Duets

Professor Kisha Daniels and Duke undergraduate student Selena Collins’ collaborative service-learning course, Critical Pedagogy of Hip Hop, connects Duke students and Durham Public School middle and high schoolers. Working in partnership with public school educators, Duke students create engaging learning environments that celebrate language, critical thinking and social justice through hip hop mu...

Duke faculty Pedro Lasch and UNC faculty Sherrill Roland’s artistic collaborations ask: How does art reclaim our humanity? After spending ten months in prison for a crime he didn’t commit and for which he was exonerated, Roland returned to his art practice not just to heal, but to challenge. Through a fellowship with Lasch’s Social Practice Lab — which brings together scholars, artists, and activi...

Since their first meeting six years ago, Alec Greenwald from Duke University and Yolanda Dunston from North Carolina Central University have been united in a shared vision: Supporting public schools that serve as hubs of opportunity, healing and innovation. Through the university-assistance framework, Duke and NCCU act as a unified partner for local public schools, providing targeted support based...

Professor Shaundra Daily and Trinity ’25 alumna Reagan Razon’s collaborative research is rooted at the intersection of computer science, education, access, and innovation. Their community engaged programs include the student-led nonprofit CS Sidekicks, which brings CS education and mentorship directly to Durham Public Schools, and the L.I.F.T. Lab, where students explore engineering concepts throu...

Professor Adam Rosenblatt and undergraduate student Shreya Joshi’s collaborative research uses oral history and visual storytelling to document Durham’s independent comics scene. From in-depth interviews with self-published creators and small-press artists, to exploring the key spaces that sustain the local indie comics community — like the Durham Public Libraries —this community-engaged research...

Faculty team Maria Tackett and Nicole Schramm-Sapyta's seven-year project is transforming our understanding and responses to the needs of people navigating Durham’s criminal justice and healthcare systems. Working with student researchers and in collaboration with the Durham County Detention Facility, Justice Services Center, and Duke Health, they’ve compiled one of the most comprehensive datasets...

Episode 6: Mathematics and Biology professor Veronica Ciocanel and student Daniel Block (T’24) discuss their shared experience of being math students at Duke, what it means to let go of a project’s ownership and how to use the scientific method to investigate the existence of the Tooth Fairy. Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications  Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maxi...

Episode 5: Asian American & Diaspora Studies professor Eileen Chow and student Huiyin Zhou (T’24) discuss the fruits of inter-generational collaboration, the power of collective poetry writing and the different kinds of intimacies that emerge from being able to comfortably switch between languages. Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications  Audio Editor and Mixer:...

Episode 4: Dance professor Iyun Harrison and student Leah Esemuede (T’24) discuss how the body is politicized in the ballet world, the vital role of artistic skills on overall student success, and the decisions a choreographer must make when staging a dance piece — including the importance of lighting design. Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications  Audio Editor and...

Episode 3: Cultural Anthropology professor Christine Folch and student Andrew McCallum (T’24) discuss the value of friendship and camaraderie in research, how forgotten stories can be uncovered in archival records, and the cultural significance of South America’s most popular beverage, yerba mate — whose North American cousin hides in plain sight on Duke’s campus. Credits Senior Editor and Produce...

Episode 2: History professor Gunther Peck and student Hannah McKnight (T’22) discuss the importance of curiosity in democracy work, their shared experience as 20-year-old volunteers at voter registration drives, and the need for collective action to create meaningful social change. Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications  Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov  Music...

Episode 1: Chemistry professor Kathy Franz and student Sophia Kuhn (T’24) discuss the artistic side of chemistry, the rapid pace of technological advancements in the field and the value of persistence in overcoming challenges, especially when experiments don’t go as planned. Credits Senior Editor and Producer: Cara August, Trinity Communications Audio Editor and Mixer: Marc Maximov Music Compositi...