One hundred four years ago—on July 26, 1920, to be specific—cultural critic and journalist H.L. Mencken wrote a column in The Baltimore Sun entitled Bayard and Lionheart.  I read that column during college, never thinking I would draw from it years later in my work. That work included writing a commentary, which was published in LA Progressive a few months after Donald Trump took office in 2017. I'm back at it seven years later, wondering if words written over a century ago apply to America today. My conclusion is that they do. You be the judge.

Episode 12:34 seconds with opening and closing music, "Wheels,' courtesy of Jason Shaw at Audionautix.com

Cover photo courtesy The Paris Review.

Dennis (Denny) Brown had a fabulous career spanning multiple pursuits. He was a star high school athlete, an All-Big Ten quarterback for the Michigan Wolverines, a UM assistant coach, WVU Defensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach, Arizona State Defensive Coordinator, high school head coach and administrator, and U of Michigan assistant athletic director. Denny Brown was a difference-maker no matter what he did or where he did it. Mentored along the way by giants of the game--including Bump Elliot, Bo Schembechler, and Don Nehlen--Denny Brown helped elevate average programs, and he transformed successful programs into great ones.

Denny Brown, difference-maker.

Cover photo of Brown in 1981 as WVU DC, courtesy of Denny Brown and Scott (Dave) Voithofer.

We are pleased today to welcome Christopher Snyder, professor of history and founding dean of Mississippi State’s Honor College, who is joining us from the University of Oxford, where he is a visiting research fellow and working on a book manuscript associated with today’s topic.

Professor Snyder will speak today on the principles of a liberal arts education, drawing in his talk on an article published by Inside Higher Education in October 2023, entitled, A Liberal Arts Education in Name Only. The article is a response to administrative actions being taken across the country that are remaking what it means to use the words higher education, college, university, and what a college education is for. Too much is at stake to permit this trend to continue.

We are also pleased to welcome discussant Adrian Lenardic, professor in the Department of Earth, Environment, and Planetary Sciences at Rice University, who has written extensively on neoliberal influences in higher education and is a frequent contributor to Future U.  Also offering commentary today are Ruben Martinez, professor and director emeritus, Michigan State University and founder of FutureU; and Nathan Rousseau and Lewis (Terry Dibble), professor and senior lecturer, respectively, at Indiana University Purdue University Columbus. 

Today's forum is hosted and produced by Frank A. Fear, Michigan State University professor emeritus and FutureU's Managing Editor.

Follow FutureU: Conversations about Values and Change in Higher Education.

The Forum was taped on Friday, November 24, 2023.

Taped on September 12, 2023

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In 2020, I referred to Samuel H. Johnson as a Renaissance Person. By that, I mean a person with wide-ranging interests/knowledge who draws on both attributes to create new and valuable things for public consumption. That description fits Sam to a "T." He has been a radio host, award-winning public TV producer, Hollywood actor, activist, trailblazing Federal staff writer, and (in retirement) a novelist and author of children's books. His ability to pivot from one endeavor to another--and do each well--is one reason (among many) why I hold Sam in high regard. Today, Sam discusses his personal background, including the impact of his collegiate years at Miami University (Ohio). He then talks about his book writing projects (two in particular), The Cherokee and the Slave (2013) and Gabriel's Favorite Angel (2018), before focusing on the centerpiece of today's program, HBCUs The Living Legacies, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (2022). (All three books are available on Amazon.com.) I know you will enjoy getting to know Samuel H. Johnson. (⁠You can read my review of his HBCU book here⁠.)

The title of this episode was written by today's guest, Jim Holland. The words are drawn from the end of his memorable autobiography, My Fortunate Detour: Making a Right Turn into a Baseball Career Among the Mountains of West Virginia. The book describes how Holland made a "fortunate detour" from a general business career into an executive management career in minor league baseball. In one sense, his is a baseball book. But as my recent book review emphasized, it's about that and much more. The autobiography tells us much about Jim Holland and what makes him tick, and I found the sports-personal narrative connection incredibly appealing. I hope you will too. You can purchase Jim's book at ⁠⁠⁠Amazon.com with Kindle and paperback options available.⁠

Cover photo: Jim Holland's photo as enshrined in the Appalachian League Hall of Fame (2019), lauded (among other things) for serving as General Manager of the Princeton, WV Appalachian League franchise for 24 years, earning the League's Award of Promotional Excellence five times, and being named Appalachian League Executive of the Year in 1993.

Thousands of West Virginia University sports fans know the name Mark Parsons because they see his name just about every day in their Facebook newsfeeds. That's because Mark is a prolific poster on various Facebook pages and groups of news, views, and commentary about WVU sports. While many fans know him by name, many aren't as familiar with the person behind the feed. That's the purpose of today's podcast. Greg Crist, host of Courtside with Coach Crist on the New River Network, joins me in an entertaining 45-conversation with "The Person Behind the Feed," Mark Parsons. (Video produced for The Sports Column by Frank Fear.

Our guest today is Professor Ellen Schrecker, and she will speak on highly concerning issues in higher education today--the impacts of fiscal austerity, political repression, and the diatribe regarding academic freedom.

Professor Emerita Ellen Schrecker of Yeshiva University is one of America’s most persistent and determined voices on the described matters. She has written extensively about McCarthyism, political repression, and American higher education. Her latest book is The Lost Promise: American Universities in the 1960s (2021). Earlier work, especially No Ivory Tower: McCarthyism and the University (1987) and Many Are the Crimes: McCarthyism in America (1998), resonates today. Her forthcoming publication, The Right to Learn: Resisting the Right-wing Attack on Academic Freedom, is a collection of essays co-edited with Valerie C. Johnson and Jennifer Ruth and will be published by Beacon Press in 2024.

Today, she is joined by Professor Jennifer Ruth, film professor at Portland State University’s College of the Arts. FutureU’s founder Dr. Rubén O. Martinez, Michigan State University professor emeritus and FutureU's founder, hosts the forum.

Today's program was produced by Emeritus Professor Frank Fear for ⁠FutureU, Conversations about Values and Change in Higher Education⁠.

Greg Crist is one of the most recognizable names in West Virginia sports, the host of COURTSIDE WITH COACH CRIST on the New River Network @newrivernetwork5468, and a member of the West Virginia Sports Legends Hall of Fame. Greg was gracious enough to promote efforts surrounding the publication of Frank Fear's Band of Brothers, Then and Now: The Inspiring Story of the 1966-70 WVU Football Mountaineers. 

It's now a time when turnabout is fair play. WVU football alumni Mickey Plumley, Charlie Fisher, and Dickielee Roberts join host Frank Fear in this entertaining and informative session with Greg. (60 minutes).

#newrivernetwork #Courtsidewithcoachcrist #wvufootball

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