The Civics Lab
The Civics Lab at St. Edward's University (Austin, TX) is a student and faculty collaborative podcast on civics life in America. We interview guests and discuss issues around the intersection of politics, economics, society, public policy, religion and other important issues to the civics life in the United States and Texas. Dr. David Thomason, on the faculty at St. Ed's, is the director of the Civics Lab. Students at St. Ed's produce, research and comment on the podcast. Students in the lab include: Caroline King (Executive Editor) Milo Cortese (producer), Niko Smith (lead economic researcher), Desi Tsacalis (lead background researcher) and Michael Baumgartner (lead commentator) and Ben Alford (contributor) and Esther Heymans (contributor). The Civics Lab is sponsored by a grant from the Hatton Sumners Foundation.
Episodes
22 episodes
Interview with State Representative Gene Wu
In this episode, we had the opportunity to speak with State Representative Gene Wu. Gene Wu is a Democrat representing District 137, located in West Houston. It was an enormous pleasure to talk with Gene about the current legislative sess...
•
43:56
Jay Kleberg, Candidate for Texas Land Commissioner
You may be asking, what is the Texas Land Commission? Texas elects a Land Commissioner? Why? In this episode, we have Jay Kleberg in the Civics Lab studio to discuss why he is running for this statewide office and what makes t...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 7
•
26:13
How a Middle School in Austin is Making Salsa and Growing Young Entrepreneurs
Civics Lab team members went to John P. Ojeda Middle School, in Southeast Austin to discuss a project that teachers and students are collaborating to grow, market and finance the production of salsa.&n...
•
Season 2
•
7:34
Quick Take at the Texas Capitol for Disability Voting Rights with RevUp!
Join Michael Baumgartner and Esther Heymans as they attend and interview participants at the RevUP Texas (Register Educate Vote Use Your Power!) rally to promote voter registration and raising awareness...
•
Season 2
•
5:45
Russia, Money In Politics, and January 6 Attackers
We sat down for a casual conversation revolving around some of the biggest political stories of the week, and some that might have flown under your radar. Listen in as we discuss the January 6th hearings, Beto's defamation lawsuit, ...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 6
•
31:23
Quick Take on Women Running for Office in Texas with Claire Campos-O'Neal
In this Quick Take, we sat down with Claire Campos-O'Neal, a candidate for state representative from an Austin district. She discusses her passion for education and the way more women can run ...
•
Season 2
•
8:47
Interview with Lynn Osgood of Civic Arts
Civic Arts is an organization that promotes equity, justice, and civic engagement through the arts. We sat down with Civic Arts' Executive Director Lynn Osgood to hear her thoughts on the state of civics in America, how we can make engagement m...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 5
•
39:40
Ross Ramsey discusses Texas Politics
Ross Ramsey. co-founder and chief editor of the Texas Tribune, sat down in the Civics Lab Studio this week. A lively and information conversation, Ramsey shares his thoughts on the state of Texas politics. We cover the primary...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 4
•
58:38
What's all the Buzz?- Interview with Erika Thompson and the ABC (Austin Bee City) Resolution
We did a quick take with Erika Thompson (@texasbeeworks), founder of Texas Beeworks and professional bee keeper, along with advocates from UT and the community, on a recent Austin City Council to make Austin a Bee City. What's a Bee...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 3
•
5:15
Religion, Revolution and Russian Threats-Roundtable in the Lab
In this episode, the Civics Lab team discusses the recent questions of Republican leadership and the Jan. 6 insurrection, SCOTUS vacancy, Religion in Politics and the Russian threat to the Ukraine. Join us this week for a great conv...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 1
•
1:01:24
Civics Education in America- Ep. 11
In this episode, we discuss the nature and scope of civics education. We sit down with Braver Angels, Generation Citizen, and the Holy Cross Institute, as we explore what it means to be a citizen and how education plays a vital role in sh...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 11
•
51:07
Fishy Interview with Trout Unlimited-Greg McReynolds - Ep 10
What do fishing, clean water, public land access, and conservation all have in common? That's the topic of today's discussion as we sat down with Trout Unlimited's Greg McReynolds, who arguably has the coolest job title in America, Intermou...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 10
•
41:32
Strong Democracy, Voting With Dollars and Ballot Propositions in Austin - Ep 9
On this episode, we had a conversation with Andrew Allison, chair and member of the group Austinites for Progressive Reform. We discuss 5 Propositions on the May Ballot, ones that Austinites for Progressive reform introduced and are advocating ...
•
56:38
Snowmageddon... Texas Style - Ep 8
On this episode, we had a conversation with James Barragan, reporter for the Dallas Morning News who covers Texas politics and the Texas Legislature. Days after the historic winter storm that blew through Texas, we discussed power outages acros...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 8
•
49:49
Diplomacy and Democracy Interview with Mirek Konvalina - Ep 7
Back in early December of 2020, The Civics Lab had a discussion with Mirek Konvalina; director of the Czech Center in New York and a seasoned diplomatic professional. In addition to the work Mirek has done at the Czech Center, he has also serve...
•
Episode 7
•
33:52
Representative Stephanie Klick Interview- Ep 6
Representative Stephanie Klick, Chair of the Texas House Elections Committee, is in the Civics Lab, discussing the 2020 Texas Elections and how her committee is preparing for the upcoming Texas legislative session. We discuss mandatory v...
•
Episode 6
•
25:26
America's Cost of Voting - Ep 5
This week, Dr. Scot Schraufnagel , Professor of Political Science at Northern Illiniois University, is in the Civics Lab and discusses his research on the
•
Episode 5
•
36:25
One Nation Under Media Control- Ep 4
This week, the civics lab explores the causes for why the media contributes to inflaming our political divide. We discuss our groups’ solutions from an article we wrote for the
•
Episode 4
•
14:52
The Vietnam War and Political Distrust - Ep 3
This week, the civics lab goes to the small town of Llano, Texas and discovers that healing the wounds of the Vietnam war may be the key to solving our current political divide. In over 20 interviews, we uncover the widespread distrust in...
•
Episode 3
•
22:13
Texans Wear Cowboy Hats, Austinites Wear Fedoras (Preview) - Ep 2
Small towns matter to the future of Texas. We went to Llano on November 14, the same day thousands were rallying in D.C., protesting and questioning the results of the 2020 presidential election, to ask what matters to small town vo...
•
Episode 2
•
2:38