The Scoop with Tanya Flanagan

Wesley Knight 0:00
This is a Kun V studios original program. The content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 jazz and more the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Tanya Flanagan 0:19
Good morning, and thank you for joining me for the scoop with Tanya Flanagan, I'm so happy you decided to wake up and start your day with me here on the scoop, where we talk about life, joy, funny moments, trending topics and so much more. We promise to keep you in the know and find out what you know. So let's get started. You Tanya,

good morning Las Vegas, and welcome to another edition of the scoop with me. Tanya Flanagan, it's always a pleasure to talk to you, especially from our state's capital, Carson City. It's amazing to realize that we are in the month of February, and actually at the end of it, enjoying the final Sunday this month before we head into March before we know it will be in the season of spring. While it's still chilly up here in Carson City, it's beginning to thaw out. And I know it's definitely thawing out down there in Las Vegas, where we have warmer temperatures. As I mentioned, it's always a pleasure to be here, and it's super fun to bring to you some shows during this time of the 120 day 83rd legislative session for the state of Nevada, some conversations from people who are up here and part of the process of making laws and governing and governance and keeping our state running as smoothly as we can, or at least with great genuineness and gratitude and respect for the citizens of the state of Nevada. So this morning, I'm going to be talking to Maya attache, actually, just to kind of get that perspective to young people who are part of the process, who work here at the legislature, helping to keep the engine humming and the wheels turning. So without further ado, I'd like to welcome Alexis Jenkins to the show. Good morning, Alexis, good morning. Thank you for taking some time to talk with me. And I know you hang out with me on a regular basis during the day, but as I looked at you, I thought it will probably be really cool for people to hear, for young people, especially to hear what it's like to make the decision. Are those who look at this process, and we're in a time where I think people in your age group, and I know you're in your 20s, are becoming more connected to the political process and to the governance process, and so I thought it would be fun and informative to have a conversation with you about your life journey and how you came into this space. So please tell the listening audience a little bit about yourself

Alexiz Jenkins 2:55
first. Thank you for having me. So my name is Alexis. I graduated from Howard University, and I came back to Vegas, where I'm from, worked a little bit the caucus, Nevada assembly Democratic Caucus as the press secretary. And I enjoyed that a lot, and it made me want to see how things are done during the legislative session. You know, it's great to help candidates get elected, but it's also amazing to see them do the work. So I was really excited to be able to come up to Carson City and work for assembly member playing again, and you know, as her attache, because so much important work is being done here at the legislature, and it's not something that's really talked about during high school or in government classes, and I think just so many important decisions are made here, and being a part of that process is just amazing to see how bills come to be and how legislation is passed. So I was really excited to be able to come up here this session. Well, I am

Tanya Flanagan 3:55
super happy that you, hearing, accepted the opportunity to come and work and be a part of the team. And I recently ran into city of Las Vegas council member former council member, Cedric creer, and he mentioned to me that in your early on, you were an intern for him. So tell us a little bit more about how you got started. What attracted you to this basic as you mentioned being a press secretary, which is super cool. We see the press secretary for the President of the United States on TV all the time, coming in to make statements. And we see these people embody these roles, or exemplify these roles in movies that we watch all the time. And so to talk to someone who's done this, what made you get into the space in the first place? Like, what was that trigger point that said, hey, I want to work in community, but I want to contribute to the community through political engagement? Yeah,

Alexiz Jenkins 4:52
I think I've always been interested. I've always been interested in law, politics and things of that sort. But also just interested in how decisions are made. It's one thing to sit back and complain or have, you know, judgments on how things are done, but it's one thing to be a part of the process. And I always wanted to be a part of the process and ask questions and meet with the people that make decisions about my daily life, and so I was blessed to get an opportunity to work for Councilman career During my junior year of college, the summer going into my junior year of college, and I learned so much about the city council level and what they do and how they affect my community and help give my opinion on certain things. And Councilman career is just an amazing man who really brought me to the table and allowed me to learn the ins and outs of city council, and then to then, when I was in college, I had the opportunity to work as an intern in Congressman Horsford office during my college years. And so that was also another chance for me to just learn how people are making decisions and hear the conversation that ultimately affect me as a Nevadan, and I just wanted to be in those rooms and hear those conversations so I can make an impact at my young age, and then know what to do, and I'm in those positions myself, and so to now be at the legislative session like I said, it's amazing, and a lot of people don't talk about the work that assembly members do, but just in my short time being here, I've just seen how much of an impact things are, you know, are on me, from education to government affairs to revenue, just things of that sort. There's big decisions being made here, and I would like to represent my community and young people that look like me or come from where I come from, it's important to have someone sit at the table that represents them, and so I think that's where it all kind of stems from. For me,

