Latest / Austin Signal / Audit of Austin’s $25 million contract with the Long Center reveals gaps in billing, transparency, oversight
Transcript
- 0:09A review of the City of Austin's $25
- 0:11million contract with the Long
- 0:13Center to Disperse Arts Grants
- 0:15funding has exposed gaps in billing,
- 0:17transparency, and oversight.
- 0:19City auditors for years have raised
- 0:20concerns about weaknesses in the
- 0:22monitoring of city contracts.
- 0:23We've got more about that.
- 0:25And a new program wants to bring
- 0:26Austin's home-based side hustles
- 0:28out of the shadows, out of that
- 0:29crowded garage and into the light
- 0:31of day.
- 0:32It's the latest effort from the city
- 0:34to create ways for micro businesses
- 0:35and owners to thrive, not just
- 0:37survive more about that coming
- 0:39up on today's show.
- 0:41The Austin Signal is a production
- 0:43of KUT News, hosted by
- 0:45Jerry Quijano.
- 0:46Plus, the Texas women's basketball
- 0:47team is back in the final four.
- 0:49A pair of wins this weekend would
- 0:51give the Horns their second national
- 0:52championship, 40 years
- 0:54on from their first.
- 0:56More about that coming up next
- 0:58on Austin Signal.
- 1:09Howdy out there, this is Austin
- 1:11Signal. I'm your host, Jerry
- 1:13Quijano.
- 1:14It is Friday, April 3rd.
- 1:16Thank you for making us part of
- 1:18your day.
- 1:20For over 20 years, the
- 1:21Austin City Auditor's Office has
- 1:23continuously flagged problems with
- 1:25the monitoring of money paid to
- 1:27contractors and consultants.
- 1:29And the $25 million contract
- 1:31with the Long Center to disperse
- 1:32arts grant funding is just the
- 1:34latest example, according to a
- 1:35report out by Austin Current.
- 1:37It says that the city continues to
- 1:39have issues with how it monitors the
- 1:40billions of dollars of taxpayer
- 1:42dollars it pays to consultants,
- 1:44nonprofits, and private companies.
- 1:47For more, we are talking with Andrea
- 1:48Ball, the growth development
- 1:50reporter who wrote the story for
- 1:51Austin Current.
- 1:52Andrea, welcome back to the show.
- 1:54Thanks for having me.
- 1:54So remind us about this $25
- 1:57million Long Center agreement and
- 1:59why it's under so much scrutiny
- 2:00right now.
- 2:01Right, so in
- 2:032023, the city decided
- 2:05that it was going to start using a
- 2:07third party to administer these
- 2:09arts grants.
- 2:10To be clear, the $25 million
- 2:11contract is not
- 2:13all $25 million to the Long
- 2:15Center. They're handling the
- 2:17processing of about $23.5
- 2:20million that's going out to the
- 2:21artists.
- 2:22$1.5 goes to them as profit
- 2:24or as fees for service.
- 2:26And When I
- 2:28came to town, I started hearing
- 2:30some things about the
- 2:33process and some
- 2:36financial questions about
- 2:38the contract itself.
- 2:40And so the Long
- 2:42Center is used because it
- 2:44has such a great ability
- 2:46to basically get
- 2:48grants out quickly, where the city
- 2:50was really slow about it.
- 2:53The way the contract was structured,
- 2:55it was just kind of unusual for the
- 2:57type that it was in that instead of
- 2:59saying, okay, your fees are capped
- 3:01at this percentage or this dollar
- 3:02amount, it was a fee for service
- 3:05thing, which means fee for services
- 3:06per hour, which means you gotta
- 3:08really be on top of that.
- 3:10And that's where questions started
- 3:12coming in.
- 3:13You have been reporting on this for
- 3:14a while now another story that you
- 3:16did recently says that because of
- 3:17all of this the city has started
- 3:19to rethink the arts grant
- 3:21system and maybe the contract with
- 3:22the long center or what's going on
- 3:24there.
