Podcast part of College of Liberal Arts outreach to students, faculty
By Sarah Stoolman, TLT communications intern The College of the Liberal Arts has a section on their Undergraduate Studies website designed to facilitate a conversation between students, faculty, and staff about education in the liberal arts at Penn State. “Liberal Arts Voices is a bi-weekly podcast produced by the Liberal Arts Undergraduate Studies office. In each podcast, we hope to bring on guests who can speak to the undergraduate experience in the College of the Liberal Arts,” stated Christopher Long, associate dean for undergraduate education for the College of the Liberal Arts.
Ruth Canagarajah being interviewed for a Liberal Arts Voices podcast. Photo courtesy of College of Liberal Arts
Dean Long discusses a range of topics and issues relevant to students in the liberal arts. “Podcast guests have talked about their internships or time studying abroad, their experiences as first year or transfer students, and their participation in a specific course like the Adventure Literature,” Dean Long said..
Liberal Arts Voices is recorded in the Media Commons in Sparks building, where students and faculty meet with Dean Long and LAUS. “The Media Commons provides the audio and recording equipment. The podcasts are recorded and edited in Garage Band on a laptop. The podcast is then uploaded to iTunesU. We have an excellent staff member, Jillian Balay, who adds a bit of music to the podcast and posts it on our Liberal Arts Undergraduate Studies blog,” stated Dean Long.
The Liberal Arts Voices podcast differs from the standard blog in that it can be accessed in a more convenient manner. “As a sound recording, a podcast offers us a more dynamic medium in which to talk about issues associated with the Liberal Arts undergraduate experience. It is also more accessible on mobile devices as students can listen to the podcast on their phones as they walk to school or take the bus between classes,” noted Dean Long.
These podcasts are useful in that they inform students of the wide diversity of opportunities available to students studying in the College of the Liberal Arts. For example, Liberal Arts Voices episode 24 which focused on undergraduate Ruth Canagarajah’s Paalam project, offered students a glance at Canagarajah's impressive philanthropic activities. Her project involved working with a scholarship initiative group called SJC87. Students in Sri Lanka, suffering from war-torn conditions, are asked to write plays about Sri Lankan politics. Canagarajah evaluates all of the plays that are sent to her and the best ones are selected and performed at Penn State. The profit made from these plays is sent back to Sri Lanka, so that these students can continue to advance their education by means of this project. Ruth won a Stand Up Award from the Rock Ethics Institute for the Paalam project .
Along with encouraging involvement of extra-curricular activities, the podcasts also serve to inform listeners about academic opportunities. A specific podcast that does this is Episode 22 on the Adventure Literature Series. Professor Burkholder and some of his students discuss their experiences with the Cape Cod, Chesapeake Bay, Beach, and Wilderness classes. Not only does the podcast convey the strong positive feelings students have for these classes, but it also reveals the students’ emotional ties to the program.
Also included in this series of podcasts are episodes that discuss the poetry of Robin Becker with the poet herself. Becker is a professor of English and womens’ studies and she joins LAUS to engage Dean Long and students about her featured poems. These episodes allow listeners to hear all of the different interpretations of these poems as the students and Becker perform a close reading of Becker’s selected works.
In order to listen to all of the Liberal Arts Voices podcasts at one’s convenience, one can subscribe to iTunesU and download them all. “Students and faculty will benefit from subscribing to Liberal Arts Voices on iTunesU because they will be able to hear directly from other students, faculty, and administrators about important issues, events, and opportunities in the College of the Liberal Arts and Penn State,” stated Dean Long.
The more University-wide audience Liberal Arts Voices attains, the more students will be eager to provide their own opinions and widen Penn State’s pool of contributors and respondents for topical issues.
Those listening to Liberal Arts Voices are encouraged to respond to each of the podcasts with their own opinion on whatever subject matter is discussed. Feedback will not only stimulate new thoughts, but will also provide LAUS with new material to create more of these podcasts. For those in the College, Liberal Arts Voices serves as an important form of communication regarding classes, internships, speakers, and other opportunities. The podcast is definitely beneficial for students looking to get involved, further their academics, and get the most out of their experience in the College of the Liberal Arts at Penn State.
