Claim OwnershipDemocracy's College: Research and Leadership in Educational Equity, Justice and Excellence for All
Subscribed: 17Played: 107
Subscribe
©2025 Board of Trustees, University of Illinois
Description
This monthly podcast focuses on P-20 education pathways with a focus on research and leadership that promotes educational equity, justice and excellence for all students. This podcast is a product of the Office of Community College Research and Leadership, or OCCRL, at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Learn more about OCCRL at occrl.illinois.edu.
66 Episodes
Reverse
In this episode, Dr. OiYan Poon—an author, speaker, and race and education scholar—talks with Dr. James Minor about how campuses can leverage data and institutional research to improve holistic advising and other programs to support students to and through college so they can complete a credential or degree. Dr. Minor is the chancellor of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.
In this episode, Dr. OiYan Poon—an author, speaker, and race and education scholar—talks with Dr. Jay Gatrell, the president of Eastern Illinois University, about how institutional leaders can organize campus efforts to reduce the rates of D and F grades, also known as DFW rates, as well as reduce the number of course withdrawals by engaging in actionable, institutional research and data. Dr. Poon and Dr. Gatrell especially focus on gateway courses in their talk.
In this special edition of Democracy's College, OCCRL Associate Director Gianina Baker talks with Valerie Lynch and Deana Schenk about the critical roles of benefits navigators and HOUSE liaisons, two positions designed to help students access basic-needs resources such as food, housing, health care, and financial support. Lynch is the senior managing director at the Illinois Board of Higher Education, and Schenk serves as the senior director for student success at the Illinois Community College Board.
In this episode, Dr. OiYan Poon—an author, speaker, and race and education scholar—talks with Dr. Nick Branson about the different frameworks for understanding institutional data as well as creative ways that campuses can use a wealth of data to improve support systems that help all students succeed. Dr. Branson is the assistant vice president for strategic advancement at the College of Lake County.
In this episode, Dr. Gianina Baker, the associate director of the Office of Community College Research and Leadership, talks with Dr. Kimberly A. Griffin about the Institutional Model for Faculty Diversity and its role in advancing STEM equity. The conversation with Dr. Griffin, who is the dean of the College of Education at the University of Maryland, explores the model's connection to the NSF ASPIRE Alliance and its practical applications in higher education.
In this episode, Hannah Kuneyl, a senior research assistant at OCCRL, talks with Dr. LaDrina Wilson about her experiences and insights working at bistate community colleges in Illinois and Iowa as both an administrator and practitioner.
In this episode, OCCRL Director Lorenzo Baber talks with Lisa Castillo Richmond, the outgoing executive director of the Partnership for College Completion, about key findings she has observed in developmental education in Illinois. Drs. Castillo Richmond and Baber also cover where the state is currently at with developmental education reform as well as the importance of placement and the building out of the model.
In this episode, OCCRL senior research assistant H.M. Kuneyl, who coordinates OCCRL's yearly Illinois Community College Leadership Institute, talks with Terry Wilkerson, the president of Rend Lake College who partook in the institute's Journey to the President panel in 2023. Kuneyl and Wilkerson discuss the challenges and benefits of working in the field of postsecondary education at a rural community college, President Wilkerson's career trajectory, the qualities that make a good leader, and other topics.
In this episode, OCCRL research assistant H.M. Kuneyl, who coordinates the yearly OCCRL Illinois Community College Leadership Institute (ICCLI), talks with two individuals who were a part of the institute's first cohort. They are Andy Hynds, dean of math, science and business and the executive dean of academics at Richland Community College; and Brianna McClay, associate dean of student services at Kennedy King College in the City Colleges of Chicago. Hynds and McClay discuss their work as community college leaders and how the ICCLI they attended in May of 2023 influenced their outlooks and careers.
In this episode, OCCRL senior research associate Stacy Bennett talks with Joe Saucedo and Lee Roe, from the Partnership for College Completion in Chicago, to discuss developmental education reform in Illinois.
In this episode, OCCRL senior research assistant Nina Owolabi talks to several guests about the use of open educational resources, also known as OER, as an equity initiative in Illinois community colleges. In addition, OCCRL research assistant Aidana Sirgebayeva relates the findings of the OER research project that has been taking place at OCCRL for the last several years. The shows guests are Dr. Eboni Zamani-Gallaher, Magnus Noble, Heather Blicher, and Dr. Lorenzo Baber.
This Democracy's College podcast episode is the fourth one in a series featuring contributors to the book Critiques for Transformation: Reimagining Colleges and Communities for Social Justice, edited by Drs. Lorenzo Baber and Heather McCambly. In this episode, Dr. McCambly talks to Drs. Erin Doran and Sergio Gonzalez about how their chapters for the book originated. The scholars also discuss the topic of ethnic studies and the subject's role in community colleges, talk about the evolution of positionality statements and more.
In this episode, OCCRL affiliate member Heather McCambly talks with Dr. Rosemary Perez and Dr. Aireale J. Rodgers about the chapters they contributed to in the volume Critiques for Transformation: Reimagining Colleges and Communities for Social Justice, a book that was co-edited by Dr. McCambly and Dr. Lorenzo Baber.
In this episode, OCCRL Director Lorenzo Baber talks with Isaac Gottesman about the chapter that Dr. Gottesman contributed to the volume titled Critiques for Transformation: Reimagining Colleges and Communities for Social Justice, which was co-edited by Dr. Baber and Dr. Heather McCambly.
In this episode, Drs. Lorenzo Baber and Heather McCambly provide context on the origin and content of their book proposal and the eventually published volume, Critiques for Transformation: Reimagining Colleges and Communities for Social Justice, which they and their colleagues developed during the trying years of the pandemic. Baber and McCambly also discuss their overarching goals for the book, the pre-pandemic conversations they had on the way to getting it published, and how others might use it in their courses and in policy-development discussions.
In this episode, Chequita Brown talks with Kate Danielson of the organization Foster Progress, as well as with Anna Wandtke and Tricia Wagner of Rock Valley College in Rockford, Illinois. The group discusses how to cultivate a foster-friendly culture at Illinois community colleges.
In this episode, Dr. Francena Turner talks with humanities educators at community colleges in California and North Carolina about the importance of the humanities to community colleges and to community college students. The guests also share the challenges they've faced during COVID-19, as well as the challenges they've experienced in introducing students to skills learned through the humanities that contribute to student learning, mobility, and employability.
In this episode, Nathaniel Stewart talks with Mauriell Amechi, Regina Gavin Williams, and Blayne Stone Jr. about how the transitions and pathways to postsecondary education are similar and different for Black former foster care students. The scholars also discuss key elements to successfully connect foster care youth to educational resources that help advance the postsecondary education opportunities for this student population.
In this episode, José Del Real Viramontes talks with Santiago Bernal, Alfred Herrera, and Dimpal Jain about how community colleges, four-year colleges, and universities can work together to develop and enhance a transfer-receptive culture.
In this episode, Dr. Nolan L. Cabrera joins OCCRL Director Eboni Zamani-Gallaher to examine whiteness and discuss various areas of racism. Dr. Cabrera is an associate professor of educational policy studies and practice at the University of Arizona.
Comments
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store
United States