First State Insights

Cathy Roberson, founder of Logistics Trends & Insights, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about her current analysis on freight, supply chain, and logistics. Topics covered in this March 11, 2022 interview include reverse logistics, the evolution of e-commerce, and the return of in-person networking with supply chain...

Ellory Monks, co-founder of The Atlas, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about major opportunities and challenges the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) presents for state and local governments. Topics covered in this March 10, 2022 interview include how Ellory and her team at The Atlas aim to spur transformativ...

Dr. Jalaal Hayes speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about his experiences with growing a startup and developing as an entrepreneur. Dr. Hayes is the founder and CEO of Elyte Energy, a Delaware-based startup company focused on delivering hydrogen energy and storage as an economical and green alternative to current standards....

Khary DeWitt, President of Mountaineer Logistics, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about his company’s entry into the logistics sector. Topics covered in this February 24, 2022 interview include Mountaineer Logistics’ mission and lines of business; the dynamics of operating a logistics company during the COVID-19 pa...

Marilyn Smith, Executive Director of the Dover/Kent County MPO, speaks with Madison Matera (MPA ‘22), Public Administration Fellow at the University of Delaware’s Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about transitioning to work in Delaware, the crucial role of transportation planning, and the opportunities presented by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Topics covered during this Ja...

Dr. Rick Cotton, Associate Professor of Talent Management and Sustainable Innovation at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about employees and employers navigating the disruption of the pandemic and finding their way toward models of work that breed successful careers and...

Brian Glick, Founder and CEO of Chain. IO, joins Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), to discuss what’s new, familiar, and old about current supply chain integration challenges. Topics covered in this January 17, 2022 interview include changes in what it means to optimize supply chains, the ongoing challenges of integrating new and...

Dr. Victor Perez, Associate Professor with the University of Delaware's Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about ongoing pandemic response and recovery efforts from a sociological perspective. Topics examined include childcare's critical role in supporting workers and fami...

Tierra Fair, Senior Director of Community Engagement at United Way of Delaware, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the ongoing need to advance racial justice and opportunities for progress in Delaware. In her role at United Way of Delaware, Tierra has statewide responsibility for advocating on behalf of underser...

Stuart Comstock-Gay, President and CEO of the Delaware Community Foundation, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about existing and potential roles for philanthrophy in ensuring resilient communities and households across Delaware. The Delaware Community Foundation is a nonprofit organization focused on partnering with...

Eric Johnson, Senior Editor of Technology at the Journal of Commerce, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about how businesses, consumers, and freight operators interact with logistics technology as goods move from factories to living rooms. Eric also provides insights on the severity and causes of the ongoing supply c...

Erin Norris, Natural Hazards Planner with the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA), speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the value of community partnerships for disaster response and recovery and opportunities to diversify the field of emergency management moving forward. At DEMA, Erin is the State Public A...

Eric Johnson, Senior Editor of Technology at the Journal of Commerce, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about efforts to map, understand, and report on the companies, technologies, and business functions at the forefront of innovation in the logistics sector. This episode is part one of a two-part conversation record...

Betsey Suchanic, Senior Program Manager with the Urban Libraries Council, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware’s Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about local libraries' critical community economic development roles. Topics covered include the essential local government services provided by libraries during the pandemic and the need to reinvest in public...

Monica Sanders, Managing Director of the Georgetown Environmental Justice Program, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the need to consider and address the digital divide in recovery. In addition to her role at the Georgetown Environmental Justice Program, Monica holds a faculty appointment at the Georgetown Univ...

Katelyn Andrews, Director of Public Policy at LiveOn NY, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about public policy priorities for aging and older adults and her vision for the future of long-term care. In her current role, Katelyn leads LiveOn NY’s policy, advocacy, and communications efforts on issues related to afforda...

Kevin Kovaleski, Assistant Vice President of Academic Enterprise Communications at Arizona State University, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the future of higher education. Topics covered in this June 4, 2021 interview include lessons learned about remote learning during the pandemic and perspectives on highe...

Logan Herring, CEO of Reach Riverside, the Kingswood Community Center, and The Warehouse, speaks with Sean O'Neill, Policy Scientist at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about leading revitalization efforts in Wilmington's Riverside neighborhood. During this April 29, 2021 interview, Logan describes how he became a community leader in Wilmington and details th...

Jay White, Founder and President of Apex Realty Advisory in Wilmington, Delaware, speaks with Sean O’Neill, Policy Scientist at the University of Delaware’s Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about real estate trends in Delaware. During this April 21, 2021 interview, Jay provides his expert opinion and analysis on how the pandemic and remote work have impacted Delaware’s office, housing, a...

Kim Book, Founder and Executive Director of the nonprofit Victims’ Voices Heard, speaks with Danielle Vota and Ruth Decosse, conflict resolution practitioners at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about why restorative justice matters. Topics covered in this interview include Kim’s personal story of how she transformed the painful experience of her daughter’s m...

Patricia Porter, Founder and President of Conflict Connections, speaks with Danielle Vota and Ruth Decosse, conflict resolution practitioners at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the crucial leadership skill of conflict management. Topics covered in this interview include what conflict management is and how it differs from conflict resolution, why it's e...

Dr. Amanda Bullough, Associate Professor of Management and Global Leadership at the University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about challenges and opportunities for women in entrepreneurship, the disparate impacts of the pandemic on women in the workfo...

Cliff Grunstra, Chief Marketing Officer for the Delmarva Central Railroad, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the role of shortline railroads on Delmarva. Cliff has more than a decade of experience in the railroad industry, including working for Carload Express, Inc. (CEI) since 2015. The Delmarva Central Railro...

Garry Johnson, Founder and Executive Director of First Founders, Inc., speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about entrepreneurship lessons learned, the emerging pre-, post-, and during pandemic story of First Founders, and his thoughts on steps needed to build a more equitable innovation ecosystem in Delaware and beyond...

Ilana Preuss, Founder and CEO of Recast City, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about her latest book, "Recast Your City: How to Save Your Downtown with Small-Scale Manufacturing." Released by Island Press in June 2021, the book explains how local leaders can revitalize their downtowns by supporting small-scale manuf...