy think tank here in Austin, Texas. John previously worked as the Deputy Director of Budget and Policy for Governor Greg Abbott, and he joins us here today.

John discusses many issues facing Texas today including health care, mental health, education, water sustainability, and more.

This week's guest is Representative David Spiller of House District 68, which spans across 12 counties here in Texas. He serves on multiple committees, including as cochair of the Texas Energy Fund Advisory committee. He discusses border security, foreign ownership of land, water availability, and the electric grid.

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Chris Powers, founder and CEO of Fort Capital, a real estate investment firm having completed more than $2.1B in real estate transactions in Texas, Tennessee, and Florida. He is also the host of The Fort podcast, a show about entrepreneurship where each episode's mission is to up your game by hearing directly from men and women in the arena.

https://fort-companies.com/

https://x.com/fortworthchris

https://www.thefortpod.com/