In this episode, we listen to and discuss three audio narratives created by students Tess Adams, Casey Urso, and Maggie Smith. These stories were created for their Art of the Audio Narrative Class, which is taught by Professor Ken Cormier, an associate professor of English and director of the creative writing program at Quinnipiac University. You can hear all these podcasts at TheBenjySection.com

Isolated Together is a production of the Quinnipiac University Podcast Studio and is produced by David DesRoches, director of community programming.

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In this episode, guest host Vince Contrucci interviews Luis Chavez-Brumell from the New Haven Free Public Library. They talk about the different services the library’s offering and what they’re doing differently these days. 

Isolated Together is a production of the Quinnipiac University Podcast Studio and is produced by David DesRoches, director of community programming. 

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In this episode of Isolated Together, host David DesRoches interviews rising sophomore Frank Scott, who's majoring in Film, TV and Media Arts. Frank was one of the actors in the production of the play Rage, an adaptation from Stephen King’s first novel, which is about a school shooting.

Frank plays a character named Ted Jones, an "All-American" boy, who isn't afraid to show his cockiness but also his moral authority. He speaks with this moral outrage that the audience likely identifies with. Ted isn’t actually the shooter in the play -- that character's name is Charlie. But by the end of the show, you somehow come to empathize with Charlie, and you end up really hating Frank’s character, Ted. 

The play was adapted for the state by playwright Elizabeth Dinkova and this was the very first time the play had ever been performed. But only a week after the play made its debut, the campus shut down because of the coronavirus. The production had been a daily part of the cast and crew's lives for the better part of three months, and when it was over, so was school (at least for the semester).

In this interview, Frank talks about the play, the pandemic and how he’s coping, and some other stuff.

Isolated Together is a production of the Quinnipiac University Podcast Studio and is produced by David DesRoches, director of community programming.

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For episode 9 of Isolated Together, guest host Vince Contrucci interviews Carlos Collazo, Executive Director of the Ulbrich Boys and Girls Club. They talk about how his team transitioned the Club’s services to a virtual space -- which is no small feat for an organization that helps hundreds of families every year. 

Isolated Together is hosted and produced by David DesRoches, director of community programming at Quinnipiac University.

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Credit Unions and banks are considered essential services. But what happens when someone walks into a branch wearing a mask? Or, how do people cash checks if a bank branch isn't open, or they don't have the technology to deposit it remotely? Are there creative solutions that we should be thinking about to make financial transactions -- either between people or between a person and a business -- easier?

In this episode of Isolated Together, host David DesRoches interviews Bruce Adams, president and CEO Credit Union League of Connecticut. Adams has a long history in public services, having been the deputy commissioner of the state's Department of Revenue Services, general counsel to Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman, and he served as general counsel to the Connecticut Department of Banking.

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For Episode 7 of Isolated Together, guest host Vince Contrucci interviews Chris Cole, executive director of A Place to Nourish Your Health, in New Haven, also known as APNH, a nonprofit that provides culturally competent care for people living with HIV, substance use, mental illness and related conditions. They’ll talk more about what culturally competent care actually is, and what that looks like during the pandemic.

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Mental Health Connecticut has been working with people who are homeless and those experiencing mental health challenges for over a century. Now they've had to change how they do everything. No more in-home services. Some of their clients experienced stress from social isolation before the pandemic, now things have gotten worse. How are they dealing with it?

It's an ongoing process, says Mike Culmo, chief program officer for Mental Heath CT. Some of their clients are actually getting more opportunities to socialize virtually, but challenges remain. In this episode of Isolated Together, host David DesRoches interviews Culmo and Jean Yarochowicz, a residential counselor from the Waterbury program.

Isolated Together is a production of the Quinnipiac University Podcast Studio, and hosted by David DesRoches, director of community programming.

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In this episode, Quinnipiac University's Vince Contrucci interviews John Brooks, the chief development officer at Columbus House, which is an organization that works with people who are homeless or housing insecure to provide them short- and long-term shelter. Which, as you’ll hear in the episode, is no easy thing, when you have social distancing requirements and everything else happening.

Isolated Together is a production of the Quinnipiac University Podcast Studio, and is hosted and produced by David DesRoches, director of community programming. 

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If you’re a parent of a school-aged child, this episode is for you. If you’re a parent of a child with a disability, this episode is especially for you. It’s been a real challenge to work from home and also teach your kids - and this is even harder for parents who are essential workers. How are they able to teach their kids if they themselves aren’t at home? Many parents also can't afford someone to come to their house to teach their kids. But even if you can afford it, are people even willing to come to your house?

Imagine if your child has a disability? These challenges are often magnified because of that increase in need. This episode addresses children with disabilities and the challenges their parents are facing during the coronavirus pandemic, and also offers some ideas to help parents and school districts figure this stuff out.

Our guest are special education attorney Jennifer Laviano, an alum from the Quinnipiac University School of Law, and Julie Swanson, who works as a special education advocate, helping parents navigate the complicated world of special education.

Isolated Together is a podcast of the Quinnipiac University Podcast Studio, and hosted by David DesRoches, director of community programming.

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Catherine Tillery is a nurse practitioner in the Intensive Care Unit at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital. She's also a single mother, and she had to make the tough choice to send her kids to their dad's during the pandemic. Catherine usually enjoys being there for families as their loved ones reach the end of their lives, guiding them during this difficult time. But the pandemic has changed everything. Now, her relationship with families has changed. Now those conversations -- those powerful discussions about whether someone should be kept alive or transitioned to end-of-life care -- are now happening over the phone.

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