Outside the Box with Dr. Janeane Bernstein

Marianne's days are filled with schedules, structure, and soccer. There's just one problem: Marianne is a maker. She needs every minute of her weekends to scheme and dream, draw and design, to build and rebuild! This is the story of how a creator with a crackerjack imagination finds a not-so-great way to skip practice and create her masterpiece. But will her dad understand?Told in delightful rhyme that bounces across George Sweetland's gorgeous collage-style illustrations (chock full of hidden gems). Marianne the Maker is sure to kindle the creative spark that lives inside all of us.

Kelly's storytelling expertise brings this research to life, and her daughter, Claire's, tech-arts integration provides modern context. Their mother-daughter dynamic demonstrates intergenerational impact, along with real examples from both traditional and digital making.Review"A thoughtful role model for aspiring inventors."--Kirkus Reviews

Bestselling author, beloved PBS and podcast host, Kelly Corrigan, talks about her new book, Marianne the Maker, written with her daughter, debut author Claire Corrigan Lichty. Marianne the Maker just may be the antidote to the current epidemic of depression and anxiety children are facing today.

In the forthcoming summer title from Penguin Young Readers, MARIANNE THE MAKER (on-sale: 6/3/25), Kelly Corrigan and her daughter, Claire Corrigan Lichty, make the case for making—which just may be the antidote to the current epidemic of depression and anxiety children are facing today. At a time when arts education programs are being cut at a more vicious pace than ever before, studies show that using our hands to create has incredible benefits: reduction in anxiety, improvement in memory, and for children. Making is vital to their development: tinkering and hands-on play develops new ways of thinking, instills confidence and resourcefulness, and helps make connections.

Nurit Siegel Smith, recent honoree at the 2025 She Rocks Awards, is the Executive Director of Music Forward Foundation, a national 501c3 organization part of the Live Nation Entertainment family with a mission to transform lives, empower careers, and champion a more inclusive music industry. 

Prior to Music Forward, she held key positions spanning two decades at various arts and entertainment organizations including Blue Man Group, Highways Performance Space, SAG-AFTRA Foundation, and Grand Performances. 

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In this episode, we are excited to welcome Sarah Kennedy, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and the Assistant Program Director for Orange  County Survivor Support Services of Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services.

Sarah began her social work career in community mental health  serving children and adolescents involved in the child welfare system.  Her experience also includes  providing mental health services to incarcerated women as well as emergency crisis response services in  partnership with law enforcement. Sarah joined Didi Hirsch in 2022. As Assistant Program Director,  Sarah continues to be dedicated to serving the Orange County community in brining awareness and  accessibility to suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention services. 

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Peggy Rajski (she/her) is an Oscar-winning filmmaker, LGBTQ+ ally/activist, and  entrepreneurial leader. A long-time feature film producer in the world of  entertainment, Rajski made her directorial debut on the short film Trevor (1994), a  poignant comedy about a young teen whose world is turned upside down when  word spreads at school that he might be gay, and his thoughts turn toward  suicide. 

Trevor went on to win the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short in  1994, and eventually led Rajski to create The Trevor Project, the world’s leading organization providing crisis intervention services and suicide prevention programs  for LGBTQ+ young people since founding in 1998. She served as the organization’s Executive Director during its critical startup years and has remained on the Board of  Directors since. 

In film, Rajski has produced multiple award-winning feature films, served as the Dean of LMU’s top 10-ranked School of Film and Television from 2018-2021,  accepted appointment as inaugural head of the NYU-Tisch Graduate Film Program’s creative producing program from 2010-2018 including overseeing development of the core curriculum, and has conducted master classes and  workshops on producing and pitching in the U.S. and abroad throughout her  career.  

From November 2022-July 2024, she stepped in as Interim CEO at The Trevor  Project at the Board’s request to help steward the now 500+ person organization’s  transition to a new chapter. Her goal from founding day to today is ensuring Trevor  thrives as a vital, industry-leading lifesaving resource for LGBTQ+ young people at a  critical moment in their lives.

Learn more about Peggy 

Gaslighting is the action of repetitively (and often brazenly) lying to someone to manipulate, and ultimately control them and the relationship. It could be divided into four different types: outright lying, manipulation of reality, scapegoating and coercion.

