GridgeFridge

After taking some time to rest and rejuvenate over winter break, we are happy to be back and bring you more episodes! In our first episode of the spring semester, we are thrilled to have Emma Gleed and Molly Peden join us to talk about Achievement Connections.

Achievement Connections matches UW–Madison students with local high school students to tutor them in math while developing their overall study skills. The program is a partnership between United Way of Dane County, AmeriCorps, Madison Metropolitan School District, Middleton Cross Plains Area School District and the Morgridge Center for Public Service.

In this episode, we’ll look at what Achievement Connections does, why it focuses on math tutoring and how students can get involved to support local students’ academic success.

In this special episode of GridgeFridge, we dig into the behind-the-scenes work of the Sifting and Reckoning exhibit – the culmination of a years-long research project examining the history of discrimination and exclusion at UW–Madison.

Produced over two months, this narrative-style episode features voices across campus, including Public History Project Director Kacie Lucchini Butcher and Assistant Director Taylor Bailey. Listeners will learn about the difficult decisions and intricate research that went into uncovering stories for the Sifting and Reckoning exhibit. For years, many of these stories have remained buried in the archives and obscured in the university’s past.

In addition to exploring the exhibit’s complicated curation process, listeners will hear directly from students about what they think of the project and where the university must go from here. Through the voices of past and present Badgers, we critically examine the university’s history and look forward to how we can make campus a more inclusive and welcoming environment for all.

The Sifting and Reckoning exhibit is open at the Chazen Museum of Arts until Dec. 23, 2022. Admission to the exhibit and the rest of the museum is free.

In our third episode this season, we’re excited to welcome Dr. Barry Burden. Barry is a professor of Political Science at UW–Madison, and is the director of the Elections Research Center. His research and teaching are centered around American elections, with a focus on representation and the electoral system.

Barry also chairs the BadgersVote Coalition, which is a campus-wide initiative that strives to provide UW–Madison students with everything they need to know in order to participate in their elections.

In this episode, we’ll talk with Barry about his upbringing, research and scholarship that engages in an increasingly questioned American election system, as well as his take on young people being civically engaged.

In this episode, we’re excited to welcome Kao Lee Yang. Kao Lee is a doctoral student at UW–Madison. She researches dementia as a trainee in the Neuroscience Training Program and studies public policy through the La Follette School of Public Affairs. Kao Lee is also a Morgridge Fellow, which is a program hosted here at the Morgridge Center to expand and develop community-engaged scholarship at UW–Madison.

Furthering her community impact, Kao Lee is the founder of HmongInBioSci, a Twitter account that serves as an online forum to uplift and celebrate Hmong-identifying academics in biological sciences.

We talk with Kao Lee about her research, her experience as a Morgridge Fellow and the importance of Community-engaged Scholarship on campus and beyond.

To kick off our third season of GridgeFridge, we’re thrilled to welcome Hannah Hatlan-Atwell. Hannah has gained a lot of experience in the public service sphere in the Madison area – and now, she helps UW–Madison students navigate the public service sector as a career advisor for the School of Human Ecology (SoHE). Before coming to SoHE, Hannah worked as a coordinator for the Achievement Connections program. Achievement Connections serves over 150 students in the Madison Metropolitan School by providing math tutoring services with the help of over 100 UW–Madison students volunteers.

In this episode, we’ll explore Hannah’s work at SoHE to support students pursuing careers in public service and different opportunities on campus this fall that could be a great fit for you.

To cap off an amazing second season, we’re thrilled to welcome Shreya Bandyopadhyay, who is an Andrew Goodman Foundation Ambassador at the Morgridge Center.

Shreya is a senior majoring in political science and legal studies with a certificate in gender and women's studies. As a Vote Everywhere Ambassador, Shreya has promoted civic engagement and voting accessibility on campus for two years. Shreya also co-hosts PodCast Your Vote, which is a podcast dedicated to encouraging voter engagement and awareness. As a passionate advocate for women’s rights, Shreya also works as a digital communications intern at the Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virgina.

In this episode of GridgeFridge, we’ll chat with Shreya about her work as a student voting advocate on campus, the 2022 midterm election, and how her time at the Morgridge Center has influenced her postgraduate journey.

Today on GridgeFridge, we’re ecstatic to welcome Abby Onesti, a member of UW–Madison’s Music Therapy Association (MTA).

Abby has been a member of Music Therapy Association for three years and is currently the president. MTA’s goal is that each of its members understands what music therapy is, how it works, and to bring awareness to the music therapy profession.

In this episode of GridgeFridge, we talk with Abby about her work as a member of MTA, the impact of MTA as music therapy, and how students can get engaged with community-engaged organizations like MTA on campus.

Today on GridgeFridge, we’re ecstatic to welcome John Zumbrunnen, the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning.

Zumbrunnen has been a faculty member of the UW-Madison Political Science Department for over a decade. Now, as the vice provost for teaching and learning, he provides leadership and support for UW–Madison’s teaching and learning mission across campus. Previously, Zumbrunnen served as faculty director of the Chadbourne Residential College and co-chaired the UW Teaching Academy. Zumbrunnen’s academic work examines the history of political thought, democratic theory and American political thought.

In this episode of GridgeFridge, we will talk with Zumbrunnen about his work in the political science department, the challenges and responsibilities of his role as the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning, and how students can become civically engaged leaders on campus and beyond.

Today on GridgeFridge, we’re thrilled to welcome Nathan Larson and Madison Yurubi to talk about their experience in a UW Community-based Learning course.

Community-based Learning classes, also known as CBL courses, incorporate at least 25 hours of community engagement so students can get real-world experience as part of a for-credit class. Larson, who is a lecturer and senior outreach specialist at the Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture, leads a CBL course called Mindfulness and Restorative Environments.

In the course, UW students work with elementary school students to learn about what the kids would like to see in a restorative environment at their school. Restorative environments, which are constructed out of natural materials and landscapes, provide a safe place to recover from mental fatigue and stress, and can be used at schools to promote students’ well-being and personal growth.

In this episode of GridgeFridge, we’ll talk about the course with Nathan and Madison, who was a student in the class. We’ll explore their CBL course project, the results of the course’s research and what they took away from the CBL experience.

Today on GridgeFridge, we’re thrilled to welcome Gavin Luter, who is the managing director at UniverCity Alliance. UniverCity Alliance partners with cities and local municipalities, connecting them with service and research resources at UW–Madison.

Through bridge-building engagement with policy initiatives grounded in the priorities of local governments, UniverCity Alliance’s efforts improve the places and lives of people throughout Wisconsin and the world.

In this episode of GridgeFridge, we’ll chat with Gavin about his community-engaged work, cultivating partnerships across Wisconsin, and how UniverCity Alliance helps foster resilient and sustainable communities.