- 3:24So when we did our story,
- 3:27these city's arts department,
- 3:29just to keep it short, they
- 3:31decided to do a review.
- 3:33And when people do reviews, you
- 3:35pretty much assume nothing's gonna
- 3:36happen.
- 3:37You know, okay, they're just gonna
- 3:38be like, oh, we reviewed it, great,
- 3:40look forward to a fruitful and long
- 3:41relationship.
- 3:43And, but actually it appears they
- 3:45really did look at it and
- 3:47they came back with an internal
- 3:49review that said, hey, we're not
- 3:51getting audits that are detailed
- 3:53enough.
- 3:54You can't account for certain
- 3:55billing.
- 3:56We don't have performance measures
- 3:58for you. This is just, we
- 4:00need to tighten up.
- 4:01We're probably gonna do an RFP,
- 4:03meaning we're gonna bid this out
- 4:04when your contract's up in 2028.
- 4:08And we are also thinking about
- 4:10doing a third party independent
- 4:11audit of you.
- 4:13I do wanna say something pretty
- 4:14clearly.
- 4:16No one has accused them of doing
- 4:17anything improper.
- 4:19And the story that we did
- 4:21yesterday really talks about
- 4:24But whatever issues there are
- 4:27with the Long Center and this
- 4:28contract is
- 4:30not all on them if there
- 4:32are really issues.
- 4:33The city has a long documented
- 4:35history of having problems
- 4:37with monitoring
- 4:39contracts throughout the city.
- 4:41They've been warned for two decades
- 4:43about this issue and it
- 4:45continues to happen.
- 4:46This lack of monitoring, this
- 4:48fragmentation of contracts all
- 4:50over the city, the lack of
- 4:52performance reviews and
- 4:54goals.
- 4:55This is not new.
- 4:56And so you start to have to ask the
- 4:57question, why, why
- 4:59is, why, why are we not changing
- 5:01this?
- 5:01And it's not just limited to arts
- 5:02grant funding, correct?
- 5:03Right. Right.
- 5:04It's everything.
- 5:05Mayor Watson is on the city's Audit
- 5:07and Finance Committee.
- 5:08What did he have to say about this
- 5:09pattern of weak oversight?
- 5:11Yeah, he told me
- 5:13this week that he's got some things
- 5:14in the works, that he has been
- 5:16addressing this within the
- 5:17city staff, and I don't
- 5:19know yet what those plans might be
- 5:21in terms of oversight, but some
- 5:23people are saying, yeah, it's long
- 5:24overdue.
- 5:25You mentioned this contract going up
- 5:27for bid again.
- 5:29Has the city considered taking
- 5:31this work in-house?
- 5:33Yes, they have talked about
- 5:35that. It used to be in-house.
- 5:37And the issue was that
- 5:39the artists were like, it's taking
- 5:40forever to get the money.
- 5:42I got to do my work.
- 5:43Like, this money is really important
- 5:45to artists, because it helps them to
- 5:47not spend their own money to
- 5:49live in in Austin.
- 5:52Because if you're spending all your
- 5:53money on your art, you can't pay
- 5:54your rent. And so that's why these
- 5:55grants are super important.
- 5:57So one
- 5:59of the possibilities
- 6:01is yes, that the city's
- 6:03arts department would take it in
- 6:05house.
- 6:06The estimate is to take around 10
- 6:08people, uh, that they would
- 6:09need some more money for, you know,
- 6:12the expenses of that, some IT work,
- 6:14whatever. And it's, it's
- 6:18up for, y'know, consideration.
- 6:19So what are you hearing from members
- 6:21of the community as this is playing
- 6:22out?
- 6:23I think that I will tell you this.
- 6:26I have heard from
- 6:28a lot of musicians that
- 6:30this issue has been coming up
- 6:32over the years and that they have
- 6:34talked to people in
- 6:36the city about it and nothing
- 6:38happened.
