Today's episode of the Alex McFarland Show features a conversation between Alex and Chris Romans Chris is the youth pastor of First Baptist Church of Yorktown Texas He recounts when God prompted him to get involved in youth ministry and how he eventually ended up being elected to serve on the local school board While many have speculated that the influence of believers on culture is waning Chris shares his enthusiasm regarding the younger generation's desire to know and share the gospel message of Jesus Christ Tune in to hear why it's crucial now more than ever for adults to [... more]

In his hall-of-fame career as a sportswriter Dave Kindred covered hundreds of major sporting events and championships and wrote a biography of Muhammad Ali Growing bored in retirement he started attending girls rsquo basketball games at a local school Soon he began writing stories about each game and posting them online And when Dave rsquo s mother and grandson died and his wife suffered a debilitating stroke he realized the team he rsquo d been covering provided him with a sense of community and purpose He needed them as much as they needed him Kindred said ldquo This team saved [... more]

School has officially started for many children across the country and parents and students alike are facing two major issues mask mandates and Critical Race Theory As some states and local school boards have differing views on mask mandates are they within their constitutional rights in a federalist system of government and as a constitutional republic Jay and the rest of the Sekulow team discuss the controversy surrounding mask mandates Critical Race Theory and other important issues facing students parents and teachers going back to school This and more today on Sekulow [... more]

Amy Coney Barrett has joined the U S Supreme Court as its th justice She has said her judicial philosophy mirrors that of the late Justice Antonin Scalia and supporters characterize her as an originalist Jon Guze John Locke Foundation director legal studies analyzes Barrett's record He discusses the new justice's likely impact on the nation's highest court Those who want to reform higher education ought to look at governing boards That's a key piece of advice in a recent report from the James G Martin Center for Academic Renewal Report author Jay Schalin the center's director of policy analysis [... more]

Everyone knows public schools face problems What's the largest problem The answer depends on whom you ask Terry Stoops John Locke Foundation vice president for research and director of education studies analyzes recent survey results focusing on public perceptions about problems in their local schools A legal doctrine known as qualified immunity can create serious problems when a government agent wrongs a member of the public Clark Neily vice president for criminal justice at the Cato Institute is working to end courts' reliance on the qualified immunity doctrine He discusses its ills He explains how he's attacking it A public [... more]

Gov Roy Cooper outlined his priorities for the legislative session during his recent State of the State address Cooper pushed for Medicaid expansion a statewide school construction bond and higher pay for public school teachers The Democrat Cooper also talked about seeking bipartisan solutions Becki Gray John Locke Foundation senior vice president analyzes Cooper's remarks and the response from Senate Republican leader Phil Berger Freedom of religion is the first freedom spelled out in the U S Constitution's Bill of Rights It's also the fundamental freedom that faces some of the strongest attacks in today's America Ashley McGuire senior fellow [... more]

N C legislators returned to Raleigh for the first of what they expect to be multiple sessions linked to Hurricane Florence disaster relief In addition to a million disaster relief fund lawmakers unanimously supported legislation targeting schools state matches for federal disaster funding even mosquitoes Rick Henderson Carolina Journal editor-in-chief assesses lawmakers' initial responses to the hurricane North Carolina's Robert Shibley executive director of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education recently took part in a U S Justice Department forum addressing free speech on college campuses Shibley discussed recent improvements in campus speech codes He also identified ongoing challenges [... more]

Vermont Sen Bernie Sanders and New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez describe themselves as socialists But neither one fits the classic definition of socialist Roy Cordato John Locke Foundation senior economist distinguishes the two politicians from traditional socialists and explains why their policy goals would not lead to institutionalized socialism Most of consider ourselves to be law-abiding citizens But we might be breaking laws without our knowledge thanks to the problem of overcriminalization James Copland senior fellow and director of legal policy at the Manhattan Institute explains the problems created when a state has too many crimes on its books [... more]

This week on Family Policy Matters NC Family President John Rustin interviews Janet Oehl an activist with Onslow Protect Our Students They discuss the fight against comprehensive sex education that was being pushed in her local school system and how the success of a small grassroots movement has developed into a statewide organization dedicated to a similar mission [... more]

Problems have been festering for years at North Carolina's state prisons A fatal attack on officers at a Pasquotank County prison helped push the issue into the headlines The latest Carolina Journal cover story focuses on the issue Associate Editor Kari Travis discusses key findings from her investigation Two recent federal law enforcement investigations have focused on the major protagonists in the presidential election Andrew McCarthy senior fellow at the National Review Institute and a former federal prosecutor says the two investigations present a major contrast While the investigation linked to Donald Trump has been aggressive the one involving Hillary [... more]

Recent Hometown Debates sponsored by the Institute of Political Leadership in Rocky Mount Burlington and Newton highlighted key points of debate involving N C public education Terry Stoops the John Locke Foundation's vice president for research served as a panelist in each debate He summarizes his arguments related to the state's role in local school construction school choice accountability and teacher pay The th-century English philosopher John Locke is known for his influence on the American Founders' political principles Duke University professor Michael Munger says Locke also could be dubbed the first modern economist Munger points to a little-known Locke [... more]

As N C state government continues to consider policies that benefit the solar energy industry residents of one Beaufort County community are fighting a proposed -acre solar facility planned near a local school Rick Henderson Carolina Journal editor-in-chief explains why people in Terra Ceia are raising concerns about the project North Carolina lawmakers have been debating proposed changes in laws limiting the freedom of craft brewers to distribute their own products It's an issue that has attracted attention from Christopher Koopman senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University Koopman explains why state restrictions on craft breweries [... more]

Eric Buehrer President of Gateways to Better Education talks about a great new opportunity here in North Carolina for parents teachers school leaders and churches to learn about and promote religious freedom in their local schools [... more]