“More Than That” Podcast seeks to explore underrepresented voices on UMD campus
UMD Campus Climate Poster, courtesy of the University of Minnesota Duluth
A team of academics at UMD have recently started an ambitious new project in order to build bridges between life styles, cultures and other social divisions. The “More Than That” Podcast is the embodiment of that project.
The podcast is recorded in the KUMD studios on the UMD campus as a one on one interview between the host and a guest. That host is Dr. Paula Pedersen, the Director of Education for Inclusive Excellence at UMD. The guests range from recent graduates like Mike Kenyanya to university staff like Susana Pelayo Woodward and even Chancellor Lendley Black.
The podcast describes itself as “focused on the University of Minnesota Duluth’s campus community members. Through conversations with students, faculty, and staff, we go beyond titles and first impressions to reveal the complexity of their experiences around diversity and inclusion.”
David Cowardin, photo courtesy of David Cowardin
Podcast creator and videographer, David Cowardin thought of the podcast as part of his job at the University Marketing and Public Relations office.
“Part of my job is to tell stories that celebrate student and faculty activity,” Cowardin explained. “A lot of the time, I find myself wanting to share more of the story than I’m able to in a short video, and that’s where the idea of a podcast came from.”
The first real step in developing the project was finding a host. Dr. Paula Pedersen, the Director of Education for Inclusive Excellence, quickly became the obvious choice.
“Dr. Paula Pedersen was the perfect person to collaborate with as a host for the podcast,” Cowardin continued, “as her role within the chancellors unit is to lead the campus community toward inclusive excellence, and she has a background in radio.”
Dr. Paula Pedersen, along with hosting the episodes, proved a huge part of how guests were found and selected. Her position at UMD, along with her years of experience under other titles, provided a range of connections to future guests.
“The first eight guests were people that I had a personal relationship with that have been an active part of our campus climate work at UMD,” Pedersen explained. “It felt almost like a pilot of the idea to see how it would go and be received. We reached out to many others in addition to these eight (particularly students) - some I did not hear back from, others were interested but their schedule did not allow.”
Dr. Paula Pedersen, photo courtesy of the University of Minnesota Duluth
Pedersen hopes to expand the guest list for future episodes, especially if interest in the podcast grows.
“My hope is that we will be able to expand this list for future episodes,” Pedersen continued. “A few people have even reached out asking to be a guest on the podcast. That's a good sign I think!”
While the future of the project is still yet to be determined, Cowardin is confident that it’s pursuing an important cause.
“I think the podcast medium allows us to dive deeper into complex stories,” Cowardin continued. “When we hear the full story of someone’s experience, we gain a better perspective and understanding of the people around us.”
The podcast’s current run will consist of eight episodes, with five already released. The creation and content of future seasons will be determined by feedback to to this initial run. Episodes of the podcast can be found on the podcast’s homepage on d.umn.edu, along with other podcast hosting services like iTunes and Stitcher.