- 6:40I think sometimes when it comes
- 6:42to grants and things like that,
- 6:44people's concerns get dismissed as
- 6:46you didn't get a grant so you're
- 6:47better.
- 6:48When we talk about processes and
- 6:51they are mixed.
- 6:52With a lot of emotions, things
- 6:54get glossed over,
- 6:56or it's too difficult to address,
- 6:58or there's a new department, we've
- 7:00had so many new leaders, new city
- 7:02managers and stuff, so I think
- 7:04there's lot of interest in seeing,
- 7:06okay, you're listening to our
- 7:08concerns now, where's this going?
- 7:11Okay, we have been speaking with
- 7:12Andrea Ball, she is the growth
- 7:13development reporter at Austin
- 7:15Current, KUT's and
- 7:17Austin Signal's reporting partner in
- 7:19covering the city of Austin.
- 7:20Andrea, always a great time talking
- 7:21with you.
- 7:22Thank you for having me.
- 7:34Running a business out of your home
- 7:36is getting a little easier
- 7:38for Austin entrepreneurs.
- 7:40KUT's Luz Moreno Lozano tells
- 7:42us how the city is now making it
- 7:44simpler for secret side hustles
- 7:46to be shared out in the open.
- 7:49Jennifer Worth frames art, posters,
- 7:51and photos out of her East Austin
- 7:53home.
- 7:54It's called Vintage Framing Studio,
- 7:56a business she started in 2010.
- 7:59She reuses and recycles frames she
- 8:00finds at thrift stores and works
- 8:02with each customer to find the right
- 8:04frame for their piece.
- 8:05It's the kind of work she and her
- 8:07partner used to do at South Austin
- 8:08Gallery before closing the brick and
- 8:10mortar location 10 years ago.
- 8:13Worth converted her garage into a
- 8:14framing workshop and used her front
- 8:16fence to advertise her small
- 8:17business.
- 8:19On my fence and like if you
- 8:21across the street you'll see it's a
- 8:22green belt so there's constantly
- 8:24people like walking so
- 8:26I would get a lot of people
- 8:28basically would see
- 8:30my signs.
- 8:31Then early last year, she says a
- 8:32city worker knocked on her door and
- 8:34told her to take those signs down.
- 8:36Someone in the neighborhood had
- 8:37complained.
- 8:39Now, Worth will be allowed to put
- 8:40her signs back up.
- 8:42The Austin City Council has approved
- 8:43a pilot that lets home-based
- 8:45businesses like Worth's advertise
- 8:47and sell their products in their
- 8:48front yards.
- 8:49It's part of a recent effort by the
- 8:51city to create more ways for micro
- 8:53businesses to operate and thrive in
- 8:55Austin.
- 8:56Councilmember Natasha Harper-Madison
- 8:58led the initiative to let small
- 8:59businesses operate from their homes
- 9:01in plain sight.
- 9:03Sharon Mays, Harper- Madison's Chief
- 9:04of Staff, says it's not a new
- 9:05concept.
- 9:06Austin has had home occupation
- 9:09rules on the books for a really
- 9:11long time and that lets
- 9:13residents run a limited
- 9:15number of businesses inside
- 9:17of their home.
- 9:18But the businesses were never
- 9:19visible from the street.
- 9:21During the last legislative session,
- 9:23lawmakers made it easier for Texans
- 9:25to start a home business.
- 9:27May said that cleared the way for
- 9:29Austin to let these businesses come
- 9:30out in the open.
- 9:31Our Strong Local Commerce initiative
- 9:33is really trying to empower
- 9:36those entrepreneurs and those
- 9:38home-based businesses by saying
- 9:40there is an option
- 9:42to also bring that
- 9:44business outside of the
- 9:46house.
- 9:47It means these home-based business
- 9:48owners can display a small sign in
- 9:50the yard and sell art, plants, and
- 9:51other goods from their front porch.
- 9:54Kelly Masters is president and
- 9:56founder of nonprofit Homemade Taxes.