Tanya Flanagan 6:53
that's all super exciting, and I'm glad that you're talking talking about it so completely. And for those out there wondering, well, what does an attache do? And you have talked many times about being close to the process and seeing how things evolve, hearing the conversations and getting a chance to understand the pathway to influence everyday legislation that affects, or should I say, legislation that affects your everyday life. So for those wondering what an attache does during a legislative session, what's your job?

Alexiz Jenkins 7:30
Well, I'll say my first priority is to support the assembly member and and that means, you know, running your calendar and making sure that the constituents who you represent, are able to connect with you and voice their opinions, and a lot of that communication goes through me, and it's important that I am there to facilitate that and get those concerns over to my assembly member and prepare you for any community meetings and you know agendas and What bills are being discussed, and putting those items together so that we have a successful session, but also that you're able to accomplish the things that you set out to accomplish. And so it's really important to just be a strong support to the assembly member and prepare things ahead of time and just get things together so that this process is smooth, but also learning at the same time about how bills are coming together, partnering with people in our community to bring attention to certain issues that you know other assembly members might not know is going on. Because the interesting thing is that we could bring forth a bill that represents our community but others community, other assembly members are hearing these things. They're not from North Las Vegas or from Las Vegas at all. So it's important to connect the assembly member and other assembly people with community members and partner groups that can voice those concerns as well. So really, just helping facilitate that process is a really big part of what I do. You made

Tanya Flanagan 9:00
a really key point about other people who aren't familiar with the structure of government in Southern Nevada, and as an assembly member, I do sit in committees with representatives from all over the state of Nevada. So you know, it's not like we're just looking at what affects Norfolk, because we're working on behalf of everyone, but we're representing an area of North Las Vegas and an area of the city, city of Las Vegas, and sitting in these meetings with people from all over the state who were trying to collectively look at legislation that is good for our immediate and at The same time, the whole the state in its entirety. And while sitting in the meeting the other day, there was a presentation from Clark County, and one of the members of the committee, Government Affairs Committee was surprised to realize that Clark County government is not responsible for the Clark County School District. So. Because it's different, I suppose then it's different than it's structured in Washoe County up here in northern Nevada. And so this particular assembly member was surprised to learn and that Clark County government is not responsible. It's not the administrative overseer of the Clark County School District. And so it's things like that that we are educating one another on becoming more intimate, on and learning about and looking at what are key points that will make a difference, and how do you impact affordable housing solutions or economic development space education, personally, we look at government affairs, education and revenue on an ongoing basis during this 120 day session, in addition to everything else, but these are the key areas of focus, because those are the committees that I serve on as an assembly member, and that you support me for as my attache. And so it's really interesting to learn the different thought processes that each individual who's serving in the legislature is bringing to the conversation, and it expands my viewpoint, and I'm assuming that you're having similar conversations because the attaches, because each representative, each assembly member, each Senate person, Senate, Senator, and each assembly member has an attache. So there's a pool of you guys who are working together, and I don't know, do you guys share best practices in terms of help, how you organize your office or organize your day? Do you glean things from your colleagues and say, Hey, this might make it easier for me to run the office that I'm working in.

Alexiz Jenkins 11:54
Oh, yeah. Finally, yeah, yeah, I think I wouldn't be able to do my job effectively if I didn't have those conversations with the other attaches, and I've learned so much from them, especially those who have done this for years, or they're, you know, this is like their 20th year doing this. So we have like all attaches from different years, different experiences. And so we spent the month of January training for the session and hearing different practices that are best practices or things that work for other assembly members that we could use to help support our personal assembly member has very much been helpful, whether it's how to organize a cabinet effectively, how to Order bills and put them in order or spreadsheets that keep your assembly member organized, things like that help us best support our assembly member. And I really like how we have just a little bit of a community, and we help each other, we have a chat, we ask questions, and even our supervisors, who have both served, served as attaches years ago help us as well. And so I think that community is really helpful, especially to people like me, who this is my first session, I can really learn from a lot of the men and women who have been doing this for years. And so that month of training was very beneficial to help me be a great attache for Assemblyman Flanagan. So yeah,

