Voices of Excellence

Carmen Winant, Associate Professor and a 2019 Guggenheim Fellow, discusses her work in the Whitney Biennial. Winant’s installation, “The Last Safe Abortion,” consists of nearly 3,000 photographs depicting everyday activities in abortion clinics, emphasizing the labor and commitment of the workers. She details her approach to large-scale photography installations and discusses her...

Lisa Florman, Professor of the History of Arts and Vice Provost for the Arts at Ohio State University, discusses the status and future of the arts at Ohio State. She highlights the impressive history of Ohio State artists, citing notable alumni and current achievements such as participation in the Whitney Biennial and the awarding of Guggenheim Fellowships. Florman describes initiatives like the v...

Kevin McClatchy, Associate Professor of Theatre at Ohio State University, will serve as Ohio State’s Artist Laureate for the 2024-2025 academic year, focusing on expanding his projects to underserved communities in Ohio. He discusses his work with the Shakespeare and Autism Project, which uses theater games based on Shakespeare’s texts to help autistic children express themselves. McCl...

Dr. Adélékè Adéèkó, Humanities Distinguished Professor at The Ohio State University, discusses his book Arts of Being Yorùbá . Dr. Adéèkó delves into the cultural significance of Yorùbá proverbs, praise poetry, and fiction. He explains how these forms of expression define Yorùbá identity and addresses their use in modern forms like pictorial magazines. The conversation also touches on orature, a t...

Dr. Anna Willow, professor and engaged environmental anthropologist, focuses on human-environment relationships and resource conflicts. She joins David Staley to discuss her work on anti-clearcutting activism among the Anishinaabe people and her broader studies on industrial development impacts. She describes her publications on extractivism and alternative futures, emphasizing the role of anthrop...

Anna Dobritsa, Associate Professor of Molecular Genetics at the Ohio State University, discusses with David Staley the intricacies of pollen development, focusing on the unique cell walls called exine. She explains the structures, functions, and variations in exine patterns among different plant species and addresses the role of pollen in plant reproduction. She also describes the technological ad...

Sean Downey, associate professor of anthropology at The Ohio State University, discusses his research on the social and environmental dynamics of farming and foraging societies. Dr. Downey talks about his Human Complexity Lab and its work on swidden agriculture in Belize, highlights the significance of indigenous knowledge, and advocates for interdisciplinary approaches to understanding ecological...

Cynthia Young, associate professor and chair of the Ohio State University Department of African American and African Studies, discusses her vision for the department and the future of higher education. She emphasizes the importance of rethinking universities to be more accountable and relevant in the 21st century. Young creates courses that help students think critically about social issues and di...

Angus Fletcher, a professor in the Ohio State University Department of English, discusses his unconventional journey from studying neuroscience at the University of Michigan to obtaining a PhD in literature at Yale. He shares how his background in neurophysiology, which involved studying neuronal communication, informed his unique approach to literature. Listen in to hear about his experiments tha...

Tanya Berger·Wolf directs The Ohio State University’s Translational Data Analytics Institute and is a professor in the Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology. She discusses translational data analytics, interdisciplinary research, and the intersection of computer science with ecology and biology. Berger Wolf describes the importance of data analytics in addressing societal...

Professor of history Christopher McKnight Nichols is the Wayne Woodrow Hayes Chair in National Security Studies at the Ohio State University. He specializes in the history of the United States and its relationship to the rest of the world. He discusses with David Staley isolationism, internationalism, the impact of crises on societal change, the study of ideas and ideologies in history, and the co...

Professor Dorothy Noyes studies folklore from its different views in American and European contexts to its role in representing marginalized cultures and the interplay between high and low culture. Profs. Noyes and Staley discuss the idea of exemplarity and the significance of interdisciplinary collaboration in academia, drawing from her experience at the Mershon Center for International Security...

