Mile Higher Ed Podcast

Rural-Serving Institutions and Regional Colleges with Dr. Cecilia Orphan

In this episode of Mile Higher Ed, Dr. Cecilia Orphan joins Sarah and Caitlyn to talk about her work with ARRC, or the Alliance for Research on Regional Colleges. ARRC recently released its work creating a designation for rural-serving institutions of higher education (RSIs). We discuss the role RSIs play in higher education, and why more research is needed to support this sector.
 
You can read more about this work on ARRC’s website, www.regionalcolleges.org.
 
About our guest: Dr. Cecilia M. Orphan is a working class, first-generation college graduate who received maximum Pell grants to attend college. As a child, she experienced homelessness and was a welfare recipient. She is personally familiar with the transformative nature of need based financial aid and colleges designed to expand access after attending Linn Benton Community College, a Rural-Serving Institution (RSI), and Portland State University, a Regional Public University (RPU). Simply put, attending these colleges changed her life. She has devoted my career to expanding understanding of and appreciation for RPUs and RSIs so that other students might enjoy the same opportunities she had, and so that higher education’s contributions to equity and democracy are strengthened.  Dr. Orphan is committed to bringing broader exposure and understanding to RPUs and RSIs and improve research, funding, policy, and media coverage of these sectors.
 
Mile Higher Ed is a production of the Higher Education Department at the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver.
 

Applying Critical Race Theory to Civic Engagement with Dr. D-L Stewart

In this episode of Mile Higher Ed, Dr. D-L Stewart joins Sarah and Caitlyn to talk about his new article Civic Engagement and Resisting ‘Docile Bodies’ in Postsecondary Education published in Teachers College Report. We discuss the importance of civic engagement in racially minoritized communities, why a critically-oriented curriculum is necessary in higher education, and how we must go beyond voting to increase engagement with, and participation in, our democracy.
 
A few of the things we talk about:
Racial Capitalism, coined by Dr. Cedric J. Robinson in his book Black Marxism: The Making of the Black Radical Tradition.
The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point moved to eliminate a number of liberal arts programs in 2018, but reversed the decision in 2019
What Do You Do With an Idea? by Kobi Yamada
 
About our guest: Dr. D-L Stewart is Professor and Chair of the Higher Education Department in the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver. His scholarship has focused most intently on the history and philosophy of diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education, as well as the institutional systems and structures that affect the experiences, growth, development, and success of racially minoritized and queer and trans* students in settler colonial historically white postsecondary institutions.
 
 
Mile Higher Ed is a production of the Higher Education Department at the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver.
 

Supporting Non-Tenure-Track Faculty with Dr. Laura Sponsler

In this episode of Mile Higher Ed, Dr. Laura Sponsler joins Sarah and Caitlyn to discuss issues facing non-tenure-track faculty, workload equity, and how to create more leadership roles for non-tenure-track faculty. Laura’s article “Expanding Leadership Roles for Non-Tenure-Track Faculty: What Institutional Leaders Should Consider” was recently published in Academic Leader.
 
About our guest: Dr. Laura Sponsler is a Clinical Associate Professor of Higher Education at the University of Denver, as well as the Resident Scholar for Teaching and Professional Faculty in the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs. Her work broadly examines the democratic purposes of higher education, in particular how institutions provide space for voice, participation, and inclusive practices, and how these ideals are institutionalized. Dr. Sponsler’s research agenda focuses on the following areas: civic engagement; inclusive teaching, learning, and assessment; organizational change, organizational learning, and faculty development; and the experiences of non-tenure track faculty and their participation in higher education.
 
Mile Higher Ed is a production of the Higher Education Department at the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver.

Understanding women’s leadership programs with Dr. Michele Tyson

In this episode of Mile Higher Ed, Dr. Michele Tyson joins Sarah and Caitlyn to discuss the legacy of women’s colleges and women’s leadership programs in higher education. Michele recently co-authored a chapter in the newly published book Rooted and Radiant: Women’s Narratives of Leadership.
 
About our guest: Dr. Michele Tyson is clinical associate professor in the Higher Education program at the University of Denver and has worked in the field of higher education for 25+ years, with experience in student affairs, enrollment management, and student services. Her professional and research interests fall into two areas.  One is related to the preparation and development of student affairs and higher education leaders. The other is in understanding institutions as organizations and environments in which students make humanizing decisions about engagement with identity and becoming. 
 
Mile Higher Ed is a production of the Higher Education Department at the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver.

Interpreting Campus Sexual Assault Policies with Dr. Sarah Hurtado

In this inaugural episode of Mile Higher Ed, Caitlyn interviews our own co-host Dr. Sarah Hurtado about interpreting campus sexual assault adjudication policies, and how the language used in these policies sets the tone for the student experience relating to interpersonal violence and Title IX. Her article “Using Intersectionality to Reimagine Title IX Adjudication Policy” was recently published in a special issue of the Journal of Women and Gender and Higher Education.
 
About our guest: Dra. Sarah Hurtado has been with DU Higher Education since 2018. She first started in a visiting role, and loved it so much she decided to stay. She has been in her current Assistant Professor position since 2019. She teaches several courses in the program including Critical Race Theory, College Student Development Theory, and research courses. Her research focuses on addressing sexual violence among college students and how institutions contribute to the perpetration of this issue with a specific focus on the role and responsibility of faculty members. 
 
She received her PhD in higher education at Indiana University Bloomington where she served as a Project Associate for the Center for Postsecondary Research. Specifically, she worked with the National Survey of Student Engagement Institute for Effective Educational Practice. In her role, she worked with institutions to better utilize their NSSE data to inform practice. Prior to that, she worked as a Coordinator of Student Development at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for three years. She received her Masters from Indiana University Bloomington and her Bachelors from the University of Redlands.
 
 
Mile Higher Ed is a production of the Higher Education Department at the Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver.

Trailer

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