Tanya Flanagan 13:21
well, I love that, and I know when I come in the office, I see you watching meetings on on the computer and tracking what has been some of the most interesting conversations that you've watched of all, or someone that you see doing the work up here, that you just find it really interesting how they move and how they work, and our web, you know, conversations you've been, you know, privileged to experience it, and other experiences outside the office, because you you moved your life from Las Vegas up here to Carson City for a while. So you hear on the weekends, it's like living in another city for

Alexiz Jenkins 13:59
a while, right? Yeah, this is my first time coming up north, so it was definitely an exciting experience and a new experience. But I really enjoyed watching the committee hearings, even committee meetings that, assuming we were planning and isn't on. I've enjoyed listening, because you're essentially now at the beginning hearing all these different agencies that, again, make decisions about your life up here, testifying and explaining what they do and how they support the legislature and things of that sort. So just last week, the Attorney General's Office presented Clark County presented City of Henderson, City of Boulder, all these different agencies are presenting. And again, even if you're not from that area, you're hearing what works for them, what you know, what issues they're having, how they're finding solutions, and how they're supporting Nevada's citizens. And I think the beautiful thing about the legislature is that although we may be from all different. Parts of Nevada. The main goal here is to support Nevadans and make the best decisions that positively impact all Nevadans. And so hearing all these different agencies testify, you're learning more about what they do, and you're learning more about how they affect you and how you can become more part of the process and support things that are not going well in your community and or support things that are going well in your community. So I think that's been the most impressive part. And then being in the state capitol, you're just seeing a different way of life and seeing, you know, meeting people who you've never met before. But again, we're all Nevadans here, and I think us having the same goal is just really beautiful, to just help support the legislature and make Nevada better every day,

Tanya Flanagan 15:44
you mentioned hearing these presentations from the various agencies within the state, and also, this past week, Congressman Stephen Horsford was up, and you mentioned interning for him when you were in college at Howard University in Washington, DC. What was it like? And I know you went and saw Congressman Horsford address the assembly body and the senators, the state senators. He started here years ago. He was a state senator. Before he became a United States Congressman, he was a Nevada State Senator. What was it like to see him, because what was your expectation before he came? What were you thinking? Oh, because we think, Well, what are you going to talk about? What was your takeaway? And can you talk about that a little bit? Yeah,

Alexiz Jenkins 16:31
I really enjoyed hearing him speak, and it was kind of like a full circle moment for me. Like you said, I started as an intern in his office, and now I'm here where he started his career, and so one, it was just a beautiful thing, because it lets me know that there's opportunities here and the there is no ceiling to what you can accomplish. And starting at the legislature is the best way to start, because you're starting where the groundwork is, and then hearing his speech. You know you think when you hear congressman or elected officials speak, they're going to talk at you. They're going to talk about all the things that they're doing and what they've accomplished. But his speech really wasn't about that. It was about how we have to come together to make Nevada better, and we can't do that at different odds or I mean being at odds, we have to come together, whether Democrat, Republican or whatever, to make Nevada better. And I really enjoyed that because, you know, he talked about table top issues that affect everyday Nevadans, gas prices, egg prices, diapers for seniors, diapers for children, mothers and hospital bills and Medicare like those are things that everyday Nevadans are dealing with, and to know that your congressman is fighting on your behalf for those issues, and he understands the importance of the legis, importance of the legislature, because he started here is really important. And it made me feel like, you know, one, I can accomplish anything but two, I have someone fighting on my behalf that really understands the importance of looking after every day in a veterans

