Podcasts about Georgia State University

Oral Sex, Frequency, Desire, and Other Topics Couples Negotiate in Marriage: An Interview with Dr. Michael Sytsma (Episode 300)   *Today's message is not intended for little ears. We'll be discussing some adult themes, and I want you to be aware before you listen to this message.*   Deuteronomy 30:19 + 20 “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 20and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”   *Transcription Below*   Dr. Michael Sytsma has been working with couples in a variety of capacities since 1987. He is a licensed professional counselor in the state of Georgia, a Certified Sex Therapist, and a Certified Professional Counseling Supervisor. He is also an ordained minister with The Wesleyan Church and has served as a staff pastor for churches with attendance from 30 to over 1,000. He is currently appointed to Building Intimate Marriages, Inc. by The Wesleyan Church, where he provides marriage and sex therapy and training to other professionals. Michael also cofounded Sexual Wholeness, Inc., a Christian non-profit dedicated to training, equipping, and certifying professionals in human sexuality.    After earning a Bachelor of Science in Christian Ministry from Indiana Wesleyan University, Michael went on to receive a master's degree in community counseling from Georgia State University and a diploma in Christian counseling from Psychological Studies Institute. He subsequently earned a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia in Child and Family Development/Marriage and Family Therapy, where he specialized in marital sexual therapy. His dissertation topic was “Sexual Desire Discrepancy in Married Couples.”    Building Intimate Marriages Secrets of Sex and Marriage   Thank You to Our Sponsor: WinShape Marriage   Questions and Topics We Cover: What habits do you see drawing married couples closer together and also what behaviors or mindsets are pulling them apart? What are the different types of desire discrepancy? Can you share what the Bible says about oral sex and also share research findings?    Previous Savvy Sauce Episodes with Dr Mike: Ten Common Questions About Sex Enjoying a God-honoring, Healthy Sex Life with Your Spouse Remaining Sexually Engaged Through The Years with Dr. Michael Sytsma  Sexual Desire Discrepancy in Marriage Secrets of Sex and Marriage   Connect with The Savvy Sauce on Facebook or Instagram or Our Website   Gospel Scripture: (all NIV) Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”   Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”   Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.”    Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”    Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”    Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”    John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”   Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”    Luke 15:10 says “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”   Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”   Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession- to the praise of his glory.”   Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”   Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“   Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“   Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”   *Transcription*   Music: (0:00 – 0:09)   Laura Dugger: (0:12 - 1:47) Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, where we have practical chats for intentional living. I'm your host, Laura Dugger, and I'm so glad you're here.   Today's message is not intended for little ears. We'll be discussing some adult themes, and I want you to be aware before you listen to this message.   I'm thrilled to introduce you to our sponsor, WinShape Marriage. Their weekend marriage retreats will strengthen your marriage while you enjoy the gorgeous setting, delicious food, and quality time with your spouse. To find out more, visit them online at winshapemarriage.org/savvy.   Today, I get to bring back our most repeated guest, Dr. Michael Sytsma. Our show notes are going to have links back to all of his previous episodes on The Savvy Sauce, and you're going to find out why he is invited back so frequently. Dr. Sytsma is a Christian sex therapist, an author, a counseling supervisor, and ordained minister. With a pastoral heart, a gift in teaching, and a passion for helping couples grow in marriage, Dr. Sytsma is the perfect guest for today to discuss these sensitive and sacred topics related to sexual intimacy in marriage. Here's our chat.   Welcome back to The Savvy Sauce, Dr. Mike.   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (1:47 - 1:52) Thank you so much. It's such an honor. It's always a joy to be with you and to talk through this.   Laura Dugger: (1:52 - 2:19) Well, I'm always looking forward to these conversations. And I just want to begin with a broad overview where we can discuss both relationship builders and some of the sneaky relationship retractors. So, what habits do you see drawing married couples closer together? And then also, what are the behaviors and mindsets that are pulling them apart?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (2:21 - 5:57) So, when I sit with couples, obviously the bulk of the couples that I work with are those that are struggling or wanting things to be better. So that may be a bit of a skewed. The couples that come into workshops even are often aware that something's not quite how they want it to be. And so, watching to see what makes a difference, exactly what you're asking. And one of the biggest things I see is just the intentionality of couples that are doing well. I think many times our culture tends to say that if you've picked the right person, if everything is going well, it'll be easy and everything will just flow well. And I find that amusing because it doesn't work in any other area of life. In our finances, we have to be disciplined with them. In parenting, we have to be disciplined with it. In our own health and exercise and what we eat. If we just ate whatever we wanted, I don't think things would be good. If we waited to feel to eat healthy, I don't think we would eat healthy.   And yet couples almost have this idea that you need to desire, you need to feel the urges to do what's healthy in the marriage. And those that wait for it and wait for their spouse to do it, they tend to get irritated and disillusioned and start to see each other negatively and pull apart versus those that sit down and develop a vision. Here's who we want to be as a couple. Here's who I want to be as a husband. Here's who I want to be as a wife. And we begin to lock ourselves into who we're becoming and who we're becoming as a couple and then live intentionally towards that. I see those couples do so much better.   Part of it is, you know, if you say to your husband, here's who I want to be as a wife. And he believes that. He believes that's your heart. Then the day that you get up, and I'm sure this never happens to you, but the day you get up and you're just not in a good mood, you know, the kids kept you awake at night or you didn't eat something that was good for you. You wake up and you're not in a mood. He can extend a ton of grace because he knows you're not satisfied with yourself. He knows that you're not going to like who you are right now and you're not going to tolerate that very long. So, he doesn't have to step in and try to control you, to manipulate you, to make you to be who he wants you to be. He can step back and extend grace knowing that you're probably going to come to him later that day or tomorrow and go, sorry, I wasn't in a good mood yesterday. It was probably tough to live with. And he knows you will reset and the same for him.   If he has a rough day and he doesn't treat you with the cherishing care that you know he wants to be, then you kind of step back and we'll give him a little bit of space. He'll figure it out. And he does. And he resets and he comes back and you make intentional steps towards that vision that you guys have co-created. Those couples tend to do really well. And I see those steps being a little different for different couples because their vision might be slightly different. But the consistent patterns and habits that I see are establishing that vision, locking into it and trusting that you'll do your work and I'm going to do mine. And we're intentional in moving forward with it.   Laura Dugger: (5:58 - 6:20) Okay. So, I'm kind of hearing start with the end in mind, get on the same page with the conversation of what our vision is. And then intentionally, it sounds like pre-deciding before you're waiting for these feelings to come up to even pre-decide practical things of how often do we want to come together? What do we want that to look like? So, am I hearing that right?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (6:20 - 9:28) Yep, very much so. And obviously there's a lot that's wrapped in it. Couples have to be able to communicate effectively, you know, hear and be heard to be able to sit down and sort through who do I want to be? Because usually a few years into marriage, we're starting to ascribe motivation and desire to our spouse that's not fully accurate. And we begin to define them different than they see themselves to be able to hear that, to be able to figure out who do I want to be? How do I work with the personality that I have? Mike works in idiosyncrasies and who's the best person that I can become? And then to be able to share that with each other.   So many couples don't sit down and really talk through. As you know, sex therapy is my primary research and interest area. And so, working a lot with couples that most of the couples I work with have never shared their vision for what they want their sex life to look like. They might've argued about frequency or certain behaviors, but they've never really shared vision. And most when I challenged them to don't have a clue of themselves really how to articulate what they want. So once that vision has been discussed and talked about, then yes, they can start to sort through, well, how do we get there? And can we give ourselves permission for some time?   I told a couple of you yesterday, guys, this is going to take decades to get to where you want to be. And you get to see his face. I said, this doesn't mean that we wait decades till we get there, but you've created a really beautiful vision and nobody can do that overnight. You're going to have to regularly work at it. And you're right. That intentionality of what are we going to do?   I tell couples my recipe is 15 minutes of connect time every day where you're leaning into each other. How are you doing? Really? What's going on? And then a one hour a week, a business meeting, I call it a working date where we sit down, we do the business of marriage. Just being intentional in how do we do this? Well, at least every other week to do a fun date where we are just going and playing together. We're not trying to work on anything. We're not talking about anything difficult. We're playing together. And then once a year, some kind of a continuing ed for their marriage, whether that be some marriage therapy, a retreat, a workshop, going through a sermon series and talking about it, reading a book together, something that gets them to really focus back on how are we doing and how do we make this better? Those are all intentional things that have to be done on a regular basis. Couples who make those, like you say, early decisions and then work to consistently follow through on them. Not perfectly, but consistently following through.   Laura Dugger: (9:30 - 10:08) I love that because the fruit of it is so enjoyable then to be married to one another if you've got this intentional relationship rather than the other option is for it to really overflow into all areas of life and be difficult. But you're clearly a world-leading Christian sex therapist, so I'm very eager to hear your insight on this as well. What would you say is the current trend for trouble areas with sex and intimacy that you're seeing with your clients or people that you meet through traveling the world to speak?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (10:11 - 12:58) Obviously, some of the standards that have been a part of human culture, especially my area of interest, is desire discrepancy. Whether that be husbands and wives who desire different frequencies, who desire different practices, who desire a different tone. I want wild and crazy and you want soft and nurturing. The differing desires are a primary area of conflict for couples. Because if you're not doing what I want, my natural instinct is to lean in and start to make you be that way. And humans don't tend to do well with pressure, so it tends to shut things down and then it spins out. So that's always an ongoing one, but that's also being my primary area of research and focus, one that I see a lot just in looking.   But one that the research seems to be showing that is a bit disturbing, and we've got theories behind what's going on, but we're seeing a decrease in sexual frequency amongst couples, a decrease in couples connecting. Whether that be connecting centrally, nurturing kind of touch, you know, the tender hugs and kisses, caresses, the snuggling together at night, or the more intimate sexual encounters where couples are having intercourse or they're engaging for sexual pleasure, we're seeing a drop in those. We saw it drop. COVID was not friendly to many aspects of marriage, and we saw a lot of it drop towards the end of that. And in many respects, it hasn't recovered, according to some of the research. So that would be an area of concern, because if couples are not connecting, many times they're acting out on their own, because it's easy, I don't have to negotiate you, there's plenty of options and ways to go about doing that. And the experiences, the chemicals that are released when we connect with each other, the associating you with pleasure, all of those things decrease, and they're critical in marriage. So that would be an area that we're kind of keeping an eye on. Is that going to bounce back? What is really going on? Is it a temporary thing, or is it just a glitch in the numbers? And it doesn't seem to be, seems to be what's happening.   Laura Dugger: (13:00 - 13:19) Wow, that is kind of alarming. And since COVID, that is so interesting. You said you have a few theories, and I know you're very scientifically based, so it's too early to report the research findings. But what are your opinions or thoughts on the reasons for that?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (13:21 - 18:05) I think in working with couples, there's a couple of things that I see play out. One is we are in an age of information overload and anxiety overload. We hear so much that is disturbing, and we don't feel like we have any agency in creating change for it. So, the internal stress level just goes up, you know, wars and economy, and things that we dislike that we're out of control with. And we see a general level of stress and anxiety go up for us right now. You know, there's some insecurity in terms of what is the economy really going to do. And all of that, I believe, has an impact on our sexual behavior.   I think, in part, we're wired for that. We think through human history. However long you happen to believe humans have been around, it's a while. For most of that time, we couldn't manage our fertility. So, if a couple engaged in sex, she was going to get pregnant. Well, if I don't have the emotional energy, the bandwidth, the resources to produce a child and to raise them, it makes sense to me that we are wired to not have desire to engage sexually with somebody. We see that especially for women. If stress level goes up, they're not interested. And I think that makes sense. I think it's a wiring in. Why would you want to reproduce if you're living in a stress-filled environment? We need to raise these kids up enough that I have the bandwidth to do another one or we need to have the food resources or whatever is needed. And our brains don't always think through the details of my refrigerator's full. We're fine. It just experiences the stress of what we're in.   Guys are the same way. You tend to have to push guys to a much higher level of stress before it affects their sexual desire. But I watch it almost every day in my office. Guys come in that have lost interest in sex. I look at their lives. I'm like, you're stressed to the max. You're working 60, 70 hours a week. You're not sleeping. You're eating like crap. You're not exercising. Of course you don't have interest. So, living in a culture that has that high level of anxiety and out of control, I think is part of what's going on there. We don't give time to just sit back and relax and realize that we are a blessed people living in a blessed time. We have a lot of resources. We could do this.   I think the other side of it is the impact of, we'll just call it social media, the impact of all of the information we're able to get. And it's curated information. And we only put online the things that we're proud of. So, we put online all of these great images. We look at everybody else's life. And sometimes in the research, we'll talk about monitoring the alternatives. I'm looking at my spouse and I'm looking at them and I'm going, wait, I like what they're doing better than what you're doing. And it creates an overall dissatisfaction that we start to try to make our spouse to be different. And they don't respond well to that. They get defensive and they push back on trying to make us different. And now we've got a power struggle going on and sex doesn't do well in those kinds of settings. Sex doesn't respond well to pressure. Hearts don't respond well to pressure. So, we start to pull away. Then we experience pleasure with you less. And I experience pain and frustration with you more. And when I look over here, it increases that because they're saying this is what it's like for them. That's not what it's like for me. I want that. And I don't know that I can have that with you. So, I want to have sex with you. And it's easier to negotiate pornography. It's easier to negotiate my fantasy stories. It's easier to negotiate something individually than it is to try to negotiate you. And so, the opportunity to experience profound pleasure with our spouse goes down and the frustration goes up and the cycle just continues to spin up. So those would be, they're interrelated, but a couple of ideas that I would have at this point.   Laura Dugger: (18:06 - 20:42) And now a brief message from our sponsor. Friends, I'm excited to share with you today's sponsor, WinShape Marriage. Do you feel like you need a weekend away with your spouse and a chance to grow in your relationship together at the same time? WinShape Marriage is a fantastic ministry that provides weekend marriage retreats to help couples grow closer together in every season and stage of life. From premarital to parenting to the empty nest phase, there is an opportunity for you. WinShape Marriage is grounded on the belief that the strongest marriages are the ones that are nurtured, even when it seems things are going smoothly, so that they're stronger if they do hit a bump along their marital journey.   These weekend retreats are hosted within the beautiful refuge of WinShape Retreat, perched in the mountains of Rome, Georgia, which is a short drive from Atlanta, Birmingham, and Chattanooga. While you're there, you will be well-fed, well-nurtured, and well-cared for. During your time away in this beautiful place, you and your spouse will learn from expert speakers and explore topics related to intimacy, overcoming challenges, improving communication, and more. I've stayed on site at WinShape before, and I can attest to their generosity, food, and content. You will be so grateful you went.   To find an experience that's right for you and your spouse, head to their website, winshapemarriage.org/savvy. That's W-I-N-S-H-A-P-E marriage.org slash savvy, S-A-V-V-Y. Thanks for your sponsorship.   That's so insightful. I have a lot of follow-up questions, so I'll try to organize them because I'm thinking of three categories. First, about just pleasing yourself and not working with your spouse and negotiating. Then also desire discrepancy going further into that and social media. Let's start with the first one. When you see the numbers go down of how often couples engage sexually in marriage, you're seeing those numbers go down. Would you say that automatically means that they are just seeking this out themselves with pornography or doing things in secrecy? Would you like to clarify that?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (20:42 - 23:50) Not necessarily. It is worth asking the question, but I think one of the myths our society has, especially in the church and culture, is that sex is a need. If you're not fulfilling it with me because it's a need, you're getting it someplace. For some people, sex is a strong drive. It's a strong urge. I think it's designed in us that way to draw us to our spouse, to draw us to connecting, but it is not a need. Nobody dies from lack of it. I could line up a whole string of clients that practice sexual fidelity, sexual integrity, and they're not at a place that they can express their sexuality in a way that they believe is honoring, so they don't. Nobody dies. Nobody does poorly, even. Many times, they thrive. The belief that if you're not getting it with me, you're getting it someplace, that may be true, but that's not a foregone assumption.   For some, though, it is. It is something that I want, something that I desire. It meets a lot of my desires. I think sex meets a lot of our needs, a need of acceptance. I do believe that's a need. I think we have a need to be desired, to be pursued. I think those are God-reflective needs in us. God desires those things. I think it's fair to say that those are needs, and we often get those needs met through sex. Even in an altered, hollow way, masturbatory sex can give something towards those needs. It's worth asking, as somebody pursuing that individually. A couple last week, they sat down for the first time and started to talk about that with each other. What do you do? We're only engaging this frequency. What do you do outside of that? They were both surprised at what each other does, and able to step back and say, I'm challenging them to do vision work. What do we want? For one of them, they said, “I don't want this part of my life. I want it to be only you, but that doesn't always work well. What do we need to do so it can be?” The other is not so sure that they want to give up some of what they're enjoying in their individual time. How do we wrap that in? It's interesting to watch them work through the vision and try to figure out who do they want to be as couples. But to go back to your question, no, it's not a foregone that they're going to be acting out. But it's worth asking, and worth asking, is that what you want? Or are you taking that as a second best because you don't see an opportunity to pursue what's really good? If that's true, can we maybe figure out how for both of us to get what we truly desire?   Laura Dugger: (23:51 - 24:19) That's so wise. Then to elaborate also on desire discrepancy, you've shared this is your primary research area. Can you expand a little bit on, I won't hit all of these, but you had talked about it being a desire discrepancy with frequency, with the type of activity, and I feel like there was one other topic. In practices. Can you share more about each of those?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (24:20 - 27:48) Yeah, the primary conflict that comes into my office is often illustrated by frequency. Generally, in most couples, the husband, the male, has a desire for a higher frequency. The female has, her frequency desire tends to be lower. In Secrets of Sex and Marriage, we have all the numbers that play that out. What's interesting is when we test them, they're not as far apart as they believe they are. Actually, in our survey, 22% of couples were wanting the exact same amount. Only 14% or 15% believe that they wanted the same amount, which is a pretty significant difference. Couples are closer together than they think they are. And most of those couples, even when they were different, were only one mark different. She said that she would like to have sex one to two times a week, and he said he would like to have sex two to three times a week. That's one mark different. Most couples were not that different, even when there was one.   Usually what is being expressed there is, I don't know that you desire me as much as I desire you. I desire you in a way that's physically connecting, and you don't seem to. What does that mean about me? What does that mean about am I a desirable person? Would you prefer to have somebody else other than me? Often, underneath that is the fears of, do you choose me? Do you want me? Do you like playing with me? I want a playmate. I want somebody who we can just relax and be together. I want somebody who holds me and nurtures and comforts me, and you don't seem to want to do that. What does that mean about me? The fight about the frequency, but really what's underneath it is a lot of fears.   That comes into the types as well. I want sex that is wild and crazy and spontaneous. I want to be able to walk into the room and you lose your mind. That never happens anymore. I want sex that follows us having long talks where you've cared for my heart and you've nurtured me. We've gone slow and you've really just cherished me. You just want something wild and crazy and to lose your mind. How do we bring those two together? Or practices. I enjoy bringing toys in and playing. You don't like that. You like the one kind that helps you to feel connected. I want to play more. The research on oral sex that we just finished comes into that and how they desire differently around even those practices. So, all of that comes into the office. I'm sure you're hearing at one level it is we're arguing about what I want versus you want. At another level, it's what does that mean? What does it mean to my heart and how do I interpret that you don't want to do this? That comes into play pretty heavily and it's worth couples trying to unpack and figure it out.   Laura Dugger: (27:48 - 28:01) And would you say that to unpack and figure it out is that most beneficial at a neutral time or what kind of conversation starters would be helpful for them?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (28:04 - 29:54) Not to advertise, but Secrets of Sex and Marriage was designed, we wrote it, and my heart desire in it was to have a book that couples could sit down and read out loud to each that would start these conversations. So, if they read through a session or a section that talks about one type of sexual behavior to pause and go, I think this author is stupid. Nobody wants that. And to start the conversation about what do each of them like and what do they want as a couple. I think it often takes something outside of them to help get the conversation started. And we always tell couples don't have these conversations around sex. Don't have it in the bed. Have it at the coffee table the next day. Have it in structured working dates. Have it in times that we're going to talk about this. So, we're doing our best to be our best while we're talking about it. Keep those conversations time limited or you run out of energy. Step at it, work on it a bit, then step back, get a break, rethink. So, all of the stuff that we know how to do with difficult conversations in business, we bring those skills in because heart issues are involved and we're not always aware of the heart issues. If I start to get defensive, we need to step away from it because curiosity is the only thing that's going to work here. So yes, structuring it. Most couples struggle to do that on their own. They struggle to do that on finances and parenting, how to manage your mom, let alone something as intimate as sex. So many times they will need a coach or a therapist or somebody just to hold the space for them so they can have that conversation.   Laura Dugger: (29:55 - 30:08) That's brilliant advice. And I like that kind of step care mentality of getting the book and trying that first. It still is a neutral third party and I think that's a great place to begin.   