- 9:58She says this is the kind of
- 9:59flexibility she and her team have
- 10:01been fighting for in the cottage
- 10:02food industry.
- 10:04Back in 2005, Masters was
- 10:06looking for a way to earn a little
- 10:07extra money by making and selling
- 10:09cakes out of her home.
- 10:11But she soon learned that it was
- 10:12illegal.
- 10:13For years, she lobbied lawmakers for
- 10:15new cottage food laws.
- 10:17In 2011, the state legalized
- 10:19cottage food businesses with some
- 10:20limitations.
- 10:22But many cities still have rules
- 10:23that prohibit home-based businesses
- 10:25from being visible, making it
- 10:26difficult to sell their goods from a
- 10:28residence.
- 10:29You can make the best product in
- 10:30your kitchen, but...
- 10:31It's hard to find a place to sell
- 10:33it. And so for a lot of
- 10:35these bakers and makers,
- 10:37the most natural place to sale.
- 10:39And the easiest place to sell is
- 10:40right at your own home.
- 10:41The new program isn't sitting well
- 10:43with everyone.
- 10:44At a city council meeting last week,
- 10:46several people expressed concerns
- 10:47about traffic, parking problems,
- 10:49eyesores, noise, and odors.
- 10:51South Austin resident Sarah Fow says
- 10:53it could be a bigger problem for
- 10:54neighborhoods without sidewalks.
- 10:56When we don't have sidewalks,
- 10:59we've got the kids, the bikes, the
- 11:00dogs, the strollers.
- 11:02We're all forced to walk out in
- 11:03the street.
- 11:05Survive adding more car trips to
- 11:06our neighborhood streets from the
- 11:08retail businesses.
- 11:09Council staffer Mays says the city
- 11:11is taking those concerns seriously
- 11:12and plans to roll out the home-based
- 11:14business program in areas designated
- 11:16as pink zones.
- 11:18Staff will monitor things like
- 11:19traffic, parking and neighborhood
- 11:21sentiment before a citywide rollout.
- 11:23City rules about noise, trash and
- 11:25pollutions to apply and these
- 11:27businesses are not allowed to
- 11:28violate HOA rules or deed
- 11:29restrictions.
- 11:31Jennifer Wirth says as a longtime
- 11:33business owner, the city should be
- 11:34doing more to support local
- 11:36businesses.
- 11:37It might be that.
- 11:37That to keep the local and then like
- 11:39keep Austin weird,
- 11:41we need to have these home
- 11:42businesses that people can find,
- 11:44you know, cause we can't, a lot of
- 11:46us can't afford brick and mortar and
- 11:47it's too scary to do that.
- 11:49She says businesses like hers and
- 11:51others help make the city what it
- 11:52is.
- 11:54I'm Luz Moreno Lozano in Austin.
- 11:57And we're gonna have a link to
- 11:58Luce's reporting in today's
- 12:01podcast, Show Notes.
- 12:02And since it is a Friday, in case
- 12:04you missed anything that we worked
- 12:05on this week, you can always catch
- 12:07up on all of our shows.
- 12:09That is over at kut.org
- 12:12slash Signal.
- 12:13We are community powered public
- 12:15radio and we will be back
- 12:17after a break.
- 12:18This is Austin Signal.
- 12:20Thanks for making us part of your
- 12:21Friday.
- 12:30This is Austin Signal, welcome
- 12:32back.
- 12:33Families across Texas that choose to
- 12:35celebrate Easter have varying
- 12:37traditions.
- 12:38For many, especially
- 12:39Mexican-American families,
- 12:41cascarones are a staple in
- 12:43children's Easter baskets.
- 12:45My grandma collects all her
- 12:46eggshells from her church baking and
- 12:48loves to paint hers in a variety
- 12:50of really, really pretty styles.
- 12:52These colorful and painstakingly
- 12:54handmade confetti eggs have one
- 12:56purpose only, to be smashed
- 12:58on someone's head.
- 13:00Austin signal managing producer,
- 13:02Kristin Cabrera, takes us through
- 13:03what makes these cascarones special.
