Town & Gown Podcast

This week’s show features Markeese Boyd, a first-year Albion College student and member of the Build Albion Fellows. Markeese comes from the city of Albion, and was selected as one of the first Build Albion Fellows. With that, he’s worked with his fellow students to help improve the community. Markeese talks about his first semester at college, bonding with the other Build Albion Fellows, and how – even when you go to school in the same town you grew up in – it can still seem like a world away.

This week's episode features Nancy Doyal, director of the Bohm Theatre in downtown Albion. Now in it’s first full year of operation, after a years-long renovation project, the Bohm Theatre has hosted everything from concerts to speeches to ‘Star Wars.’ Nancy makes all that run smoothly, and looks for ways to put more people in the seats for the upcoming year — all while keeping a sane personal schedule. She talks about how the community supports the theater, and what’s next for the Bohm.

Reverend Donald Phillips, faith leader at Lewis Chapel AME Church in Albion, is now the acting chaplain of Albion College after serving as the faith community liaison last semester. This episode of Town & Gown features Rev. Phillips talking about his transitioning roles, guiding college students, and signs of hope in the Albion community.

This week's show features Gregg Strand, Albion College’s director of corporate and foundation relations, and Danielle Nelson, a junior at the College, who tackled a summer research project on regional trail systems.

Together, with local government and community organizations, they secured an almost $300,000 grant from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to connect three regional trail systems in Albion - the Iron Belle Trail, the Great Lake-to-Lake Trail and the North Country Trail.

Albion College chemistry professor Cliff Harris, who, along with his wife (and communication studies professor) Karen Erlandson, launched a monthly concert series at the Bohm Theatre called Blues at the Bohm. Cliff, a musician and performer himself, now finds himself in the role of concert organizer and promoter, all for the good of Albion’s nightlife. And he’s had a lot of help along the way.