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (30:09 - 30:26) I love when couples come in and say, well, we read this section and he said, well, that's just stupid. And I look at him like, what do you mean that's stupid? I think that way. And as long as they can stay curious and not critical, those conversations go really well.   Laura Dugger: (30:28 - 30:48) That's good. Staying curious. Okay. So, then you also mentioned social media. So can you speak more to this demand that people are having to, I guess the way that you've worded it in the past is the demand for fantasy that people see in social media and pornography.   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (30:50 - 34:18) Maybe a stupid example. My wife and I are looking at redoing our master bathroom closet. It's been a lot of years. The first person we had come in and take a look at it went, yeah, this has been here a while. Okay. So yeah, maybe it needs to be redone. And so, what do you do? You start jumping online and looking, well, what are people doing today? What do bathrooms look like? And you start looking at them going, wow, I want that. Well, I can't fit that space into my space. So, do I need different space? And all of a sudden, all of these desires that I have and what I fantasize about living in, what if it's not even possible where I'm at? What do I do with the tension in it? Can I look at what I've got and really appreciate it and work on making it maybe better, but not need to swap it out for something else or not stay in a state of discontent with what I got, even after it's been upgraded and redone.   A stupid little example, I think of what goes on in relationship as we watch a couple and their gorgeous pictures of their vacation or their family pictures of, it looks like this big family with all the grands and they're having so much fun together. And every time my kids get together, we have knockdown drag outs, or two of my kids won't even show up, or the grands act out every time that they're around. And my family isn't the ideal family. My spouse isn't the ideal spouse. Here's a picture of him with his arms wrapped around looking so nurturing. And I don't know that my husband ever does that to me. He's always irritated with me. And we go to, I desire to be pursued. I desire to be chosen. I desire to be nurtured. And I see that in all of these images out there, and I'm not experiencing it. And I increase the fantasy of what I could have, what I desire to have. And I look at you and I think, it's not even possible to have that with you. You're not that kind of person. I'm not sure I picked right. And we're creating something that is really destructive in the process.   When we go back a few hundred years ago, and your spouse was chosen for you, or your spouse was one of only a handful of people that were even options. I got the best of those. This is pretty good. And we're working to make it good. And no, it's not perfect. Nobody expected it to be perfect. I love the song in Fiddler on the Roof, Do You Love Me? My father told us that I'd be lucky if in time, we would fall in love with each other, because they didn't marry for love. And then realizing that over the years, they had developed a rich kind of love. That's a very different experience than we have today, where we want the fantasy right up front. And we never want to step out of the fantasy, because it looks like it's all around us. And I don't know that's necessarily good for us, because the real takes work. I don't want to work. I want you to be who I want you to be without me working.   Laura Dugger: (34:20 - 34:39) That's so interesting. And that, I guess, pairing social media and phones, which are relatively recent changes, and then COVID, and there's so much curiosity around why have things changed so much sexually for married couples since COVID? But all of these consequent...   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (34:39 - 35:33) We think in part, it was pushing couples together, because we saw a spike in activity when we first shut things down. I'm blocking on the word that we use for it. But when we first shut things down and lock people up together, we saw an initial spike, and then we saw a drop. And it's that sense of, okay, now you're wearing on me, and I don't know that I want to do this with you. I think some of it was pushing people into the online world. I talk about social media, but it covers all of that online consuming that we do, and the dissatisfaction growing in. So, when you push people together, there's plenty of that talk about that. It doesn't always do real well, unless they're intentional and work at it.   Laura Dugger: (35:34 - 37:26) Okay, that is interesting. As you say, social media, maybe putting it even with phones, even just the amount of time that people you're giving so much attention to your screen, rather than one another. And it does seem like that was from COVID.   By now, I hope you've checked out our updated website, thesavvysauce.com, so that you can have access to all the additional freebies we are offering, including all of our previous articles, and all of our previous episodes, which now include transcriptions. You will be equipped to have your own practical chats for intentional living. When you read all the recommended questions in the articles, or gain insight from expert guests and past episodes as you read through the transcriptions, because many people have shared with us that they want to take notes on previous episodes, or maybe their spouse prefers to read our conversations rather than listen to them or watch them now that we're offering video rather than just audio. So, we heard all of that. And we now have provided transcripts for all our episodes. Just visit thesavvysauce.com. All of this is conveniently located under the tab show notes on our website. Happy reading.   So, this is kind of a big question, but whether it's thinking of wisdom for married couples, or even the way that they train their children so that they can avoid some of these pitfalls later on when they're adults. So, I'm thinking of the engagement and connection in real life face-to-face versus screens. Do you have any other wisdom that may actually impact them sexually someday?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (37:27 - 40:25) There are some foods that we don't eat because they're poisonous to us. There are some things we don't take into our brains because they're toxic to us. Yeah, we do. We learn to stay totally away from those. But yeah, I was thinking more the experiences that I have of even a spouse saying, “you can't have access to anything because I'm so angry at you.” I don't know if that's helpful.   Laura Dugger: (40:26 - 40:56) I see what you're saying. Appreciate the heart behind that, not controlling them and also taking the responsibility of self-discipline. So, there's another topic that many married couples may want to know more about, but they don't know where a safe place is to go and ask. So, this is the topic of oral sex. And so, Dr. Mike, can you share first what the Bible has to say about oral sex, but also share with us some of the research findings?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (40:57 - 52:46) Okay. So, we've got three more hours, right? So, if we tried to collapse it down a little bit, this comes a bit out of just working with it for so many years. We do the couples' workshops. We always do an Ask Dr. Mike. And so, through the entire workshop, today's technology, we used to use three by five cards, but today's technology, they can anonymously send a message in to me. And we take an hour of workshop and just go through those and answer them. And I am always going to get several on the subject. So, it's just been something that we know couples want to know about. Because it is a desire discrepancy, it is of interest to me. And so, we rolled questions about it into our last survey, the Marital Intimacy Project, where we surveyed 501 married couples, and a nationally representative sample. So, these weren't Christian couples, they weren't non-Christian couples, they weren't. The sample represents the 2018 U.S. Census data for the United States. So, in racial mix, racial ethnic mix, and religious mix and age, where they're at in the country. So, this is what these married couples are telling us about. So that's the background that some of this embeds in.   And your first question is, what does scripture say about it? Well, that depends on who you ask. You know, if we go back through most of church history, the purpose for sex was procreation. And anything that wasn't procreative act was considered outside of the boundary of God, because sex was about procreation. And many even teaching that once you got to the age that you weren't trying to have kids any longer, you should stop having sex, because the purpose for sex is procreation. And if you're doing it for pleasure, you're risking sin. If you're doing it for connection, you're risking sin. Well, if sex is about procreation, first, foremost, and sometimes only, oral sex is not acceptable, because it's not a potentially procreative act. That's the language that's often used in some of the church history teaching, that it needs to have the potential for procreation. And if it doesn't, then it's sin, it's outside of God's boundary. So, for hundreds of years, we have teaching that says that oral sex is totally unacceptable because it's not procreative.   If you take a perspective that sex is about connection, or sex is about play, sex is about intimacy, and sex is about pleasure, then all of that is re-evaluated. So, we have those theologians that look at Song of Solomon, where he talks about tasting of her garden. Nobody questions what her garden is in the story, the imagery that's used there. But there are those, or the flip side of that, she talks about drinking of his spring. And many theologians would look at that and say, no, no, no, that's not about oral sex. God would never talk about oral sex because that's unacceptable. It's not a procreative act. He is using imagery there to talk about the intensity of the love and the desire. This is strictly a spiritual story. And then others come in and say, yeah, no, I think it's about the physical. God would talk about that because couples do this, and it's playful, and it's fun, and it's good, and it allows them to connect. And the pleasure is not a bad thing. And when he's talking of tasting of her garden, when she's talking of drinking of his spring, they're talking about oral sex and scripture. And God talks about drink deeply, enjoy. And so, the other side of the argument says, for couples that enjoy this, there's nothing wrong in it.   Now, I think we can make a larger argument. Scripture talks about consent. Scripture talks about honoring one another. Scripture talks about desiring for one another. So anytime we step in and we start using demands, that is not scriptural. You know, Christ was profoundly invitational. He was profoundly inviting in who he was. The language I use for it sometimes shocks people. I say Christ was profoundly seductive. He had the ability to woo, to draw, that he can step up to somebody whose generational career is fishing. This is what their family is about. And he walks up and he says, “Hey, come follow me.” And they drop their nets and leave. I mean, who has the ability to do that? And it wasn't a command, you need to do this, or you're going to burn in hell. No, it was a wooing invitation. He had profound ways to look at somebody and point out their sin. Yeah, I know you've been married to what was it, four men already, and the one that you're living with is not, you're not married to him. He calls out her sin in such a way that she leans into the story. You know, how seductive, how invitational. I want to be a fly on the wall of that well, to experience what it was like to listen to him talk. And how did he draw people so well? That's who we want to be in marriage. We want to be the seductive, the person who draws, not the person who commands. So, if we take any of these principles and we start to demand of our spouse, I think that's not scriptural. So, when you ask, what does scripture say? I think it talks about honoring one another, nurturing one another, inviting, if that's something that's pleasing to you.   So, the question was, well, what do couples do? What do they want? And so, we asked all of these couples to, how often do you perform on your spouse? And what would you like? Do you enjoy it? Do you enjoy performing on your spouse? Do you enjoy having it performed on you? And it was really fascinating. You know, there's a lot of numbers that come into it. But the first thing that we learned is this tends to be couple scoring. If one does, the other one likely does. If we move into desire, that's more individual scoring. But if we move into practice, it tends to be couples. So, the couples where both of them said we never do, couples where both of them said we often do or occasionally do, and couples who said we regularly do or always do, those were clubs. The ones where he said, well, I always do. And she says, “I never do.” Those were rare, which was interesting. And then when we had it broken down into a lot of categories, but when we clumped them all together into the never, rarely, occasionally, sometimes, and often, always, we get almost third, third, and third. And so, couples have said in my office, but everybody does it. Actually, no, they don't. The largest group when we had it all broken down were couples that never do. That was the largest group. And the couples that always do was half of the never do. But if we get the larger categories, it's almost a third, third, and third, which says to me, it's perfectly okay, whatever the couple decides. Let's let them decide their comfort, what they enjoy with it, what it means to them. And that's more important than the behavior of it.   Then when we do get into, and I'm looking over here at my numbers, so I get them kind of right. We did not see a huge difference in age. I expected there to be a difference in practice with age. We didn't see a huge difference. And there was no difference in marital satisfaction or in sexual satisfaction between the couples that did and didn't. The only times we saw a difference was when they were what we would call asymmetrical. And those few couples where she said, “I always do”, and he says, “I never do.” Or the other way around. We got asymmetrical, we saw a decrease in marital and sexual satisfaction. But there was no difference in the couples that say we never do and the couples that say we always do. So, it didn't have an impact on sexual satisfaction. It had a bit of an impact on her orgasmic frequency, which that kind of makes sense. But the biggest difference was in desires and how, whether you like to or not.   So, we asked husbands, do you like to have it performed on you? And we asked wives, does he like when you perform on him? And wives have us figured out. The answer is almost identical to us. When we asked husbands, “does your wife enjoy doing this?” And we asked wives, “do you enjoy performing on him?” Husbands really overestimate how much she enjoys this, which was fascinating. Not a surprise, but fascinating. And there was a big difference between what the husband enjoys and performing on him and what the wife enjoys and performing on him. That was a massive difference. And then in the middle of that is performing on her. And they weren't near as far apart there. But once again, husbands overestimated her enjoyment. Wives underestimated his enjoyment, which was interesting. But there wasn't a huge difference. So, if we take the wife enjoying performing on him, husbands enjoying being performed on, those are quite a bit different. And right in the middle was wives saying that they enjoy it and husbands saying they enjoy performing on her. So that was interesting in looking at what they do and don't like.   Now, I haven't broken it down into some of the categories of couples. Yeah, I did look at it in terms of desire types. And there was some big differences there, which we would expect that an initiating type of a desire is going to want more versus a receptive or resistant, a little less. But I haven't broken down some of it even more detailed. Those initial numbers have been fascinating to see. And I think the takeaway is what we started with. What's your vision? What do you want and why? What does it mean to you? Let's decide what you want in your marriage. And then let's take steps to make it healthy and to be good and to move toward it. And it doesn't have to be tomorrow. We can slowly grow to that.   Laura Dugger: (52:47 - 53:09) That is so interesting. And I'm sure that's so helpful when a majority of people are submitting those kind of questions. Now you have some normative responses. And you also mentioned something in there about the different types of initiation or desire, and one is resistant. So, can you go into all three of those and define that?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (53:10 - 58:20) Yeah. We have the cultural message that desire is being harmed. And it is. That we feel we wake up and I'm interested in sex or you walk by and I'm interested in sex. I want to have sex. We think of it as spontaneous. It's not actually spontaneous, but we think of it as spontaneous. That's an initiating type of desire where we're aware of the desire before arousal. We pursue the sex for arousal is the experience of it. The second, and for that I've shifted to in the book, we talk about a car and being driving neutral and parking, but I've shifted to talking about in terms of boats, you know, that initiating desire is a speedboat, sometimes a really big engine, sometimes not so big of an engine, but it's powered, it's moving forward. Receptive desire requires arousal before the desire shows up. So, it takes an intentional step to move forward. Yeah, we can do that. And I'm enjoying doing this. Oh, my body's enjoying this too. This is good. And then the desire clicks on. So, desire sometimes may not show up till five to 10 minutes into the sex act. Now I want this, please don't stop, you know, please do it this way. Now the desire is there. That's the receptive desire. And I talk about that as kind of like a sailboat. You know, it's not powered by an engine. It needs an external force to kind of get it moving forward. But I also have to have the sails up. And what does it take for me to have the sails up on my sailboat? And what seduces me, what draws me, what helps me to move towards that desire?   And then resistant is the motor's pulled up out of the water, the sails are tied down, and there's two anchors that are, you know, doesn't matter what you do, I'm not moving. I'm not going to allow anything to move me. Or those anchors are there for a good reason, because of trauma, because of wounds, maybe that you have done. Maybe the relationship is not safe. If I get naked, I'm going to be criticized. I don't care to get naked, whether that be emotionally or physically. So, most of the time when I'm working with somebody who's resistant, the resistance is there for a good reason. And we have to figure out what's going on and how do we get rid of the anchors? Or how do we get this engine started again? And it may be physical, it may be emotional, may be relational, may be spiritual. But the resistance is going to be something has got us locked down in our sexuality, or locked down towards you. I'm still interested in sex, just not with you. And so, we have to kind of unpack that.   I do think that generally requires a third party, a therapist who's skilled in this who can work with it. My concern is even most therapists are defining receptive desires, low desire. And so, if somebody comes in and says, well, I have low desire, and they even if they realize they have receptive desire, all of the interventions are designed to increase initiating desire, rather than help somebody to nurture their type of desire, to nurture the receptive type of desire, or to figure out there's a reason you're resistant. Can we step back and create the space for you to drop the guards to figure out why you're resistant? Because he may be resistant and not even know why. He just, I'm not going to go there. And we have to create the space for him to even sit in it and start to figure it out. Or she may be, same thing for her, she may be resistant, and she might have an idea why, but we haven't unpacked it enough to really figure out what's going on. She just feels like she's broken and is being criticized by her husband. So, to step back and figure out which of those three is really going on, and how do we work with it?   So those types, within those, there are different levels, you know, we'll have an initiating desire that has a really big engine. They want sex all the time. Or an initiating desire that has a smaller engine. They don't want it all that often, but when they do, they're going to pursue it. A receptive desire that has really big sales doesn't take an awful lot to get them moving forward, but it doesn't come from within. And those that, you know, it takes a lot of work to get this thing moving forward. Is there a way we can increase the sales a little bit, so it doesn't take quite so much work internally and to the spouse? So, we're looking at types, we're looking at levels. It gets really complex, which is part of the fun of it, but part of what makes it tough for couples, and they default to the, you're broken, you don't want me, you don't like me. They default to simple answers that don't work. Mm.   Laura Dugger: (58:21 - 58:37) Okay. So, it sounds like you're saying the goal isn't to get everybody to have the engine, which is maybe where some therapists could direct them in the wrong way, but to grow in the freedom and releasing and get closer to the vision.   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (58:38 - 59:38) I was teaching this to some therapists and one of them came up on break and she says, “okay, I hear all of this, but you've got to be honest that truly the healthy person, when they've done good work, is going to have initiating desire.” If you walk into the therapy office with that, the receptive desire person, you're always internally thinking you're broken, you're immature, you're something, you're not okay. That's wrong. No receptive desire is a legitimate type. We're not trying to get the receptive person to be initiating. That's probably, I suspect that's not how they're wired. So, asking them to be that different, and they'll say, but there was a time that they were, well, yes, but that was a unique season of life where biology was very different. Now they're kind of, they're normative, so.   Laura Dugger: (59:39 - 1:01:06) That's so great. And that's what I always appreciate. Dr. Mike, you always offer hope for everyone, even the one who's locked down with the anchors. It's a, how can we start to lift those anchors? There's hope that there is change and restoration possible. And I've just loved this conversation. Deuteronomy 30 keeps coming to mind. There are two verses because I feel like you've laid out wisdom for intentionality or the negatives and hazardous results that can come from overindulging, prioritizing, connecting with our phone rather than our spouse. And so, I just want to read these two verses from Deuteronomy 30, it's verses 19 and 20. It says, "This day, I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord, your God, listen to his voice and hold fast to him for the Lord is your life. And he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." So, it's just been such a delight to have this conversation. And I know we could talk all day, but you still have a full day of work to also get back to. So where can we go after this chat to learn more from you?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (1:01:07 - 1:01:38) My primary website is intimatemarriage.org. And there are links through that to even get to like my link page that has some of the professional articles. We're putting together some little teaching videos that grab some of this. All of that can be located through intimatemarriage.org. And of course, secretsofsexandmarriage.com is the book website too. There are a lot of resources there.   Laura Dugger: (1:01:39 - 1:01:59) I highly recommend both of those. So, we'll add the links in the show notes for today's episode. And you're familiar as our most repeated guest that we are called The Savvy Sauce because savvy is synonymous with practical knowledge. And so, my final question for you today, Dr. Mike, what is your savvy sauce?   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (1:01:59 - 1:02:37) I think it would flow from what you were just reading there in Deuteronomy. What does it take to choose life versus choose death? I can choose death by being passive, by waiting for something to happen. If I'm going to choose life, I'm working on it. So, it goes to what we started with, a vision-based intentionality. Is the savvy sauce, who do I want to be? Who do we want to be? And how do I be intentional and consistently and regularly moving toward that? Not perfect in it, but I know what I'm striving toward and I'm being intentional and taking steps that direction.   Laura Dugger: (1:02:38 - 1:03:07) So good. And Dr. Mike, just thank you for being a safe place where we can go for these sensitive and sacred topics. I think it's going to be fascinating someday in heaven to hear all of the people saying, “oh yeah, he helped us with our marriage too. And he helped us.” So we've been so enriched because of your work. So, thank you for your investment in your work that impacts people for eternity. And thank you for being my guest.   Dr. Michael Sytsma: (1:03:08 - 1:03:09) Well, thanks for having me back.   Laura Dugger: (1:03:10 - 1:06:52) One more thing before you go, have you heard the term gospel before? It simply means good news. And I want to share the best news with you, but it starts with the bad news.   Every single one of us were born sinners, but Christ desires to rescue us from our sin, which is something we cannot do for ourselves. This means there's absolutely no chance we can make it to heaven on our own. So, for you and for me, it means we deserve death, and we can never pay back the sacrifice we owe to be saved.   We need a savior, but God loved us so much. He made a way for his only son to willingly die in our place as the perfect substitute. This gives us hope of life forever in right relationship with him.   That is good news. Jesus lived the perfect life. We could never live and died in our place for our sin.   This was God's plan to make a way to reconcile with us so that God can look at us and see Jesus. We can be covered and justified through the work Jesus finished. If we choose to receive what he has done for us, Romans 10:9 says, “that if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”   So, you pray with me now. Heavenly father, thank you for sending Jesus to take our place. I pray someone today right now is touched and chooses to turn their life over to you.   Will you clearly guide them and help them take their next step in faith to declare you as Lord of their life? We trust you to work and change lives now for eternity. In Jesus name we pray.   Amen. If you prayed that prayer, you are declaring him for me. So, me for him, you get the opportunity to live your life for him.   And at this podcast, we're called The Savvy Sauce for a reason. We want to give you practical tools to implement the knowledge you have learned. So, you're ready to get started.   First, tell someone, say it out loud, get a Bible. The first day I made this decision, my parents took me to Barnes and Noble and let me choose my own Bible. I selected the Quest NIV Bible and I love it.   You can start by reading the book of John. Also get connected locally, which just means tell someone who's a part of a church in your community that you made a decision to follow Christ. I'm assuming they will be thrilled to talk with you about further steps such as going to church and getting connected to other believers to encourage you.   We want to celebrate with you too. So, feel free to leave a comment for us here. If you did make a decision to follow Christ, we also have show notes included where you can read scripture that describes this process.   And finally, be encouraged. Luke 15:10 says, “in the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The heavens are praising with you for your decision today.   And if you've already received this good news, I pray you have someone to share it with. You are loved and I look forward to meeting you here next time.