According to the Office of National Statistic, the Crime Survey for England & Wales estimated that 2.1 million people aged 16 or older (1.4 million women and 751,000 men) experienced domestic abuse in the year ending March 2023. Over 889,000 incidents (excluding Devon & Cornwall) of domestic abuse were recorded by the police in England and Wales, but just over 39,000 were convicted. The National Domestic Violence Hotline found that 95% of contacts made in 2020 stated they were experiencing emotional abuse.

Gaslighting can also be seen in the workplace, with a 2019 study conducted by MRH Global finding that over 54% of respondents, from a pool of over 3000 people, say they had experienced gaslighting at work.

Gaslighting is not exclusive to domestic or professional relationships and has also been found to exist in para social relationships between an audience and a public figure or politician. A para social relationship develops when an audience can feel they know and trust a public figure in question due to their cultivated perception or shared ideals despite not knowing the individual in real life.

Speaking about the project, Anders explains why she wanted to make the short:
“Your Reality was inspired by a close friend of mine, whose happiness, confidence, and self-worth has been demolished by a gaslighting ex. Seeing the devastating impact it had on her and how long it took for her to recover made me want to raise awareness on this topic.

With over six million views on YouTube, I am deeply touched by the overwhelming response to our short film. However, the number of comments and messages I receive from (predominantly) women about how much they can relate to the main character is genuinely concerning - it made me want to do more around this topic. That’s why I’m currently working on a feature film version with award-winning director / producer Matthew Wortman. The feature focuses not only on how the story ends, but also on the root cause of gaslighting, which usually starts with parents.”

In a 2023 article, Choosing Therapy highlighted the issue of gaslighting within paternal relationships. Stating “Gaslighting parents use toxic ways to manipulate and control their children, such as distorting the facts, denying a child's experience, or playing the victim. In adulthood, the effects of being raised by gaslighting parents can include low self-esteem and a heightened risk for mental health disorders.”

Growing up in Ukraine, Anders moved to Germany at the age of ten. Learning a new language and culture made her hyper-observant of the people around her - a gift she now channels into her film work. After completing a degree in Business, she decided to follow her passion for acting and filmmaking instead, creating films that have a meaningful message and a potential for life-changing impact.

Free Mom Hugs’ mission is to celebrate the LGBTQIA community through visibility, conversation and education and hugs.  

Valencia ‘s passions include her allyship advocacy for the

The Free Mom Hugs Story

Free Mom Hugs was founded by Sara Cunningham, a Christian mother in conservative Oklahoma, who spent years rejecting her son Parker's sexuality, after he came out to her. Conflicted by her love for her son and her spirituality, Sara exhaustively searched faith and sexuality for answers. What she learned would transform her journey from the church to the pride parade.

As Sara became involved in the LGBTQIA+ community, the hurt, shame and injustice they frequently experience was painfully clear. Remembering that she too was once in the crowd that rejected this loving, vibrant community, Sara took action.

On Saturday, June 20, 2015, Sara wore a homemade button with the words “Free Mom Hugs” to the Oklahoma City Pride Festival. She offered hugs to anyone who made eye contact. The first hug Sara gave was to a beautiful girl who whispered, “It’s been four years since I got a hug from my mom because I’m a lesbian.” Sara embraced her and hundreds more that day, and many shared similar stories with every embrace.

That day Free Mom Hugs — a nationwide movement of love, visibility and acceptance for the LGBTQIA+ community — was born.

In 2018, Sara created a Facebook post that instantly went viral: “PSA: If you need a mom to attend your same-sex wedding because your biological mom won’t, call me. I’m there. I’ll be your biggest fan. I’ll even bring the bubbles.” The shockwaves of the post catapulted Sara and Parker’s story into the national spotlight. Shortly after, the movement took another leap forward when Free Mom Hugs was established as a national nonprofit.

Today, Free Mom Hugs has chapters in all 50 states and other initiatives forming globally. The group’s growing force of more than 14,000 volunteers is a national groundswell dedicated to empowering the world to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community through visibility, conversation and education.

On this week’s episode of Outside the Box, Janeane sits down with GRAMMY award-winning musician and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Matt Sorum. Sorum discovered the power of music at an early age after seeing The

Sorum’s professional music career spans decades with

Sorum opens up about his family of music makers who shared their love of music with him early in life from his grandfather who was a professor of music at Long Beach State University to his mother who was a music

Matt also talks about his impactful Adopt the Arts Foundation he started in 2012 alongside Golden Globe award and Emmy award-winning Actor Jane Lynch to provide underserved elementary schools with high-quality music education curriculum and resources. 

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