- 13:07Easter memories of mine consist of
- 13:0990 degree weather in the Rio Grande
- 13:11Valley, barbecuing fajitas
- 13:13surrounded by lots and
- 13:15lots of cousins.
- 13:17But what I remember most about these
- 13:19childhood Easter's are the
- 13:21cascarones.
- 13:22With these confetti eggs as
- 13:24ammunition, what happened after
- 13:25the egg hunt was tantamount
- 13:27to a family battle royale.
- 13:29And I know my family wasn't the only
- 13:31one. We would crack the Easter
- 13:33eggs.
- 13:33On people's heads and it was
- 13:36all in fun.
- 13:38There were some mischievous kids
- 13:40and adults who put stuff
- 13:42in them like flour.
- 13:44You never knew who was gonna get
- 13:45that one. That's Norma Elia Cantu.
- 13:47She is the Murchison Professor of
- 13:49the Humanities at Trinity University
- 13:51in San Antonio.
- 13:52She says cascarones are a tradition
- 13:54that many Mexican-American families
- 13:56have going back generations.
- 13:59Well, like most South Texans.
- 14:00And northern Mexican Mexicans.
- 14:03We have a tradition during Easter
- 14:05of preparing the cascarones
- 14:07during Holy Week,
- 14:09dyeing them, stuffing them with
- 14:11confetti, covering them up,
- 14:13decorating them.
- 14:14And I have very fond memories of my
- 14:16childhood when my aunts
- 14:18from Mexico would come visit Laredo.
- 14:21Help us decorate the eggs.
- 14:23I remember watching my mom and my
- 14:24grandma delicately crack the tops of
- 14:26each egg at breakfast,
- 14:28setting the shell aside to dry out
- 14:30and eventually be decorated and
- 14:31filled weeks later.
- 14:33And all these memories got me
- 14:34thinking, I should just make some
- 14:36right now.
- 14:40Okay, so I
- 14:42am in my kitchen
- 14:44slash dining room right
- 14:46now in my apartment and I've
- 14:48got 18 eggs
- 14:50that I'm gonna use to
- 14:52make cascarones.
- 14:54The process is fairly
- 14:55straightforward.
- 14:56Step one, crack the egg.
- 14:59The key is just to tap the
- 15:01top of the
- 15:03egg and then just lift it up
- 15:05like a little top.
- 15:06Step two, rinse and dry your
- 15:08eggs. So I've just rinsed the
- 15:10eggs. Then I'm gonna place the eggs
- 15:12in the oven at 275
- 15:14for five minutes, just to
- 15:16dry out the eggs with heat.
- 15:18I have to wait for my eggshells to
- 15:19cool, but if you've been drying
- 15:20yours on the counter for weeks, then
- 15:22it's time for step three,
- 15:25decorating. But overall, I think the
- 15:26best bet is markers.
- 15:28I decorate the shells with stars and
- 15:31flowers and try my best to be both
- 15:32artistic and delicate.
- 15:34Where this artistry originally comes
- 15:37from is full of conjecture, says
- 15:39Kantu.
- 15:39There are many cultures that
- 15:41have a rich tradition in decorative
- 15:43eggs.
- 15:44In fact, Ukraine has a very
- 15:46rich tradition of hand-painted
- 15:48eggshells, and
- 15:49also into Germany and Austria,
- 15:51but they would not stuff it with
- 15:53confetti and hit it over people's
- 15:55heads.
- 15:55Heads because they're precious.
- 15:56The hollowed out and filled eggs are
- 15:58said to have originated in China.
- 16:00Marco Polo reportedly brought the
- 16:01tradition to Europe, but cascarones
- 16:04really took root in Mexico.
- 16:06Which brings us to
- 16:09Step four, filling the eggs.
- 16:12This is the family prankster's
- 16:14favorite part.
- 16:15Though confetti is customary, some
- 16:17will sneak flour or even glitter
- 16:19into the eggs instead.