What actually happens when academic research meets the boardroom?    Peter Winick sits down with Nate Bennett — professor of management and faculty director of the Executive MBA program at Georgia State University's J. Mack Robinson College of Business — for a candid look at the gap between what business scholars know and what business leaders actually use. Bennett has spent his career straddling three audiences: students preparing to lead, practicing managers looking for answers, and fellow academics who reward each other for depth over accessibility. He explains why so much scholarly work is, by design, written for a room of a handful of other researchers — and why that's not necessarily a flaw. The real skill, he argues, is knowing how to translate that work for people who don't have the patience for a slow academic build. In front of executives, you have to get to the punchline fast. But speed isn't the whole story: Bennett makes the case that curiosity and humility matter just as much as expertise, and that professors who walk into a room assuming they have nothing left to learn rarely land well. The conversation also turns to a subject on every thought leader's mind right now: AI. Bennett doesn't mince words about what's happened to platforms like LinkedIn, where he says the signal-to-noise ratio has collapsed under a wave of AI-generated posts. His take on the right way to use the technology is refreshingly practical — think of it as an invisible assistant, not a ghostwriter. He shares how he uses AI to reformat dense research into readable tables, and reflects on what schools should really be protecting when they worry about students using it to cut corners: not information recall, but the ability to think and read. This is a conversation for anyone trying to figure out where real expertise ends and real relevance begins — and what to keep, and what to let AI handle, along the way.   Three Key Takeaways: • Academics write for three different audiences, and confusing them is a common trap. Scholarly work aimed at moving other researchers doesn't automatically translate into insight a practicing manager can use — the two require different pacing, structure, and even goals. • Curiosity and humility outperform "having the answer." Entering a room of executives assuming you're there to fill them with knowledge shuts the exchange down; entering curious, and open to having your thinking shaped by the room, produces a far better session. • The best use of AI is invisible. Rather than publishing AI-generated takes, the more valuable approach is using AI behind the scenes — as a tireless research and formatting assistant — while what actually gets published still reflects the author's own thinking.   If Nate's take on translating dense expertise into ideas people actually act on resonated with you, that's exactly the terrain Peter Winick, Bill Sherman, and Naren Aryal cover in The Thought Leadership Handbook. Drawing on more than 700 conversations from this very podcast, the book lays out the same tension this episode explored — how to build ideas rigorous enough to hold up and accessible enough to spread — into a practical framework you can apply to your own thinking.   Order The Thought Leadership Handbook today on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, or directly from Amplify, and learn more at thoughtleadershiphandbook.com.

Dr. Dhanfu E. Elston (pronounced: dah-NEE-foo) has served a 28-year career in postsecondary education that spans a range of executive leadership, federal and state policy, not-for-profit operations, and academic officer positions. He is Complete College America's Senior Vice President for Strategy and Chief of Staff, where he utilizes his national policy and campus expertise for practical application, implementation, and scaling of high impact strategies across a 53-member Alliance network of states and institutional consortia throughout the United States. He provides oversight of national external partnerships and has led CCA's guided pathways initiatives, Purpose First career alignment strategy, 15 To Finish national campaign, and standards to close equity and institutional performance gaps. Elston has also coordinated relationships with Governors' Offices, higher education state-wide systems, and national partners in their college completion efforts. He launched a national initiative with the Thurgood Marshall College Fund to amplify completion efforts at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) and minority-serving institutions. Prior to joining CCA, he provided leadership to Georgia State University, which is nationally recognized as a model for collegiate academic success, as the Faculty Assistant Director for Undergraduate Studies. Over his higher education career in academic and student affairs, Elston has created and implemented comprehensive success and retention programs that have garnered national attention.

Chris Cooper interviews Professor Ute Römer-Barron from Georgia State University.   lostincitations@gmail.com

Join us for episode three of MCIE's "Think Inclusive" four-part series in collaboration with Think College, as Tim Villegas visits the IDEAL program at Georgia State University in downtown Atlanta. IDEAL — Inclusive Digital Expression and Literacy — is a college program for students with intellectual disabilities built around creative media: film, television, and digital arts. It is also a commuter program. There are no dorms and no leafy college town here. Every student crosses one of the most traffic-choked metro areas in the country to get to class, some of them spending three hours a day on buses or paratransit for the privilege. The episode opens in a careers class, where nine students name their dream careers: veterinarian, flight attendant, musician, actor, podcaster, comic book writer.The heart of the episode is a question about what stands between a dream like that and an actual job — and the answer starts with a checkbox. Employment coordinator Mykal Tairu spent years as a community organizer working on Ban the Box, the policy fight over whether a person with a criminal record gets to introduce themselves before their application lands in the trash. He argues that adults with intellectual disabilities face a version of the same box, just unprinted. Along the way, Tim spends a morning with students Isaiah and David, hears what a real job in the film department means to a comic book writer, and learns what happens when a program insists that hiring its graduates is not a favor. As Tairu puts it, it's not a charity case. It's a case where an employer sees the value someone brings and decides they need him.Complete show notes and transcript: https://mcie.org/think-inclusive/dream-careers-inside-the-minds-of-georgia-states-ideal-students-1342/

This summer, the U.S. saw its largest cyclospora outbreak on record — with more than 22,000 suspected cases linked to contaminated iceberg lettuce, alongside a wave of other foodborne illnesses. Timothy D. Lytton, a law professor at Georgia State University and author of Outbreak: Foodborne Illness and the Struggle for Food Safety, joins Apple News In Conversation host David Greene to explain how America’s food-safety system actually works, how the system evolved, and what recent outbreaks reveal about the changes needed to make us all safer.

