On this special year-end episode of Liberty + Leadership, Roger reflects on a remarkable year for The Fund for American Studies (TFAS). He highlights moments from the podcast that celebrate TFAS’s mission and the work of alumni, fellows, students, and friends who are advancing individual liberty, personal responsibility and economic freedom around the world.

These moments feature foreign policy leaders, courageous journalists, economists, educators and student leaders. Topics range from reflections on captive nations and the global fight for freedom to firsthand accounts of the costs of courageous journalism, discussions on fiscal responsibility and sound governance and the changing media landscape. They also showcase the impact of TFAS programs and the voices of students and alumni just starting their leadership journeys.

These moments tell the story of a year defined by growth, intellectual seriousness and a renewed commitment to the principles that sustain a free society. As TFAS looks ahead to 2026 and America’s 250th anniversary, it is a reminder of why developing principled leaders remains more important than ever.

The Liberty + Leadership Podcast is hosted by TFAS president Roger Ream and produced by Podville Media. If you have a comment or question for the show, please email us at podcast@TFAS.org. To support TFAS and its mission, please visit TFAS.org/support.

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Roger hosts a special episode of Liberty + Leadership that brings listeners inside the 32nd Annual TFAS Journalism Awards Dinner and the Journalism Forum that preceded it. These curated conversations offer a look at how TFAS is shaping the journalists of tomorrow through their rich ecosystem of programs like the Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship, the Joseph Rago Memorial Fellowships for Excellence in Journalism, the Student Journalism Association, the Media Accelerator Fellowship and the Campus Transparency Fellowship.

Listeners will hear keynote remarks and panel discussions featuring alumni, fellows, editors and student journalists who examine the state of journalism, the collapse of trust in legacy media and the rise of independent reporting. Topics include the responsibilities of credible news organizations, the importance of showing one’s work, the changing business models of journalism and the discipline required to report with accuracy and independence. Listeners will also hear the results of the yearlong projects of two Novak alumni and a panel of student journalists who demonstrate the bright possibilities of the future of journalism.

This special episode features voices from across TFAS’s journalism network, including Brian Anderson of City Journal; Novak alumni Charles Lehman, Kate Batchelder Odell and Mene Ukueberuwa, Carine Hajjar (also a Rago alumna) and Audrey Fahlberg; student journalists Alex Shieh, Natalia Lopez and Max Whalen. Their commentary reflects the mission of TFAS to prepare principled, curious and courageous reporters who can strengthen the public square and elevate the standards of their profession.

The Liberty + Leadership Podcast is hosted by TFAS president Roger Ream and produced by Podville Media. If you have a comment or question for the show, please email us at podcast@TFAS.org. To support TFAS and its mission, please visit TFAS.org/support.

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Roger welcomes Amanda Stiglbauer, a longtime mentor and instructor with TFAS’s high school division, the Foundation for Teaching Economics (FTE), for a conversation about teaching economics in a way that connects with students and helps them understand the world. Amanda, who recently joined TFAS as FTE’s economic education curriculum fellow, shares how her early love of teaching merged with a growing passion for economics and how discovering the economic way of thinking gave her a framework for understanding choice, incentives, prices and the world around her.

They discuss the challenges of improving economic literacy in American classrooms, the importance of active learning and the impact of FTE’s interactive programs. Additional topics include supply and demand, the true cost of tariffs, the differences between personal finance and economics education, the role of institutions in long-term prosperity, the relevance of the Economic Freedom Index and FTE’s new curriculum initiatives, such as The Realities of Socialism and Economic Forces in American Civics for the America 250 celebration.

The Liberty + Leadership Podcast is hosted by TFAS president Roger Ream and produced by Podville Media. If you have a comment or question for the show, please email us at podcast@TFAS.org. To support TFAS and its mission, please visit TFAS.org/support.

Support the show