Welcome to Kickin’ It in the Kitchen, a miniseries by the Catalyze podcast that explores the transformative summers of the Morehead-Cain Program. In the Outdoor Leadership summer, scholars spend several weeks in the North American wilderness on a leadership course that tests their limits and inspires self-discovery. 

In this episode, host Ali Slack ’28 from the Scholar Media Team sits down with first-year Kori Billingslea ’29 to reflect on her Outdoor Leadership experience in Wyoming. Fresh from the trail and adjusting to college life, Kori shares what it was like to spend a month unplugged from technology, pushing through physical and mental challenges, and discovering unexpected strengths in the backcountry. 

From breaking camp at dawn to navigating group dynamics under pressure, Kori shares about stepping outside your comfort zone and the lessons that follow you long after you’ve left the wilderness. 

Music credits

The episode’s intro song is by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul. 

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcastsor Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].   

J.B. Howard ’85 delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 19. J.B. is a freelance lawyer and former counsel at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].   

Steve Toben ’78 delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 19. Steve is the principal at Toben Consulting, an advisory service for donors and family foundations. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].  

Who is on the horizon?

At the 2025 Alumni Forum, Chief Magistrate Judge Karen Stevenson ’79 challenged the more than 700 attendees not to look for heroes to enact change. 

“Nobody’s coming. We’re it. All of us are it,” the alumna said at the Mazzocchi Alumni Dinner in Chapel Hill on October 18, 2025. 

Speaking from her experience on the federal bench in Los Angeles, Karen shared her thoughts on current challenges facing American institutions, connected them to historical struggles for civil rights, and issued a direct challenge: the responsibility to build a more perfect union falls on each of us. She called on the Morehead-Cain community to lead with courage, kindness, and generosity. 

“I dare to say no one is coming to extricate us from this existential moment,” the judge said. “This one is on us to lead, to act with integrity, to care for our neighbors, to move with compassion in the world, and take right action.”

Watch the keynote address on Morehead-Cain’s YouTube channel.

Karen is a member of the first class of women Morehead-Cain Scholars. She is an elected member of the American Law Institute, a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, and co-author of Rutter Group Practice Guide: Federal Civil Procedure Before Trial. 

The judge was honored at the 2024 Morehead-Cain Black Alumni Reunionin Chapel Hill, alongside the first Black graduate of the Program, Harvey Kennedy ’74.

Karen and Harvey were also honored at the Forum by the unveiling of a commissioned portrait of the pair on October 17, 2025. The painting, by Durham-based artist William Paul Thomas, is on display at the Morehead-Cain Foundation. 

Godspower Mercy Lawal ’25 delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 18. Mercy is the founder and past president of the African Students Association. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].   

Noam Argov ’15 delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 18. Noam is a writer, director, and producer with Bright Panic Pictures and an MFA candidate at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].   

Happy New Year! In this episode, Morehead-Cain President Chris Bradford joins host Oni Terrado ’27 of the Scholar Media Team to reflect on an extraordinary year for the Program.

Chris shares highlights from the 2025 Alumni Forum and the launch of the Morehead-Cain Global Fellows program, which brought twelve exceptional leaders from five countries to Carolina. The president discusses how the Foundation is balancing innovation with tradition as the Program reaches its largest size ever, the arrival of former trustee Rachel Pfeifer ’02 as chief program officer, the challenge of counterprogramming pre-professional pressures, and his vision for “college as it should be.”

This year also marked major moments of community gathering: nearly 100 Black alumni and scholars celebrating 50 years of Black excellence, the reunion of the first class of women Morehead-Cains, and the 55th anniversary of the British Programme in London.

Music credits

The episode’s intro song is by scholar Scott Hallyburton ’22, guitarist of the band South of the Soul.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using ourRSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].

Jesse Stone Reeck ’05delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 18. Jesse is the executive director of Northland Pioneer College Friends and Family scholarship foundation and a 2023 Morehead-Cain Impact Educator. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].   

David Jernigan ’00 delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 18. David is the former CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].   

Scott Heath ’96delivered a SEVEN Talk at the 2025 Alumni Forum in Chapel Hill on October 18. Scott is a visiting professor of Africana studies at the University of Pittsburgh. 

About SEVEN Talks

Every class of Morehead-Cain Scholars connects with seven others: the three classes ahead, its own, and the three that follow. The idea of SEVEN is to strengthen connections across generations of Morehead-Cains.

The Alumni Forum embodies this spirit through SEVEN Talks—seven alumni and scholars on Saturday, and seven more on Sunday—each sharing seven minutes of wisdom with the Morehead-Cain community.

How to listen

On your mobile device, you can listen and subscribe to Catalyze on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. For any other podcast app, you can find the show using our RSS feed. You can let us know what you thought of the episode by finding us on social media @moreheadcain or you can email us at [email protected].