At 6 years old, Kevin Keller was already "stealing" his father's cologne — a habit generously tolerated by his dad — and discovering that scent could change the way you felt before you ever said a word.That early fascination with transformation eventually became Fulton & Roark, the American fine fragrance house Keller co-founded in 2013 with $11,000 and a belief that perfumery could be both deeply personal and distinctly American.Raised in Atlanta and educated at Georgia State University and Wake Forest University, Keller began his career in journalism before turning to music and culture, where he profiled brilliant emerging musicians and artists. What stayed with him was a fascination with culture, place, and tradition — and how those forces subtly shape the way we carry ourselves in the world.Built without outside capital, Fulton & Roark has grown into a nationally distributed independent fragrance brand, available in nearly 500 retail locations including premier independent boutiques, select Ritz-Carlton and Omni properties, and Neiman Marcus stores and online. The brand has been featured in GQ, Vogue, and ELLE, among others, and its fragrance Roark's Cove was a finalist for the Universal Prestige category of the Fragrance of the Year Award from The Fragrance Foundation.He lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with his wife and two children, and mentors young founders at Wake Forest University.In This Conversation We Discuss:[00:00] Introduction[01:08] Solid fragrances vs extrait de parfum[02:08] How the founder's love of fragrance began[03:16] Founding a niche brand with $11,000[05:26] Going to market without a DTC plan[07:39] Sponsor: IntelliGems[09:19] The GQ feature that forced them online[11:37] Building first websites on Squarespace[12:37] Sponsor: Klaviyo[14:47] Building the marketing flywheel[18:04] Sponsor: eFulfillment Service[19:40] Getting customers to pay for samples[22:37] Callouts[25:26] Why founders overrate daily metrics[27:30] Learning to delegate as a founder[27:54] Where to find Fulton & Roark[29:02] Final thoughtsResources:Subscribe to Honest Ecommerce on YoutubeAmerican Fine Fragrance fultonandroark.com/ Follow Kevin Keller linkedin.com/in/kevinwilliamkeller Book a demo today at intelligems.io/ Migrate and grow more klaviyo.com/honest Lower scale costs today FulfillmentService.com/honest If you're enjoying the show, we'd love it if you left Honest Ecommerce a review on Apple Podcasts. It makes a huge impact on the success of the podcast, and we love reading every one of your reviews!

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Brennan Chandler, Assistant Professor of Dyslexia at Georgia State University, to talk about how schools can move beyond simply collectingliteracy data and actually use it to make better instructional decisions. We dig into what a meaningful data deep dive looks like—from looking at schoolwide benchmark data to identifying grade-level patterns, examining specific subtests, and ultimately determining what instruction students actually need. CLICK HERE FOR FULL SHOW NOTES

On this edition of “Closer Look,” we revisit our segment on researchers at Georgia State University who reviewed more than 250,000 property records in the City of Atlanta. Among their findings, rental properties in historically Black, lower-income neighborhoods are mostly locally owned and for landlords in whiter, more affluent neighborhoods. Meanwhile, the landlords who own rentals in these neighborhoods largely live outside of the region and even outside the state of Georgia. What does this reveal about the city's divide in property values and who is benefiting from this divide? We'll take a deeper dive in the study with the co-authors. Rev., Dr. C.T. Vivian was a civil rights champion and a man whose lifelong work was heavily connected to his faith. And it was also consistent in his sermons. Now comes a new book: ‘Your Soul Is Required: The Theology and Sermons of C.T. Vivian', a collection of sermons that are a reminder of what Vivian stood for and as why he's placed among the impactful figures of the civil rights. ‘Your Soul Is Required: The Theology and Sermons of C.T. Vivian' compiles Vivian's wisdom alongside commentaries written by contemporary scholars and preachers to explore the depth of his theology. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever wondered how much easier private practice could feel if you stopped fighting the way your brain works? In this episode, I'm talking with Martin Altman, LPC, about his experience as a therapist with ADHD and how understanding his own neurodivergence helped him find a niche that genuinely fit. We get into the strengths and challenges that can come with ADHD, how Martin stays present with clients, and why building the right systems can make private practice feel a whole lot more sustainable. Martin also shares a really helpful perspective on emotional hijacking and why distraction is not always about lacking focus or discipline. Sometimes our thoughts and emotions are simply taking up too much bandwidth. Whether you have ADHD yourself or work with neurodivergent clients, I think you'll find this conversation honest, encouraging, and full of useful takeaways. Resources Mentioned In This Episode  Subscribe to YouTube Read the show notes here Watch on YouTube Use the promo code "GORDON" to get 2 months of Therapy Notes free Consulting with Gordon The PsychCraft Network Follow us on Instagram Meet Martin Altman, LPC Martin Altman, LPC, is a therapist and the owner of Stillwater Counseling in Atlanta, Georgia, where he specializes in working with clients experiencing ADHD, anxiety, and Level 1 autism. As both a clinician and someone with ADHD, Martin combines professional training, research, personal experience, and a straightforward, relatable approach to therapy. Raised on a farm in South Georgia, he blends what he calls "old-school wisdom" with modern science to help clients slow down, manage emotional and sensory overwhelm, and become more productive without sacrificing their creativity. Martin studied psychology at the University of Georgia and earned his master's degree in counseling from Georgia State University. After working with several large mental health organizations in Atlanta, he built a private practice focused on helping neurodivergent clients feel understood, supported, and more in control of their lives. Website Instagram

This summer, VOX ATL facilitated a Podcasting 101 workshop with Georgia State University's Project Healthy Grandparents, giving participants the chance to explore media-making while also experiencing a college campus.

Photo by Mockup Graphics on Unsplash Health professionals often think that the public understands that high blood pressure is dangerous for their health. But many people may not even understand what a blood pressure reading represents, let alone the acute and chronic damage it can do to your body. To explore what a blood pressure reading means and the impact of high blood pressure on our health, HealthCetera producer and host, Diana J. Mason, PhD, RN, talks with Dawn Aycock, PhD, RN, the Distinguished University Professor and PhD Program Director for Nursing at Georgia State University. Dr. Aycock is an expert in cardiovascular disease prevention. Along with research funding from the National Institutes for Health, she has been a Fellow in the Betty Irene Moore Fellowship for Nurse Leaders and Innovators that provided support for her to develop an initiative around preventing strokes, particularly among African Americans between the ages of 20-35 years of age. She calls this initiative SCORRE and talks about its success in helping people to be proactive in addressing high blood pressure. This interview first aired on HealthCetera in the Catskills on WIOX Radio on July 1, 2026. The post Understanding Blood Pressure Readings appeared first on HealthCetera.

Taking Territory: The Persistence of Conquest Since 1945 (Cornell University Press, 2026) is an eye-opening account of why territorial conquest persists today. The end of World War II seemingly brought about a decline in territorial conquest. Many have argued that a strong territorial integrity norm in the postwar era explains this decline. Yet as Dan Altman shows, states have seized territory numerous times since 1945. Large-scale conquests have waned, but small, targeted seizures have persisted. The relationship between conquest and war has also shifted. While states attempting conquest before 1945 often initiated war and sought to occupy large territories, challengers today more often seize small regions and try to avoid war. This strategy, the fait accompli, has become the predominant mode of conquest. Drawing on his original data, which include 175 conquest attempts between 1918 and 2024, Altman explains why conquest persists, what motivates it, when it turns violent, and when it succeeds. He shows how miscalculated fait accompli have sparked many post-1945 wars, and why the motives behind many territorial grabs are often about image, domestic politics, and the ambitions of military officers. Incisive and illuminating, Taking Territory cuts against what we think we know about post-1945 conquest to reveal its true causes and consequences. Our guest is Dan Altman, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Georgia State University. Our host is Eleonora Mattiacci, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College. She is the author of Volatile States in International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Taking Territory: The Persistence of Conquest Since 1945 (Cornell University Press, 2026) is an eye-opening account of why territorial conquest persists today. The end of World War II seemingly brought about a decline in territorial conquest. Many have argued that a strong territorial integrity norm in the postwar era explains this decline. Yet as Dan Altman shows, states have seized territory numerous times since 1945. Large-scale conquests have waned, but small, targeted seizures have persisted. The relationship between conquest and war has also shifted. While states attempting conquest before 1945 often initiated war and sought to occupy large territories, challengers today more often seize small regions and try to avoid war. This strategy, the fait accompli, has become the predominant mode of conquest. Drawing on his original data, which include 175 conquest attempts between 1918 and 2024, Altman explains why conquest persists, what motivates it, when it turns violent, and when it succeeds. He shows how miscalculated fait accompli have sparked many post-1945 wars, and why the motives behind many territorial grabs are often about image, domestic politics, and the ambitions of military officers. Incisive and illuminating, Taking Territory cuts against what we think we know about post-1945 conquest to reveal its true causes and consequences. Our guest is Dan Altman, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Georgia State University. Our host is Eleonora Mattiacci, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College. She is the author of Volatile States in International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/military-history

Taking Territory: The Persistence of Conquest Since 1945 (Cornell University Press, 2026) is an eye-opening account of why territorial conquest persists today. The end of World War II seemingly brought about a decline in territorial conquest. Many have argued that a strong territorial integrity norm in the postwar era explains this decline. Yet as Dan Altman shows, states have seized territory numerous times since 1945. Large-scale conquests have waned, but small, targeted seizures have persisted. The relationship between conquest and war has also shifted. While states attempting conquest before 1945 often initiated war and sought to occupy large territories, challengers today more often seize small regions and try to avoid war. This strategy, the fait accompli, has become the predominant mode of conquest. Drawing on his original data, which include 175 conquest attempts between 1918 and 2024, Altman explains why conquest persists, what motivates it, when it turns violent, and when it succeeds. He shows how miscalculated fait accompli have sparked many post-1945 wars, and why the motives behind many territorial grabs are often about image, domestic politics, and the ambitions of military officers. Incisive and illuminating, Taking Territory cuts against what we think we know about post-1945 conquest to reveal its true causes and consequences. Our guest is Dan Altman, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Georgia State University. Our host is Eleonora Mattiacci, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College. She is the author of Volatile States in International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science

Taking Territory: The Persistence of Conquest Since 1945 (Cornell University Press, 2026) is an eye-opening account of why territorial conquest persists today. The end of World War II seemingly brought about a decline in territorial conquest. Many have argued that a strong territorial integrity norm in the postwar era explains this decline. Yet as Dan Altman shows, states have seized territory numerous times since 1945. Large-scale conquests have waned, but small, targeted seizures have persisted. The relationship between conquest and war has also shifted. While states attempting conquest before 1945 often initiated war and sought to occupy large territories, challengers today more often seize small regions and try to avoid war. This strategy, the fait accompli, has become the predominant mode of conquest. Drawing on his original data, which include 175 conquest attempts between 1918 and 2024, Altman explains why conquest persists, what motivates it, when it turns violent, and when it succeeds. He shows how miscalculated fait accompli have sparked many post-1945 wars, and why the motives behind many territorial grabs are often about image, domestic politics, and the ambitions of military officers. Incisive and illuminating, Taking Territory cuts against what we think we know about post-1945 conquest to reveal its true causes and consequences. Our guest is Dan Altman, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Georgia State University. Our host is Eleonora Mattiacci, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College. She is the author of Volatile States in International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/world-affairs

Taking Territory: The Persistence of Conquest Since 1945 (Cornell University Press, 2026) is an eye-opening account of why territorial conquest persists today. The end of World War II seemingly brought about a decline in territorial conquest. Many have argued that a strong territorial integrity norm in the postwar era explains this decline. Yet as Dan Altman shows, states have seized territory numerous times since 1945. Large-scale conquests have waned, but small, targeted seizures have persisted. The relationship between conquest and war has also shifted. While states attempting conquest before 1945 often initiated war and sought to occupy large territories, challengers today more often seize small regions and try to avoid war. This strategy, the fait accompli, has become the predominant mode of conquest. Drawing on his original data, which include 175 conquest attempts between 1918 and 2024, Altman explains why conquest persists, what motivates it, when it turns violent, and when it succeeds. He shows how miscalculated fait accompli have sparked many post-1945 wars, and why the motives behind many territorial grabs are often about image, domestic politics, and the ambitions of military officers. Incisive and illuminating, Taking Territory cuts against what we think we know about post-1945 conquest to reveal its true causes and consequences. Our guest is Dan Altman, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Georgia State University. Our host is Eleonora Mattiacci, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College. She is the author of Volatile States in International Politics (Oxford University Press, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode, Dan is joined by Eric Segall, Constitutional Law Professor at Georgia State University, to discuss the judge ordering the release of Trump's $5 million payment to E. Jean Carroll.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Newly published research at Georgia State University found that rental properties in historically Black, lower-income neighborhoods are mostly locally owned by absentee landlords in whiter, more affluent neighborhoods. But the rental properties in those more affluent neighborhoods are largely owned by landlords outside of the region and even the state of Georgia. Taylor Shelton, is an associate professor in the department of geosciences and Ryan Pardue, is a doctoral student in the Urban Studies Institute at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. Both Shelton and Pardue collaborated on the GSU study and discussed it on this edition of “Closer Look.”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies (University of South Carolina Press, 2026) counters romantic portrayals of Gullah-Geechee culture as a static, geographically isolated remnant of the past. Across eight interdisciplinary essays, the book's contributors trace an arc, described in time and space, from pre-Middle Passage Africa through the Caribbean and coastal United States into the interior South and beyond. They consider how Gullah-Geechee cultural traditions are simultaneously rooted in the physical Lowcountry homeland and represent a dynamic cultural ethos that is not bounded by geography and has shaped Black life across North America and the Caribbean Basin. Together, these essays reveal the resilience and adaptability of people whose history defies myths of isolation and immobility. Gullah-Geechee Diasporas is a fresh framework for understanding African American cultural origins, migrations, and transformations. Dr. Muhammad Fraser-Rahim is associate professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel. He is the author of America's Other Muslims and Gullah Geechee Muslims in America. You can find him on Instagram and LinkedIn.Dr. Elizabeth J. West is professor of English and the John B. and Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Distinguished Chair in English Letters at Georgia State University. Her books include Finding Francis and African Spirituality in Black Women's Fiction. She can be found online at Instagram and LinkedIn. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/african-american-studies

Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies (University of South Carolina Press, 2026) counters romantic portrayals of Gullah-Geechee culture as a static, geographically isolated remnant of the past. Across eight interdisciplinary essays, the book's contributors trace an arc, described in time and space, from pre-Middle Passage Africa through the Caribbean and coastal United States into the interior South and beyond. They consider how Gullah-Geechee cultural traditions are simultaneously rooted in the physical Lowcountry homeland and represent a dynamic cultural ethos that is not bounded by geography and has shaped Black life across North America and the Caribbean Basin. Together, these essays reveal the resilience and adaptability of people whose history defies myths of isolation and immobility. Gullah-Geechee Diasporas is a fresh framework for understanding African American cultural origins, migrations, and transformations. Dr. Muhammad Fraser-Rahim is associate professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel. He is the author of America's Other Muslims and Gullah Geechee Muslims in America. You can find him on Instagram and LinkedIn.Dr. Elizabeth J. West is professor of English and the John B. and Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Distinguished Chair in English Letters at Georgia State University. Her books include Finding Francis and African Spirituality in Black Women's Fiction. She can be found online at Instagram and LinkedIn. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies (University of South Carolina Press, 2026) counters romantic portrayals of Gullah-Geechee culture as a static, geographically isolated remnant of the past. Across eight interdisciplinary essays, the book's contributors trace an arc, described in time and space, from pre-Middle Passage Africa through the Caribbean and coastal United States into the interior South and beyond. They consider how Gullah-Geechee cultural traditions are simultaneously rooted in the physical Lowcountry homeland and represent a dynamic cultural ethos that is not bounded by geography and has shaped Black life across North America and the Caribbean Basin. Together, these essays reveal the resilience and adaptability of people whose history defies myths of isolation and immobility. Gullah-Geechee Diasporas is a fresh framework for understanding African American cultural origins, migrations, and transformations. Dr. Muhammad Fraser-Rahim is associate professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel. He is the author of America's Other Muslims and Gullah Geechee Muslims in America. You can find him on Instagram and LinkedIn.Dr. Elizabeth J. West is professor of English and the John B. and Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Distinguished Chair in English Letters at Georgia State University. Her books include Finding Francis and African Spirituality in Black Women's Fiction. She can be found online at Instagram and LinkedIn. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies (University of South Carolina Press, 2026) counters romantic portrayals of Gullah-Geechee culture as a static, geographically isolated remnant of the past. Across eight interdisciplinary essays, the book's contributors trace an arc, described in time and space, from pre-Middle Passage Africa through the Caribbean and coastal United States into the interior South and beyond. They consider how Gullah-Geechee cultural traditions are simultaneously rooted in the physical Lowcountry homeland and represent a dynamic cultural ethos that is not bounded by geography and has shaped Black life across North America and the Caribbean Basin. Together, these essays reveal the resilience and adaptability of people whose history defies myths of isolation and immobility. Gullah-Geechee Diasporas is a fresh framework for understanding African American cultural origins, migrations, and transformations. Dr. Muhammad Fraser-Rahim is associate professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel. He is the author of America's Other Muslims and Gullah Geechee Muslims in America. You can find him on Instagram and LinkedIn.Dr. Elizabeth J. West is professor of English and the John B. and Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Distinguished Chair in English Letters at Georgia State University. Her books include Finding Francis and African Spirituality in Black Women's Fiction. She can be found online at Instagram and LinkedIn. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/folkore