Tanya Flanagan 18:08
Well, thank you for that. I'm sure he, he would love to know that someone that he took under his wing so many years ago has kind of, I don't know you look back and it's like you're following in the person's footsteps. And I started in this space as a liaison for Clark County Commissioners down in Southern Nevada for districts B and districts D. Some Wow, when I stopped to think about it. Now we're in 2025 it's 25 years ago, so not to age myself, because I always joke about that on the show. You know, we always want to joke jokingly be in our 20s, but I'm no longer 25 Yes, 25 years ago, I'm only 20. I'm only like 27 but 35 years ago, I started in this space working with Clark County Commissioners. And people often ask me how I found myself here on the pathway, and I realized that that work opened up the door to a lot of and I even as a teenager, I had done community advocacy work in high school through my church, being in those spaces and serving in those roles, whether it was student government, Junior Achievement, community outreach work through My church, you begin to walk into the path that you may not even realize is going to become your life path, but it does, and so I became a reporter after college, because I got a degree in journalism and political science, because my first introduction to political science was undergrad at the University of Arizona. I didn't have the pleasure of attending HBCU, but I do love my Alma Mater was a great school, and Professor Lytle was a political science professor who did this welcome speech to incoming freshmen, and I found it absolutely fascinating and kind of like you, we mirror each other a little bit. I love the conceptualization of law, how things come to be, and. To find myself later working in government. It started to introduce me to these community groups that needed assistance, and we would work on their behalf and work with them. I was a conduit between community organizing groups and the commissioner's office, and I think over time, I continued to do that work even after I was no longer working as a liaison to Clark County Commissioners, but adjacent in communication roles and so then in board service roles. And so this servant leadership space has always kind of been an ingrained natural space for me to fit into, to work, to thrive and to just enjoy the work, and so that's part of the motivating factor for why I'm here. But it's got to be super cool for Congressman Horsford to see someone that He's poured into so many years ago come full circle, become an adult, and then find your way into the space. And I say kudos to you, because at an early age, you began to carve out the space you wanted to occupy. And as young people today, there's so many opportunities for you guys to explore careers, to work in fields, to try your hand at it, and I think there's less of the conversations about practicality, because when I was coming up. You had generations before me, it wasn't as easy to to change course, and so they talked to us about being practical, so that we entered into roles and professions that paid, were able, allowed us to pay for our pay our bills. And we say a little bit more to you guys now, while you're young, explore and try, because you can always try again. You mentioned law and I know you have an interest in that. So is that the long term goal to actually pursue your law degree?

Alexiz Jenkins 21:53
Yes, yes. I'm hopeful to send the you know, upcoming months studying for male sat and finally, applying to law school. That's always been my dream, that's always been the big goal for me, is to become a lawyer and to practice law. And so I am looking forward to the day that I can officially say that I'm a lawyer. So that is a big goal for me.

Tanya Flanagan 22:17
Well, I am here to support it in any way that I can do. You see, in addition to law, what do you see yourself doing? Like, getting a law degree is one piece of it, but if you were painting the dream life, what does it? What do you what do you think it looks like? Great

Alexiz Jenkins 22:37
question. Um, I mean, I'm always seeing myself as like a person who seeks change and and whether that's fighting for justice as a lawyer or as an advocate within my community, I want to be a person that works for my people, but for those where I'm From, and so any position or title that allows them to do that is something that I actively seek. And so whether it's even just supporting those who are elected into office, I think that's always been my focus. And so I hope to pursue a law degree to create change and to advocate for others, and so I hope that that's something I'm able to do, and spend my life doing is creating a legacy that changed things, not only just in Nevada, but in the world, and made sure that I created space for people younger than me to accomplish not just what I have accomplished, but accomplish more than I have, and so creating avenues and opportunities for those around me is really important to me, so I hope to pursue a career that allows me to do that.

Tanya Flanagan 23:51
That's very cool. There are a number of lawyers every day walking around this building. And so I trust and I assume that you are cultivating relationships and having conversations. Because I remember many years ago when I was in college, undergrad, again, I'm aging myself on this show, but whatever, I had a conversation, my intention was to attend law school. And I remember going in to see the Dean of the Law School at the University of Arizona, and I was in journalism, and I said, does it matter what path I'm taking beforehand. And she said, No, the journalism path is a good path. Before you go into law school, it's fine. This is a matter of fact. It's not until you're in school studying that you really figure out what area of law you want to practice. So I'm not going to ask you what area you want to practice, but there are lawyers in this building every day, and I am assuming that there's relationships and opportunities for you to have conversations and glean some glimpse or understanding of the type of litigation that they do, and whether or not that type of litigation is of interest to you.

