Brazos Matters

More than 11,000 students, several dozen buildings, and a staff of roughly 450 — all are the responsibilities of Texas A&M Residence Life, the second-largest employer in the Division of Student Affairs. In this episode of “Brazos Matters,” host Jay Socol and student contributor Kaleigh Mazy ’26 visit with Dr. Kyle McCracken, Director of Residence Life, to explore what it takes to run one of the university's biggest and most personal operations. McCracken traces his own path from reluctant RA recruit to residence life leader of nearly 15 years, and explains how his department tries to make a massive operation care about the individuals it serves. He talks candidly about competing with Northgate's resort-style, rooftop-pool apartment towers on a very different budget, and running a genuinely 24/7 operation where some staff live full-time in the buildings they manage. The conversation also covers practical advice for families navigating the housing application timeline (apply early, stay flexible on preferences, and don't be afraid to call), how common spaces have evolved from century-old barracks-style halls to today's flexible gathering spots, and McCracken's goals for keeping pace with a student body that changes a little more every year. “Brazos Matters” is a production of Aggieland’s Public Media, KAMU-TV and KAMU-FM, a member of Texas A&M University's Division of Community Engagement.

Ten years ago, College Station Municipal Court Judge Edward Spillane III wrote a Washington Post op-ed — ""Why I Refuse to Send People to Jail for Failure to Pay Fines"" — that struck a national nerve and pushed cities across the country to rethink how they treat people who genuinely can't afford their fines. In this episode of “Brazos Matters,” host Jay Socol and student contributor Kaleigh Mazy ’26 ask Judge Spillane to look back on what's changed since then — and what hasn't. Spillane, who has presided over College Station's municipal court since 2002, walks through the roughly 30,000 Class-C misdemeanor cases his court handles each year and the alternative sentencing programs he's built to keep people out of jail: community living classes, warrant amnesty periods, payment plans, and a peer-run teen court that he says outperforms even felony boot camp at preventing repeat offenses. The conversation also digs into some pressing modern issues facing the court system: how booking photos and public records now get bought and sold by data brokers long after a case is resolved, how court-impersonation scams and fraudulent texts have become a daily nuisance, and why College Station sees a strikingly disproportionate share of the state's minor-in-possession cases — nearly 20% of all MIP filings in Texas — tied largely to the Northgate entertainment district. “Brazos Matters” is a production of Aggieland's Public Media — KAMU-FM and KAMU-TV — members of Texas A&M University's Division of Community Engagement.

Bast Schellhorn, Program Specialist, Texas A&M Cybersecurity Center discusses FBI crime statistics, his educational & professional background, common day-to-day cybersecurity risks, apartment internet, VPNs, password complexity, social media safety, concerns about AI & deepfakes, phishing emails & text messages, Defcon, and software & security updates.

Dr. Carly McCord, Founding and Executive Director at the Texas A&M Telehealth Institute & Dr. Mikaela Spooner, a Psychologist at the Texas A&M Telehealth Institute and the lead provider at FarmHope discuss their Professional backgrounds, Texas A&M Telehealth institute, the Farm Hope program, stressors felt by ag & rural communities, implications of long commutes on healthcare access & use, telehealth as a solution, other Farm Hope services outside of mental health care, response to this past summer's flood, technology resources available to those without.

Claire St. Amant, True crime journalist, podcast host, author discusses her professional background, why she is visiting Texas A&M's Campus, What she plans to teach A&M Journalism students, her thoughts on the future of the journalism profession, and the evolution from traditional media to podcasts.