Gullah-Geechee Diasporas: Knowledge, Culture, and Black Lowcountry Legacies (University of South Carolina Press, 2026) counters romantic portrayals of Gullah-Geechee culture as a static, geographically isolated remnant of the past. Across eight interdisciplinary essays, the book's contributors trace an arc, described in time and space, from pre-Middle Passage Africa through the Caribbean and coastal United States into the interior South and beyond. They consider how Gullah-Geechee cultural traditions are simultaneously rooted in the physical Lowcountry homeland and represent a dynamic cultural ethos that is not bounded by geography and has shaped Black life across North America and the Caribbean Basin. Together, these essays reveal the resilience and adaptability of people whose history defies myths of isolation and immobility. Gullah-Geechee Diasporas is a fresh framework for understanding African American cultural origins, migrations, and transformations. Dr. Muhammad Fraser-Rahim is associate professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel. He is the author of America's Other Muslims and Gullah Geechee Muslims in America. You can find him on Instagram and LinkedIn.Dr. Elizabeth J. West is professor of English and the John B. and Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Distinguished Chair in English Letters at Georgia State University. Her books include Finding Francis and African Spirituality in Black Women's Fiction. She can be found online at Instagram and LinkedIn. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer on Instagram, Substack, and wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-south

July 4th marks 250 years of America as an independent nation. We're a nation founded on principles centered around democracy, equality, separation of powers, plus checks and balances. On the eve of the country’s semiquincentennial, scholars and activists warn democratic norms are eroding due to the Trump Administration’s rapid changes to existing voting rights legislation, the expansion of executive powers and more. But does this moment feel like a pivot because of President Donald Trump’s actions, or an extension of the country’s overlooked history? In today’s special on WABE, we examine what is to be celebrated, especially at this moment of our nation’s history? In this episode, “Closer Look” presents “Spacious Skies: Sentiment and Reflection On America's Birthday.” We welcome guests back from our 2024 special, Georgia State University historians, Dr. Jody Noll and Professor John McMillian. Plus, a conversation with a prominent civil rights activist who represents one of the three lifetimes that make up the age of the country. We spoke with former Atlanta Student Movement leader Charles Black.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Get ready for an inspiring and insightful episode of The Ash Said It Show as we sit down with a true powerhouse of the industry, Brianne Drake, who currently serves as the 2026 President of the Georgia Association of REALTORS®. As the first Black President in the 106-year history of the Georgia Association of REALTORS®, Brianne is a trailblazer whose distinguished 27-year career is defined by integrity, ethical leadership, and a deep commitment to service. Representing more than 47,000 members across the state of Georgia, Brianne shares her strategic vision for unity, professional leadership development, and the vital importance of advocacy in protecting homeownership rights. In this episode, we dive into Brianne's historic journey, exploring the milestones that allowed her to break barriers and rise as a respected leader on both the state and national levels, including her influential work as a Director for the National Association of REALTORS®. We also explore the power of political advocacy and why Brianne is so passionate about protecting private property rights, a commitment solidified by her 2025 induction into the National Association of REALTORS® RPAC Hall of Fame as a Major Investor. Beyond the politics and accolades, Brianne explains her client-first philosophy, sharing her deeply held belief that real estate is not simply about contracts or keys, but about people, families, and futures. We also celebrate her impressive professional legacy, including her 2026 recognition as one of the Georgia 100 Women of Excellence and the numerous formal resolutions honoring her contributions from the Georgia General Assembly. Whether you are a real estate agent seeking professional development, an aspiring industry leader, or a listener looking for a story of perseverance and dedication, this conversation with one of Georgia's most dynamic real estate experts is essential listening. Tune in now to learn how Brianne Drake is shaping the future of real estate. Web: https://garealtor.com/ Brianne Drake is a distinguished Georgia real estate industry leader serving as the 2026 President of the Georgia Association of REALTORS® (GAR). Representing more than 47,000 members throughout the state, she holds the historic distinction of being the first Black President in the 106-year history of the organization. As a Broker Associate and Global Real Estate Advisor with Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby's International Realty, Brianne combines extensive market expertise with a commitment to client advocacy, integrity, and professional excellence. Brianne's professional career is defined by her deep involvement in local, state, and national REALTOR® governance and real estate policy. Her leadership portfolio includes serving as a Director for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) and as a dedicated member of the Membership Policy and Board Jurisdiction Committee. She previously served as the Chair of the Professional Standards Committee in 2023 and the Chair of the Professional Standards Interpretations and Procedures Advisory Board in 2024. As a champion of private property rights and industry advancement, Brianne was inducted into the NAR RPAC Hall of Fame as a Major Investor in 2025 and received the Georgia Association of REALTORS® Dick McCrudden Award in 2023 for her contributions to the REALTORS® Political Action Committee. Her professional accomplishments and impact on the Georgia real estate industry have been recognized by the Georgia General Assembly on multiple occasions. Brianne was honored on the floor of the Georgia Senate and House in 2026 through Senate Resolution 753 and House Resolution 1253, and previously in 2021, for her longstanding service to the community. In 2026, she also received the Georgia 100 Women of Excellence Resolution at the Georgia State Capitol in honor of Women's History Month. Her historical industry accolades include being named REALTOR® of the Year by the Metro South Association of REALTORS® in 2011 and 2018, as well as receiving the J.L. Christian Leadership Award in 2009 and 2011 and the President's Award in 2012. A native of Atlanta, Georgia, and an alumna of Georgia State University, Brianne utilizes a client-first philosophy that has established her as one of the state's most trusted real estate advisors. Her expertise is backed by a comprehensive suite of nationally recognized real estate designations, including ABR, AHWD, C2EX, CRS, GRI, SFR, and MRP. Through her work, she continues to provide exceptional experiences for families navigating the real estate market. "For me, real estate is not simply about contracts or keys; it's about people, families, and futures," says Brianne Drake, who remains dedicated to shaping the future of the real estate profession through advocacy and ethical leadership. - Ready to ignite the spark that levels up your entire life? Meet Ash Brown—the American powerhouse, motivational architect, and ultimate hype-woman dedicated to your personal and professional evolution. Ash is far more than a voice in the personal development space; she is a trusted ally who delivers a masterclass in real-talk wisdom and infectious energy. Whether you are navigating a crossroads or ready to scale your grandest ambitions, Ash fuels your journey with a high-octane blend of heart and hustle.

Psychologist and author, Dr. Akinyela joins Dr. Thema to explore identity, culture, and healing. Based on African American culture, this narrative approach empowers people to build lives of liberation and resilience. Dr. Makungu M. Akinyela is a leading authority on cultural democracy, narrative practice, anti-racist resistance and mental health. He is a licensed psychotherapist practicing in Atlanta, Georgia and an Associate Professor of Africana Studies at Georgia State University. He is the creator of the African Centered approach to narrative practice called testimony therapy. He is the author of the book Culture, Politics, Spirituality and Practice: A book of resistance and critical theory for disturbing times published by Dulwhich publications, as well as the author of the forthcoming book on his clinical ideas entitled Testimony therapy: Decolonizing Mental Health for Black Therapists and Clients, published by W.W. Norton. As a scholar activist and a therapist. Dr. Akinyela is a lifelong committed social justice organizer with a focus on struggles for human rights and justice for Black people in the United States and the African diaspora. His research and writing include such subjects as cultural democracy and mental health care; cultural domination and therapeutic resistance; reparations and the role of mental health workers in repairing oppressions wounds and African centered family therapy. He is a Clinical Fellow and an Approved Supervisor of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). Don't forget to subscribe and share. Music by Joy Jones. Mixed & Edited by Next Day Podcast info@nextdaypodcast.com

My conversation with Eric begins at 29 minutes after news and clips Subscribe and Watch Interviews LIVE : On YOUTUBE.com/StandUpWithPete ON SubstackStandUpWithPete Follow Eric on Blue Sky Read Eric on Dorf on Law Listen to Supreme Myths Podcast Eric Segall is the Director The Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law at Georgia State University where he also is a professor and teaches federal courts and constitutional law I and II. He is the author of the book Supreme Myths: Why the Supreme Court is not a Court and its Justices are not Judges. He has served on the Executive Committee of the AALS section on federal courts, and has given numerous speeches both inside and outside the academy on constitutional law questions and the Supreme Court. He appears regularly on the national XM Radio show StandUp with Pete Dominick talking about the Supreme Court and constitutional law. Listen rate and review on Apple Podcasts Listen rate and review on Spotify Pete On Instagram Pete on Blue Sky Pete on Threads Pete on Tik Tok Pete on Twitter Pete Personal FB page Stand Up with Pete FB page Gift a Subscription https://www.patreon.com/PeteDominick/gift Send Pete $ Directly on Venmo All things Jon Carroll  Buy Ava's Art  Subscribe to Piano Tuner Paul Paul Wesley on Substack Listen to Barry and Abigail Hummel Podcast Listen to Matty C Podcast and Substack Follow and Support Pete Coe Hire DJ Monzyk to build your website or help you with Marketing

In this special 9-week series, listeners will hear from three different groups—GenX paired with Millennials, Gen Z, and Boomers with a mix of the Silent Generation. Their conversations cover a variety of topics including technology, unity in the Church, racism, and parenting. Grouped by similar ages, these 12 individuals share their unique views, opinions, and convictions based on their generational upbringing and views of the world. Ranging from ages 16 to 81, we're covering 5 different generations with 16 different guests.In this episode, the Boomers group talks about technology, social media, personal phone use, when kids should access social media, AI, and concerns about all the above. Bios of our Boomers and Silent Generation Contributors:Roy and Susan ChapmanRoy and Susan Chapman have been married for 60 years and share a rich life built on faith, family, and friendship. Susan was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, where she met Roy in high school. After Roy attended the University of Georgia and Georgia State University, they married in 1965. They have two children — a son and a daughter — and warmly claim their son-in-law John as their own. Their two grandchildren are amazing and delightful: their grandson recently graduated from North Greenville University, and their granddaughter just graduated from middle school.Roy began his career in insurance after marriage, completing his degree at night from Georgia State University. They purchased their first home in Decatur, Georgia, in 1971 — and it was there that their spiritual journey truly took root. Roy began noticing profound changes in Susan through her Bible studies and time in God's word, changes that led him to start searching for what was behind them. Looking back, both Roy and Susan can clearly see God's hand on their lives.In 1977, Roy's employer asked him to relocate to the home office in Philadelphia. After much prayer, they accepted the move — and once again witnessed God's provision, finding a wonderful community of people in New Jersey who remain among their closest and dearest friends to this day. They lived in the area for 28 years before moving to Summerville in 2005, where Roy has continued working in the insurance industry with the company he founded when they arrived.Roy and Susan have been attending Seacoast's Mount Pleasant Campus for ten years, where they serve as table leaders at Next Steps and volunteer in the bookstore. Roy's passion is meeting new people through the church and finding ways to serve them. Susan's passion is intercessory prayer.In their free time, both enjoy reading, jigsaw puzzles, and time with family and friends. They are devoted University of Georgia football fans and enjoy other sports as well. One of their favorite traditions is spending time at Litchfield Beach, a place they have returned to for over 50 years. Susan also treasures staying in touch with lifelong friends now scattered across seven states.A few fun notes: Roy's favorite food is a chili dog from Atlanta's iconic drive-in, The Varsity — though good pulled pork barbecue and a proper Southern meal (cornbread included) are never far behind. Susan's Southern spread of summer squash, butter beans, tomatoes, iced tea, and optional fried chicken runs a close second. One of the joys of serving at Next Steps has been discovering just how small the world really is — Roy and Susan have repeatedly been surprised to cross paths with people they knew years ago, or to find unexpected shared connections with the strangers who walk through the door. Susan still remembers when her aunt's phone number was simply 2524, before area codes existed, and when ten rolls of toilet paper cost a dollar.Brian LewisBrian Lewis has been a pastor at Seacoast's Mount Pleasant campus for 11 years, leading Men's Ministry and Seniors Ministry. He has been married to Andrea for 32 years and has one daughter, Addison. Born, raised, and educated in Atlanta, Georgia — a Georgia Tech graduate — Brian is the youngest of five children, two of whom are now with the Lord. He has been part of the Seacoast family for 21 years.In his free time, Brian enjoys cooking, DIY projects, golf, travel, and music. Andrea describes him as a renaissance man — curious about everything and a true dabbler. He has visited 42 states and 6 continents, attended both Obama inaugurations with his family, and made seven trips to Kenya for global missions, with one trip to Honduras as well. Brian loves a good argument or debate, as long as it doesn't get too emotional, and will happily argue either side of an interesting topic.Joe RiddellJoe has been a part of the Seacoast family for 25 years. Lived in Charleston his whole life and a general contractor for 37 years.  Married to Carol for 29 years, he has two kids ages 34 and 27 and two grandkids almost four and almost two. In his own words, he's Just a guy who loves Jesus, loves his family and loves his church. Seacoast Podcast is now on InstagramBe a Patron of the podcast We have a YouTube Channel for videos of all episodes since Jan. 2024. We'd love to hear from you.  E-mail Joey HERE. Producer/Editor/host: Joey SvendsenSound Engineer/Editor: Katelyn Vandiver

If its June, its time for Supreme Court decisions. On today's show we will explore recent rulings on two large topics. The first is the extent of the second amendment. That's the gun rights Amendment and the right to bear arms. Then we will turn to the broad question, is the Constitution colorblind? What role does and should race play in Supreme Court decisions? [ dur: 58mins ] Robert J. Spitzer is Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus of Political Science Department at SUNY Cortland, New York. He is the author of Guns Across America: Reconciling Gun Rules And Rights, The Politics of Gun Control, and The Gun Dilemma. Eric J. Segall, Ashe Family Chair Professor of Law and the Executive Director of Emmet J. Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law, Practice and Democracy at Georgia State University. He is the author of Originalism as Faith and Supreme Myths: Why the Supreme Court Is Not a Court and Its Justices Are Not Judges. Carlton Larson is Martin Luther King Jr. Professor of Law at the University of California at Davis. He is the author of The Origins of Adversary Criminal Trial in America and One Nation Under Law: The Meaning of the Declaration of Independence. This program is produced by Ankine Aghassian, Doug Becker and Sudd Dongre. Politics and Activism, Governance / Law, Courts, Gun Lobby, Gun Violence

