Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev

Hey, y'all! This is Kosta and today I’m here with my guest: Allison Clark, Assistant Head Coach and Recruiting Coordinator for Tennessee Tech’s Women’s Basketball Team. In this episode: You won or shared the OVC title all four years you played at Tennessee Tech. In the 25-26 season you coached through the league’s final chapter. What did the OVC mean to you, and what’s it like to be part of the staff that turns the page? Last season was a tough one by TTU standards. What did the staff and players learn from it, and what has to look different this year? Recruiting for college sports entered a whole new world since the transfer portal and NIL arrived. What does your job as recruiting coordinator look like now, and how does joining the SoCon change your pitch to players?Find out more about TTU Women's Basketball: https://www.ttusports.com/sports/wbkb/indexBuy Season Tickets for TTU Women's Basketball: https://prod5.agileticketing.net/websales/pages/packagetypeselect.aspxBetter Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market.Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market:https://www.misssallies.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Jerri Green, Memphis City Council Member, Chief Public Defender and Democratic Candidate for Governor of Tennessee.In this Episode: We’re recording this interview on Friday, October 16th, early voting has started in Tennessee, election day is 18 days away. Tennessee hasn’t elected a Democratic governor since 2006. The latest Beacon poll has you down 21 points among likely voters, 55 to 34. What do you know about this race that the polls don’t? You’ve called Marsha Blackburn a coward for refusing to debate, as a constituent, I agree. If you were up 20 points, would you debate you? What does it tell voters that the only debate on the calendar is you and two independents? Cookeville is about three hundred from Memphis, it might as well be another state. When people in Putnam County hear Memphis Politician, they hear someone who doesn’t understand Putnam County. Throughout your campaign you’ve made a point to remind voters you’ve lived in Knoxville, Nashville, and Memphis. But what do you understand about life in the Upper Cumberland, and what have rural voters taught you that you didn’t know before this campaign?Find out more about Jerri Green:https://greenforgovernor.com/about/Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Knoxville, TN at the University of Tennessee. Special thanks to Knox County Young Democrats, Madeline Rust, Solomon Trapp and Tennessee College Democrats. Important Putnam County (2026 Federal and State Election) Dates and information:Federal and State Elections will be held on November 3rd with early voting from October 14th to October 29th.All early voting for Putnam County voters takes place at the Putnam County Election Commission on 705 County Services Dr, Cookeville, TN 38501.For more information visit on Putnam County polling locations visit: https://putnamcountytn.gov/election-commissionRegister to vote, check your registration or update your voter registration: https://sos.tn.gov/govotetnThis episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy.Find out more about Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy:https://aspirebarberandbeauty.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Danny Holmes, Mayor for the City of Baxter and County Commissioner for Putnam County Commission District 8. In this episode: According to the Tennessee State Data Center, Baxter is the fastest growing municipality in Tennessee with a population under 5,000 seeing a 35% increase in population from 2020 to 2025. Congratulations. What’s bringing us to Baxter? In 2024 you won your race for Baxter Mayor as a write-in candidate after resigning as Chief of Police. What did this win tell you about what kind of leadership Baxter needs and do you believe you’ve fulfilled those expectations? You’re an institution of Baxter and Putnam County. How much of the Baxter you grew up with still exists today? How do we manage growth and preserve legacy at the same time? Find out more about the City of Baxter:https://www.baxtertn.govBetter Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market.Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market:https://www.misssallies.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Grayson Cupit, Senior Software Engineer at Disney Streaming and Board President for the Culture Shock Collective.In this episode: You’re exactly the kind of person we say we want to move to Cookeville. You’re a software engineer, community organizer, professional musician and a member of the least likely generation to move to Putnam County: Millennial. As a published researcher studying community resiliency, why do Millennials not want to move here? Cookeville and Putnam County are at a critical inflection point, and whether we want to admit it or not, in the very near future we’ll have to make decisions on topics like artificial intelligence, data centers and our digital security that will impact us for decades to come. What do you hope will happen? Do you think our current leadership has the knowledge and tools they need to reasonably make these decisions? You’re the newly elected President of the Board of the local non-profit Culture Shock, a community driven arts and community space working to provide a simple answer to a complex problem and reconnect our wider creative community with itself. Beyond a polished mission statement, what is Culture Shock?Find out more about Culture Shock Collective:https://cultureshocktn.com/Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy.Find out more about Aspire Barber and Beauty Academy:https://aspirebarberandbeauty.com

Join Kosta and his guest: Adam Poe, Vice President of the Highlands Economic Partnership, a collaborative, public/private sector program designed to boost economic and community development in Jackson, Overton, Putnam and White Counties.In this episode: Last week, Highlands Economic Partnership hosted over 4,000 8th graders from 14 counties across the Upper Cumberland for the 8th Grade Career Fair. This is one of my favorite events presented by HEP, but besides being a fun field trip for kids, what does it really accomplish? The 8th grade is a particularly challenging time for any child and their parents, but, as luck would have it, our 8th graders today are also coming of age with one of the greatest technological and economic transformations of our lifetime. From a workforce perspective, why does technology in schools and how we prepare our 8th graders today matter? The first model of ChatGPT was released to the public in November of 2022. Pew Research Center estimates more than 25% of Americans interact with AI at least 3 times a day. What does this mean for schools, employers and the overall digital literacy of every person alive today?Find out more about the Highlands Economic Partnership:https://www.highlandsoftn.com/Find out more about the Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce:https://cookevillechamber.com/Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.This episode of Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is made possible by our partners at Miss Sallie's Market.Find out more about Miss Sallie's Market:https://www.misssallies.com