- 16:21This was strictly forbidden by
- 16:23my mom.
- 16:24Step five, covering the eggs,
- 16:26all this takes is a little bit of
- 16:28Elmer's glue and a square of tissue
- 16:29paper. And now they're done.
- 16:31Except to make these truly
- 16:33cascarones, they need to be tested.
- 16:36As a childless millennial with no
- 16:38backyard, I've borrowed my
- 16:39co-workers' kids.
- 16:40Can you say it louder and into that?
- 16:41My name's Henry and I'm seven
- 16:43years old.
- 16:44Yeah, can you say, my name is Scout?
- 16:46My name is South.
- 16:48Oh, and then how old are you?
- 16:49I am 10 years old!
- 16:52How old are ya?
- 16:54Scout is in fact five years old,
- 16:56and that voice asking her to say so
- 16:58is her mom and my KUT co-worker,
- 17:01Clara Ha.
- 17:02Clara and her husband Alan have
- 17:03graciously let me test the quality
- 17:05of my cascarones in their backyard.
- 17:07And now, the kids are about to run
- 17:09and find the ones I've hidden.
- 17:11Alright, ready, set,
- 17:14go! Go find them!
- 17:16One of the great things about
- 17:17cultural traditions is getting to
- 17:19share them with others.
- 17:20In Texas.
- 17:21These cascarones have found their
- 17:23way into more than just Easter
- 17:24celebrations, but birthday parties
- 17:26and city festivals like Fiesta
- 17:28in San Antonio.
- 17:30Humanities professor Norma Cantu
- 17:31explains that cultural expression in
- 17:33Texas is already fused with
- 17:36other influences and something
- 17:37magical can happen over time.
- 17:39It kind of transformed.
- 17:40And becomes its own
- 17:42third culture if you will.
- 17:45What Gloria Anzaldua would call
- 17:46nepantla, we exist in this
- 17:48in-between space that
- 17:51brings together different
- 17:53sometimes opposing cultures
- 17:55into a unified expression.
- 17:58And in some way I would even claim
- 18:00the cascarón is a site
- 18:02of such fusion.
- 18:08If you've never had a cascadona in
- 18:09your basket, we invite you to
- 18:11try it out.
- 18:12But as Cantu says, be gentle.
- 18:14You don't hit the cascaron on
- 18:16someone's head.
- 18:17You break it here.
- 18:17Hand over their head.
- 18:20I'm Kristin Cabrera in Austin.
- 18:22Gentle touches!
- 18:38The Texas women's basketball team
- 18:40will take the court against fellow
- 18:42one seed UCLA in tonight's
- 18:44final four game in Phoenix.
- 18:46As KUT's Kaylee Hunt reports,
- 18:48it's the second straight year that
- 18:49the Longhorns have advanced to the
- 18:51NCAA tournament semifinals.
- 18:53But the team and its fans
- 18:55are hopeful that this season
- 18:57will end a championship drought.
- 19:00That last national title nearly
- 19:0240 years ago, back when the team
- 19:04was coached by the legendary Jody
- 19:06Conrad.
- 19:07And over the last two years, the
- 19:08team has been so close to
- 19:10finally winning again.
- 19:11For the first time since 1987.
- 19:15Texas is headed.
- 19:22For now, Conrad remains the only
- 19:24coach to lead a Texas women's
- 19:26basketball team to a national
- 19:27championship.
- 19:29Her 1986 team went 34-0,
- 19:31becoming the first women's team in
- 19:33NCAA history to complete a perfect
- 19:35season.
- 19:36Current coach Vic Schaeffer is
- 19:38looking to bring home the title in
- 19:39his sixth year leading the program.
- 19:42Schaefer has his own historic
- 19:43coaching record.
- 19:45He's the only Coach in NCAA women's
- 19:47history to lead multiple teams
- 19:49to multiple final force.
- 19:51He took Mississippi State to Final
- 19:53Four appearances in 2017 and
- 19:552018.