Is your team really at capacity, or is your operating model broken? In this episode, Jaime Hunt speaks with Joanne Giles about the common friction points in higher education marketing teams. They discuss why buying project management software isn't a "silver bullet" solution and how to diagnose deep-rooted operating issues before trying to fix the system. Guest Name: Joanne Giles, Founder, All Things Content Guest Social: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joanneaugustingiles/ Guest Bio: Joanne Giles is the Founder and Principal Consultant of All Things Content, a strategic consultancy that helps higher education institutions and complex organizations bring structure to the way work moves across teams. Her work focuses on building workflow foundations for highly cross-functional, multi-stakeholder environments where intake, approvals, handoffs, visibility, and tool adoption often break down. Joanne has supported institutions including Hofstra University, Georgia State University, and Abilene Christian University, helping teams turn operational overwhelm into documented workflows, clearer ownership, and practical systems they can actually use. - - - -Connect With Our Host:Jaime Hunthttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jaimehunt/https://twitter.com/JaimeHuntIMCAbout The Enrollify Podcast Network:Confessions of a Higher Ed CMO is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you'll like other Enrollify shows too! Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Join Kate Stanton Melendez for an interview with Joshua Yates, founder & board chair of the Savannah Center for Photography.    The Savannah Center for Photography is a 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching Savannah's cultural landscape by advancing the art of photography. Through a community darkroom, workshop space, and rotating gallery exhibitions, SCP provides accessible resources and education that supports image-makers at all levels, and fosters appreciation for diverse photographic work throughout the community.   Explore and tour the exciting new non-profit at their open house on Friday, June 26th from 5PM-9PM, and see their inaugural gallery exhibition "SCP Presents" featuring works by local photographers. There will also be an exciting raffle of photocentric items and experiences, & you can be one of the first to sign up for their membership program.    Joshua Yates is a photographer based in Savannah, Georgia. His work has been exhibited nationally, including the Atlanta Photography Group's Focus 2025 and the Houston Center for Photography's 42nd Annual Exhibition, and was awarded 3rd Place at the 2025 Slow Exposures Photo Festival. Prior to founding the Savannah Center for Photography, Yates co-founded and operated Green Truck Neighborhood Pub, an award-winning community-minded burger joint. He previously served on the boards of the Forsyth Farmers' Market and the Thomas Square Neighborhood Association.  He holds an MBA from Georgia State University and a BSIE from Georgia Tech. His first solo show will be held at the JEA's Montag Art Gallery in August 2026.     See Joshua Yates' photography here: https://jwyatesphoto.com/work https://www.instagram.com/yatesjoshua     Learn more about the Savannah Center for Photography here: https://www.savphoto.org/ https://www.instagram.com/savphoto_org   

Send us Fan MailAbigail Tere-Apisah is one of Papua New Guinea's most accomplished tennis players. Born and raised in Port Moresby, she earned tennis scholarships that took her from the ITF Academy in Fiji to the Margaret Court Tennis Academy in Australia, and later to Georgia State University in the United States, where she competed as the team's No. 1 player and graduated with a degree in Exercise Science.A former professional athlete, Abigail achieved a career-high WTA ranking of 276, won one professional singles and six double titles and became the first female in the Pacific region to earn ITF level 2 coaching certification. Today, she is a mother of two and founder and Head Coach of the Tere-Apisah Academy, where she is developing the next generation of athletes in Papua New Guinea.These days, Abigail is juggling her family commitments, tennis academy AND flipping houses which shows that the habits you build early, continue throughout life. Tune in!Instagram: Abigail Tere-Apisah (@abigailapisah1)

May 2026 – #AIESEPConnect #CoffeeWithColleagues Early Career Perspectives on Digital Technology in Health, Physical Education, and Physical Activity: A Community Dialogue Featuring Pablo Lope García – PhD Candidate, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain Dr. Hung-Ying Lee – Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Education and Kinesiology, National Dong Hwa University, Taiwan Dr. Xiaolu Liu – Assistant Professor, Department of Kinesiology and Health, Georgia State University, USA Dr. Omar Albaloul – Faculty Member, College of Education, Kuwait University, KuwaitSession Video Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zi2slj6ZK7E

On today’s “Closer Look with Rose Scott,” we speak to Jarred Howard, CEO of the National Juneteenth Museum. He discusses the work, history and intention being put into the museum, which is scheduled to open in late 2028. In addition to telling the story of Black American’s enslavement and emancipation, it will connect to modern efforts for liberation, and expand upon the work of Opal Lee, the grandmother of Juneteenth. We also join WABE’s Molly Samuel as she tours the Georgia State University lab where students and scientists are part of the international construction of a telescope that will search for signs of life in other galaxies. We start with revisiting our conversation with Dr. Joe Mathias, the director of outpatient addiction services at Emory Healthcare. He discusses the expansion of the Emory Addiction Center, which aims to strengthen prevention, early intervention and treatment services for adolescents with substance use disorders.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if wishing is not just emotional or spiritual, but deeply connected to the way the brain processes possibility, creativity, and change? Amy sits down with storyteller, inventor, and author Brownell Landrum to explore the intersection of neuroscience, intention, leadership, and imagination through the lens of what Brownell calls “the art and science of wishing.” Together they unpack the difference between goals, prayers, and wishes, the role of neuroplasticity and the reticular activating system in shaping awareness, and why peaceful, positive, purposeful intention changes how we experience momentum. The conversation moves through creativity, subconscious resistance, storytelling, workplace leadership, collective vision, and the emotional alignment required to move from longing into action. By the end, what emerges is a grounded reminder: the way we direct our attention shapes not only what we notice, but what becomes possible.Moments That Create Momentum:Why Wishes Need More Than Hope – Explore how neuroscience, ritual, and repetition transform wishing from passive thinking into intentional action and awareness.The Difference Between Goals, Prayers, and Wishes – Understand the emotional space between control, surrender, and collaboration with something larger than yourself.The Brain's Hidden Search Engine – Discover how the reticular activating system begins identifying opportunities, patterns, and solutions once intention becomes clear.Subconscious Resistance and Inner Alignment – See how the disconnect between mind, body, and higher purpose can quietly sabotage forward movement and growth.Creativity as a Leadership Skill – Hear why daydreaming, imagination, and spacious thinking are essential for innovation, vision, and meaningful transformation.Why Shared Vision Creates Momentum – Learn how storytelling and purposeful leadership help people feel emotionally connected to change instead of resistant to it.The “Something Better” Philosophy – Reflect on why unanswered wishes are not always failures, but sometimes invitations toward deeper alignment and possibility.Peaceful, Positive, Purposeful Living – Explore the emotional framework Brownell believes creates more clarity, creativity, collaboration, and forward movement in both work and life.About the Guest:Brownell Landrum is a

In this episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet sits down with fraud researcher and professor David Maimon to unpack some of the most alarming scam trends emerging today, from abandoned identity fraud and synthetic identities to AI-powered romance and investment scams.They discuss how criminals are targeting former immigrants, children, and deceased individuals whose identities are no longer actively monitored, and how those identities are being sold and exploited for loans, bank accounts, and fraud rings.The conversation also dives into a disturbing evolution in romance and investment scams: criminals are no longer just stealing victims' savings, they are strategically targeting people with strong credit profiles and home equity to maximize returns through HELOC fraud and investment manipulation.Finally, Ayelet and David explore how AI is beginning to automate scam operations at scale, including experiments with conversational AI agents capable of running fully automated “pig butchering” investment scams.Key Topics Covered Abandoned identities and identity reuse fraud Synthetic identity marketplaces on Telegram Romance scams evolving into large-scale financial exploitation HELOC targeting and victim profiling AI-powered scam conversations and agentic AI DeepSeek guardrail concerns The future of fraud prevention and scam mitigationAbout the GuestDavid Maimon is a cybercrime researcher focused on fraud ecosystems, financial crime, identity fraud, and online scam operations. His work explores how criminals operate across Telegram, darknet forums, and emerging AI systems to scale fraud operations. David is a Professor at Georgia State University and Head of Fraud Insights at SentiLinkListen now and stay ahead of the latest scam tactics shaping the future of fraud.https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-maimon-29343632/About the HostAyelet Biger-Levin is the Founder and CEO of RangersAI and the host of Scam Rangers, a podcast exploring the human side of scams and the people working to protect consumers from financial and emotional harm.Through her work at RangersAI and her leadership within the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, Ayelet partners with financial institutions, policymakers, and advocates to elevate scam prevention beyond controls and technology toward trust-based, customer-centric protection.Be sure to follow her on LinkedIn and reach out to learn about her additional activities in this space:https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/RangersAI: https://www.rangersai.com/

Websites like Kalshi and Polymarket have unleashed a new era of betting on sports and current events. Minnesota lawmakers Tuesday passed a bill banning these prediction markets from the state. To become law, it will need to be signed by Gov. Tim Walz.The bill is the latest move by states and tribal nations that want to reign in these platforms. If what's happened elsewhere in the country is any guide, the bill will likely attract lawsuits. A federal agency has sued five states for their attempts to regulate prediction markets. The platforms themselves have also filed lawsuits. Todd Phillips has been surveying this legal landscape. He's an assistant professor of law at Georgia State University, where he specializes on financial regulation. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to explain.

The Voting Rights Act, or VRA, is viewed as the most important piece of legislation advancing civil rights in the 1960s. Passed in 1965, it was intended to redress the dis-empowerment of African Americans whose voting rights had been restricted due to several states legislation, ranging from poll taxes to literacy tests and other restrictions on voting. Throughout the Roberts Court, the VRA has been restricted and its protections stripped away. In 2026, perhaps the last of these provisions have been overturned, in a decision in the case Louisiana v Callais. On todays show, we will explore this decision and the impact it has on drawing Congressional districts, in an era of particularly aggressive gerrymandering. [ dur: 58mins. ] Eric J. Segall, Ashe Family Chair Professor of Law and the Executive Director of Emmet J. Bondurant Center for Constitutional Law, Practice and Democracy at Georgia State University. He is the author of Originalism as Faith and Supreme Myths: Why the Supreme Court Is Not a Court and Its Justices Are Not Judges. Seth C. McKee is a Professor of Political Science at Oklahoma State University. He is the author of The Dynamics of Southern Politics: Causes and Consequences and coauthor of Rural Republican Realignment in the Modern South: The Untold Story with MV Hood. Christian Grose is a Professor of Political Science & Public Policy and the Academic Director of the USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy at the University of Southern California. He is the author of Independent Redistricting Commissions Increase Voter Perceptions of Fairness and co-author of Local Election Administrators in the United States: The Frontline of Democracy. This program is produced by Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian, Maria Armoudian, Anna Lapin and Sudd Dongre. Politics and Activism, Elections, Redistricting, Voting Rights, Congress, Courts, Democrats, Republicans

