The Leaven is the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. It is the successor to the Eastern Kansas Register, which was first launched in 1939.
The Leaven is typically published weekly from September through May and bi-monthly from June through August. It provides news to 185,483 Catholics in the archdiocese, which spans an area of 12,524 square miles in 21 counties, including those in the Kansas City area, Lawrence, Ottawa, Topeka, and Emporia.
Much of the news reported in The Leaven is derived from the activities of the 106 parishes spread across those counties and their parishioners.
The Leaven is mailed into the home of every registered Catholic. It is a 16-page tabloid; subscriptions cost $25 a year, and are paid through parish envelopes, although individual subscriptions are available on request.
Meet the Staff
Anita McSorley: Anita, managing editor of The Leaven, has over 30 years’ experience in book, magazine and newspaper editing, including stints as the assistant editor of the “Diplomatic Papers of Daniel Webster” at Dartmouth College and then in the public relations departments of Texaco, Inc., and the Rockefeller Group in New York. Anita made the move to newspaper editing when she came to The Leaven in 1988, where she has been ever since. Anita is a member of St. Patrick Parish in Kansas City, Kan., and in her spare time, she enjoys giving her long-suffering husband, her children and her staff good advice that they never take.
Todd Habiger: Todd has been the production manager for The Leaven since 1995. Under his direction The Leaven has won multiple design awards from the Catholic Press Association. Prior to working at The Leaven, Todd was an award-winning writer for The Catholic Key newspaper in Kansas City, Mo. Todd is married to Lori Wood Habiger, a former Leaven employee herself. They have two children — Paige and Connor, and one dog — Joli.
Moira Cullings: Moira attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Overland Park and studied marketing and psychology at Benedictine College in Atchison, where she played center midfield for the women’s soccer team. Moira joined The Leaven staff as a feature writer and social media editor in September 2015. After a move to Denver, she resumed her full-time position at The Leaven and is now a senior writer and digital content manager. Her favorite assignment was traveling to the Holy Land to take photos for a group pilgrimage.
Olivia Martin-Davies: Liv studied English and Spanish at Benedictine College and has written for a variety of clients across her career, including a study abroad agency, a bank, and a podcasting agency. Liv initially joined The Leaven staff as a feature writer in 2018 and stepped away to pursue a MA in Film and Literature at the University of York in the U.K. On returning to the U.S., she taught English for four years at St. James Academy and returned to The Leaven as an editorial assistant in 2025. She enjoys reading, visiting Spain and the U.K., rock climbing, Wingspan, and eating food other people make.