Macalester Big Questions

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, alumna Emily Nadel from the Class of 2018 talks with President Brian Rosenberg. Their discussion touches on how college changes a person, building communities online, and reflections on the notion of doubt as a part of understanding differences.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, Karen Saxe sits down with President Brian Rosenberg to discuss her work with the census in Minnesota, and the mathematics behind redistricting. Saxe is the DeWitt Wallace Professor Emerita in the Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science, and now the Director of the Office of Government Relations at the American Mathematical Society.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, Kamil Ali talks with President Brian Rosenberg to discuss the value of welcoming the other, and how getting to know someone from a different community or culture can shape your perspective. Kamil is from the Class of 2018.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, Kiante Miles, from the Class of 2020, sits down with President Brian Rosenberg. Kiante -- a poet, a computer science major, and a defensive back on the football team -- talks about healing your inner community and the power of sharing creativity. 

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, Myhana Kerr shares her perspectives on navigating college with President Brian Rosenberg. Kerr, from the Class of 2018, reflects on learning within an international community, language and the term “people of color.”

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, Rev. Kelly Stone, Macalester’s Chaplain and the Associate Dean of the Center for Religious and Spiritual Life, speaks with President Brian Roseneberg about the college’s past, meeting students’ needs, and thinking of campus as a laboratory for exploring differences.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, Blair Cha '20 talks with President Brian Rosenberg about what it takes to be a leader: at Macalester, in the community, and as a woman. Blair is the president of Macalester College Student Government and is a mathematics and applied statistics major.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, alumni Fred Swaniker talks with President Brian Rosenberg about the history of Africans -- like Kofi Annan -- in shaping the world, and the potential for global leadership among youth across the continent. Swaniker is a native of Ghana, and a co-founder of the African Leadership Academy.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, author Tim O'Brien from the Class of 1968 speaks with President Brian Rosenberg. In their discussion they talk about the complexities of the world, embracing uncertainty, and avoiding absolutism. The talk was recorded in October 2017 when O’Brien was on campus to interview fellow author Marlon James.

Tim O'Brien is the author of several works including Going After Cacciato, The Things They Carried, and If I Die in a Combat Zone. He has an upcoming memoir scheduled for release in October titled Dad's Maybe Book.

On this episode of Macalester Big Questions, we share a conversation President Brian Rosenberg had with Kofi Annan on May 8, 2018. Annan was on campus for the renaming of the Kofi Annan Institute for Global Citizenship in recognition of Annan’s global leadership and dedication to peace. Kofi Annan was founding chair of the Kofi Annan Foundation, the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, a 2001 Nobel Peace Prize winner, and a 1961 graduate of Macalester College. Annan passed away on August 18, 2018.