Anyone who works in communications knows that it’s easy for productive conversions to turn dark and hurtful, particularly when it comes to issues like race and identity. Dr. Mordecai Ian Brownlee leans into the difficult parts of these conversations in his work as a leader, teacher, mentor, speaker, and more. He joins us this week to discuss the need for spaces where we can freely share our own experiences and learn from the experiences of others. We also talk about how to set a positive example on social media and use it to lift people up, rather than get dragged into the latest conflict of the day.

Mordecai currently serves as the Vice President for Student Success at St. Philip’s College. Effective July 15, 2021, he will serve as the sixth President of the Community College of Aurora within the Colorado Community College System. He also serves as an adjunct professor at Morgan State University School of Education & Urban Studies and the University of Charleston School of Business and Leadership, as well as a higher education columnist for EdSurge.

His mission as an educator is to work collectively with all stakeholders to create a safe and equitable learning environment that promotes student inclusion, student engagement, and student success. That mission comes through loud and clear in this conversation.

Links to cool stuff: 

• Mordecai’s website
• Mordecai on Twitter

This week, we’re bringing you an episode from Democracy Works, the podcast Jenna hosts when she’s not on Higher Ed Social. She talks with Nancy Thomas, director of the Institute for Democracy and Higher Education, an applied research center in the Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University.

Nancy argues that higher education faculty, staff, and administrators can be political without being partisan when it comes to things like encouraging students to vote or thinking about how political issues will impact their day-to-day lives. She also offers some advice for how to keep voting in your messaging mix this fall despite everything else happening on campus and in the country.

Links to cool stuff

• Nancy on Twitter
• Institute for Democracy and Higher Education

Additional student voting resources:

• Campus Election Engagement Project
• All In Campus Democracy Challenge
• Students Learn Students Vote Coalition

While a lot of colleges and universities talk about ending racism and inequality on their campuses, Carah Ong Whaley and her team at JMU dove headfirst into taking action. Carah is Associate Director of the Center for Civic Engagement, which has put together weekly virtual discussions on topics related to racism, policing, and more. She is also part of an effort to rename JMU buildings currently named for well-known racists in history. As you’ll hear, she’s active in both the #JMUchangethenames social media campaign and working behind the scenes with university leaders.

We recorded this episode on June 18. Stay tuned to the end of the show on what’s happened at JMU since then.

Links to cool stuff

• Carah on Twitter

• Carah on LinkedIn

• JMU Center for Civic Engagement

• Democracy Matters podcast