In this episode, my co-host, Addie and I have a conversation with Dr. Stephen Maiullo, the interim Dean of Arts and Humanities at Hope College. Dr. Maiullo has his Ph.D. in Classics from Ohio State University, and has been a professor at Hope College since two thousand ten. His area of expertise is in Greek literature, Greek and Roman philosophy, and reception of classical literature. He teaches Latin and Greek language courses, classes that focus on the literature of the classical world, and general education courses on topics such as classical mythology, and the history of Rome.

Learn more about our program at bigreadlakeshore.com and follow us on social media to stay up-to-date on all things Big Read!

In this episode, my co-host, Addie, and I have a conversation with Elisabeth Thoburn, a professor at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Professor Thoburn was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States in 1985. She is an art historian, educator, public speaker, and world traveler who received her Master’s degree in both Western and Asian art from the University of Michigan in 1994. She has taught art history, mythology, and humanities classes at WCC since 1994. Her travel experiences directly enhance and inform her teaching materials and methods.

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Museum Treasure Hunts:

Kelsey Museum Treasure Hunt

UMMA Mythology Treasure Hunt

In this episode, I have a conversation with Susanna Childress. She has authored the poetry volumes Jagged with Love and Entering the House of Awe and is finishing a collection of essays, Extremely Yours. Susanna teaches at Hope College and lives with her family in Holland, Michigan. We are grateful to have her expertise teach us about poetry today!

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In this episode, I have a conversation with poet Mark Hiskes. Mark Hiskes grew up in Chicago, the seventh of eight kids lucky enough to be raised by Harold and Everdean.  He has been blessed to be an English teacher for 35 years. When he’s not grading papers, he loves to walk, read, write, hang out in classrooms with students, and refurbish old furniture with Cindy for her antique business. On good days, he manages to do a little of all five. He and Cindy have proudly raised two children, Peter and Mary, who are off on family adventures of their own. Mark and Cindy live near the foxes in Holland, Michigan.

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In this episode, I have a conversation with my Hope College colleague, Pablo Peschiera. Pablo is an Associate Professor in the Department of English, at Hope College, and currently serves as the Interim Chair and as the Area Coordinator for Creative Writing. He's published over 100 poems, interviews, reviews, essays, and translations from Spanish and he teaches poetry to Hope College students. Hear about his own writing journey and how he reads poems!

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In this episode, I have a conversation with Dana VanderLugt. Dana VanderLugt lives in West Michigan with her husband, three sons, and spoiled golden retriever. She has an MFA from Spalding University and works as a teacher and instructional coach. Her work has been published in Longridge Review, Ruminate, The Reformed Journal, and Relief: A Journal of Art & Faith. She can be found online at www.danavanderlugt.com and on Twitter @danavanderlugt.

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In this episode, I have a conversation with David James. James, who writes as D.R. James has taught writing, literature, and peace-making at Hope College for 34 years and lives in the woods near Saugatuck, Michigan. His poems and prose have appeared in a variety of journals Including Galway Review) and anthologies, his latest of eight poetry collections are If god were gentle (Dos Madres Press) and Surreal Expulsion (The Poetry Box), and his microchapbook All Her Jazz is free and downloadable-for-the-folding at the Origami Poems.

Here are links to his works mentioned in the episode:

http://www.amazon.com/author/drjamesauthorpage

https://www.dosmadres.com/shop/mobius-trip-by-d-r-james/

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In this episode, I have a conversation with Jack Ridl. Jack Ridl taught at Hope from 1971 until retiring in 2006. With his wife Julie, Ridl founded the Visiting Writers Series at Hope College, later named the "Jack Ridl Visiting Writers Series" in his honor, He is the author of several collections of poetry, and has also published more than 300 poems in journals and has work included in numerous anthologies. He has given readings of  his work and led workshops at colleges, universities, art colonies and other venues around the country.

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In this podcast episode, I talk with Thea Patterson, one of my former Hope College students! Now, she's a teaches sixth grade English and is sharing her expertise with our Big Read community. We talk about her love for literature and where it began, engaging with characters, books as windows and mirrors, and her book recommendations! We admire Thea's love for literacy and we cannot wait for you to get to know her through this episode.

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In this podcast episode, I talk with Karen Rowe, Black River High School English teacher. We talk about her involvement with the Big Read (eight years!) and how she's seen reading benefit and build community. Karen uses examples from her own classroom, other classrooms, and even her daughter to share ideas and tools for utilizing reading in a community. We are so grateful for Karen!

Learn more about our program at bigreadlakeshore.com and follow us on social media to stay up-to-date on all things Big Read!