Lydia Walker, Assistant Professor and Seth Andre Myers Chair in Global Military History at The Ohio State University, researches histories of decolonization, nationalist insurgence movements, and the concept of “states in waiting”, which also serves as the title of her forthcoming book. She discusses the Nagas people, colonial historical and social structures in India, and the impact o...

Mary Thomas, Professor in the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies, and Tiyi Morris, Associate Professor in the Department of African American and African Studies, both serve as co-directors of the Ohio Prison Education Exchange Project , also known as OPEEP. They talk about the program, which has brought Ohio State students and professors together with incarcerated individual...

Sara Butler is the King George III Professor in British History and the Director for the Center for Historical Research at The Ohio State University. She specializes in medieval history and legal studies, with a focus on understanding ordinary people’s lives, particularly women, in medieval times. She challenges misconceptions about medieval society, arguing that women had significant roles...

Wayne Schlingman, Assistant Professor of Astronomy and Director of the Arne Slettebak OSU Planetarium, talks with host David Staley about the importance of the planetarium, active engagement, and learner-centered environments in educating students and the general public. He also discusses the future of immersive technology and its potentials for education, scientific, and artistic exploration. Sch...

Randolph Roth, Distinguished Professor of history and sociology at The Ohio State University, discusses the use of quantitative methods in historical research, patterns of adult homicide and child mortality, and the impact of political instability and social hierarchy on violence in America. Roth also talks on the role of women’s empowerment and gender equality in reducing child mortality an...

Shiyu Zhang, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, researches sustainability within chemistry, specifically the production of sustainable batteries made from organic material. He talks with host David Staley about his love for making new molecules, the applications of machine learning in his laboratory, and how chemistry is “kind of like cooking”. VoE &#8...

Nicholas Breyfogle, assistant professor of history and director of the Harvey Goldberg Center for Excellence in Teaching, and Bart Elmore, professor of history, discuss their recent visit to COP 28, which is the name for 2023’s United Nations Climate Change Conference that was held in Dubai. They talk about traveling across the globe with ten Ohio State students and the experience they had l...

Vladimir Kogan, professor of political science, researches the activity of school boards across the state and the country to analyze their real impact on students and the communities they preside over. He discusses the misalignment of many school board policies with the needs of students as well as his forthcoming book project with the working title “No Adult Left Behind”. VoE –...

Stevie ‘Dr. View’ Johnson, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Creative Practice in Popular Music at The Ohio State University. He joins Voices of Excellence host Prof. David Staley to discuss the origins and evolution of hip hop, the significance of the 50th anniversary of hip hop, the influence of hip hop in the South, and Dr. View’s work on the Fire in Little Africa project. The...

Brian Skinner, associate professor of physics, joins David Staley this week to talk about his wide range of research topics, ranging from quantum entanglement and its implications to the physics of crowds and basketball play-calling. VoE – Brian Skinner Download

Environmental historian Bart Elmore has spent more than a decade studying the history of one of the largest seed sellers in the world: Monsanto. This St. Louis company, which German firm Bayer bought in 2018, launched a genetic engineering revolution in agriculture over 25 years ago, introducing the first Roundup Ready crops in 1996 that could tolerate Monsanto’s signature herbicide Roundup. Liste...

Chris Knoester, Professor of Sociology and Chair of Research of the Sports and Society Initiative at Ohio State, discusses the emerging field of sports sociology and the ways in which politics, economics, patriotism and other influential forces impact the world of sports and the ways in which people perceive and enjoy them.  Chris-Knoester-Discusses-Research-on-Impact-of-Sports-in-Daily-Life_...

Philip Gleissner, Assistant Professor in the Department of Slavic and East European Languages and Cultures, specializes in the study of the culture and communication of former socialist Eastern Europe states. Gleissner discusses his latest monograph, “Soviet Circulations: A History of the Socialist Literary Journal,” and the emphasis placed on literacy as a vehicle of social mobility in parts of t...