Dr. Rasul Mowatt, head of the department of parks, recreation, and tourism management at North Carolina State University, and Dr. Davarian L. Baldwin, Trinity College’s Paul E. Raether Distinguished Professor of American Studies, join Toward Inclusive Excellence for the first “In Dialogue” discussion between two prominent scholars on timely topics. While TIE’s editor-in-chief Alexia Hudson-Ward had other ideas in mind for the “In Dialogue” session, media announcements came out about AP’s decision to strip its African American Studies curriculum shortly before the discussion. The topic shifted toward political encroachment into the academy and how librarians and faculty need to form more alliances to support academic freedom. Rasul and Davarian shared historical data points spanning nearly 60 years on why Black Studies exists and its importance within American history. The guests also discussed attacks on public libraries and archives, how to advocate for all on campus, and the power of community organizing.

Episode theme music: Black is the Night by Jeris (c) copyright 2014 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial (3.0) license. Ft: DJ Vadim (djvadim), NiGiD