Greg Bluestein and Tia Mitchell break down the political fallout from a sweeping U.S. Supreme Court ruling that weakens a key section of the Voting Rights Act and could reshape Georgia's political maps. They examine why Republicans are already eyeing new congressional and legislative districts, why Gov. Brian Kemp says new maps won't come before the 2026 elections, and which Democratic-held seats could be most vulnerable in a future redraw. Then Greg and Tia speak with Georgia State University constitutional law professor Eric Segall about what the ruling means for minority representation, why he believes the decision could have long-term consequences beyond Congress, and where legal fights could move next. Have a question or comment for the show? Call or text the 24-hour Politically Georgia Podcast Hotline at 770-810-5297. We'll play back your question and answer it during our next Monday Mailbag segment. You can also email your questions at PoliticallyGeorgia@ajc.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s “Closer Look with Rose Scott,” Emory University political science Professor Andra Gillespie and Georgia State University constitutional law Professor Tanya Washington discuss the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that diminished the Voting Rights Act. They explain what this will mean for the future of voting and representation, especially for marginalized communities. Also, after nearly a decade of service with the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia, Executive Director Andrea Young is preparing to retire. She discusses the wins of her tenure and the challenges the nonprofit still faces in the fight to defend the civil rights of Georgians.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of the Suite Spot podcast, we're heading to the prestigious Cecil B. Day School of Hospitality Administration at Georgia State University. We sat down with the school’s Director, Dr. Benjamin Lawrence, to go behind the scenes of one of the country's top hospitality programs. In this video, we explore: How Georgia State is shaping the next generation of industry leaders.  The innovative curriculum driving modern hospitality education. Insights into the future of the hospitality profession. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or just passionate about the industry, you won’t want to miss this deep dive into hospitality excellence! Episode Transcript Our podcast is produced as an audio resource. Transcripts are generated using speech recognition software and human editing and may contain errors. Before republishing quotes, we ask that you reference the audio. Ryan Embree: Welcome to Suite Spot, where hoteliers check in, and we check out what’s trending in hotel marketing. I’m your host, Ryan Embree. Hello everyone. Ryan Embree here with the Suite Spot for another edition of our TMG Campus Crawl Series. We are here in the heart of downtown Atlanta at Georgia State with Dr. Ben Lawrence, Director of the Day School of Hospitality Administration. Thank you so much for hosting us and being a hospitable guest. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : Happy to have you down here. Go Panthers! Ryan Embree: Well, we’re excited about this. You know, we’re here in Atlanta. We’re gonna talk about the location. But before we get rolling with this episode, Dr. Lawrence, this is your first time on the podcast. We would love to hear. Hospitality is all about collection of stories, right. Of individuals. Share a little bit about your hospitality journey and how you came here to the Georgia State, Day School of Hospitality. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : So, people sometimes are surprised about my past because I was born in Singapore and I grew up in Indonesia, and I came to the States when I was 18, and I came to the States because I wanted to go to the best hotel school in the world. And so, when I was 17, I went to one of those high school, like, what are you gonna be when you grow up? And this Swiss hotelier said, you wanna go to hotel school? Go to Cornell. So, I applied to Cornell and I arrived in the States when I was 18, and I went to Cornell. And so, I went to hotel school there met my wife at, she was a hotelier at Cornell. After I graduated, we ran an inn in upstate New York, historic inn, went back to get my MBA, then worked, in a couple of different industries for a while. Went back to Indonesia to help my family and their business, and then came back to the States. Then I worked in a community college, a couple of community colleges, teaching hospitality. Then I went back and got my PhD at Boston University and my PhD, focus was in franchising. And I know we’ll talk a little more about franchising in a minute. But, franchising is the primary form of distribution of our product. After I graduated from Boston University, I got a job back at Cornell. So I went back there and I was a food and beverage professor. People always laugh. What was your professor? Food and Beverage? So I taught the most of the freshman students at Cornell, Food and Beverage Management. And I also taught, a multi unit franchising course there. And then this position at Georgia State opened up and a benefactor of ours gave money for an inapt professor in franchising. And there’s nothing better as an academic to get inapt professorship in the area that you study. And the weather in Atlanta is a lot better than the weather in Ithaca. Ryan Embree: I don’t know this week my, uh, my… Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : True. We’ve been cold, but it’s gonna be 80 degrees. 80 degrees this weekend. So when my kids moved down here from Ithaca, they were like, oh my Lord, you can play soccer in January, and we have a pool. So, I really loved working here in Atlanta. Georgia State is a very dynamic place. It’s a large state university, so very different from Cornell, but we really transformed the lives of our students here. So I’ve been here, I was here for seven years as a faculty member, and then just last July I became the director of the the Day School of Hospitality. So, we’re working on a lot of interesting stuff here. I’m excited about the position and excited about the potential of Georgia State and Atlanta. Ryan Embree: Yeah. Excited to share it with our audience and your story. Dr. Lawrence is a true indication of what hospitality is international. Right? We say that all the time. Hospitality is the language spoken all over the world. Your journey is certainly a reflection of that across the globe and, and now across the country here. So, share a little bit about the school’s history, Georgia State’s history, and where you think that this program is unique based on maybe others across the country. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : So Georgia State was founded, the university was founded in 1913 as the kind of nighttime business school of Georgia Tech. And that has evolved over time. We’re a very large university. We are over 50,000 students here. And we’re a very diverse university. So we graduate more African Americans at Georgia State than any other university in the states. So we are a majority minority institution and a research one institution, so an R1 institution. So, we are not only a research powerhouse, but we also transformed the lives of our students. So we are the Day School of Hospitality, was founded in 1973, as a school of Hospitality, and was named in the eighties by the founder of Days Inn, Cecil B Day. So that really ties back into the franchising story, into the entrepreneur story. You had a local Georgian building, a brand that became worldwide brand, which is amazing. We joined the College of Business, and now we’re a school embedded in a business school. So there’s two forms of hospitality programs. There’s hospitality programs like UNLV or University of Houston. They’re standard loan colleges. And then there’s schools like ours that are embedded in a business school. So those are two basic models. There’s advantages and disadvantages to both. One of the advantages that we have is that we are in a college of business that allows our students to take many different courses from marketing department to computer information systems. One of the disadvantages is that we tend to be fairly small. So cost guide programs in business schools tend to be smaller, than standalone colleges. I took over the program in July, and we’re working on our strategic plan right now to grow the school to get more students. Because industry’s always looking for great hospitality students. And also looking to expose hospitality to students in other disciplines. And so if you’re a real estate student, if you’re a finance student, if you’re a student, a psychology student, right? So getting those students among all university students interested in hospitality. And I think that’s, that’s a model in which, will help grow enrollment. Well, only our majors and our minors, but also students just interested in hospitality. Many of our students are working in hospitality, right? They’re working as waiters or they’re working at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. So, they’re exposed to the industry especially being here in Atlanta. Ryan Embree: Even if they’re not in hospitality jobs, you could still be using hospitality skills within those jobs. Which is very important to share because, I think there’s that common misconception of, you think of a hospitality or a hotel worker, you think of all the disadvantages sometimes, right? Of like the holidays, the long hours. It’s a 24 hour business. But at the same time, there’s these different departments, whether it’s accounting, marketing, all the HR, these different avenues within hospitality, that you can be exposed to franchising. And being, which we’re gonna talk about. But one of the things is you look for that strategic plan, I think is a huge advantage, is obviously your location. Right? You’re in the heart of downtown Atlanta. It’s massive headquarters for global brands, sports venues, I mean, state of the art sports venue. You got World Cup coming here this summer. Talk to us about how you’ve used this location to your benefit for the students and prospective students. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : Yeah. I mean, we have people on campus all the time. We have headquarters for ISG is here. We have, you know, we can walk from our campus to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, state Farm. We have the World Congress Center here, which is one of the largest convention centers at the day school. We don’t really have that many physical facilities. We don’t have a restaurant, we don’t have a hotel, but we don’t need to because we have Atlanta. Right. So that is a huge advantage for us. When we want people to come to campus to speak, they just need to just turn the corner and they’re here. And so we get great speakers to come to campus. Our students are engaged with the local industries here. Atlanta is the capital of franchising in the us Right? So if you think about the brands that we have here, Chick-fil-A, inspire brands, Rourke Capital. Rourke Capital, which is one of the largest private equity companies that owns Inspire and go-to Foods and over 50 franchise brands. And Atlanta’s growing. Right? And so if you’re a student and you come here, you can stay here afterwards, right? So if you’re a student at Cornell and you go to Ithaca, you’re probably not staying in Ithaca, right. Because there’s not much there. People have to get on a plane and they gotta fly to Ithaca to be in class. And so that is a huge advantage for us, right? Absolutely. For universities that are based in cities where people wanna work, that is a huge advantage for us, not only for our students to get internships, but afterwards to be able to live and work with, within the community. Ryan Embree: A hundred percent. And some of the schools and programs that we’ve visited, have laboratories and incubators that they use. Your lab and incubators are right outside these walls, right? So it’s almost like your classroom is the city of Atlanta and, and ’cause so much hospitality is going on every single day in those moments. So, incredible advantage that the students have here and the alumni network, which we’re gonna talk about here in a minute. But, you know, you talked about your, your strong background and franchising and entrepreneurship. Obviously you have a passion there. It’s, it’s kind of your strength and background share with us how you kind of incorporated that into the curriculum, into the day school hospitality. Sure. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : So when I came here to Georgia State, one of the things that my endow professorship they wanted me to do was basically talk about franchising for students overall. So I teach an undergraduate franchising course. And in that course, even though franchising obviously is central to the distribution of hotels and restaurants, franchising is everywhere. Everything in a strip mall is franchised. And students don’t understand that, right? Students don’t realize that. The other thing that we have here in Georgia State is we have an entrepreneurship innovation center. And so I have a joint appointment with them, and one of my passions is to get entrepreneurship students to think about franchising as one route to entrepreneurship. We have all these headquarters here. Even if you’re not gonna become a franchisee, you might go work for a franchising company Sure. As accountant, as somebody in marketing or in sales. These are large companies. Or you go, might go work for a franchisee. You know, one of the pathways to franchising is ownership. Now that can be difficult for students, and that’s one of the things that we’re gonna be working on in our strategic plan, is figuring out how do we get students in ownership positions, right? So we are a public university that, 40% of our students are Pell Grant eligible. Right? So they don’t come from money. It’s figuring out how we can change the trajectory of our students’ lives and transform their lives is something that is, one of one of our goals and franchising is a wealth creator, right? Some of the wealthiest people I know are franchisees, right? If you own 20 Dunking Donuts, you’re doing pretty well. You probably have a license plate that has donut on it, right? So, I’m very passionate about franchising. Now there’s good franchising and there’s bad franchising, right? So, there are some franchise brands that I don’t suggest students invest in. And part of that is kind of understanding what franchising is about, right? It’s a partnership. So in the class we talk a lot about, you know, these are two options. These are two options for that you might wanna pick as a franchise, which one would you pick? And understanding kind of the owner who owns a franchise brand, what are the parameters of the contract? And exposing students to that pathway. There’s not that many programs in the US that focus on franchising, and there’s very few endowed professorships in franchising. And so one of our goals going forward is to work more on exposing more students to franchising in general. Ryan Embree: It’s such a great opportunity. I mean, I think all of those success stories where franchises were sometimes built from these schools and now are such job creators of what you’re talking about. So to kind of arm your students with that knowledge, whether again, they’re looking to start their own franchise, become a part of a franchise, or work for a franchisee. Incredibly wealth of knowledge there. So really, really cool work that you’re doing there. The school has really deep roots in the business community. You mentioned some of the major brands. How have you seen this kind of fast track students hospitality careers or even like through internships that you’re doing at the on on school? Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : So we, so one of the things we tell students is get internships right away. So, start with doing internships and get into those businesses and start working. ’cause once it’s the best way for them to kind of feel out the company and know if it’s the right fit for them as well as the company filling them out. So we, we have, we have more internship opportunities for our students than we can fulfill, right. Everything from going to the masters or engaging with Mercedes-Benz Stadium or working at State Farm Arena, working local hotels. We could have double the number of students and we still have opportunity for them. I think, you know, Atlanta’s a growing city, right? We’re continually growing. We have a great ecosystem of universities here in Atlanta, not only Georgia State, but Kennesaw State, Georgia Tech, university of Georgia’s not that far away. Georgia Southern. So we have a great ecosystem of universities here, and that helps to kind of feed the need for the businesses, and especially in the hospitality business. Where, we’re building one of the largest entertainment centers here in Atlanta. $5 billion is going to create, create this Centennial Yards, which is this transformation of downtown. So it’s a really exciting place to be. And businesses want our students, our students tend to be the way we describe Georgia State. Students are students with grit. Many of our students are working while they’re going to school.They can’t afford not to work. Luckily in the state of Georgia, we have Hope Scholarship. So most of our students are going, are getting their education covered. And at the day school, we provide a lot of scholarship money. So if you’re a Georgia State Day School student and you don’t get a scholarship, I’m saying, why aren’t you getting a scholarship? You should be applying for one. We have a lot of good, you know, we have Hunter Scholarship for the Hunter family. We have lots of industry partners that understand the benefit of providing our students with scholarship money and offering paid internships that get them, get them engaged and working, in the industry. And we have FIFA coming. So what a great opportunity for students to get a front seat to an amazing event, is to work a FIFA event. Ryan Embree: It’s wonderful advice. And would encourage, students that might be finding this, if you have required internships, would you even I had them when I went to school, get eclectic with it. Like, expose yourself to as many things as possible, because this industry has so much to offer. And this is like a first time glance at what you might wanna do in your career. A lot of the hospitality professionals I’ve talked to have fallen into these types of careers where you could have a fast track of being like, I know exactly what I wanna do. ’cause I had the experience of this internship. So it’s great that you continue to put your, your students in positions like that. And the learning from it will last you here until the end of your career and until their alumni, which we’ll, we’ll talk about, right? Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : And then also study abroad, right. We have two study abroad programs that we do. One is fully funded, so we pay for everything for the students. Unfortunately, location, it was Dubai in Abu Dhabi, so we had to, we’re gonna have to retool that for this year. But we pay for everything for our students to have an experience that is just out of this world. And we also have a European study abroad experience. So I’ll say, you know, the getting, taking advantage of those experiences and trying different things, right. Don’t go to the same company for four years. Try something else. Try something new. And when you’re in Atlanta, you can do that. You don’t have to go anywhere else to go work at State Farm and then figure out like, I wanna go to Mercedes-Benz or gonna work at Inspire Brands. It’s all here. Ryan Embree: It really is. And a lot of, obviously, alumni have come and worked at those organizations. Talk to us about, you know, the alumni network, how you continue and your role to try to foster that. Because if you can show a student, Hey, this is the path you can take and this is where you can get to, and the opportunities that kind of expand and open up to you when you graduate from here it’s a powerful thing and, and powerful way to get people through the doors. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : Yeah, absolutely. We are a large university, so we have over 300,000 alums. And if you think about it, students who go to Georgia State are probably most likely gonna be living in Atlanta or somewhere else. We’re a large city and we have lots of opportunity. So vicinity wise, you have a lot of alums living in this area. And because we have, we’re such a large school. If you ask someone, do you know anybody from they went to school at Georgia State, probably they did, or they, they got a master’s degree at Georgia State. Or you know, their, their, their sister did. So everyone’s always willing to help too. Right. So this feeling of like, you know, the idea that, you know, you’ve come from a certain background and, and you’ve achieved, graduated from Georgia State. There’s always people willing to help. And I’ll say the hospitality industry is, this is an a industry of opportunity. So there’s people that work, start working in as a waiter and then become CEO of the company. That trajectory happens. It might take some time, but this is an industry that values hard work, grit, personal attention to customer satisfaction. But it’s doable. And so that’s what inspires, that’s what inspires me about Georgia State, is that I can see our students grow over time, and I can see those students in management positions in the future, and that’s gonna change the trajectory of their life. Or they might own a franchise, or they might start a franchise. If you think about a company like Zaxby’s, right? It’s was started by students, you know, it was started at Georgia Southern. And those two founders are now worth billions. So the idea that we can change the life of students and, and we can do that here in Atlanta, is something that I’m really passionate about. Ryan Embree: And, you know, so we kind of spoke to the students now, the hospitality professionals that might be listening to that be open to being a mentor for these younger students. Because, I sit across the table. I had the privilege and honor of sitting across the table for some incredible hospitality leaders. And every single time I ask them about their hospitality journey, there’s typically always a name in there that they attribute a lot of their success as a jumping off point or a starting point for their career. So be on either side of that, right. To be the person that helps someone, or be the person that reach out to someone for help. It’s hospitality. It’s a people serving people industry. That’s why we love it. That’s why we’re in it. So definitely recommend doing that as well. You know, the success of the program has been recognized as Top Hospitality School across the country, multiple accolades. You talked about the research at the top of the episode. Talk to us a little bit about, you know, that what the accolades mean to you and kind of how it’s helped prospective students kind of recognize Georgia State as one of the top hospitality programs. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : Absolutely. The, you know, one thing is we’ve been around a while, right? So we’ve been around over 50 years, and I think being embedded in a business school helps us as well. Our students have a very strong business background. They have to pass accounting and finance courses. They have that strong kind of analytical background. And then they take their hospitality courses. We have a lot of students that are, we’re known for students with grit. That don’t get their hands dirty and are willing to like, do the, do the operations type jobs. I’ll say that, you know, operations jobs are the foundation of kind of understanding the business, right? You might wanna be a revenue manager, but you don’t really understand what revenue management is about until you work the front desk and understand that business. Absolutely. So, you know, for a long time, we’ve, you know, we’re at a top business school. We’re at a large state university for a long time. We’ve put students into the ecosystem. So when people think about us, they think about those students, and we’re gonna build upon that going forward. So, we we’re working on a strategic plan to kinda strengthen those fundamentals as well as specialize in and expand our portfolio to things like entertainment and sports, which is all about hospitality, right? Absolutely. Because students today, they really passionate about live events and sports and entertainment. And that’s all part of that hospitality ecosystem, right? Hospitality is part of most things we do. It’s like we’re in a service economy. We’re in experience economy. Most of the qualities you learn in a hospitality degree, you can apply in any type of business. So I’m very proud of the fact that we are at, we’re an ACSB accredited school, so we have that business foundation. At the same time we have specialized interest in things that are really important to hospitality. So franchising is one of those that I think we can build upon going forward. Ryan Embree: I mean, you talk about that younger generation loving live events. I mean, look on social media and you also see, them standing in line for food and beverage item. Like that there’s such passion, and that younger generation that they can bring to hospitality and we get the privilege of serving them. So, one of the places where you have a strong alumni presence and even student presence. And the reason we’re here is covering the Hunter Conference 2026 over at the brand new beautiful Signia Hilton, Atlanta. Like I said, a lot of, Georgia State involvement there. Special relationship between the two organizations. Give us some history there and how that’s evolved over the last couple decades. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : Absolutely. So it’s a very special relationship. We are one of the co-founders of the Hunter Conference, starting in 1989, with less than a hundred people. And now we have 2000 industry professionals coming to Atlanta from one of the largest hospitality real estate conferences, in the U.S. So obviously the Hunters have a scholarship. We have students, our students run the conference, right? So Sarah [Moss] is the Chief of Staff, is one of our former students. Maddie [Thibodeaux] runs a conference, is one of our former students, previously an intern. So we have an internship program, that we run where this year, Heather was the, the intern there, really helps us to get those students start working in, you know, an amazing event and expose those students and all our students have access to the Hunter Conference. So regardless if you’re a real estate student or a finance student, a hospitality student, psychology student, you can access the conference. We also, Mitch Shaw, endowed the Bradshaw Speaker series, in honor of his father. And every year, we have amazing, amazing person from industry come and talk about their life journey. And so Tony Ressler was the speaker this year, transformer of the Centennial Yards, investing in the owner of the Hawks, and exposes our students to those industry professionals. And so I look forward to every year for us to have that event. It’s very special relationship that benefits our students and benefits our faculty. Getting access to that. And it’s less than a mile from here. Right. So we, I can walk from my office down to the Signia Hotel, look at all the development down there, engage our students with amazing content. Ryan Embree: What, what an opportunity for your students to be involved in that event. And, you know, we just talked about the power of mentors, right? And there could be, your mentor is sitting right there. I mean, it, it’s an incredible conference. We have the privilege of covering it over the past couple years. Now, as it enters its new chapter at the Signia, it continues to just grow and grow and really appreciate the relationship that Georgia State has there. And it’s so cool to see those students, we’ve seen students at that conference from, from all over the country, love to see that. Because again, those are those opportunities that we talked about where it’s like, you gotta take advantage of that and you have it less than a mile, you know, away from your campus. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : Yeah. And the thing is that when you talk about mentors is that, you know, many of our students, their parents, they’re first generation college students. They’re first generation college graduates. Like, I’m a first generation college graduate immigrant to the U.S. Your parents really don’t know how to help you in that. So, especially for our students and other students, they’re first generation graduates, they need those mentors to help them. So they don’t have parents that are working in the corporate environment that are telling them to get this internship. And so I would say, you know, if you’re if you’re opportunity to mentor a student, you can change the trajectory of their lives. And that is gonna pay dividends in the future. There’s nothing more rewarding than looking at a student and seeing their, their change over time and their position in an industry. Ryan Embree: It’s a great segue ’cause we’re gonna give some advice here to a couple exciting chapters and young professionals lives. What advice would you give to hospitality students right now? Because right now, you know, I pose this question by always saying, if I were, going into hospitality, there’s a lot of noise outside of our industry right now about AI and technology taking jobs. And we’ve talked about this where it might kind of be an opportunity for hospitality right now. So what advice would you share with them kind of hearing this? Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : I tell all the marketing students and the finance students, the CIS students come to hospitality. We got jobs. AI is gonna impact our industry, right. But we’re always gonna need that personal touch. We’re always gonna have to have that touch with the customer and have those personal relationships. And so understanding how AI is gonna impact the industry is important. We’re even changing some of our courses to better understand how we can use these tools to improve performance, to improve customer satisfaction, to reduce wait times. But at the end of the day, we’re in a human business, right? We’re about human experiences and people crave human experiences, right? So, you know, the live events, the reason why we love live events is because we live in the digital world a lot. And so this is the, this is I think a turning point for hospitality for us to really become central to people’s lives. Post pandemic, people want to connect with other people. We are in the business of creating amazing experiences. And if we can create American amazing experiences and bring people together, that’s what hospitality is about. So I would tell students, students that are graduating, this is an amazing opportunity for you. Go out there, find a company that you are passionate about and work hard and work in operations, understand the business. This is your opportunity to, people say, I don’t wanna work in operations. I understand the business. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you. Who knows what’s gonna happen in the future. But I’ll say, we have jobs and we will have jobs in the future. Ryan Embree: Absolutely. And when you said that operations point, I love it. ’cause you’d be surprised how many front desk agents, bellmans, I’ve talked to across the, across the table that are now in corporate America because, but that’s where they had their start, and they attribute a lot of their success to saying, I was on the front line doing these jobs, doing these work. That’s where again, whether it’s a first job, entry-level job or whether it’s an internship can be so formative and foundational for your career. Now, let’s turn our attention to maybe incoming freshmen, right? They got the next four years daunting before they graduate and get out into the, to the world. What advice would you give them coming to Georgia State and the Day Hospitality School? Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : I would say take advantage of that time, right? So these are four years in which you can do anything you want. So have some fun, right. Go to events, post pandemic. You know, we we’re somewhat of a commuter school. We have dorms on campus, but a lot of our students are still living at home. So it may take some effort to get in a car drive downtown and meet up with an industry professional, but that’s where the value is. That’s why you’re in Atlanta, right? That’s where the school is about network. Meeting people, learning about other people, creating that network. And I would say get an internship from day one, look for an internship every year, get an internship. That summertime is a time in which you can invest in yourself. And classes are one thing, but really college is a lot about trying to figure out what you wanna do besides just the classes. Select your classes you want to take, and then engage in clubs and go do study abroad. Both my kids are Georgia State. Were Georgia State students, and go do study abroad. Go do whatever you want. This is a time in your life to explore. And you don’t have a mortgage. You might not have a car. You can do anything you want. And we’re there to support you. If you want an internship in Atlanta and you’re a Georgia State student, we can find you one. So, I mean, that to me is like, just be excited about that time of your life and AI, you know, AI is gonna impact our industry, but it’s not gonna take our jobs. Ryan Embree: And, and raise your hand and volunteer. I mean, this you got the World Cup. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be involved in something in this amazing city. I mean, there was only a select number of cities, Atlanta being one of them. What an opportunity to be involved in an event that is gonna span maybe something you look back on, where people are coming from all over the world, to be here in Atlanta. So I love that advice, especially for those younger freshmen, just starting their journey. Well, so now we’re gonna, now we’re gonna share a little bit about your vision. So as we wrap up today, you talked about the strategic plan. What’s your vision as you look at the second half of the 2020s for the school here? Dr. Benjamin Lawrence : So we’re really focused on broadening, hospitality past hotels and restaurants and focusing on experiences. And so we really want to be the school that drives and understands how people wanna live their lives through experiences. And so focusing on, on entertainment, focusing on sports focusing on live events, focusing on hotels and restaurants. But people go to restaurants for, for different reasons, right? The transactional component of a restaurant, ordering online and Uber, that’s important. But the other side of going to restaurant is celebrating, right? Sure. And engaging with the people. And like, and you gotta understand where you are. Are you providing a transactional type approach where you’re just giving a meal or you are providing an experience. And we feel that the, there’s lots of value in creating those experiences. And so when you think about hospitality as creating memorable experiences, really broadens the perspective. Every time of service is about creating an experience. And so our plan is to focus on experiences generally, and then also to invite students that aren’t hospitality students to understand the business. So, you know, hospitality programs and business schools are never gonna be huge, right? You have other departments, but what we can do is we can get a marketing student say, listen, come to Hunter and you realize that like they may be maybe 20% of people in that pool are marketing people, right? Sales and marketing. Or accounting. So exposing hospitality to a broad set of students to show them the opportunities, right? We have a lot of opportunity for students. The trajectory of those students that are hardworking, that wanna it is, is very steep. And so that is our strategic plan going forward to figure out how do we can expose hospitality generally to the whole university, not just the school of business. And then to focus on being experts in creating memorable experiences. And I’m excited about the future. We’re in Atlanta, we’re at Georgia State. We have so many positive attributes. We’re investing $80 million in our campus downtown. If you haven’t had an opportunity to come downtown Atlanta, let me know. Send me an email, because we are transforming, downtown Atlanta, and it’s a place that people want to work, play, and stay. And, that’s just gonna improve as we invest in Centennial Yards and the stadium complex. Ryan Embree: One of the advice I always received was talking about the investment behind a school. If you see that it’s growing, it’s a growing university, there’s investment into it, it’s a place that you want to be so, certainly reflected here at Georgia State. Those experiences that you talked about so important. I mean, think about when you were in hospitality school, even when I was in hospitality school. Now the, the lanes of hospitality and specialties that you can get your degrees in because it encompasses just so much right now and it continues to grow. And as far as exposing more and more people to hospitality and its opportunities, it’s exactly what we’re here to do on the TMG campus cross. So we are so happy that you had us here and, sat down with us and, and took some time outta your day to do this with us. Dr. Benjamin Lawrence: Thank you so much. You’re doing important work. And go Panthers! Ryan Embree: Alright. Thank you so much. We’ll talk to you next time on the SuiteSpot. To join our loyalty program. Be sure to subscribe and give us a five star reading on iTunes. Suite Spot is produced by Travel Media Group. Our editor is Brandon Bell with Cover Art by Bary Gordon. I’m your host Ryan Embree and we hope you enjoyed your stay.