- 19:56In a press conference after UT's
- 19:58win over Michigan in the Elite
- 20:00Eight, Schaeffer talked about his
- 20:02team's success and that the
- 20:04journey isn't over.
- 20:05I told them they're good enough.
- 20:07I've been on this trip before, but I
- 20:10want them to really be focused.
- 20:11Enjoy today, don't take these things
- 20:13for granted. I do not take today for
- 20:15granted, these moments,
- 20:17but enjoy it.
- 20:19But when we get on the plane and
- 20:21we go to Phoenix, you keep
- 20:23that edge that you've had.
- 20:25Schaeffer says there's no question
- 20:26that last year's Final Four run
- 20:28influenced his team's performance
- 20:30this year.
- 20:31Here he is talking at a press
- 20:32conference in Phoenix.
- 20:34They know exactly what they're
- 20:35getting into,
- 20:37and I just think there's a
- 20:39maturity about them and a level
- 20:41of focus and concentration
- 20:43and confidence.
- 20:45Texas was knocked out of last year's
- 20:47final four round by South Carolina.
- 20:49The Longhorns got revenge though
- 20:50last month, defeating the Gamecocks
- 20:5278-61 to secure
- 20:54the program's first ever SEC
- 20:56Conference Championship.
- 20:58I think we kind of increased that
- 20:59focus and increased that mentality.
- 21:01I think right before SC Tournament
- 21:02started.
- 21:03That's Texas' junior first-team
- 21:05All-American Madison Booker.
- 21:07I think we knew we had a business
- 21:08and we had our goals to achieve and
- 21:10we wanted to achieve it and we felt
- 21:11like we were good enough to achieve.
- 21:13So I think that's kind of when we
- 21:14really locked in and kind of paid
- 21:16attention more to film and scout
- 21:17and practice.
- 21:19But even with all that work,
- 21:21all that focus, and all the pressure
- 21:22of being in another Final 4,
- 21:25Booker says the team is having fun.
- 21:27I think it's so easy to kind of
- 21:29take basketball as a job.
- 21:31I just think we as a team,
- 21:33we have done a great job kind of
- 21:34just going back on that and kind of
- 21:36taking it back as a kid's sport.
- 21:37I mean, we all played when we were
- 21:38younger and we all loved this sport
- 21:40when we're young. We had a fun, we
- 21:41played when were younger.
- 21:42And I really, when we did
- 21:44that, I think we seemed more like we
- 21:46seemed like a higher level in our
- 21:48team chemistry and our sisterhood
- 21:49here.
- 21:50The winner of tonight's game will
- 21:51play South Carolina or UConn in
- 21:53Sunday's national championship game.
- 21:55Tip off tonight is at 8.30pm on
- 21:57ESPN.
- 21:58I'm Kaylee Hunt in Austin.
- 22:00And if you've got your season
- 22:02long superstitions that have been
- 22:04working, keep on going tonight
- 22:06and hopefully on Sunday for
- 22:08the national championship game
- 22:10too.
- 22:12Well, that is it for today's
- 22:13show. We're gonna have a link to all
- 22:15of the reporting that we shared with
- 22:17you today in the podcast
- 22:19show notes. And you can find more
- 22:20from us at kut.org
- 22:23slash signal.
- 22:25Rayna Sevilla is our technical
- 22:26director. She's been handling the
- 22:28majority of the technical duties
- 22:29and keeping me in line this week
- 22:31doing a great job.
- 22:32Thank you Ray.
- 22:33Kristen Cabrera is our managing
- 22:35producer. She has been under the
- 22:36weather this week so she's not been
- 22:38with us in the studio but still
- 22:40working hard as ever.
- 22:41Thank you Kristen.
- 22:43I am your host Jerry Quijano.
- 22:44Austin Signal will be back Monday
- 22:47afternoon at 1 o'clock and
- 22:49always wherever you get your
- 22:50podcasts.
- 22:51Have a great weekend and
- 22:53be safe out there.