Changing the Paradigm: A Conversation with Dr. Felicia Blow, APR

Each February, our country spends 28 days (sometimes 29!) celebrating the achievements by African Americans and honoring their role in U.S. History. When I thought of the intersection of Black History Month and communications, I immediately thought of Dr. Felicia Blow, APR.   Although I had never made her acquaintance prior to our Q&A, her pictures…

Read More about Changing the Paradigm: A Conversation with Dr. Felicia Blow, APR Elise McGlothianElise McGlothian

Are You Even Listening?

Who else feels like we’re all just yelling into a void these days? That even our most thoughtfully prepared, well-researched ideas and solutions to big problems only lead to arguments where both sides are more concerned with being right than reaching a mutual understanding? Just me? I didn’t think so.   This style of approaching community discourse and problem solving is especially troubling amid a…

Read More about Are You Even Listening? Kayla McMenaminKayla McMenamin

The Nontraditional Route: In Conversation with Astead Herndon 

  By Elise McGlothian—   Astead Herndon is a national political reporter for The New York Times. He was previously a Washington-based political reporter and a City Hall reporter for The Boston Globe.     As an undergraduate at the Marquette University in Wisconsin, Astead took a year off to work inside of a classroom through AmeriCorps. His experience eventually landed him…

Read More about The Nontraditional Route: In Conversation with Astead Herndon  Elise McGlothianElise McGlothian

Training Journalists on The Web – In Conversation with Kamara Daughtry

By Elise McGlothian—   Kamara Daughtry is the creator of the Young Professional Network, Digital Career Opportunities Worldwide (DCOW) on Facebook that boasts more than 5,000 members. Its paid options provide different levels of membership, which you can learn more about here.     The group is designed for journalists from all over the world to provide mentorship, opportunities, and career advice about…

Read More about Training Journalists on The Web – In Conversation with Kamara Daughtry Elise McGlothianElise McGlothian

Poetic Communication – In Conversation with Kandice Head

By Elise McGlothian—   In honor of Black History Month, The Goddess Speaks is highlighting the work of Black communicators. We begin this series with poet Kandice Head – whose first book explores her relationship with her late mother, civil injustices, and defining Black womanhood. This conversation has been edited for clarity.  Where did you get the inspiration…

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Pulling Back the Curtain – Tips for Communicating Study Findings

For the last decade, I’ve had a foot in two very different camps: scientific research and strategic communications. While my career got its start in the latter, the allure of health research and the potential to use evidence to improve systems pushed me to return to school for a Master of Public Health (MPH). While…

Read More about Pulling Back the Curtain – Tips for Communicating Study Findings Kayla McMenaminKayla McMenamin

An Impactful Journey: From Journalist to Mental Health Therapist —in Conversation with Cheryl Aguilar

  Cheryl Aguilar  is the founder and lead therapist of Hope Center for Wellness, a multicultural and bilingual mental health practice focused on holistic healing of individuals and communities. She works with youth, young adults, adults, and families, and she specializes in working with immigrants and refugees. Before embarking in social work, Cheryl worked in journalism,…

Read More about An Impactful Journey: From Journalist to Mental Health Therapist —in Conversation with Cheryl Aguilar Minerva StrategiesMinerva Strategies

Helpful Resources for Online Events

Sara Veltkamp, Minerva East—    How do we make our Zoom calls more engaging? What facilitation techniques work best in a virtual discussion? Are there ways we can make this online workshop better than the in–person version?    Like many of you, we’ve been asking questions like these—for our team and on behalf of our clients—since the pandemic began. While definitive answers are in short supply and we don’t yet have meaningful data insights, we’ve…

Read More about Helpful Resources for Online Events Sara VeltkampSara Veltkamp

Talking Equity—In Conversation with Bookda Gheisar 

  Bookda Gheisar is the senior director for the new Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at the Port of Seattle. She has been an executive director of many organizations, a volunteer for many more, and has dedicated her life to fighting for social justice. She’s been on the front lines defending Iranians against discrimination at our northern border and, in December, she spent time at our southern border in Mexico with a group of interfaith women of…

Read More about Talking Equity—In Conversation with Bookda Gheisar  Sara VeltkampSara Veltkamp