Today's guest is Demetrius Holiday, pediatric nurse practitioner, clinical assistant professor at Georgia State University, and she serves on the Patient Family Advisory Council for Emory Healthcare. She also volunteers as an Ambassador and Mentor for Imerman Angels, mentors youth through Black Girls Smile, Inc., and is owner and CEO of DDH Health Education Consultants, LLC, providing health education to medical providers, patients and caregivers. Demetrius is also a head and neck cancer survivor and her story is one of determination and fighting every step of the way to get the care she needed. She has since used her own experience to become a better listener with her own patients and an advocate and mentor. As we finish out April, which is also Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Month, we talk about not taking "no" for an answer, the power of a strong support system, addressing disparities in healthcare, the importance of mentorship, and so much more!!Resources:Demetrius' LinkedIn: Demetrius Holiday DNP, MS, CPNP-PCDemetrius' Email: deholiday74@gmail.comImerman Angels website: https://imermanangels.org/Follow:Follow me: https://www.instagram.com/melissagrosboll/My website: https://melissagrosboll.comEmail me: drmelissagrosboll@gmail.com

Is polyamory about more than just how many partners you have?According to a YouGov survey from 2023, on a scale of zero being completely monogamous and six being completely non-monogamous, one third of Americans put their answer somewhere above zero. And there are a lot of different types of non-monogamy, but one of those types – polyamory – has been in the discourse as of late. The polyamory that writer Lindy West describes in her new book, Adult Braces, has spawned a thousand takes: her path to polyamory was admittedly kind of dicey, and it spawned discussion about what polyamory means. Polyamory can stand in for a set of political beliefs, class associations and other signifiers that have nothing to do with how many partners one has. But why does a choice about relationship structures feel so weighty, and why can't anyone be normal about it?To discuss, Brittany is joined by Christopher M. Gleason, lecturer of American history at Georgia State University and the author of American Poly, a book about the history of polyamory in America.(00:00) Lindy West and polyamory panic(02:41) Polyamory's surprising political origins(07:02) Can polyamory "fix" relationships?(12:41) Misconceptions about polyamory (and why it has so many haters)For more episodes about relationships, check out:What really counts as "cheating?"The joy of breaking up with dating appsMe and my partner don't see eye-to-eye about AI. Now what?Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus.Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluseFor handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR's Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

In episode #57 of the How Humans Work Podcast, I sit down with social psychology and education policy expert Ryan Balch to explore the underlying evolutionary social forces that drive our behaviors and create challenges in our society. With tremendous ease and good-heartedness, Ryan walks us through core motivations, disconnects, and other hazards that our default "System 1" thinking brings to the table.By understanding both System 1 thinking and the core needs for value and belonging, we can grasp the why and how our snap categorizations and defensive instincts seek to protect our identities in a highly segregated society, generating social and conversational friction. Balch explains how deep-seated human needs for belonging and security often masquerade as rigid political stances, leading to profound communication breakdowns.Further in, we learn practical, "System 2" strategies to overcome these defensive reactions, primarily by shifting the goal of a conversation from "winning" to "understanding". By asking curious questions, navigating cognitive dissonance, and recognizing that challenged beliefs can literally feel like physical threats to the brain, this episode offers a compassionate roadmap for building genuine human connections in an age where difficult conversations lead to polarizations and social strife.Thank you, Ryan, for being on the show and giving us simple, clear, and powerful insights to help us navigate differences in a constructive and caring way.Key TakeawaysThe Default Mode: Our brains naturally rely on "System 1" thinking, which is quick, automatic, and instinctually focused on categorizing others.The Root of Disconnect: We frequently confuse our internal emotional needs for security and control with outward political policy statements.Defensive Reactions: When our ideas are challenged, it threatens our sense of security and creates cognitive dissonance.Moving the Goalposts: We often try to reduce this internal tension defensively by blaming others or shifting the parameters of the argument.The Media's Role: News outlets capitalize on our natural uncertainty by providing outrage-inducing narratives that give our brains rewarding hits of dopamine.Shifting Goals: To foster better interactions, we must consciously apply "System 2" effort to change our conversational goal from trying to convince to trying to understand.The Power of Empathy: Brain scans show that receiving a counteracting idea can register in the brain similarly to a physical knife attack.Grace in Dialogue: Recognizing this biological reality highlights the vital need for grace, curiosity, and compassion when engaging with differing perspectives.About Ryan Balch:Ryan is a Senior Lecturer in the Psychology and LPO department at Vanderbilt University, where he teaches classes on social psychology, general psychology, and education policy. He completed his Ph.D. in Education Policy at Vanderbilt University as an Institute of Education Sciences (IES) Fellow, during which his dissertation focused on the development and validation of student surveys of teacher practice. Following graduation, Ryan was the director of teacher and principal evaluation for Baltimore City Schools. During this time, he oversaw the creation and implementation of the district's new evaluation systems. Previously, Ryan worked for 7 years as a psychology and science teacher and administrator at Riverwood High School in Atlanta, Georgia. He has a B.A. in Psychology from Duke University and an M.A. in Science Education from Georgia State University. Ryan plays ultimate frisbee and enjoys coaching and being involved in all the activities of his 13 and 11-year-old kids.Show ResourcesArticle on Vulnerability by Ryan's Social Psych StudentsProductive Conversation AssignmentHeineken Worlds Apart CommercialTerry Dobson's Aikido StoryAn Interview link to the Brent MacKinnon Conversation

Guest Host: Terry Slatic Major Slatic is joined by his college roommate, NFL Veteran Harper Lebel. LaBell spent 11 years (1987-1997) in the NFL and most recently covering the Atlanta Falcons and Georgia State University. LeBel and Slatic discuss this week's NFL draft and his NFL career. Guest Host: Terry Slatic Please Like, Comment and Follow 'Philip Teresi on KMJ' on all platforms: --- Philip Teresi on KMJ is available on the KMJNOW app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever else you listen to podcasts. -- Philip Teresi on KMJ Weekdays 2-6 PM Pacific on News/Talk 580 AM & 105.9 FM KMJ | Website | Facebook | Instagram | X | Podcast | Amazon | - Everything KMJ KMJNOW App | Podcasts | Facebook | X | Instagram See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Boom to Bust is a timely investigation into the rise of Peak TV and the perfect storm that caused a rapid decline in Hollywood work. When Hollywood writers and actors went on strike in 2023, they drew attention to the rapidly changing nature of film and television production. In Boom to Bust, media industry experts Miranda Banks and Kate Fortmueller combine economic and cultural analysis and interviews with industry workers to capture the lived experience of Hollywood in crisis. Tracking major disruptions of the preceding decade—including the transformation of streaming services into studios, the overproduction of series during Peak TV, as well as #MeToo and COVID—the authors explain how the conflicting interests of studio executives, creative workers, and workers' unions compelled a renegotiation of the terms of work. Grounding readers in the history of Hollywood labor negotiations, the authors provide a road map to make sense of Hollywood's present—and what comes next. Miranda Banks is Professor of Film, Television, and Media Studies at Loyola Marymount University, author of The Writers: A History of American Screenwriters and Their Guild, and coeditor of Production Studies. Kate Fortmueller is Associate Professor of Film and Media History at Georgia State University and author of Below the Stars: How the Labor of Working Actors and Extras Shapes Media Production and Hollywood Shutdown: Production, Distribution, and Exhibition in the Time of COVID. Peter C. Kunze is an assistant professor of communication at Tulane University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Boom to Bust is a timely investigation into the rise of Peak TV and the perfect storm that caused a rapid decline in Hollywood work. When Hollywood writers and actors went on strike in 2023, they drew attention to the rapidly changing nature of film and television production. In Boom to Bust, media industry experts Miranda Banks and Kate Fortmueller combine economic and cultural analysis and interviews with industry workers to capture the lived experience of Hollywood in crisis. Tracking major disruptions of the preceding decade—including the transformation of streaming services into studios, the overproduction of series during Peak TV, as well as #MeToo and COVID—the authors explain how the conflicting interests of studio executives, creative workers, and workers' unions compelled a renegotiation of the terms of work. Grounding readers in the history of Hollywood labor negotiations, the authors provide a road map to make sense of Hollywood's present—and what comes next. Miranda Banks is Professor of Film, Television, and Media Studies at Loyola Marymount University, author of The Writers: A History of American Screenwriters and Their Guild, and coeditor of Production Studies. Kate Fortmueller is Associate Professor of Film and Media History at Georgia State University and author of Below the Stars: How the Labor of Working Actors and Extras Shapes Media Production and Hollywood Shutdown: Production, Distribution, and Exhibition in the Time of COVID. Peter C. Kunze is an assistant professor of communication at Tulane University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/film

All of Europe's eyes were on Hungary this past weekend, where voters, in a historic election, brought Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's 16 years in power to an end.  Orban's close relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and his blocking of multiple EU initiatives - including an urgently needed €90 billion loan for Ukraine - had frustrated many across Europe. At the same time, he presided over a system that saw his party gradually gain control of much of the judiciary, bureaucracy, media, universities, and the economy, which sounded alarms for those concerned about democratic backsliding.  Beyond Europe, this result was also on the White House's radar, and Vice President J.D. Vance even traveled to Hungary to campaign for Orban - the European leader with the closest ties to President Trump. Orban's sweeping defeat raises new questions for European far right populist parties, and its leaders are beginning to question the value of their ties to the MAGA movement. Since our focus is on elections this episode, Greece, which is scheduled to hold national elections in 2027 is also gradually shifting into campaign mode. As parties jostle for a larger share of the electorate, the government looks to be bracing for a number of post-Easter challenges that include rising prices and the ongoing and evolving farm subsidies case. Steven Erlanger, Simon Nixon, Jennifer McCoy, and Nick Malkoutzis join Thanos Davelis as we look at Hungary's landmark election, breaking down what it means for Europe and for the war in Ukraine, the message it sends to those concerned about democratic backsliding in the West, and what takeaways there are for Greece as the country inches toward national elections next year. A little more info on our guests: Steven Erlanger is the chief diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times covering Europe. Simon Nixon is an independent journalist, Kathimerini columnist, and the publisher of the Wealth of Nations newsletter. Dr. Jennifer McCoy is a Nonresident Scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She is also Regent's Professor of Political Science at Georgia State University in Atlanta and a research affiliate at the Democracy Institute of Central European University, Budapest, Hungary. Nick Malkoutzis is the co-founder and editor of Macropolis.gr. You can support The Greek Current by joining HALC as a member here.

A woman in Georgia says she was pushed out and fired from Georgia State University while undergoing chemotherapy, and now she is fighting back in court. A family in Alaska files a lawsuit claiming a woman froze to death after repeated 911 calls failed to bring timely help as she sat outside in subfreezing conditions. Drew Nelson reports.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.