Author

Eric Thomas
Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association, a nonprofit that supports student journalism throughout the state. He also teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. He lives in Leawood with his wife and two children.
It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your work laptop is?
By: Eric Thomas - January 27, 2023
Last night, I imagined myself as a boiled frog. Laptop in my lap at 8:30 p.m., I highlighted text from one page, copied it and pasted it onto another page. Over and over. Cut. Copy. Paste. Onto the next page. Highlight. Copy. Paste. Onto the next page. Next to me, my daughter and wife were […]
New college semester brings new questions about how to fill empty seats
By: Eric Thomas - January 20, 2023
Visit a faculty break room on a college campus these days. Or gather a group of university professors together for a Friday afternoon cocktail. Or call one on the phone to ask how classes are going. Attendance arises first in almost any such conversation. Three semesters past the time when most universities proclaimed that classes […]
Presentation brings war photojournalist from Ukraine to Overland Park
By: Eric Thomas - January 14, 2023
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Pete Kiehart, a photojournalist whose work has documented the […]
January ushers in COVID-19 turning points year after year in Kansas
By: Eric Thomas - January 6, 2023
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. The COVID-19 pandemic has crafted many of its dark […]
Do you agree with my picks for Kansas stories of the year?
By: Eric Thomas - December 23, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Here’s my list of Kansas news items that stamped […]
Why do Kansans pollute in the way we do? This map has the answers.
By: Eric Thomas - December 16, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Idling outside the Kansas strip mall, the behemoth SUV […]
When the World Cup comes to Kansas City, tough questions will follow
By: Eric Thomas - December 9, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Last weekend, the team representing the United States at […]
For Kansas City area fans, sports wins feel inevitable. Let’s appreciate them.
By: Eric Thomas - November 25, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Sunday night, I sat on the couch, a cocktail […]
Midterm squabbles distract from parties that remain ideologically unified, polarized
By: Eric Thomas - November 18, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. In the aftermath of this month’s midterm elections, political […]
Glimpses of the new Kansas City airport make visiting current terminals a chore
By: Eric Thomas - November 12, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. The cliché about the Kansas City airport used to go […]
Kansas photojournalists earn Hall of Fame awards by documenting countless moments
By: Eric Thomas - November 4, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. The distinction of earning a spot in any hall of […]
Consumer surveys waste our time while promising elusive insights
By: Eric Thomas - October 28, 2022
Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. They are in my inbox. They are in my voicemail. […]