1050 Bascom

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, Caroline Fuchs, an immigration lawyer and pre-law advisor at the Center for Pre-Law Advising offers her advice to students thinking about applying to law school. Caroline, who has a J.D. and MPA, shared with us her own career path and offers her insights on how to think about the decision to go to law school, what the application process looks like, LSAT preparation, recommendation letters, GPAs, whether your undergraduate major really matters, and and much more.

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, we were grateful to talk to Scott Gillespie, Editorial Page Editor and Vice President of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and a UW-Madison Journalism School and Political Science alum. Scott was lead editor on “Separate and Unequal,” the series of editorials on underfunded Bureau of Indian Education schools that was a finalist for a 2015 Pulitzer Prize, and “Not this mine. Not this location,” on proposed mining in the Boundary Waters, which was a 2020 Pulitzer finalist for editorial writing.

Minneapolis, of course, was at the epicenter of a renewed and revitalized civil rights movement. We wanted to talk to Scott about his career in media in Minneapolis and Wisconsin and a summer of protest in the midst of a global pandemic and a hotly contested presidential election.

On this episode of 1050 Bascom, Prof. Wagner from the UW-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication, shares his insights and analysis of Wednesday’s Vice Presidential debate. We enjoyed our conversation with Prof. Wagner, and hope you will too.

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, were thrilled get to talk to Prof. Alexander Shashko, a UW-Madison alumni and lecturer in the Department of Afro-American Studies. Prof. Shashko, who is a voting member of the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame, shared with us his research and analysis connecting music and political culture, especially in the context of black music and the history of racism and race relations in the US. We thoroughly enjoyed our conversation with Prof. Shashko and learned so much. We hope you will too.

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, we had the distinct honor and pleasure of interviewing Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield about her life and career in public service and her analysis of many of the opportunities and challenges the US faces today. Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield’s career in foreign service included State Department appointments across Republican and Democratic presidents from George W. Bush through President Obama. From 2013-2017, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield served as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, where she led the development and management of U.S. policy toward sub-Saharan Africa.

Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield now serves as Senior Vice President at the Albright Stonebridge Group in Washington DC and leads the firm's Africa practice. She earned B.A. from Louisiana State University and an M.A. degree from the University of Wisconsin, where she worked towards a PhD. She received an honorary Doctor of Law degree from the University of Wisconsin in May 2018. We learned so much, and thoroughly enjoyed our time with Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield, and hope you will too. Listen here.

In this episode 1050 Bascom, we are grateful to have the opportunity to interview Gavin Luter, Managing Director of UniverCity Alliance at UW-Madison. UniverCity Alliance connects education, service and research activities across UW-Madison with cities across Wisconsin with a focus on furthering sustainability. We asked Gavin about his own research and mission to provide more participatory research opportunities for UW students interested in urban affairs, through UnivCity Alliance. Gavin shared his advice on how students can get involved in on-the ground research and policy change at the local and state level. We enjoyed our conversation with Gavin, and hope you will too.

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, we were grateful to have the opportunity to talk with Aili Mari Tripp, Professor of Political Science and Gender and Women’s studies at UW-Madison. Professor Tripp’s research focuses on women and politics in Africa, women and peacebuilding, transnational feminism and African politics more generally. We found Prof. Tripp’s discussion of her pathway to UW-Madison fascinating, and enjoyed hearing about her childhood experiences growing up on several continents and learning multiple languages. In addition to teaching many widely regarded classes on campus, Prof. Tripp is the author of several award-winning books including Women and Power in Post Conflict and Seeking Legitimacy: Why Arab Autocracies Adopt Women’s Rights. We thoroughly enjoyed our conversation with Prof. Tripp and learned a lot. We hope you will too.

As the global pandemic continues to raise questions about the future and stability of the job and internship market,1050 Bascom is reaching out to successful Political Science graduates to help us navigate these uncertain times. In this episode, we were grateful to have the opportunity to interview Angela Maramba, Political Science Badger alumni and Director of State Board Relations at the Colorado Department of Education. Before rising to her current position, Angela worked as a Legislative and Research Assistant for the State of Wisconsin and a Research Analyst for the National Conference of State Legislatures. We asked Angela about her time on campus, and she offered helpful advice to students about how to make the most of experiences inside and outside the classroom. We appreciated Angela’s insights into career pathways in public service and state government, and valued her take on seeking jobs, communicating, and networking in our current professional environment. We hope you will too.

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, we were grateful to have the opportunity to talk to Kacie Lucchini Butcher, a public historian and award-winning museum curator who is the director of UW-Madison’s Public History Project. With the rise of a renewed civil rights movement this summer, we thought now would be a perfect time to talk about the mission of the project to acknowledge and recover “the stories of those who experienced prejudice and bigotry on the UW-Madison campus.” Bringing us into the contemporary moment, we asked Kacie to share with us her research and insights about how students, staff and faculty feel about the campus climate not only based on what happens on university grounds but in Madison more generally. We found her advice as an oral historian to listen to people’s stories and lived experiences with an empathetic mindset and willingness for open dialogue helpful in thinking through so much of what is happening in our world today. We learned a lot from Kacie, and hope you will too.

In this episode of 1050 Bascom, we were grateful to have the opportunity to interview Kevin Allexon, a PS Badger alumni who worked as a Senior Policy Advisor for the George W. Bush Presidential Administration. Kevin, who is now the Senior Manager of Government Relations at Ocean Conservancy in Washington, DC, offered his insights into how he built a professional portfolio beginning in college that helped him advance to policy advising at the highest level of federal government. He also offered his advice to people considering private sector paths in government relations, suggesting that finding meaningful work that aligns with your personal and professional values is key at every stage of the career-building process. We enjoyed our conversation with Kevin and learned a lot -- and hope you will too.