Alexiz Jenkins 24:52
Yes, I think again, another opportunity that I've been afforded just by working here is just be able to to. Talk with different lawyers and talk with different professionals who have gone that same path. I think the beautiful thing about being coming a lawyer is that there's so many ways to get to to that, that end goal. And you will meet different people who majored in different things, or take took different paths, or took six years, or took three years, or, you know, just took different ways to get in there. And just the other day, I met a lobbyist who had just got accepted into law school, and he gave me such amazing advice and gave me platforms that could help me become the lawyer, you know, a lawyer. And so he was very helpful and very kind. And so just being up here, I've been able to talk with people who are lawyers, who are going to law school, who just graduated, and they've given me such great advice that's going to be definitely beneficial to me. So I am grateful that I have been able to meet those people, and everyone here is just so nice and looking to help each other. So there is, you know, no reason to be shy or scared because they want the best for you as well. So I have been afforded that opportunity and working here at the legislature, that

Tanya Flanagan 26:03
is a really good takeaway, and thanks for sharing that feedback with others who are with the those who are listening about what it's like to be in the legs in the state capitol, in the legislative building, we talked about uprooting and changing So you're living in a different city, and you're normally from Las Vegas, and those who are listening are pretty much in Las Vegas, unless you're tuning in online, you could be anywhere. But I want to ask, because I always try to do a little bit of what life is like in the space you occupy. What would you say is one of the coolest things you've observed about Carson City since you've been here, and you've been here since since January, and we're almost in March. So what's the coolest thing you've observed?

Alexiz Jenkins 26:49
Um, so I growing up in Vegas, I didn't really see a lot of wild animals out and even in doing college in DC, I didn't see a lot of wild animals. In my first night here in Carson, I seen a group of deer just cross the street, and it kind of threw me for surprise, but it was just like a shocker to like, Okay, I'm really in a new environment now, but also just how kind people are. And just like, you know, everything is so close. It's just such a close knit community. You know, I can walk anywhere and get, you know, coffee or get groceries, or, you know, everything's in walking distance, and it's just a small community that is really, you know, kind and different from where I'm from, but also just, it's already showing to be a great experience for me. And so getting used to the deer, so I'm driving the speed limit a little bit under the seat limit, just make sure I'm safe. But, um, yeah, it's been it's been great.

Tanya Flanagan 27:46
I have to agree with you on that I saw a deer, and it is one of the coolest things. And it's not that I hadn't seen the deer before, because I've gone up to Mount Charleston and had the deer almost come down to the side of the car, but it's really neat. I was leaving out of the subdivision where I live up here, and I looked over to my right. It was just a deer walking across. And I was like, Oh, how cool. Of course, there wasn't. There were four coyotes walking around too. I'm in the coyote viewing. I still haven't seen the coyote, but on the way in the other morning this week, I saw a squirrel. And I always think squirrels are the cutest little rodent animals, but it's very cool to see that. And I think for me, seeing all the snow capped mountains, just like right there view. It's very different when you're so used to sunny, sunny, sunny, and we see snow in the distance on Mount, Charleston, and it's great. And we know it's chilly up there that is literally just around you, and it's very beautiful to see nature so close. I think that's one of the nicest things about Nevada, is how pretty the landscape is it's a different kind of desert. I grew up in Arizona, so it's a different desert than the state of Arizona, but it is still very pretty to see the mountains covered in snow. Well, I want to say thank you for coming on to the show this morning. We are winding down and running out of time, so thank you Alexis for joining me. Oh,

Alexiz Jenkins 28:59
thank you for having me

Tanya Flanagan 29:03
to the listening audience. Thank you for tuning in. And we will be back next week to bring you another perspective from the 83rd legislature of the state of Nevada. Stay well, stay happy. It's warm down in Las Vegas. We will stay warm up here in Carson City. Have a great week. Thanks for listening to 91.5k U, N, V, jazz and more. Until next time, I

want to thank you for tuning in to the scoop with me. Tonya Flanagan and I want to invite you to get social with me. I'm on Facebook and Twitter. My name is my handle, T, a n, y a F, l, a n, a G, A N. You can also find me on Instagram at Tanya almond eyes Flanagan, and if you have a thought, an opinion or a suggestion, don't hesitate to shoot me an email to tanya.flanagan@unlv.edu Thanks again for joining in. Stay safe and have a great week. You.