Connections Podcast

Brighton Town Board member Robin Wilt announced last week that she was dropping out of the race for New York State Assembly due to concerns about alleged racism in Brighton. Wilt says she made the decision to focus her energies on the town after a 14-year-old Brighton High School student posted a video on YouTube that alleged systemic racism in the district. The student, Keniyah Vickers, is the daughter of Wilt’s campaign manager, Wynette Vickers. Wilt and Vickers join us in studio for the hour.

Local leaders in education join us to share their reactions to topics we discussed with New York State Education Department Commissioner MaryEllen Elia. In studio: Van White , Rochester City School Board President Adam Urbanski , Rochester Teachers Association President Christopher Albrecht , fourth grade teacher at the Fred W. Hill School in Brockport, and New York State’s Teacher of the Year

New York State Education Department Commissioner MaryEllen Elia was in Rochester last week to learn about cultural education opportunities available to students in our area. As part of her visit, she joined us in studio to discuss her role as commissioner and the state of education in Rochester and New York State. We discuss her decision to hire a distinguished educator for the Rochester City School District, her thoughts on teacher evaluations and standardized testing, how poverty and education

Dr. Charles Kimball is an author and the chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Oklahoma. He’s in Rochester as a guest of Nazareth College for a presentation titled, “When Religion Becomes Lethal: The Explosive Mix of Politics and Religion.” He joins us in studio to discuss how in today’s global world, the intersection of religion and politics can have volatile consequences. He discusses those consequences, and what he thinks leaders can do to build a healthy society.

We continue our discussions about a possible post-Roe v. Wade world. With the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court, pro-life advocates say they are feeling closer than ever to a victory with ending abortion. We talked to a few of them in a previous program. This hour, we’re joined by pro-choice advocates. They share their thoughts on a post-Roe v. Wade world, and what supports they would like to see in place for women that would otherwise have had abortions. In studio: Jane Dodds,

Chris Granozio is a former scoreboard operator for the Mets who was fired in February. The Mets say he violated company policy and spoke inappropriately when he and a colleague were telling vulgar jokes. Granozio says he was laughing at his colleague’s impersonations in what they thought was a vacant room, but a female employee heard them. Granozio says she recorded the conversation and reported them to the organization’s human resources department. Granozio admits that the jokes were vulgar,

We have a discussion about how technology changes…with kids! We ask our guests about phone booths, fax machines, answering machines, and other devices that are no longer part of our everyday experience. We ask what those devices are and what they did, how they’ve been replaced, and what our guests think the future of technology looks like. In studio: Natalia Barone, incoming 7th grader at School of the Arts Brielle "Breezy" Graham, 6 th grader who is homeschooled Calina Hernandez, incoming 8th

Weekend Connections is a collection of some of the most noteworthy moments from the week on Connections with Evan Dawson. This episode includes conversations about: Puerto Rico, and perceptions Americans on the mainland have about Puerto Ricans and their culture; Recycling, and what can and cannot go in your blue box ; Food culture in remote communities around the world; How kids view changes in technology.

Our Summer of Food series continues with a discussion on how understanding food culture impacts anthropological research. Scientists at the University of Rochester say a key factor in conducting research in remote communities is gaining the trust of the people there. They say one of the best ways to do that is to share food. This hour, we discuss how understanding and eating local foods with different cultural groups helps open the door to better relationships and research. In studio: Dr. Tim

Investigative journalist David Cay Johnston has some ideas for how to make President Donald Trump’s tax returns public. He wrote about them in an op-ed for the New York Times. We hear those ideas, and we're also joined by New York State Attorney General candidate Zephyr Teachout . She weighs in on how the Attorney General’s office could assist in the process if she were to win the election.